Elektra performs enchanting composition The Lost Words: A Spell Book, March 8 and 9

Immersive work by 10 composers draws inspiration from bestselling book by nature writer Robert Macfarlane and illustrator Jackie Morris

Vancouver’s acclaimed and award-winning Elektra presents The Lost Words: A Spell Book, an unforgettable musical journey, on March 8 and 9 at Pacific Spirit United Church. This evocative performance draws inspiration from the bestselling book by renowned nature writer Robert Macfarlane and talented illustrator Jackie Morris to create a world of wonder and whimsy.

With the soaring voices of Elektra, expressive works by 10 distinguished Canadian composers, stunning projections of illustrations from the book, mesmerizing spoken-word interpretations by theatre artist Laara Sadiq, and an ensemble of six talented Vancouver-based instrumentalists, The Lost Words offers an unmissable multi-layered experience.

This composition of 20 distinct movements transcends mere performance; it is a heartfelt celebration of art’s ability to rekindle childhood wonder. As soaring vocals harmonize with spellbinding melodies, spoken words resonate with meaning, and stunning watercolour projections grace the stage, audiences will find themselves transported into realms of imagination and natural beauty.

The Lost Words: A Spell Book premiered in 2022; it is Elektra’s most ambitious commissioned work to date, and a significant addition to the repertoire for treble choirs. It was composed by Carmen Braden, Alex Eddington, Nicholas Ryan Kelly, Katerina Gimon, Ramona Luengen, Don Macdonald, Monica Pearce, Marie-Claire Saindon, Rodney Sharman, and Stephen Smith.

Elektra invites audience members to partake in a program of music that promises not just entertainment, but the immersive discovery of an enchanting world. The artists involved will join forces to rekindle nature’s magic and marvel at the transformative power of music—it’s an adventure that will linger in the minds of viewers long after the final note fades away.

Vancouver’s Elektra is known for its brilliant programming, multidisciplinary initiatives, and spellbinding performances under the direction of co-founder and artistic director Morna Edmundson, and has been a groundbreaking ensemble since its founding as a women’s choir in 1987. In 2024, Elektra expanded its embrace to welcome all adult-treble voices, celebrating a diverse and gender-inclusive community of singers.

A pre-concert talk will take place 30 minutes prior to the start of each performance. For tickets to see The Lost Words: A Spell Book and more details, visit Elektra.

Post sponsored by Elektra.

Featured

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra announces first European tour in April

Stops include a three-night residency at Austria’s Salzburg Easter Festival, as well as Croatia, Slovenia, Liechtenstein, and Germany

Rising German piano star Julius Asal makes his Canadian debut with the Vancouver Recital Society, February 8

Among the 28-year-old’s recent achievements is winning the Terence Judd-Hallé Award for young pianists on the cusp of international fame

Cosí fan tutte gets a vintage-Canadian refresh under director Robert Herriot at Vancouver Opera

The Winnipeg artist brings experience as a tenor to a Mozart opera reimagined in a 1930s Rockies resort, complete with Mounties and log drivers

Shadbolt Centre hosts Burnaby Lyric Opera’s The Barber of Seville this February

Romance, deception, and mistaken identities abound in Gioachino Rossini’s beloved comic masterpiece

Theatre review: You’re Just a Place That I Know is a moving musical reflection on family and memory

Based on Adrian Glynn McMorran’s album of the same name, the show at the Arts Club’s BMO Theatre Centre is more than just a concert

Cellist Henry Shapard plays Prokofiev with the VSO at Beethoven’s Eroica, February 20 to 22

Han-Na Chang conducts Beethoven’s revolutionary Third Symphony

Corey Payette spotlights songs from his acclaimed musicals at Closest Thing to Home, January 28

The renowned theatre artist and composer offers a stirring collection of tunes from acclaimed shows such as Children of God and Starwalker

Ghanaian music scholar Kofi Gbolonyo leads upbeat Celebrate Africa! event at BlueShore at CapU, January 30

Long-time UBC and CapU faculty member puts on a show featuring dozens of local musicians, plus vocalists Dawn Pemberton and Khari McClelland

Collaboration opens new sonic horizons for jazz guitarist Jocelyn Gould

The Winnipeg-based artist looks forward to onstage exchanges with diverse musical peers on International Guitar Night

You're the Top! brings the songs of Cole Porter to the Anvil Theatre, February 14

Event hosted by Michael van den Bos features Hollywood film projections and live music by the Laura Crema Sextet

Vancouver New Music hosts Artifacts I: Zero Input Enclosure Movement, February 14

Sonic architecture of Winnipeg’s AO Roberts explores the interplay of performance, installation, and layered auditory experiences

Folk-rooted string quartet the Fretless finds a voice in singer-songwriter Madeleine Roger

Collaborating with vocalists taught the acclaimed, formerly all-instrumental group new ways of listening and working

UBC Opera performs Leonard Bernstein’s satirical operetta Candide, February 5 to 8

Rarely presented in Vancouver, the production blends musical theatre and opera with a philosophically rooted storyline

Ariel Barnes brings nomadic spirit and intense curiosity to classic and contemporary cello works

The adventurous artist sees his upcoming program with Vetta Chamber Music as a way of expressing music’s power to console and cheer, even in dark times

Ralph Moore Quartet headlines sixth edition of Jazz at the Bolt, February 13 to 15

Hosted by the Cellar Music Group at the Shadbolt Centre, festival opens with a special concert by the Vancouver Jazz Orchestra with Champian Fulton and Klas Lindquist

Vancouver Chamber Choir concludes 46th annual Conductors' Symposium with Neighbo(u)rs, February 13

Five emerging conductors lead a program of pieces by both Canadian and American composers, from Amy Beach to Stuart Beatch

You’re Just a Place That I Know retraces a refugee story through song, at the BMO Theatre Centre from January 21 to February 1

Adrian Glynn McMorran’s moving theatre-concert pays tribute to his Ukraine-born grandparents, complete with a choir and traditional instruments

Stir Cheat Sheet: 5 shows to startle and spellbind at PuSh International Performing Arts Festival

Productions that “push” forms include dance works that play with props and stereotypes, as well as ethereal odes to nature and the northern lights

Violinist Gil Shaham joins the VSO for Brahms & Tchaikovsky 5, February 13 and 14

Musician rises to the challenge of Brahms’s sole Violin Concerto on program that also features guest conductor Han-Na Chang

Vancouver Chamber Choir performs Timothy Takach’s nature-rooted multimedia piece We Are Phoenix, January 24

Under the inspiring title I Fall, I Rise, the concert also features the Focus post-secondary choir and winners of the Young Composers’ Competition

Fierce fiddling to contra dance, as Festival du Bois unveils program for March 6 to 8

Aleksi Campagne, Bagatelle, Nicolas Pellerin et les Grands Hurleurs, and the Jocelyn Pettit Band are among offerings at celebration of Maillardville’s francophone roots