Epic masterpieces to brand-new music, Vancouver Chamber Choir announces 2024-25 season

Highlights include Figure humaine by Francis Poulenc as well as world premieres

Artistic director Kari Turunen (centre) with the Vancouver Chamber Choir. Photo by Diamond’s Edge Photography

VANCOUVER CHAMBER CHOIR has just announced programming for the 2024-25 season, the organization’s 54th.

Kicking things off is Figure humaine, a rarely performed masterpiece by Francis Poulenc, on September 27 at Pacific Spirit United Church. It was written during the German occupation of France in 1943. “The way Poulenc balances beauty and ugliness, despair and hope in the music is nothing short of a miracle,” VCC artistic director Kari Turunen says in a release, adding that the piece’s physical demands on the artists are “akin to running a marathon”. The season opener also includes music by the choir’s new composer-in-residence, Laura Hawley, a passionate advocate of Canadian choral art.

A Choral Feast 3 returns to the Orpheum on October 19 featuring VCC and four local guest choirs. An annual event, it has become an audience favourite and features each choir performing a solo set before combining into one mega choir for the grand finale.

Path of Miracles takes place on November 8 at Pacific Spirit United Church. Last heard in 2022, this musical pilgrimage along Spain’s Camino de Santiago returns to the stage with the addition of two dancers from Belle Spirale Dance Projects.

Sounds of Finland, on November 29, is a love letter to Turunen’s homeland, while Palestrina 500 on April 11, 2025 is a 500th-birthday celebration for the famous Renaissance composer.

Other highlights include Into Light, a homecoming concert on March 7 following a two-week tour of Ontario; and Fresh Ink, a celebration of music commissioned and premiered by Turunen and the choir on May 9. The latter concert also kicks off VCC’s first self-produced recording project since Turunen’s tenure began in 2019. There are also the ever-popular Christmas by Candlelight concerts on December 12 and 13; East / West 동과서 with guest conductor and UBC faculty member Hyejung Jun on January 25; Isn’t it Romantic? on February 15; and Sonnets by the Sea on June 6 with Christopher Gaze.

Featured

Gail Johnson

Gail Johnson is cofounder of Stir. She is a Vancouver-based journalist who has earned local and national nominations and awards for her work. She is a certified Gladue Report writer via Indigenous Perspectives Society in partnership with Royal Roads University and is a member of a judging panel for top Vancouver restaurants.

Articles

Vetta Chamber Music’s 2026-27 season blends tradition with a focus on the future

In his first season as the ensemble’s artistic director, violist Hung-Wei Huang is bringing back a few familiar faces and tapping into the creativity of kids from local schools

With Lachrimae, lute virtuoso Lucas Harris explores the uplifting powers of musical melancholy

The eclectic program mixes masterpieces by Renaissance composer John Dowland and Joni MItchell at Early Music Vancouver’s Summer Festival

VIFF Live announces 2026 program of film screenings, immersive concerts, and “reworlding”

The series includes appearances by Canadian and international artists, including throat-singing duo Silla, composer Kelly Moran, and experimental rock act Xiu Xiu

Early Music Vancouver artist in residence Marc Mauillon loves the challenge of 17th-century opera

Tackling the title role in Monteverdi’s Orfeo as part of EMV’s Summer Festival requires a different approach, the French singer says—and a willingness to push beyond beautiful singing

Austin Powers swings, Andrea Superstein sings at VIFF Centre on July 25

As part of VIFF Live, Juno-nominated artist will perform a set of classic Burt Bacharach material before a screening of Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

Stir Cheat Sheet: 5 must-see acts at the Mission Folk Music Festival, July 24 to 26

Brass-band fusion, soul-stirring singer-songwriters, fiery fiddle, and more spread across the fest’s five stages on the scenic shores of the Fraser River

Music review: Main Stage highlights from Day 1 of the Vancouver Folk Music Festival

Stellar sets from Aysanabee, Hazlett, and Sahra Halgan got the 49th annual fest off to a great start, and the weather certainly didn’t hurt

Verdi, Rossini, and Puccini set to resound over Deer Lake at Opera in the Park, July 19

Conducted by Jacques Lacombe, free outdoor concert goes Italian with a team of strong soloists

Vancouver’s socially conscious Buddie on evolving its sound beyond “grunge pop”

Performing at the Eastside Arts Festival, the indie-rock band says it has no intention of being pegged as strictly a ’90s throwback

At the Vancouver Folk Music Festival, the eclectic Valerie June promises a little bit of everything

The American singer-songwriter plays rock ’n’ roll, blues, folk, gospel, and country, along with well-chosen cover versions of songs by Nick Cave, Gillian Welch, and Duran Duran

Toronto-based Nastasia Y carries on a family tradition of song and rebellion, at Mission Folk Music Festival

The Ukrainian-born performer distills influences from Slavic folk to jazz and R&B into her music, as heard on her solo debut, Kyiv Soul

Canadian singer-songwriter Aysanabee is proud to be a role model for Indigenous youth

The Vancouver Folk Music Festival performer also tells us about his kick-ass band and the pressure he has put on himself as an award-winning recording artist

Concrete Vehicles’ noise-rockers specialize in music as unique as their band’s name

Intellectual-property disputes behind it, the project formerly known as Computer plays the Burrard Stage at this year’s Khatsahlano Street Party

Modern Biology is a conduit for the music of the forest, at Indian Summer Festival on July 13

For Tarun Nayar’s performance at VanDusen Botanical Garden, the festival invites attendees to settle in picnic-style and get into a meditative headspace

Fast-rising Punjabi singer Rashmeet Kaur is keen on eclectic sonic exploration

The Indian Summer Festival performer, who has collaborated with Major Lazer and contributed to Bollywood soundtracks, has forged some creative links to Canada’s West Coast

The sounds of Star Wars and Beethoven hit the waterfront at Symphony at Sunset, July 11

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra moves its wildly popular, free outdoor concert to David Lam Park this year

Stir Cheat Sheet: Beach concerts to artisan market, 5 happenings to hit at Harrison Festival of the Arts

Hawksley Workman, plus mesmerizing cultural melds from El Balcón, Benin International Musical, and more

Vancouver’s Uncle Strut is doing its part to make guitar solos, and moustaches, cool again

Headlining the Khatsahlano Street Party’s Burrard Stage, the fast-rising band is unafraid to spice up its surf-inspired indie rock with country, funk, and Latin elements

Celebrate Canada Day through events at these July 1 events around Metro Vancouver

From Cloverdale to West Vancouver and all points in between, festivities span live music, drumming, kids’ activities, and no shortage of national pride