‘Classical Collaborations’ mixes musical and aerial silk performances in Squamish

The Howe Sound Performing Arts Association (HSPAA) is putting on its last spring concert, and this one will have more than just music to soothe the soul.

Classical Collaborations will feature combined musical performances by several Sea to Sky musicians alongside aerial silk performances by other local performers. The show occurs at St. John the Divine Anglican Church at 1930 Diamond Rd on Saturday, April 20. The doors will open at 7:30 p.m., and the show should start at approximately 8 p.m.

Veronica McPhee, board member with HSPAA and a performer in the upcoming show, said the idea was born from conversations with another board member, Louise Robinson, who had experience in aerial silks.

“It came out as a great idea to combine this form of artistic movement with our classical concert,” McPhee said, adding the association has been making more attempts over the last year to include performing arts alongside music.

Emma Bishop and Robinson will be the two silk aerialists at the show. Musicians will include Andrea Cotter, Julie Murakami, and Saša Malek on piano, Barb Cooke on violin, Katie Coombs on clarinet, and Sandra Ashmore on oboe. Kayla Mak and McPhee will sing, and the Sea to Sky Youth Orchestra, led by Yuko Iwanaga, will also participate.

“In this one concert, I feel it's going to be really accessible for a lot of people because there's so much variety,” said McPhee. “And chances are extremely high that everyone in the audience will know someone who's on the stage because our community is just built like that.”

McPhee said many of the musicians and performers will share the stage in ensembles, some of which will overlap throughout the concert. Some of these ensembles grew naturally out of previous gatherings for classical musicians.

“Earlier in the season, we had a meetup and we encouraged classical musicians to come in and meet with each other and, in that casual setting … a few people made themselves into ensembles, which was really delighting,” said McPhee. “It was a very organic kind of growth.”

Classical Collaborations will be the last concert for the HSPAA until the fall, as McPhee said they will take the summer to plan future ideas and lineups. Tickets for the show are currently available for $25 online at howesoundarts.tickit.ca.