Who We Are
Etobicoke Centennial Choir (ECC) is an auditioned adult community choir that welcomes choristers, board members, musicians, audience members and volunteers from all walks of life, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, gender identities and traditions. Arising from a massed choir assembled for Etobicoke’s celebration of Canada’s Centennial in 1967, Etobicoke Centennial Choir has had a long and remarkable history. Established by an enthusiastic group of choristers who were motivated to form a permanent choir in the community, ECC has always been driven by the passion and dedication of its members.
What We Do
We aspire to enrich the cultural life of the community by promoting and sharing the glorious and uplifting experience of fine choral music. ECC provides a welcoming choral community where amateur singers can grow musically and enjoy performing together. We collaborate with other performing arts groups, and share our music through community service outreach performances. We promote choral works by Canadian composers and offer performance opportunities to local musicians, particularly emerging young performers.
What We Offer
ECC provides singers with a high-calibre, challenging but supportive choral music experience. Choristers benefit from working with a professional conductor, accompanist and vocal leads. Vocal skills and musical knowledge are developed through rehearsing and performing a diverse repertoire of sacred and secular music, ranging from classical masterpieces to contemporary choral works. We perform in a wide variety of musical genres and styles, including classical, jazz, modern, folk, spirituals and popular music. ECC’s repertoire includes works from many cultural traditions, performed in a variety of languages.
ECC usually performs three concerts per season, typically in early December, early April and early June. Rehearsals are held weekly on Tuesday evenings from September through May.
October 2021 Update
After the abrupt pandemic shutdown and a year of virtual Zoom rehearsals, Etobicoke Centennial Choir’s dedicated choristers have happily returned to rehearsing in person this season! Despite the adjustments presented by singing through masks and maintaining physical distance, we are thrilled to reconnect with old friends, welcome new members, and once again experience what choral singers love best and have missed the most – the pleasure of harmonizing and creating beautiful music together.
We are fortunate to have retained our talented professional staff – Henry Renglich, Music Director; Carl Steinhauser, accompanist; Mélissa Danis, soprano lead; Daniella Theresia, alto lead; J. Rigzin Tute, tenor lead; and David Finneran, baritone lead. Their dedication and leadership over the past year has been invaluable and inspirational. In addition, we are delighted to welcome Emily Parker to ECC as interim assistant conductor. Emily will also lend her beautiful soprano voice to the choir and as a soloist.
ECC is indebted to our skilled audio technician, Ben Ewing, whose patience and expertise enabled us to rehearse virtually and is now taking us forward into the uncharted territory of performing a live-streamed virtual concert.
We are gratified that 70% of our previous singers have remained with the choir, and that four new choristers have joined our ranks this fall.
We are looking for new singers to start in January. Weekly rehearsals are held on Tuesday evenings from 7:30-9:30 pm at Humber Valley United Church in Etobicoke. Refer to the Join Us page on our website for details.