New Works of Art Calgary Society

New Works of Art Calgary Society

New Works of Art Calgary Society. An organization incorporated in the fall of 1984 to present performances of contemporary music, including multimedia works. The society presented works by Alberta, other Canadian, and international composers with an emphasis on artists and composers of western Canada. The formation of the society resulted from positive reaction to a concert in April 1984 of works by Calgary composers. That concert, held at the Pleiades Theatre, was sponsored by John and Kathleen Snow in association with the Canadian Music Centre, and was organized to celebrate the centre's 25th anniversary. The initial board members of the society were John Snow, president; Clare Richman, vice-president; Margaret Buckmaster, secretary-treasurer; and directors Quenten Doolittle and Allan Rae. Doolittle was elected president in 1988 and Jamie Syer was artistic director 1986-9 and reassumed the position in 2003. In 1985 the society began to present from three to five concerts annually, featuring such performers as Robert Aitken, Charles Foreman, Erica Goodman, the Lyric Chamber Players, and the Purcell String Quartet. Canadian composers whose works have been included, and in some cases premiered, include Violet Archer, Allan Bell, Harry Freedman, Richard Johnston, William Jordan, Gregory Levin, and Allan Rae. Between 1990 and 1996 New Works Calgary supported a resident ensemble of Calgary musicians whose performances formed the bulk of each season's events.