Imant Karlis Raminsh ( Latvian: Imants Kārlis Ramiņš, born 18 September 1943) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

n descent, best known for his choral compositions. He resides in

Coldstream, British Columbia Coldstream is a district municipality in British Columbia, Canada, located at the northern end of Kalamalka Lake in the Okanagan Valley. Incorporated on December 21, 1906, Coldstream celebrated its centennial in 2006. The municipality is direct ...

Early life and education

Born in

Ventspils Ventspils (; german: Windau, ; see other names) is a state city in northwestern Latvia in the historical Courland region of Latvia, and is the sixth largest city in the country. At the beginning of 2020, Ventspils had a population of 33,906. It ...

, he came to Canada in 1948 and became a

naturalized Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

citizen in 1954. He completed an ARCT (Associate of The Royal Conservatory of Music) diploma in violin at the

Royal Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher (musician), Edward ...

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada where he was a pupil of

Albert Pratz Albert Pratz (13 May 1914 – 28 March 1995) was a Canadian violinist, conductor, composer, and music educator. He was awarded the Canadian Centennial Medal in 1967. His compositional output was modest and consists of only instrumental works. ...

. He then earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

, where he studied with

Elmer Iseler Elmer Walter Iseler, (October 14, 1927 – April 3, 1998) was a Canadian choir conductor and choral editor. He was the conductor of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and founder of the Festival Singers of Canada and the Elmer Iseler Singers. Edu ...

. He then spent two years at the Universität Mozarteum in

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, during which he studied

composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography *Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include v ...

fugue In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the c ...

, violin and

conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as an orchestral or choral concert. It has been defined as "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." The primary duti ...

Career

During his studies in Salzburg, Raminsh played in the professional Camerata Academica orchestra. He established the music department at the

College of New Caledonia The College of New Caledonia (CNC) is a post-secondary educational institution that serves the residents of the Central Interior of British Columbia. This region has a population of about 145,000, and it encompasses three school districts: #28 ( ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

and was also the founding conductor of the New Caledonia Chamber Orchestra. In 1991, Raminsh's choral work "Magnificat" was performed by the

Toronto Mendelssohn Choir The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir is a Canadian large vocal ensemble based in Toronto, Ontario. It was co-founded in 1894 by Augustus S. Vogt and W. H. Hewlett to celebrate the opening of the Massey Hall. The ensemble was originally an extension of ...

Roy Thomson Hall Roy Thomson Hall is a concert hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located downtown in the city's entertainment district, it is home to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and the Toronto Defiant. Opened in 1982, its circ ...

. At that time he was the principal violinist in the Okanagan symphony orchestra, and had also founded the Youth Symphony of the Okanagan and the Aura Chamber Choir."Raminsh taking it easy"
''Medicine Hat News'', via Newspaper Archives. January 07, 1991 - Page 15 He is a two-time winner of the biennial Canadian National Choral Awards in the category of "Outstanding Choral Work", first in 1990 for his ''Magnificat'' and again in 1994 for his ''Veni Sancte Spiritus''. He held the position of principal second violin in the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra (OSO). He also conducted the Okanagan Youth Symphony Orchestra for a number of years. In 2018 Imant Raminsh has been appointed to the Order of Canada for his contributions and achievements as a Canadian musician, conductor and composer.

Discography

*''Simple Gifts'' (1991) - "A Northwest Trilogy". Vancouver Chamber Choir, Jon Washburn (conductor). CBC Records - SMCD 5097 *''Love Songs for a Small Planet'' (1994) - "In the Night we Shall Go", "Psalm 121", and "Smile, O Voluptuous Cool-breath'd Earth". CBC Vancouver Orchestra,

Vancouver Chamber Choir The Vancouver Chamber Choir is a Canadian choir performing in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was founded in 1971 by Jon Washburn. The VCC has commissioned and premiered more than 170 new choral works in over four decades. The choir performs at h ...

, soloists

Ian Hampton Ian Hampton (born 30 July 1942) is a New Zealand cricketer. He played in fourteen first-class matches for Central Districts from 1962 to 1966. See also * List of Central Districts representative cricketers This is a list of all cricketers ...

and Linda Lee Thomas, Jon Washburn (conductor). Centrediscs - CMCCD 4893 *''Songs of the Lights'' (2000) - "Songs of the Lights". Toronto Children's Chorus, Ruth Watson Henderson and Jean Ashworth Bartle (conductors). Marquis Classics - ERAD 253 *''Choral Concert'' (2000) - "Ave Verum Corpus". *''Songs of the Lights'' (2001).

CBC Vancouver Orchestra The CBC Radio Orchestra was a Canadian orchestra based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that was operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Until the early 1980s CBC had a number of orchestras located in Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, and Hal ...

, soloist Sandra Graham, Jon Washburn (conductor). CBC Records - SMCD 5116 *''Earth Chants'' (2002). Vancouver Chamber Choir, CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Jon Washburn (conductor). CBC Records - SMCD 5219 *''Child with the Starry Crayon'' (2004) - "Deux chansons". Oriana Singers, William Brown (conductor). Independent - VA 2004-1 *''Blessed is the World that Sings'' (2005) - "Ave Verum Corpus". Cantilon Chamber Choir, Heather Johnson (conductor). Arktos Recordings - ARK 200586 *''The Nightingale'' (2005) - "The Nightingale". Glen Ellyn Children's Chorus, Kurt Ollmann et al. *''Introduction to Canadian Music'' (2006) - "Ave Verum Corpus". Vancouver Chamber Choir. Naxos - NAXOS 855017 *

Canadian classical music In Canada, classical music includes a range of musical styles rooted in the traditions of Western or European classical music that European settlers brought to the country from the 17th century and onwards. As well, it includes musical styles bro ...

References

* *

External links

Living Composers Project - Imant RaminshEncyclopedia of Music in Canada - Imant RamnishSound clips and score samples
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raminsh, Imant 1943 births Living people 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers Canadian classical composers Canadian male classical composers People from Ventspils Latvian emigrants to Canada Members of the Order of Canada The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni Mozarteum University Salzburg alumni Naturalized citizens of Canada 20th-century Canadian composers 20th-century Canadian male musicians 21st-century Canadian male musicians People from the Regional District of North Okanagan