Congratulations to Tawnie Olson (YSM M.M. ’99, ISM A.D. ’00), who will be the Vancouver Chamber Choir’s Composer-in-Residence for the 2026-2027 season. The VCC will perform her music throughout the year, beginning with her Grace Cathedral Missa Brevis (2025) on the first concert of the season, and has commissioned a substantial new piece that they will premiere in May, 2027.
Alumna named composer-in-residence for Vancouver Chamber Choir
Tawnie Olson
Led by Artistic Director Kari Turunen since 2019, the Vancouver Chamber Choir was founded in 1971 by John Washburn, and is Canada’s longest-running professional chorus. The choir has performed countless concerts and broadcasts, released 36 recordings, and received numerous awards, including Chorus America’s Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence.
Previous accomplishments by Olson include winning the 2021–2023 National Opera Association Dominick Argento Chamber Opera Composition Competition for her opera Sanctuary and Storm (libretto by Roberta Barker), the 2019 Copland House Residency Award, the 2018 Barlow Prize, and the 2015 Iron Composer Competition.