7;30 p.m. April 2nd 2025
CMU's Laudamus Auditorium
~ Thank you Winnipeg Baroque Festival! ~
PROGRAMME
Trio Leonarda
Elation Pauls violin, Alyssa Ramsay cello, Leanne Regehr Lee keyboards
with Lara Ciekiewicz, Soprano
The Messiah, HWV 56 Part II: Aria: How beautiful are the feet
G.F. Handel (1685-1759)
Lara Ciekiewicz soprano, Trio Leonarda
Sonata violin solo representativa in A Major
H. I. F. Biber (1644-1704)
Allegro. Nachtigal, Cu Cu, Fresch, Adagio, Die Henn-Allegro, Der Hann,
Presto, Die Wachtigal-Adagio, Die Katz, Musquetir Mars, Allemande
Trio Leonarda
Sonata No. 3 for Violin and Keyboard in E Major BWV 1016
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
I. Adagio IV. Allegro
Elation Pauls violin, Leanne Regehr Lee piano
Cantata BWV 204 Ich bin in mir vergnügt
Aria : Die Schätzbarkeit der weiten Erden
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
Lara Ciekiewicz soprano, Trio Leonarda
~ Intermission ~
Cello Suite No. 3 in C Major BWV 1009
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
IV. Sarabande VI. Gigue
Alyssa Ramsay cello
Sonata No. XVI Duodecima a Violino Solo, Op. 16
Isabella Leonarda (1620-1704)
I. Adagio II. Allegro e presto III. Vivace e largo
IV. Spiritoso-Adagio IV. Aria : Allegro V. Veloce
Trio Leonarda
Neun Deutsche Arien
G.F. Handel (1685-1759)
No. 3 Süßer Blumen Ambarflokken HWV 204
No. 4 Süße Stille, sanfte Quelle HWV 205
No. 9 Flammende Rose, Zierde der Erden HWV 210
Lara Ciekiewicz soprano, Trio Leonarda
Trio Leonarda
Elation Pauls violin, Alyssa Ramsay cello, Leanne Regehr Lee keyboards
with Lara Ciekiewicz, Soprano
The Messiah, HWV 56 Part II: Aria: How beautiful are the feet
G.F. Handel (1685-1759)
Lara Ciekiewicz soprano, Trio Leonarda
Sonata violin solo representativa in A Major
H. I. F. Biber (1644-1704)
Allegro. Nachtigal, Cu Cu, Fresch, Adagio, Die Henn-Allegro, Der Hann,
Presto, Die Wachtigal-Adagio, Die Katz, Musquetir Mars, Allemande
Trio Leonarda
Sonata No. 3 for Violin and Keyboard in E Major BWV 1016
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
I. Adagio IV. Allegro
Elation Pauls violin, Leanne Regehr Lee piano
Cantata BWV 204 Ich bin in mir vergnügt
Aria : Die Schätzbarkeit der weiten Erden
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
Lara Ciekiewicz soprano, Trio Leonarda
~ Intermission ~
Cello Suite No. 3 in C Major BWV 1009
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
IV. Sarabande VI. Gigue
Alyssa Ramsay cello
Sonata No. XVI Duodecima a Violino Solo, Op. 16
Isabella Leonarda (1620-1704)
I. Adagio II. Allegro e presto III. Vivace e largo
IV. Spiritoso-Adagio IV. Aria : Allegro V. Veloce
Trio Leonarda
Neun Deutsche Arien
G.F. Handel (1685-1759)
No. 3 Süßer Blumen Ambarflokken HWV 204
No. 4 Süße Stille, sanfte Quelle HWV 205
No. 9 Flammende Rose, Zierde der Erden HWV 210
Lara Ciekiewicz soprano, Trio Leonarda
LYRICS
The Messiah, HWV 56 Part II: Aria: How beautiful are the feet
G.F. Handel (1685-1759)
How beautiful are the feet
Of them that preach
The gospel of peace
And bring glad tidings
Glad tidings of good things.
Cantata BWV 204 Ich bin in mir vergnügt
Aria : Die Schätzbarkeit der weiten Erden
J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
Die Schätzbarkeit der weiten Erden
Laß meine Seele ruhig sein.
Bei dem kehrt stets der Himmel ein,
Der in der Armut reich kann werden.
Earthly treasures
Desireth not my soul
For heaven will always return
To those who seek riches above.
Neun Deutsche Arien
G.F. Handel (1685-1759)
No. 3 Süßer Blumen Ambarflokken HWV 204
Süßer Blumen Ambraflocken,
euer Silber soll mich locken
dem zum Ruhn, der euch gemacht.
Da ihr fallt, will ich mich schwingen
himmelwärts und den besinge,
der die Welt hervorgebracht.
Amber flakes of sweet flowers,
Your silver shall entice me to the
Renown of him who made you.
When you fall, I will swing myself
Heavenwards and praise in song
Him, who created the world.
No. 4 Süße Stille, sanfte Quelle HWV 205
Süße Stille, sanfte Quelle
ruhiger Gelassenheit!
Selbst die Seele wird erfreut,
wenn ich mir nach dieser Zeit
arbeitsamer Eitelkeit
jene Ruh vor Augen stelle,
die uns ewig ist bereit.
Sweet peace, placid well
Of calm repose!
Even my very soul is gladdened,
When after this time of
Vain industry
I shall put that peace before me
Which is always in readiness for us.
No. 9 Flammende Rose, Zierde der Erden HWV 210
Flammende Rose, Zierde der Erden,
Glänzender Gärten bezaubernde Pracht!
Augen, die Deine Vortrefflichkeit sehen,
müssen vor Anmut erstaunend gestehen,
daß Dich ein göttlicher Finger gemacht.
Flaming rose, ornament of the earth,
Magic magnificence of gleaming gardens!
Eyes which see your greatness
Must gracefully with astonishment confess
That a divine hand has made you.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES
Guest Soprano - Lara Ciekiewicz
Hailed for her “tour-de-force performance” (Winnipeg Free Press) in the title role of Manitoba Opera’s Susannah, Lara has established herself as a dynamic, intelligent, and moving singing-actress. Her facility for fully transforming into a character, regardless of genre, has earned her the reputation of being an artistic chameleon.
This season sees Lara rejoin Opera on the Avalon for their world première of Kaminsky and Moore’s February in the role of Bartender. She subsequently makes role and house debuts as Mother Abbess in The Sound of Music for both the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and The Citadel Theatre. Lara also returns to her Manitoba Opera family as Micaëla in Carmen.
Recent appearances include covering Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte at Pacific Opera Victoria, soloing with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra for Brahms’ Requiem and Dvořák’s Te Deum, Manitoba Opera’s 50th Anniversary Gala, Countess in Fargo-Moorhead Opera’s Le nozze di Figaro, Beatrice in the Canadian première of Heggie’s Three Decembers as well as a solo recital for the Little Opera Company, Musetta in Edmonton Opera’s La bohème, a New Year’s Gala with the Victoria Symphony, Elle in Manitoba Opera’s La voix humaine, and Open Air: A Summer Festival of Music for Pacific Opera Victoria and the Victoria Symphony.
Select additional credits (and collaborators) include: Jenůfa/Jenůfa, Amelia/Simon Boccanegra; Lauretta/Gianni Schicchi and Suor Genovieffa/Suor Angelica in Il Trittico (Pacific Opera Victoria); Tatyana/Eugene Onegin (Calgary Opera); Countess/Le nozze di Figaro (Edmonton Opera, Manitoba Opera, Vancouver Opera); Rosalinde/Die Fledermaus, Sylva/The Gypsy Princess (Toronto Operetta Theatre); Micaëla/Carmen (Fargo-Moorhead Opera, Opera Kelowna, Opera Lyra Ottawa); Musetta/La Bohème (Manitoba Opera, Opéra de Montréal); Handel’s Messiah (Victoria Symphony); Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (Boise Philharmonic, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra); May/Ours, Cinderella/Into the Woods, Maria/The Sound of Music (Opera on the Avalon).
TRIO LEONARDA
Elation Pauls, Violin
As Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the Rosamunde Summer Music Academy and Festival, violinist Elation Pauls enjoys bringing international caliber mentoring and artistry to the heart of Canada every August.
A well-travelled musician, she has performed in many of the major concert halls of North America and Europe, including Carnegie Hall (New York), Jordan Hall (Boston), Herbst Theatre (San Francisco), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Leiszhalle (Hamburg) and at the Philharmonie (Berlin). 2019 brought Elation back to her home province for concerts and master classes with the Rosamunde Festival Players at the University of Saskatchewan and University of Regina's Conservatory of Performing Arts. In January of 2018 she was awarded Professional Development Grants from the Winnipeg Arts Council and Manitoba Arts Council for a week-long residency in Israel. In spring of 2023 the Canada Council for the Arts awarded Elation with an "Explore and Create" grant for the SUSTENANCE project which will see the creation of new repertoire for solo violin and violin and piano culminating in her debut album alongside pianists Serouj Kradjian and David Braid to be released in spring of 2025 on the SPEKTRAL label.
Having served as Assistant Principal Second Violin with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra since 2009, Elation is in constant demand for her expressive solo and chamber music performances at such venues as Agassiz Festival, Women's Musical Club of Winnipeg, Red Haus LIVE, Canzona, Virtuosi and the Winnipeg Chamber Music Society, as well as the WSO's mywso.tv online subscription series, the New Music Festival, Brandon Chamber Players, Canadian Mennonite University, and the University of Manitoba. She has enjoyed collaborating with artists such as Andrew Wan, Erika Raum, Yosuke Kawasaki, Ariel Barnes, Paul Marleyn, David Harding and Martin Roscoe and has premiered many chamber works. As well as playing in the Kammerphilharmonie Berlin-Brandenburg, Windsor Symphony Orchestra, Hamilton Philharmonic, and the Hamburger Symphoniker directed by Andrey Boreyko and Jeffrey Tate, she has performed as a soloist with the Neinstedt Chamber Players (Germany), Spiritosi Strings, Banff Festival Chamber Orchestra, Rosamunde Festival Orchestra and the Mooredale Concerto Players in Toronto. In fall of 2019 she collaborated with Polycoro Chamber Choir, performing Bach’s Ciaconna where “she played with heart and soul, her violin carrying us into another realm with the singers’ chorales…deeply moving.” (Holly Harris, WFP)
Alyssa Ramsay, Cello
Originally from Regina, SK, cellist Alyssa Ramsay has performed across Canada in orchestral, chamber and soloist capacities. She has played in the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, and the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. Alyssa is an active chamber music performer, touring the prairies annually with the Crimson String Quartet (Crimson Sunrise 2012).
Some career highlights include participating at a Prairie Wind & Silver Sage Artist Residency; being on faculty at the Prairie Cello Summer Institute in Regina (2015-2017); collaborating and touring with bands including Winnipeg’s Heavy Bell, Toronto’s Sina Bathaie, and the innovative Shaw Street Collective (Grasslands 2016). She won the Regina Musical Club’s Recital Competition in 2016.
Alyssa Ramsay received a Bachelor of Music with Distinction from the University of Calgary with John Kadz, a Master of Music from l’Université de Montréal with Johanne Perron, and an Artist Diploma at The Glenn Gould School in Toronto with Andres Diaz and Desmond Hoebig. She is a Certified Suzuki Cello Teacher and has been teaching privately for over 10 years.
Leanne Regehr Lee, Keyboard
Leanne has loved playing piano for as long as she can remember. Graduating with distinction from the University of Manitoba, Leanne earned Bachelor of Music (piano) and Bachelor of Education (senior years choral music) degrees, and has taught music in Winnipeg and Nottingham, England. She is a Manitoba Registered Music Teacher and a certified teacher with the Royal Conservatory of Music for Elementary, Intermediate, and Advanced levels of piano.
Leanne is an in-demand teacher, adjudicator, clinician, and collaborative pianist. Enjoying a full teaching studio of motivated and creative students, Leanne strives to create a community where students are supported and challenged to pursue high levels of musical excellence. She has recently expanded her studio to include a pedagogy program for aspiring piano teachers and is a sessional Piano Pedagogy & Studio Teaching Techniques instructor at the Canadian Mennonite University.
Leanne performs regularly with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, as well as many other professional and amateur musicians. She is on faculty at the Rosamunde Summer Music Academy and is the pianist for Winnipeg’s Festival Chorus. Leanne is also the conductor of the Winnipeg Sonora Voices’ Singers, an auditioned choir for high school singers.
When she’s not teaching or playing piano, Leanne enjoys outdoor activities and exploring new places with her husband Garth, a luthier, and their teenage twins.
Guest Soprano - Lara Ciekiewicz
Hailed for her “tour-de-force performance” (Winnipeg Free Press) in the title role of Manitoba Opera’s Susannah, Lara has established herself as a dynamic, intelligent, and moving singing-actress. Her facility for fully transforming into a character, regardless of genre, has earned her the reputation of being an artistic chameleon.
This season sees Lara rejoin Opera on the Avalon for their world première of Kaminsky and Moore’s February in the role of Bartender. She subsequently makes role and house debuts as Mother Abbess in The Sound of Music for both the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and The Citadel Theatre. Lara also returns to her Manitoba Opera family as Micaëla in Carmen.
Recent appearances include covering Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte at Pacific Opera Victoria, soloing with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra for Brahms’ Requiem and Dvořák’s Te Deum, Manitoba Opera’s 50th Anniversary Gala, Countess in Fargo-Moorhead Opera’s Le nozze di Figaro, Beatrice in the Canadian première of Heggie’s Three Decembers as well as a solo recital for the Little Opera Company, Musetta in Edmonton Opera’s La bohème, a New Year’s Gala with the Victoria Symphony, Elle in Manitoba Opera’s La voix humaine, and Open Air: A Summer Festival of Music for Pacific Opera Victoria and the Victoria Symphony.
Select additional credits (and collaborators) include: Jenůfa/Jenůfa, Amelia/Simon Boccanegra; Lauretta/Gianni Schicchi and Suor Genovieffa/Suor Angelica in Il Trittico (Pacific Opera Victoria); Tatyana/Eugene Onegin (Calgary Opera); Countess/Le nozze di Figaro (Edmonton Opera, Manitoba Opera, Vancouver Opera); Rosalinde/Die Fledermaus, Sylva/The Gypsy Princess (Toronto Operetta Theatre); Micaëla/Carmen (Fargo-Moorhead Opera, Opera Kelowna, Opera Lyra Ottawa); Musetta/La Bohème (Manitoba Opera, Opéra de Montréal); Handel’s Messiah (Victoria Symphony); Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (Boise Philharmonic, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra); May/Ours, Cinderella/Into the Woods, Maria/The Sound of Music (Opera on the Avalon).
TRIO LEONARDA
Elation Pauls, Violin
As Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the Rosamunde Summer Music Academy and Festival, violinist Elation Pauls enjoys bringing international caliber mentoring and artistry to the heart of Canada every August.
A well-travelled musician, she has performed in many of the major concert halls of North America and Europe, including Carnegie Hall (New York), Jordan Hall (Boston), Herbst Theatre (San Francisco), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Leiszhalle (Hamburg) and at the Philharmonie (Berlin). 2019 brought Elation back to her home province for concerts and master classes with the Rosamunde Festival Players at the University of Saskatchewan and University of Regina's Conservatory of Performing Arts. In January of 2018 she was awarded Professional Development Grants from the Winnipeg Arts Council and Manitoba Arts Council for a week-long residency in Israel. In spring of 2023 the Canada Council for the Arts awarded Elation with an "Explore and Create" grant for the SUSTENANCE project which will see the creation of new repertoire for solo violin and violin and piano culminating in her debut album alongside pianists Serouj Kradjian and David Braid to be released in spring of 2025 on the SPEKTRAL label.
Having served as Assistant Principal Second Violin with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra since 2009, Elation is in constant demand for her expressive solo and chamber music performances at such venues as Agassiz Festival, Women's Musical Club of Winnipeg, Red Haus LIVE, Canzona, Virtuosi and the Winnipeg Chamber Music Society, as well as the WSO's mywso.tv online subscription series, the New Music Festival, Brandon Chamber Players, Canadian Mennonite University, and the University of Manitoba. She has enjoyed collaborating with artists such as Andrew Wan, Erika Raum, Yosuke Kawasaki, Ariel Barnes, Paul Marleyn, David Harding and Martin Roscoe and has premiered many chamber works. As well as playing in the Kammerphilharmonie Berlin-Brandenburg, Windsor Symphony Orchestra, Hamilton Philharmonic, and the Hamburger Symphoniker directed by Andrey Boreyko and Jeffrey Tate, she has performed as a soloist with the Neinstedt Chamber Players (Germany), Spiritosi Strings, Banff Festival Chamber Orchestra, Rosamunde Festival Orchestra and the Mooredale Concerto Players in Toronto. In fall of 2019 she collaborated with Polycoro Chamber Choir, performing Bach’s Ciaconna where “she played with heart and soul, her violin carrying us into another realm with the singers’ chorales…deeply moving.” (Holly Harris, WFP)
Alyssa Ramsay, Cello
Originally from Regina, SK, cellist Alyssa Ramsay has performed across Canada in orchestral, chamber and soloist capacities. She has played in the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, and the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. Alyssa is an active chamber music performer, touring the prairies annually with the Crimson String Quartet (Crimson Sunrise 2012).
Some career highlights include participating at a Prairie Wind & Silver Sage Artist Residency; being on faculty at the Prairie Cello Summer Institute in Regina (2015-2017); collaborating and touring with bands including Winnipeg’s Heavy Bell, Toronto’s Sina Bathaie, and the innovative Shaw Street Collective (Grasslands 2016). She won the Regina Musical Club’s Recital Competition in 2016.
Alyssa Ramsay received a Bachelor of Music with Distinction from the University of Calgary with John Kadz, a Master of Music from l’Université de Montréal with Johanne Perron, and an Artist Diploma at The Glenn Gould School in Toronto with Andres Diaz and Desmond Hoebig. She is a Certified Suzuki Cello Teacher and has been teaching privately for over 10 years.
Leanne Regehr Lee, Keyboard
Leanne has loved playing piano for as long as she can remember. Graduating with distinction from the University of Manitoba, Leanne earned Bachelor of Music (piano) and Bachelor of Education (senior years choral music) degrees, and has taught music in Winnipeg and Nottingham, England. She is a Manitoba Registered Music Teacher and a certified teacher with the Royal Conservatory of Music for Elementary, Intermediate, and Advanced levels of piano.
Leanne is an in-demand teacher, adjudicator, clinician, and collaborative pianist. Enjoying a full teaching studio of motivated and creative students, Leanne strives to create a community where students are supported and challenged to pursue high levels of musical excellence. She has recently expanded her studio to include a pedagogy program for aspiring piano teachers and is a sessional Piano Pedagogy & Studio Teaching Techniques instructor at the Canadian Mennonite University.
Leanne performs regularly with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, as well as many other professional and amateur musicians. She is on faculty at the Rosamunde Summer Music Academy and is the pianist for Winnipeg’s Festival Chorus. Leanne is also the conductor of the Winnipeg Sonora Voices’ Singers, an auditioned choir for high school singers.
When she’s not teaching or playing piano, Leanne enjoys outdoor activities and exploring new places with her husband Garth, a luthier, and their teenage twins.
© 2025 Elation Pauls