This Composer's Mandate
You’ve been there too.
You were listening to music when it happened. Somehow that combination of rhythm, harmony, texture, and insight resonated so strongly that it somehow took you out of yourself. You were surprised to have such broadened emotion while existing in a single body. You were “swept away”, “transported”, you were expanded and connected in a way you would have thought inconceivable mere moments before.
This feeling - in its many forms - drives me to do what I do. To cobble together stories and tones, resonance and pitch, syllables and strength. To build music in the hope that others will breathe it to life, and the music will find your ear.
This is my only goal: to create an opportunity for performers and engagers (audience) to experience this heightened expansion and connection. It may not be easy and I may not always get it right, but it remains this composer’s mandate.
-Dan Wiebe
Short Bio
Having arranged music for ensembles such as Camerata Nova, Prairie Voices, and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Dan has proven himself to be a sensitive orchestrator, using powerful emotions as cornerstones for all of his musical architecture. Now Dan has turned his focus to creating choral works as timeless and moving as they are accessible and endearing. His lyric sensibility and emotive drive will make sure that Dan makes his mark on the Canadian choral scene. |
Long Bio
Born in 1983, Dan Wiebe began his musical career early, conducting Brahms' symphony no. 4 a few years later, standing in front of the speakers at his parents house in Winnipeg, Canada, using nothing but his youthful exuberance and powerful imagination. Now fully grown, these traits (along with hard work and training in music theory) have served Dan well as a performer, arranger, and composer, leading him to conduct a real symphony orchestra in 2017. He was commissioned by indie pop band Royal Canoe to arrange their album for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and performed it in its entirety to a full house at the Winnipeg Centennial Concert Hall, resulting in an enthusiastic standing ovation.
Dan is a musician with the ability to delight crowds from the stage with his performances as well as charm and entertain them with his moving choral and instrumental arrangements from behind the scenes. As a performer, he has played bassoon with the Winnipeg Youth Symphony Orchestra, sung with the Winnipeg Singers, and toured internationally with folk band House of Doc. His choral arrangements as performed by Prairie Voices and Camerata Nova have been universally adored by audiences. For years, Dan's arrangements for choirs, brass bands, and string quartets were an integral part of rock band Quinzy's annual Quinzmas extravaganza.
Now, Dan is focussing his tremendous talents on creating original choral works that are as timeless and moving as they are accessible and endearing. Dan Wiebe is an exciting new composer who will doubtless leave an indelible mark on the Canadian choral scene.
Born in 1983, Dan Wiebe began his musical career early, conducting Brahms' symphony no. 4 a few years later, standing in front of the speakers at his parents house in Winnipeg, Canada, using nothing but his youthful exuberance and powerful imagination. Now fully grown, these traits (along with hard work and training in music theory) have served Dan well as a performer, arranger, and composer, leading him to conduct a real symphony orchestra in 2017. He was commissioned by indie pop band Royal Canoe to arrange their album for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and performed it in its entirety to a full house at the Winnipeg Centennial Concert Hall, resulting in an enthusiastic standing ovation.
Dan is a musician with the ability to delight crowds from the stage with his performances as well as charm and entertain them with his moving choral and instrumental arrangements from behind the scenes. As a performer, he has played bassoon with the Winnipeg Youth Symphony Orchestra, sung with the Winnipeg Singers, and toured internationally with folk band House of Doc. His choral arrangements as performed by Prairie Voices and Camerata Nova have been universally adored by audiences. For years, Dan's arrangements for choirs, brass bands, and string quartets were an integral part of rock band Quinzy's annual Quinzmas extravaganza.
Now, Dan is focussing his tremendous talents on creating original choral works that are as timeless and moving as they are accessible and endearing. Dan Wiebe is an exciting new composer who will doubtless leave an indelible mark on the Canadian choral scene.