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Canadian composer and conductor Stephanie Martin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Music
of the Faculty of Arts, artistic director of Pax Christi Chorale,
director of Schola Magdalena
(a women's ensemble specializing in the performance of chant and medieval polyphony), and past
director of music at the historic Church of Saint Mary Magdalene.
Martin was appointed as an Assistant
Professor in July 2004 and teaches music history and performance, harpsichord, and organ, and coaches
historical ensembles. Please visit her website and blog. 
Stephanie Martin is widely recognized as an accomplished composer of works for both voices and instruments.
Recent awards include first prize in the Exultate Chamber Singers' composition competition (2009),
and first prize in the Association of Anglican Musicians composer's competition (2010). She was
accepted as an Associate Composer of the Canadian Music Centre in 2011, and was named Composer in
Residence for the Barrie Music Festival in 2012.
Martin's cantata Winter Nights was performed in December 2012 by the Grand Philharmonic Choirs of
Kitchener, Ontario. A new choral work commissioned by the British choir Ex Cathedra,
The Portinari Nativity, on a text by Cori Martin, received seven performances in England in
December 2012, including a performance at St. John's Smith Square, London. Christ Church Cathedral,
Victoria B.C. also performed a newly commissioned work The Legend of the Bird on Dec 23, 2012.
Martin's string quartet From a distant island received its second performance by
Windermere String Quartet in April 2013. Other commissions include works for Voces Capituli,
Antwerp, Belgium; the Canadian Men's Chorus and the Summer Institute of Church Music.
As harpsichordist and organist, Martin can be heard on the Naxos, Marquis and Dorian labels, as
well as several self-produced recordings. Her love of historically informed performance was fostered
over 15 years of activity with Arbor Oak Trio, who performed hundreds of chamber music concerts and
several fully staged dramatic works, including Arne's rarely heard Love in a Village,
Locke's Cupid and Death and Gay's Beggar's Opera.
Stephanie Martin holds degrees from the University of Toronto and Wilfrid Laurier University, and she is an
Associate of the Royal Canadian College of Organists.
Pax Christi Chorale
Appointed as Artistic Director of Pax Christi Chorale in 1996, Stephanie Martin has conducted many memorable
oratorios and commissioned several new Canadian compositions. The choir performs masterworks with
full orchestra and professional soloists. Performance highlights include Elgar's The Kingdom,
The Music Makers, and The Dream of Gerontius; Britten's Saint Nicolas,
A Ceremony of Carols, and Rejoice in the Lamb; Bach's Saint John Passion,
Mass in B Minor, Christmas Oratorio, and several cantatas; Mozart's Requiem; Schubert's German Mass;
Handel's Israel in Egypt and Messiah; Brahms' A German Requiem;
Mendelssohn's Elijah and Saint Paul; Poulenc's Gloria; Finzi's In Terra Pax;
and Vaughan Williams' Hodie and Dona Nobis Pacem. In 2005 the choir commissioned a new Mass from
veteran Canadian composer Derek Holman. The choir has been broadcast on CBC radio, and has recorded
two CDs, including Seasons of the Spirit. In 2006-07
the choir celebrated its 20th anniversary.
Schola Magdalena
Martin
also directs Schola Magdalena, a
group of five women from the Church
of St. Mary Magdalene
who are dedicated to performing the music of the medieval liturgical
tradition – from Gregorian chant to Hildegard of Bingen
to the polyphonic masterpieces of Dufay.
The
five talented singers made their concert debut at the Church
of St. Theresa in Ottawa
in July 2007 as part of the colloquium of the Gregorian Institute of Canada.
Their performance garnered a standing ovation. The audience was captivated by
the ethereal and sublime unison singing as well as the striking harmonies of
the medieval tradition.
Engagements of Schola Magdalena included Nuit Blanche 2007 at St.
Thomas’s Anglican Church, a recital at the Laurier
University Chapel, Waterloo, in October 2007
and a performance at the Church of St. Mary Magdalene’s annual Festival of Chant
in November 2007 and a concert at Toronto’s
Nuit Blanche 2008 at St. Thomas’ Church. Future
engagements include an evening concert at the Church of St. Mary
Magdalene January 17th, 2009, and
the 2009 Montreal Chant Symposium.
The Church of Saint Mary Magdalene, 2007-12
In January
2007, Martin was appointed Director of Music at the Church
of Saint Mary Magdalene, an historic
Anglican church in downtown Toronto.
She oversaw a music programme which includes
Gregorian Chant, the accomplished Gallery Choir, the SMM singers, Schola
Magdalena, a resident brass ensemble and consort of viols.
On February 16th
2008, SMM hosted a “Willan
Weekend” honouring the 40th
anniversary of the death of “the Dean of Canadian composers”. At the end of November 2012,
Martin resigned from the position to focus more on her composing.
 The Gallery Choir of the Church of Saint Mary
Magdalene competed in the CBC Radio National
Competition for Amateur Choirs. In a live-to-air broadcast on April 30th,
2008, the choir won first prize in the Church Choir category. This allowed them to travel to Laval in May to participate in the Mondial
Choral Gala concert with top choirs from across Canada. One of the highlights of
the weekend’s festivities was an invitation from CBC host Gregory
Charles to sing Mass at St. Rose Church.
SMM Gallery
Choir at the Mondial Choral Gala Concert, May 18th,
2008
PHOTO Courtesy of www.doublelightproductions.com
Earlier Activities
For eleven years, Stephanie Martin was Director of Music at Toronto's Calvin
Presbyterian Church. The award-winning Calvin Choir undertook several concert tours including a Scottish
odyssey with moving performances in St. Giles’ Cathedral and isolated
Iona Abbey. The choir produced two CDs, including Reformation and
Renaissance Psalms, Motets and Dances. In
2004 the choir was a semi-finalist in the CBC Radio Amateur Choir
Competition, and in 2000 Calvin Choir was awarded second prize.
 Martin was
harpsichordist of Arbor Oak Trio
for fifteen years, spearheading rare performances of early English operas such as Love in a Village, The Beggar’s Opera, Cupid and Death, and Dido and Aeneas. Arbor Oak was Ensemble
in Residence at Massey
College, U of T for
several years. On the NAXOS label she performed on several CDs including a
disc of modern harpsichord and guitar duets by Ponce, and with Aradia
baroque ensemble. She toured universities performing with Recordare ensemble, a
renaissance wind trio. She was a frequent guest
continuo player with I FURIOSI baroque
ensemble and performs on one of their CDs. With Toronto Consort and conductor David Fallis,
she performed on the popular Christmas recording with Marquis records,
reconstructing a Vesper service in the time of Praetorius.
She also planned to record the harpsichord music of Dietrich
Buxtehude on the York
record label.
With her late husband, Bruce Kirkpatrick Hill (d. 2012), Stephanie Martin performed duet programmes
on organ and harpsichord. Performance and study took them to Paris, Amsterdam,
Gibraltar and London, as well as local Toronto recital series.
Winner of the Lillian Forsythe Award for Church Music and Leslie Bell Choral Conducting
Prize, Stephanie also studied musical in Paris,
London, Venice
and the USA.
In addition, she toured Eastern Europe and China as assistant conductor to Howard Dyck with Consort Caritatis.
Ms. Martin is also a fan of theatre
and visual art, and dabbles in Celtic harp, baseball, chess, yoga and
Scottish Country Dancing.
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