Julia Wedman, violin/leader

Originally from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, baroque violinist Julia Wedman joined the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra in 2005 and quickly developed a reputation for her solo performances. She is regularly showcased on the orchestra’s home series and on tours throughout Canada, the U.S.A., Mexico, Puerto Rico, Australia, New Zealand, China, Korea and Japan. The Globe and Mail describes her playing as “extraordinarily intuitive,” “highly communicative,” and, her personal favourite, “zesty”! As a student, she developed a passion for historically informed performance, inspired by her work at Indiana University with baroque violinist Stanley Ritchie, as well as studies at the University of Western Ontario and the University of Toronto.

Julia is a member of the innovative baroque ensemble I FURIOSI. In addition to their successful Toronto concert series, IF has performed at music festivals in Canada, the U.S.A, Germany, England and Ireland. She is also one quarter of the Eybler Quartet, a period instrument group who specialize in excellent and underrated Classical works. Their recordings include music by their namesake Joseph Leopold Edler von Eybler, Haydn, Mozart, Backofen, Vanhal, Beethoven’s Op. 18 quartets and most recently the premier recording of Asplmayr’s Op. 2.

Over the past few years, Julia has become increasingly sought after as a teacher and coach. In addition to teaching privately, at the University of Toronto and at Tafelmusik’s Summer and Winter Institutes, she has taught classes at the Guildhall School for Music and Drama (London, England), the University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon), the University of Western Ontario (London), Queens University (Kingston), and Fredonia University (NY), the Eastman School of Music (Rochester, NY), and Penn State (State College, PA). She was also on faculty at the Banff Centre for the Arts as part of their groundbreaking new program EQ: Evolution of the String Quartet with the Eybler Quartet, Parker Quartet and JACK Quartet in 2018 and 2019.

Julia’s debut solo recording of Biber’s Mystery Sonatas (Sonoluminus) was released in the spring of 2011 and has received rave reviews. The CD was featured in Gramophone magazine, which read “Rather exceptionally, one suspects, Wedman has approached Biber’s music as a true pilgrim, interpreting key moments in the life of Christ thoughtfully, vividly and with evident personal humility and warmth. Her performances exude humanity and have about them a radiance that somehow transcends the sound of her lovely 1694 instrument.”

Recent performance highlights include guest concertmaster/solo debuts with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (London) and the Orchestra of the 18th Century (Amsterdam).
Julia has been focusing intensively on the performance of J.S. Bach’s music both in recital and as part of the exciting new Toronto Bach Festival, directed by Tafelmusik oboist John Abberger. She is also midway through a three-year cycle of Bach’s solo violin music in collaboration with the fantastically expressive dancer Brian Solomon for the Gallery Players of Niagara.

Mark McDonald, organ

Mark McDonald is an organist, harpsichordist, and choral director based in Victoria. Recognized for his sensitive interpretations of a wide range of repertoire and styles from early music to the avant garde, his recent engagements have included performances at the Pacific Baroque Festival, Edmonton’s Winspear Centre, and St Mark’s Cathedral, Seattle.

Laureate of several international competitions, he was the third-prize winner of the prestigious Arp Schnitger International Organ Competition in Hamburg Germany in 2014. He has also received wide acclaim for his recording of Holst’s The Planets transcribed for organ by Peter Sykes which was a featured broadcast at the Royal Canadian College of Organists’ National Festival in 2020. His diverse career has included performances with orchestras (NYO Canada, McGill Symphony Orchestra, Victoria Symphony), early music ensembles (Victoria Baroque, Camerata Nova), and even Cirque du Soleil.

He holds degrees and diplomas from McGill University, Queen’s University and the University of the Arts Bremen. He presently serves as Instructor of Organ at the University of Victoria and as Assistant Director of Music at Christ Church Cathedral in Victoria, one of Canada’s leading centres for Anglican choral music and education.