Author: meg@leaf.music

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Adam Zinatelli, Chris Sies, Chloe Weston, and Kensington Sinfonia Present Tapestries

Trumpet soloist Adam Zinatelli, composer and percussionist Chris Sies, pianist Chloe Weston, and Kensington Sinfonia, with Leaf Music, release “Tapestries” (LM314) on November 6, 2026, available digitally and on CD. Tapestries is a captivating new album featuring contemporary works for trumpet, piano, percussion, and string orchestra by Canadian composers Chris Sies, Evan Ware, Mark Limacher, and Jens Ibsen. Rooted in exploration and transformation, the album weaves together diverse musical influences – from historical composition techniques to psychedelic experience and progressive metal. The works create a richly textured portrait of the expressive possibilities of contemporary classical music. 

The album’s title piece, Chris Sies’ Tapestries, serves as its artistic centerpiece: an immersive journey through sound, colour, and memory, through experiences of psychedelia, sonic hallucination, and synesthesia. Evan Ware’s Concerto for Trumpet and Strings looks with fresh eyes at baroque sensibilities through a modern harmonic lens. Mark Limacher’s Ruminations examines the relationship between musical variation and the shifting nature of memory, inviting listeners to consider the delicate space between remembering and reimagining. Jens Ibsen’s Overdrive expands the sonic vocabulary of the string orchestra by bringing the intensity of progressive metal into the concert hall. 

Together, the works on Tapestries form a musical portrait of connection between past and present, memory and imagination, acoustic tradition and contemporary experimentation. Through bold textures, unexpected influences, and virtuosic writing for trumpet and strings, the album showcases a dynamic new chapter in Canadian contemporary composition. 

ARTISTS

ABOUT KENSINGTON SINFONIA

The Kensington Sinfonia was founded in 1988 by John Lowry, Associate Concertmaster of the Calgary Philharmonic, and freelance musicians. In 1993 Edmond Agopian was appointed Music Director of this unique professional ensemble in Calgary, and served until 2006 when the position was given to Donovan Seidle. In 2018 we welcomed Laura Reid as our fourth music director. 
 
The Sinfonia’s programs cover a wide range of chamber music and string orchestra repertoire, from the Baroque to present day. Since its inception, it has frequently commissioned works by Calgary composers, as well as presenting the Calgary premieres of many Canadian compositions. The Sinfonia has been frequently broadcast on both regional and national CBC Radio programs. It’s debut recording “Views from the Americas”, recorded by CBC Radio, has also been broadcast often. Having crossed the quarter-century mark, the Kensington Sinfonia continues to expand and innovate in its programming and its presentation. 

ABOUT ADAM ZINATELLI, TRUMPETER 

Praised as “exemplary” and “a superior trumpet player” (Calgary Herald), Adam Zinatelli is accomplished as an orchestral player, soloist, and chamber musician. He has served as Principal Trumpet of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra since 2009, and has been guest principal trumpet with the National Arts Centre Orchestra and Les Violons du Roy. Adam is a founding member of the Canadian National Brass Project and of the Reveille Trumpet Collective, a group dedicated to commissioning and performing new music for trumpet. 
 

ABOUT CHRIS SIES, COMPOSER & PERCUSSIONIST 

Living in multiple musical dimensions, percussionist and composer Chris Sies seeks to bring visceral sonic experiences to audiences through his “virtuoso flair” (Detroit Free Press) and unique voice. Chris has composed, produced, and performed with a multitude of artists and composers, collaborating in acts such as the Grammy award-winning Attacca Quartet, the Akropolis Reed Quintet, the National Arab Orchestra, Nicole Mitchell’s Black Earth Ensemble, Shara Nova’s My Brightest Diamond, Kid Millions with Man Forever, the Juno-award-nominated Land’s End Ensemble, among many others. He has performed extensively throughout North America at venues including the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Carnegie Hall, (le) poisson rouge, Princeton University, along with performances on the Vans Warped Tour, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, and the Bowling Green New Music Festival. 
 

ABOUT CHLOE WESTON, PIANIST 

Chloe Weston is a Canadian classical pianist who thrives with effervescent energy on stage sharing her love of music with audiences. A creative artist always excited about the next project she can create with friends – Chloe is on a heart-centered mission to share art and creativity through music – conjuring the magic of a shared moment in time together through live performance. Her compelling performances as soloist and chamber musician are driven by this pursuit for connection with others. She has travelled to perform across Canada, the United States, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal. 

Leaf Music is an independent classical recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Nashville, Tennessee. The label produces and distributes recordings by artists and composers from across North America, with worldwide distribution through Naxos of America. In addition to its recording activities, Leaf Music provides professional audio and video production, post-production, and integrated marketing and distribution services.  

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MEDIA CONTACT:   

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Meg Henebury 

Email: meg@leaf.music

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Leaf Music Presents New Digital Album Release from Arkora

Leaf Music and Toronto-based ensemble Arkora bring together commissioned works by Canadian, American, and Chinese composers on their album Transfigured Light,  through a compelling exploration of transformation, death and rebirth, darkness and light. Rooted in a dialogue between Renaissance vocal traditions and contemporary composition, the album reimagines the possibilities of the grand motet through microtonality, electric instrumentation, and influences spanning ambient, post-rock, jazz, and Carnatic music. The ensemble’s work explores how diverse musical traditions can converge in unexpected ways, creating performances and recordings that are as adventurous in their construction as they are evocative in their emotional impact. 

The project grew from concert programmes that paired Renaissance motets with newly commissioned works, placing centuries-old musical traditions alongside bold contemporary voices. Across Transfigured Light, intricate vocal writing meets experimental instrumentation and shifting sonic textures, creating luminous harmonic landscapes that blur the boundaries between sacred music, improvisation, electronics, and contemporary classical composition. The resulting collection is immersive and richly layered, drawing on the expressive depth of historical vocal music while embracing the exploratory spirit of the present. 

ABOUT ARKORA

Founded in 2014 by composer-bandleader Benton Roark and conductor-vocalist Kathleen Allan, Arkora is a Toronto-based polyphonic fusion consort dedicated to boundary-pushing new music. Blending chamber vocal music, contemporary classical, jazz, ambient, and post-rock, the ensemble has spent more than a decade creating and performing across North America. Their work encompasses concept albums, commissions, multidisciplinary collaborations, and large-scale performance projects, with music praised for its expressive depth, beauty, and adventurous synthesis of traditions. 

Leaf Music is an independent classical recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Nashville, Tennessee. The label produces and distributes recordings by artists and composers from across North America, with worldwide distribution through Naxos of America. In addition to its recording activities, Leaf Music provides professional audio and video production, post-production, and integrated marketing and distribution services.  

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MEDIA CONTACT:   

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Meg Henebury 

Email: meg@leaf.music

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Canadian Chamber Orchestra Release Debut Album “Where the Light Breaks”

Leaf Music and Canadian Chamber Orchestra (CCO), a Toronto-based 14-piece string ensemble, announce the release of debut album, Where the Light Breaks. Recorded at Kingston’s Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts through the IMAGINE program, the album brings together six works that move through themes of grief, memory, cultural identity, consolation, celebration, and possibility. Rather than following a predetermined concept, the repertoire took shape organically through the ensemble’s shared artistic curiosity, revealing unexpected connections between composers and musical worlds.

Featuring works by George Walker, Dinuk Wijeratne, Jocelyn Morlock, Kevin Lau, Osvaldo Golijov, and Edward Elgar, Where the Light Breaks moves between intimate reflection and visceral energy. Walker’s Lyric for Strings offers a poignant meditation on grief and memory, while Wijeratne’s Gajaga Vannama draws on Sri Lankan musical traditions to explore cultural identity and transformation. Morlock’s Solace and Lau’s Joy offer contrasting emotional perspectives, complemented by the intensity of Golijov’s Last Round and the expansive orchestral writing of Elgar’s Introduction and Allegro.

The recording also features special collaborations with composer and pianist Dinuk Wijeratne and the Rolston String Quartet, alongside performances by CCO members stepping forward as soloists. These contributions highlight the individuality of the musicians while showcasing the ensemble’s collective range and expressive possibilities. The album’s title reflects its shifting emotional landscapes, evoking the image of stained glass transformed by passing light. Each composition offers a distinct perspective, with its own colours, contrasts, and textures, inviting listeners to move between musical worlds and discover the connections that emerge.

Where the Light Breaks marks the beginning of that journey, offering an introduction to an ensemble whose artistic identity is rooted in curiosity, collaboration, and the expressive possibilities of chamber music.

ABOUT CANADIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

Founded by cellists and longtime collaborators Andrew Ascenzo and Drew Comstock, the Canadian Chamber Orchestra brings together leading Canadian musicians to create powerful, intimate, and immersive musical experiences. Based in Toronto, the ensemble explores reimagined classics, contemporary Canadian repertoire, and new commissions through a collaborative approach that places performers, composers, and audiences in dialogue. Driven by a commitment to storytelling, community, and musical innovation, the CCO is establishing a distinctive voice within Canada’s contemporary classical landscape.

Leaf Music is an independent classical recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Nashville, Tennessee. The label produces and distributes recordings by artists and composers from across North America, with worldwide distribution through Naxos of America. In addition to its recording activities, Leaf Music provides professional audio and video production, post-production, and integrated marketing and distribution services.  

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MEDIA CONTACT:   

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Meg Henebury 

Email: meg@leaf.music

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Award-winning Composer Andrew Balfour & Acclaimed Choir Dead of Winter Release nôtinikêw (I went to war)


Composer Andrew Balfour and acclaimed chamber choir Dead of Winter, under the direction of Mel Braun, present nôtinikêw (I went to war), releasing digitally on October 23, 2026, with Leaf Music (LM320). nôtinikêw is a powerful work honouring the Indigenous soldiers of the 107th Timber Wolf (Winnipeg) Battalion who served during the First World War. Through music, storytelling, and ceremony, the work sheds light on their extraordinary service and the injustices they faced upon returning home.  

In 1915, the 107th Battalion was born, under the leadership of Glenlyon Campbell, a Saskatchewan settler fluent in Cree and Ojibwe who recruited First Nations hunters from Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario. By 1916, these men were serving on the Western Front as engineers, trench builders, ammunition carriers, and snipers. Uprooted from their communities and traditions, they endured the horrors of war while distinguishing themselves through remarkable skill and resilience. 

Structured as a musical journey, nôtinikêw follows a young Indigenous soldier from enlistment to the battlefield and ultimately toward healing. Original compositions, spoken narratives, traditional songs, drumming, and Wilfred Owen’s Anthem for Doomed Youth weave together themes of sacrifice, trauma, remembrance, and the enduring strength found in ceremony and community. 

While these soldiers fought bravely for Canada, many returned to find themselves denied the benefits and recognition afforded to white veterans. By bringing their experiences to the forefront, nôtinikêw restores an often-overlooked chapter of Canadian history and invites audiences to reflect on the lasting impact of war, injustice, and reconciliation. nôtinikêw is an act of remembrance and healing. Closing with traditional drumming and a call for peace, the work honours the resilience of Indigenous veterans while amplifying stories that deserve to be heard. 

ABOUT ANDREW BALFOUR, COMPOSER 

Andrew Balfour is a self-taught Cree composer/conductor/singer/sound designer with a large body of choral, instrumental, electro-acoustic and orchestral work. Andrew specializes in creating ‘concept concerts’, many influenced by his love of Baroque and early music and infused with Indigenous subject matter and collaboration. 

ABOUT DEAD OF WINTER, CHOIR 

Dead of Winter is a vocal ensemble based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, founded in 1996 by composer Andrew Balfour. Known for innovative programming and concept concerts, the group weaves together early music, original compositions, and powerful cross-cultural storytelling, directed by conductor Mel Braun, with artistic co-direction by Mel Braun and Andrew Balfour.  

Leaf Music is an independent classical recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Nashville, Tennessee. The label produces and distributes recordings by artists and composers from across North America, with worldwide distribution through Naxos of America. In addition to its recording activities, Leaf Music provides professional audio and video production, post-production, and integrated marketing and distribution services.  

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MEDIA CONTACT:   

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Meg Henebury 

📧meg@leaf.music 

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Leaf Music & Leslie Kinton Present Beethoven: Diabelli Variations

Leaf Music and pianist Leslie Kinton announce the upcoming release of their new recording, Beethoven Diabelli Variations (LM319), in digital and physical formats. This marks the first solo recording for acclaimed pianist Leslie Kinton, who is one half of the renowned Anagnoson & Kinton Piano Duo. 

Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations in C Major, Op. 120 consists of 33 variations on a waltz originally composed by Anton Diabelli. Diabelli sent his short waltz theme to the leading composers of the day, including Schubert, Liszt, Czerny and Beethoven, who initially rejected the piece as a “Schusterfleck,” a “cobbler’s patch.” Eventually he changed his mind, writing not one variation but an entire set of thirty-three, the culmination of his work for the piano. The result is often regarded as the greatest set of piano variations ever written, acknowledged by Diabelli himself as comparable only to Bach’s Goldberg Variations.

Composed between 1819 and 1823, Beethoven titled the work “Transformations” instead of the more typical “Variations.” He stays with Diabelli’s C major for most of the set, except for C minor for Variations 9 and 29-31 and E flat major for the triple fugue in Variation 32. This dramatic impact is followed by Variation 33, a closing minuet, back in C major. Leslie Kinton portrays the piece as grouped into four main sections, each ending with a distinct sense of closure, concluding with a “visionary affirmation.” 

ABOUT LESLIE KINTON

Toronto-born Leslie Kinton studied piano with Pierre Souvairan and composition with Samuel Dolin. He later continued piano studies in New York with Jeaneane Dowis and Karl Ulrich Schnabel. He holds a Ph.D. in music theory from the University of Toronto. 

As part of the Anagnoson & Kinton piano duo, Leslie Kinton has performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. The duo has appeared with major orchestras across Canada and have a discography of nine recordings. Anagnoson & Kinton are heard on CBC Radio almost every week, and have also been broadcast on the BBC, US National Public Radio, Czech Radio, Hilversum Radio (Netherlands), Hong Kong Radio and Radio Suisse Romande. In 2019 the musicians were named Honorary Fellows of the Royal Conservatory of Music, the highest distinction conferred by the organization, to those who have made an extraordinary contribution to arts and culture in Canada and beyond. Leslie Kinton is Professor of Piano Performance at the University of Western Ontario.

Listen to Beethoven Diabelli Variations on your favourite streaming platforms with the physical and digital copies available September 25.

Beethoven Diabelli Variations was recorded, mixed and mastered by Anton Kwiatkowski in 2025 in Burlington, Ontario, his final pre-retirement recording project.

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across North America. Our growing catalogue of solo, orchestral, and chamber music is distributed by Naxos of America to the world’s most important music retailers, download providers, and streaming services. Leaf Music is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in North America. 

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Ai Lynn Ang, ailynn@leaf.music / Meg Henebury, meg@leaf.music

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Svitlana Remniakova and Reneé Pérez return with second album, A Touch of Sound

Alberta-based violinist Svitlana Remniakova and classical guitarist Reneé Pérez return with their second album, A Touch of Sound (PR2026), arriving September 18, 2026, through Leaf Music Distribution. Spanning more than three centuries, the album brings together music by Giuseppe Torelli, Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Baptist Vaňhal, Niccolò Paganini, Joseph Küffner, and Myroslav Skoryk. Through thoughtful arrangements, the duo explores intimacy, colour, and emotion, bringing out the distinct character of each instrument and how they respond to each other.

The programme includes Robert Brojer’s arrangement of Torelli’s Violin Concerto in A Major, P.A.2.3.5, and Ricardo Grätzer’s arrangement of Vivaldi’s Flute Sonata in F Major, RV 52, alongside Vivaldi’s Concerto forViola d’amore and Lute in D Minor, RV 540. Vaňhal’s Six Variations on “Nel cor più non mi sento,” Op. 42, selections from Paganini’s Six Sonatas, Op. 2, and Kuffner’s Serenade, Op. 98, further reveal the versatility of the pairing, moving between ornamented variation, lyrical exchange, and more virtuosic writing.

The album’s emotional arc culminates in the duo’s arrangement of Myroslav Skoryk’s Melody, one of Ukraine’s most cherished compositions. Long associated with remembrance and reflection, the work has taken on renewed significance amid the ongoing war in Ukraine as an expression of resilience, grief, and hope. Reimagined for violin and guitar, Melody’s quiet intensity has come to represent a broader vision of shared humanity: 

“In its first few measures, Melody invokes feelings of sadness, loss, and despair, but as it develops with long phrases, modulation and changes in metric, it appeals more to anger and resilience; finally, its strong yet delicate ending supplicates to an untouched and distant hope. We feel that these three stages are common to our people, and in general to human beings who go through tragedies in life. This is why this piece is so close to us; it represents our lives, our stories, and, to a point, our future.“
– Renee & Svitlana

With A Touch of Sound, the ensemble Classical Duet continues to broaden the repertoire for violin and guitar, celebrating the expressive flexibility of the pairing through rarely heard works and arrangements that bring music conceived for other instrumental settings into a more intimate dialogue.

ABOUT SVITLANA REMNIAKOVA, VIOLINIST

Svitlana Remniakova-Ostrovska‘s passion for music began back in Ukraine, where she studied violin at the Music College of Dniepropetrovsk, and then at the Kiev Conservatory of P. Tchaikovsky in the class of a David Oistrakh’s graduate, Elena Buchinskaya. After graduation, Svitlana worked at the State Circus Orchestra, State Television and Radio Orchestra in Kiev, and then at the Dniepropetrovsk Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gurgen Karapetian and at the Dniepropetrovsk Chamber Orchestra in the Dnipropetrovsk House of Organ and Chamber Music conducted by Anatoliy Abayev. Since 2019, Svitlana has made Edmonton home, and now she works at the Edmonton Music Academy and is the principal second violin at the Concordia Symphony Orchestra conducted by Danielle Lisboa. Svitlana is the co-organizer of the International String Connections festival and co-founder of the Classical Duet together, a virtuosic and stylistic classical music duo that regularly plays around Alberta and Western Europe.

ABOUT RENEÉ PÉREZ, CLASSICAL GUITARIST

Reneé Pérez is a highly motivated classical guitarist who graduated from the University of Alberta in classical guitar performance, earned a Performer’s Certificate from King’s University of Edmonton, and is currently pursuing a Performance Diploma. He is interested in solo and chamber music from the classical and baroque periods, from both European and South American sources. His musical interests also include basso continuo with the baroque guitar and archlute. Reneé has toured several times in Houston, USA and northern Portugal — specifically the city of 
Porto and vicinity—as a soloist and chamber musician, and has toured, playing the Fasch D minor concerto for guitar and strings with several string quartets and Venezuelan orchestras belonging to “El Sistema”. He was featured as an emerging solo artist by the Calgary Classical Guitar Society. Reneé is currently the President of the Edmonton Classical Guitar Society. He is an enthusiastic guitar teacher and conducts the Edmonton Adult Classical Guitar Orchestra. His discography with the Classical Duet includes “Reverie”, an album dedicated to Joseph Küffner, a 
German violin/guitar player and composer of the 18th century. 

The Alberta-Canada-based duo Classical Duet is formed by the experienced violinist Svitlana Remiankova and professional classical guitarist Reneé Pérez, originally from Ukraine and Venezuela, respectively. 

The ensemble has a particular interest in Baroque and Classical repertoire, bringing together music from these periods in lively and virtuosic programs. Their work explores the character of different instruments and the ways their sounds and textures come together. This ongoing dialogue offers a glimpse into how the music might have been heard when it was first written, while giving audiences a chance to experience familiar works in a new way. 

Leaf Music  is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across North America. Our growing catalogue of solo, orchestral, and chamber music is distributed by Naxos of America to the world’s most important music retailers, download providers, and streaming services. Leaf Music is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in North America.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Ai Lynn Ang, ailynn@leaf.music / Meg Henebury, meg@leaf.music

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Mark Fewer Records Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas on Six Canadian-Made Violins

Violinist Mark Fewer, together with Leaf Music, announces the release of J.S. Bach: Violin Sonatas and Partitas, BWV 1001–1006 (LM311), performed on six different violins crafted by leading Canadian luthiers. The work stands as a cornerstone of the solo violin repertoire and of Western classical music. Each work is paired with a different violin, made by (in order of appearance) David Prentice, John Newton, Mark Schnurr, Itzel Avila, Isabelle Wilbaux, and Sibylle Ruppert, highlighting both the instruments’ individuality and the interpretive possibilities within this repertoire. 

The conception of this project began over two decades ago and is closely connected to the SweetWater Music Festival, founded by Mark Fewer alongside Jean and Keith Medley on the shores of Georgian Bay. By bringing leading string players into close contact with Canada’s finest luthiers, the festival fostered what has come to be known as a “Cremona North,” a thriving but often under-recognized community of makers working at the highest level. Instruments by these makers have appeared on stages at major international venues including Carnegie Hall, Suntory Hall, Wigmore Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and the Sydney Opera House. The six makers represent a cross-section of Canada’s lutherie community: three are women and three are men, some born in Canada and others who have made it their home. All of them contribute to what is heard on stages around the world. 

Through this recording, Fewer draws a parallel between Bach’s music and the craft of violin making. Like Bach’s works, which are both deeply personal and universally expressive, each violin offers a distinct voice shaped by the performer in the moment. The same repertoire yields different interpretations, and each instrument reveals a different sound.

Fewer pays tribute to these makers who continue to refine their craft and give performers the opportunity to express their musical voices wherever they go.  

About Mark Fewer

Recently named to CBC’s In Concert Hall of Fame, Mark Fewer has spent over three decades interpreting music across virtually every genre and setting, premiering more than 200 works, including over 50 written specifically for him. His distinctive discography includes multiple JUNO- and Grammy-winning recordings, as well as a Prix Opus and a recent ECMA Award for Best Instrumental Recording of the Year for Alikeness. He has served as Concertmaster of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Artist-in-Residence at Stanford University, and William Dawson Scholar at McGill University. He is Associate Professor of Violin at the University of Toronto and a Senior Fellow at Massey College. He is currently first violinist of the Axelrod String Quartet at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, where the group performs and records exclusively on Stradivari and Amati instruments from the museum’s famed collection. After 16 years as founding Artistic Director of the SweetWater Music Festival, he is now in his eighth season as Artistic Director of Stratford Summer Music. 

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across North America. Our growing catalogue of solo, orchestral, and chamber music is distributed by Naxos of America to the world’s most important music retailers, download providers, and streaming services. Leaf Music is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in North America. 

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact:
Ai Lynn Ang, ailynn@leaf.music / Meg Henebury, meg@leaf.music

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