The Hart House Singers is a non-auditioned choir at the University of Toronto that provides an opportunity for first-time and experienced singers to share in the joy of choral singing, to learn the art of song, to have fun, and to sing culturally and historically diverse repertoire.

Hart House Singers

About Us

The Singers

The Hart House Singers is a non-auditioned choir at the University of Toronto that provides an opportunity for first-time and experienced singers to share in the joy of choral singing, to learn the art of song, and to sing historically and culturally diverse repertoire. Typically, the choir performs music from around the world in its summer or fall terms, and one of the great choral works in the winter term. The Hart House Singers has performed at Toronto’s “Nuit blanche,” and in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 and Holst’s The Planets with the Hart House Orchestra. In the past few seasons, we have performed such famous choral works as Bruckner’s Mass in E minor, Dvorak’s Mass in D and Stabat Mater, Mozart’s Requiem, Haydn’s Mass in Time of War, and Beethoven's Mass in C with orchestras made of students and recent graduates from the Faculty of Music and the Royal Conservatory of Music, and local professionals.


Conductor

DAVID ARNOT-JOHNSTON has directed many vocal and instrumental groups, including at Canada's National Ballet School and Tafelmusik's Baroque Summer Institute at the University of Toronto. He completed the graduate program in early music at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, The Netherlands, and holds a Masters degree in music history and performance from the University of Toronto.

As a tenor soloist, David has performed with several early and contemporary ensembles, including Tafelmusik, the Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal, Opera Atelier, Dancemakers, Utrecht Barok Consort, La Capriola of Amsterdam, Utrecht Bach Society, Ottawa Choral Society, and The Toronto Consort. He has sung as a soloist under Sigiswald Kuijken, Andrew Parrott, William Christie, and with Emma Kirkby in works by Mozart, Handel, Bach, Lully, and Monteverdi.

David has recorded as a soloist and ensemble performer on the Naxos, CBC, Marquis, RCA/BMG, and Analekta labels with the Aradia Ensemble, Tafelmusik Orchestra, Toronto Consort, Canadian Brass, and the Theatre of Early Music. A dedicated instructor of music, David directed the music education program at the National Ballet School for ten years. He has been conductor of the Hart House Singers since 2003.


Piano Accompanist

CONRAD GOLD, holds a Bachelor of Music from Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, and a Master of Music from McGill University. He undertook additional keyboard performance studies in Italy. Mr. Gold also serves as the accompanist for the Brampton Festival Singers, and has collaborated with the Tallis Choir and the Cantabile Chamber Singers of Toronto, and the Laudate Dominum Choir of Chatham. Currently living in Toronto, Mr. Gold plays organ regularly at Lorne Park Baptist Church in Mississauga, St. Michael's Cathedral in Toronto, and several other Toronto area churches. His other musical activities include playing organ recitals and teaching piano.

Repertoire

Singers 2022-2023

Although our fall and winter terms are over, we are planning to hold rehersals and a concert in the summer! Here is the planned repertoire for our spring concert:

We will be singing a selection of beautiful folksongs from around the world. Some arrangements will be by our conductor, but most are by famous composers, in several different languages.

More information is available below.

Recent Concerts

  • Beethoven's 9th Symphony (March 2023)
  • Sing Me At Dawn (November 2022), joint performance with HMCS York Band
  • Burst into Song (April 2022), joint performance with Hart House Chorus
  • Modern Choral Classics (March 2020) Canceled
  • Verdi's Requiem (November 2019)
  • Journeys (July 2019)
  • Zadok the Priest and others (March 2019)
  • Through the Eyes of a Child (November 2018)
  • Love Life! R&B and Music Theatre songs on Life (July 2018)
  • Music for Choir and Brass: A Concert! (March 2018)
  • Performance Samples

    1. "Sing Me At Dawn" arr. David Arnot-Johnston
    2. "Dies irae" from Mozart Requiem
    3. "Célébrons" trad. French

    Join Us

    Update for Hart House Singers, as of April 11th, 2023:
    Hello Hart House Singers and those who may like to join us for the 2023 Summer term!

    Summer Singers! If you are interested in joining us for a summer session, please email us at hhsingers@gmail.com

    Here are some details:

    1. Rehearsals in the summer session will be on Wednesday nights, 7:30 p.m., in one of the large rooms at Hart House (one night may see us start at 8 pm tbd).
    2. We will start rehearsals on Wed., May 31 and go to Wed. July 12.

    The concert will be on Sun., July 16, 4:00 p.m. (with a warm up at 2:00-3:00 p.m.)

    Beautiful folksongs from around the world. Some arrangements will be by our conductor, but most are by famous composers, in several different languages. It would be helpful if some Singers could also play guitar, flute, violin, or other melody/harmony instruments.

    1. No fee for students currently enrolled (2022-2023 academic year) at University of Toronto, whether attending summer classes or not.
    2. No fee for non-students who have already paid the yearly Singers fee (for 2022-2023 academic year).
    3. No fee for non-students with an athletic membership at Hart House.
    4. A fee of $45 for other non-students 29 and younger or 65 and older.
    5. A fee of $60 for all other non-students.

    Please email us at hhsingers@gmail.com to tell us if you are interested or to ask questions. There is NO audition. (We are a non-auditioned choir.) Please also state if you are soprano, alto, tenor, or bass.

    Here is a photo of our last concert, March 25/2023, with an orchestra:
    Hart House Singers with Orchestra 25 March 2023

    We are a non-auditioned choir. Our membership includes those who sight-read well, and those who do not read music well. Some of our members have had a lot of experience singing in choirs, while many are just starting to sing in a choir or haven't sung in one for several years. Membership to the Hart House Singers is open to everyone; you can be a student at UofT, a student from another university, or a non-student. You may join for only one term, or both terms. We may have a summer term, which of course is optional.

    All members will receive hard copies of the music, which they may take home. Most of the music will also be provided in an online format for those who wish to practise at home between rehearsals. We use an excellent streamed software called “MatchMySound,” which enables you to hear only your voice part or all voice parts together, while showing the notes on the computer screen. You may change the speed of the music as you require. This service is optional; many members find it very helpful, while others find they don't need to use it. It's your choice! The cost of the service is covered by our budget. Members do not pay separately for it.

    Fees!

    You may pay fees either at the Hart House Hub (front desk) or on-line on the Hart House website at https://harthouse.ca/clubs/singers and follow the link for Hart House Club - Singers. The first two rehearsals of the term are open and no payment of fee is required to attend. If you have problems with the recreation site contact Hart House Hub.

    Anyone who wishes to join the Hart House Singers now has both an ANNUAL and a TERM payment option. The annual option represents the least overall cost. The term options allow participants to have flexibility and to manage their registration costs differently if they wish. We are in the process of determining summer fees, but they will be lower than the term fees.

    The fee structure for the Hart House Singers is as follows:

    Student/Member* Non-Member Under 29 & Over 65
    ANNUAL REGISTRATION FEE Free $245 $165
    TERM REGISTRATION FEE Free $120 $90
    SUMMER REGISTRATION FEE Free TBD TBD

    *“Student” means any student who has paid ancillary fees as part of their academic program; "member” refers to those who also have a full Hart House fitness centre membership.
    **Cash, debit or credit card are all acceptable forms of payment.