Prairie Sons
cello and piano
PHOTO | MeganHayhoe/Shayne Gray
DAVID LIAM ROBERTS | CELLO/violoncelle
GODWIN FRIESEN | PIANO
Perhaps it is the sense of space, the living skies and the clear view to the edge of the horizon that breeds artistry in those who live in the Canadian West.
As the Prairie Sons, cellist David Liam Roberts and pianist Godwin Friesen embody the expansive, nuanced perspective of their home landscape in their concert program. The two award-winning musicians met at the Royal Conservatory’s Glenn Gould School of Music, and recognized a kindred spirit in each other. Both hail from the Prairies, began performing alongside other members of their families, and have been named to CBC’s list of Hot 30 Classical Musicians Under 30.
The energy and innovation of the Prairie Sons invites you to take a fresh look at a familiar landscape, and to witness the miracle in the everyday.
Peut-être est-ce le sentiment d’espace, les cieux vivants et l’horizon à perte de vue qui génèrent la virtuosité chez ceux qui vivent dans l’Ouest canadien.
En tant qu’enfants des prairies, le violoncelliste David Liam Roberts et le pianiste Godwin Friesen incarnent la perspective vaste et nuancée de leur paysage natal à travers leur programme de concerts. Les deux musiciens primés se sont rencontrés à l’Ecole Glenn Gould du Conservatoire royal de musique et se sont reconnus comme alter ego. Tous deux originaires des Prairies, ils ont commencé par se produire aux côtés d’autres membres de leurs familles et ont été nommés sur la liste des 30 musiciens classiques de moins de 30 ans à surveiller de Radio-Canada.
L’énergie et l’innovation des Prairie Sons vous invite à porter un regard neuf sur un paysage familier et à s’émerveiller au quotidien.
CONCERTS
2024
3:00 pm | Sunday November 17 2024
Winnipeg MB | Winnipeg Art Gallery
Presented by Virtuosi Concerts and
Women’s Musical Club of Winnipeg
7:30 pm | Tuesday November 19 2024
Souris MB | Souris District Arts Council | Avalon Theatre
7:30 pm | Wednesday November 20, 2024
Moose Jaw SK | Moose Jaw Cultural Centre
7:30 pm | Saturday November 23, 2024
La Ronge SK | La Ronge Arts Council | Eagle Point Event Centre
7:30 pm | Sunday November 24, 2024
Nipiwan SK | Nipiwan Performing Arts Group
7:30 pm | Monday November 25, 2024
Yorkton SK | Yorkton Arts Council
7:30 pm | Tuesday November 26, 2024
Preeceville SK | Whitehawk Arts Council
7:30 pm | Wednesday November 27, 2024
Weyburn SK | Weyburn Concert Series
2025
TBC | Friday February 21 2025
Lacombe AB | Lacombe Performing Arts Centre
1:30 & 7:00 pm | Sunday February 23 2025
Stettler AB | Stettler Showcase | Stettler Performing Arts Centre
7:30 pm | Tuesday February 25, 2025
Biggar SK | Biggar & District Arts Council
7:30 pm | Wednesday February 26, 2025
North Battleford SK | Dekker Centre
7:30 pm | Thursday February 27, 2025
Swift Current SK | Swift Current Arts Council
7:30 pm | Friday February 28, 2025
Watrous SK | Watrous and Area Arts Council
7:30 pm | Saturday March 1, 2025
Indian Head SK | Indian Head Theatre & Community Arts | Grand Theatre
2:00 pm | Sunday March 2, 2025
Estevan SK | Estevan Arts Council
7:30 pm | Tuesday March 4, 2025
Moosomin SK | Moosomin and District Arts Council | Moosomin Community Theatre
7:30 pm | Wednesday March 5, 2025
Tisdale SK | Tisdale Arts Council | Maurice Taylor Performing Arts Theatre
7:30 pm | Thursday March 6, 2025
Canora SK | Canora Arts Council | Canora Composite School
3:00 pm | Sunday March 9, 2025
Regina SK | Regina Musical Club | Darke Hall
7:30 pm | Monday March 10, 2025
Shaunavon SK | Shaunavon Arts Council |Darkhorse Theatre
7:30 pm | Tuesday March 11, 2025
Kindersley SK | Kindersley & District Arts Council
7:30 pm | Wednesday March 12, 2025
Luseland SK | Luseland Arts Council | Luseland Homecoming Hall
7:30 pm | Thursday March 13, 2025
Rosthern SK | Station Arts Centre
7:30 pm | Friday March 14 2025
Saskatoon SK | Saskatoon Symphony | St John’s Cathedral
7:30 pm | Sunday March 16 2025
Canmore AB | artsPlace
2023
Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Councils (OSAC)
Morning Showcase | Saturday October 14, 2023
Regina, SK | Darke Hall
“… more than an exceptionally gifted and ambitious young cellist making his mark. The infectious joy, thoughtfulness, and integrity that he works so hard to cultivate in his playing is merely an extension of his intrinsic social curiosity.”
– Principal Yuri Hooker of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra on David Liam Roberts (Winnipeg Free Press)
BIOGRAPHY
Cellist David Liam Roberts and pianist Godwin Friesen have much in common, not least of which is their roots in the Prairie region. Both first experienced the thrill of performance as part of a musical family. Friesen grew up in Edmonton and Saskatoon, while Roberts grew up in Winnipeg. As the Prairie Sons, the two are dedicated to innovative programming and unforgettably engaging performances.
BIOGRAPHIE
Le violoncelliste David Liam Roberts et le pianiste Godwin Friesen ont beaucoup en commun, tout particulièrement leurs racines dans la région des Prairies. Tous deux ont d’abord connu le goût de la scène au sein d’une famille musicale. Friesen a grandi à Edmonton et Saskatoon, alors que Roberts a grandi à Winnipeg. En tant que Prairie Sons, ils se consacrent tous deux à des programmations innovantes et des représentations captivantes inoubliables.
PHOTO | Shane Gray
David Liam Roberts
Described as a “deeply thoughtful and soft-spoken artist” by the Winnipeg Free Press, David Liam Roberts is an award-winning cellist, an athlete, and a passionate music educator with a bent toward philosophy. Originally from Winnipeg, he began his musical career at age five busking with his older siblings. Great-grandson to an amateur Métis fiddle player on his father’s side and descended from a long line of German Lutheran church organists on his mother’s, he is increasingly interested in exploring his family’s roots and Métis heritage.
With a sensitive, soulful performance style, David Liam has garnered considerable recognition in the Canadian music world. Along with being named to CBC Radio’s list of top young musicians, he was awarded First Prize at the 2022 biennial WMC McLellan Competition, won the prestigious Canada Council for the Arts’ Michael Measures First Prize, and was the 2021-22 recipient of the Hnatyshyn Foundation’s Developing Artist Grant for Canadian instrumentalists.
Recent career highlights include an engagement as a Debut Atlantic touring artist alongside pianist LaLa Lee, concerts in Winnipeg, Halifax and Toronto, and an appearance at the International Musicians Seminar at Prussia Cove, UK.
For many years, David Liam led the Back to Bach Project, a global non-profit organization which instills a love of music in children around the world. He continues to support this endeavour as a Back to Bach soloist.
David Liam is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma as a student of Hans Jørgen Jensen and Andrés Díaz at Toronto’s Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where he holds the prestigious Temerty Fellowship. His studies have taken to him to Poland, Slovenia and Italy, and some of his most formative mentors have been Yuri Hooker, Bryan Epperson and Joseph Johnson. He also served as principal cellist of the Royal Conservatory Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada.
Roberts carries a piece of home with him in his instrument, a cello made by Garth Lee, a luthier from the Winnipeg area. It was created for him in the style and dimensions of Francesco Rugeri (c. 1659) while his bow was crafted by Canadian maker, Eric Gagné.
PHOTO | Meghan Hayhoe
Godwin Friesen
An impassioned pianist who infuses his performances with emotion, Godwin seems to embody every note he plays, and his sentiment resonates in his listeners. In 2022, he took first place at the OSM Competition (and received the prize for best interpretation of the imposed Canadian work). He also placed first in piano at the National Music Festival (2015), won the Glenn Gould School Concert Competition (2019), and took second place at the PianoArts North American Competition in Milwaukee (2022).
Godwin frequently returns to play with the very first ensemble to which he belonged – he grew up touring music with his parents and five siblings in the Friesen Family Band. The musical development he experienced during several Canadian tours and three album recordings was profound, and he began formal piano studies around age seven.
In an age of artificial intelligence, Godwin speaks of what makes live music enthralling – embodying the emotion of the music, communicating with and without words, and the dedicated years of effort it takes to entice a range of sounds from an instrument. He has made a promising start as a composer, and toured a narrated concert called “Songs of the Settlers” which told the history of Milwaukee through music in an artist residency with PianoArts.
Godwin holds a bachelor’s degree and an Artist Diploma from The Glenn Gould School, where he studied with John O’Conor from 2016 to 2022. He is now pursuing a master’s degree at the Université de Montréal as a student of Jean Saulnier and Henry Kramer.
PHOTO CREDIT | Danylo Bobyk
“[Godwin Friesen] doesn’t play the piano so much as he feels it.”
– Saskatoon Star Phoenix
