DEVELOPING ARTISTS GRANTS
2007 Grant Recipient

Classical Music (Wind Instrument) Winner
Keith Dyrda

Eighteen-year-old trombonist Keith Dyrda is from Oakbank, Manitoba, where he graduated from Springfield Collegiate in June 2007. He started his musical education with the violin, earning a silver medal for the Royal Conservatory of Music Grade 8 level, and has been playing the trombone for the last seven years. He will be undertaking a Bachelor of Music degree in classical trombone performance at Montreal's McGill University in the fall of 2007.

Keith has played with a number of bands and orchestras including the National Youth Band, the Winnipeg Youth Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra. He has also performed as a soloist with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and the University of Manitoba Orchestra. He has won numerous trophies at the Winnipeg Music Festival as well as the award for Outstanding Trombonist at the Brandon Jazz Festival in both 2006 and 2007.

Douglas McNabney, Chair of the Department of Performance at McGill University's Schulich School of Music, describes Keith as one of the most promising young brass players to enter an undergraduate program at McGill. "His name has been on everyone's lips since his audition here last February. Rarely have I seen such unanimous praise from an audition jury. He impressed us by his musicality, remarkable possession of the trombone, his versatility in multiple fields and his limitless potential."

The Hnatyshyn Foundation jury, composed of Jeremy Brown, Elaine Klimasko and Jeremy Berkman, praised Keith's lyrical tone, phrasing, intonation and beautiful use of vibrato. "This is first rate trombone playing, - a superb young artist!"