At 52.
Photo by Stan Funk.
Canadian composer, conductor, clinician, workshop leader, lecturer -- specializing in choral music
Stephen Hatfield
born 1956 in South
Westminster, British Columbia

At 35, in the woods of Vancouver Island
Photo by Hamish Buchanan
At 40.
Photo by Stan Funk.
At 21, crusing the Pacific shore of Canada, under the full sail of 1970's hair.
A great composer and a remarkable person. - Ivars Cinkuss, Gaudeamus
Men's Choir, Latvia
...fabulous musician with a special joy in singing...like an icon to my choirs. - Zimfira Poloz, Hamilton Children's Choir and Young Voices, Toronto
[E]specially well written choral music, full of fresh sounds and such varied
atmospheres...excellent...open-minded...delicious - Prof. Erkki Pohjola, founder,
Tapiola Choir
I was deeply impressed by your multitude of skills: your ability to make music
a vibrant reflection of life, more, to integrate it wholly with our emotional and
physical natures; your pedagogical brilliance in illuminating music; your fantastic
dynamism on the podium, in rehearsal and performance; your deep sense of mission;
and your gift of inclusion and friendship - Edward Higginbottom, New College,
Oxford
Hatfield's music is an ideal teaching tool, simultaneously engaging the mind,
body, and spirit. All of his work is so appealing and well crafted that singers
enjoy the process of discovery that the music invariably offers. Each and every
piece has interesting yet challenging material for each voice part, possesses a
depth of meaning, and feels good to the voice. - Dr. Solveig Holmquist, Director
of Choral Activities, Western Oregon University
Stephen Hatfield's music excites, challenges, and is utterly compelling. His
voice is completely unique in the choral world, and no choir should be without his
music in their repertoire. - Bob Chilcott
Hatfield's voice is strong and evocative, yet his music is always presented
with an elegantly simple and accessible language. His uncanny sense of unity
between text and melody along with the use of textures, patterns and rhythmic layers
bring the diverse sounds and atmospheres of the world to the classroom and concert
stage. His music is a must for today's choral ensembles. - Dr. Lee Willingham:
Bell'Arte Singers; Faculty of Music, Wilfrid Laurier University
I don't have the words to adequately express to you my gratitude for the music,
the workshop and now the infused energy and life the music and the choir now have.
- Jacqueline Chambers, Aeolian Singers, Halifax
An eccentric genius. - Papa John Trepp, Canadian choral guru
A genius - Jean Ashworth Bartle, Toronto Children's Chorus
A genius - Ondřej Kopřiva, Gentlemen Singers, Czech Republic
A genius - John Barron, Amabile Youth Singers
Some of the best music for youth choirs I have ever heard. - Dianne
Berkun, Brooklyn Youth Chorus
One of my students came up with a nickname for you:
"Hurricane Hatfield" because you blew into the room with a gale force,
spun us around, tore a few things down and helped us rebuild better. - Denise O'Brien, Maple Ridge S.S.

Waiting for a very, very late cab to get me to rehearsal.

Jackie Chambers leads the Aeolian Singers in the Halifax Premiere of
Chamber Music.

Chór Kameralny Dysonans of Poland rehearses at Kostel Nanebevzetí Panny Marie (Church of the Assumption) in Hradec Králové, Czech Republic. This is where,
shortly after the picture was taken, the Czech Choir Festival (Napsáno pro Sborové slavnosti) premiered my
Missa Primavera: Our Lady of the Spring,
with Chór Kameralny Dysonans very much at the center of the sound.
Photo Valdimír Fišar.