Calgary Girls Choir founder to receive Distinguished Artist Award

Three artists from our province are being recognized for their work by the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Awards.

The founder and current artistic director of the Calgary Girls Choir is being recognized for her dedication to developing young voices for the last 30 years.

Elaine Quilichini has won the Distinguished Artist Award on behalf of the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Artist Awards.

“I have devoted my life to this work and to children and young people and adults and traveled all over and worked hard, worked very hard,” said Quilichini. “So it did feel like a real pat on the back you know.”

This is the 20th anniversary of the awards and more than 35 Albertans were nominated.

“When we’re considering selection of the distinguished artists that we’re looking at not only their exceptional artistic achievements but also the connections that they have made to the communities in Alberta, to the artistic communities but nationally and internationally as well in some cases,” said Kathy Classen, Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Artist Awards executive director.

Classen says this year three individuals received the recognition; Quilichini, Jens Lindemann and Rita McKeough. Each received $30,000 and will meet the Lieutenant Governor on Oct. 3 to receive their award in person.

“We’re not always fully aware of the impact that our artists have on our lifestyle, on our community, on the health of our communities, on how they shift our thinking,” said Classen. “There’s just so many ways that our artists impact our lives in the province and we really, really want to celebrate that, shine the light on them and say to them we notice you and we value you.”

3 decades

Quilichini started the choir in 1995 and thousands of girls have gone through the program in the last three decades.

“Luckily it’s a job that I continue to do because I love,” she said. “If it didn’t feed me so much, if I wasn’t so excited every time I sit down with a new piece of music or with a new group of singers, then I would stop.”

The youngest girls start in the choir at five or six years old and many sing into their twenties. Quilichini strives to bring out the best in young women and continually challenges them to do better.

“Only the best is what nurtures that growth and so the repertoire is chosen by me and it’s my job to make them love it and the better the music is, the more they love it,” she said.

“They have achieved something beyond what they could have ever done on their own, they’ve had experiences that they never would have had on their own and so that confidence comes from them having actually achieved and done it.”

When learning about receiving the award through a phone call by Classen, Quilichini quickly deferred to the girls in the choir, trying to give them the credit, but Classen was quick to correct her.

“And she (Classen) said, no, no, no, no,” said Quilichini. “We mean this is your artistry we’re celebrating and it took me back, it made me step back because I thought, that’s amazing, I’m really thrilled.”

Quilichini says she’s proud of the award and will keep teaching girls in the choir for as long as she’s able.