Grebel Fund - Music

The community Gamelan group plays on the terrace outside the UWwaterloo Rock Garden during orientation week.
A trio of students, practices in the chapel before a concert. One plays piano, the other a violin, the last a cello.
A student listen's to their singing instructor in the chapel. Stainglass windows ligh up the background.
students play saxaphones, flutes, and jazz instruments during a concert

Music is a lifeline for many students at the University of Waterloo and Grebel. Through choirs, instrumental ensembles, theory and history courses, or studio lessons, students are expressing their creativity, sharing their talents, and finding a much-needed outlet to release stress.

Please consider a gift to the annual Grebel Fund. Your donation will provide scholarships, fund our many community concerts, maintain instruments, and support seminars and workshops for students to thrive musically and personally. Invest in Music students and in the joy, connection, and power of making music together.

“I love creating music. When I sing my part and hear it blend perfectly with the other voices to form chords, it feels incredible.” - Michael Wu, Math and Music student

Support Music

Your support for the Music program will make it possible to:

  • offer 16 free Noon Hour Concerts a year,
  • Community concerts, seminars and workshops such as our Community Gamelan ensemble
  • provide an excellent studio instruction program with outstanding instructors, and
  • maintain our fleet of 17 pianos.

Your support for the Grebel Fund will make it possible to:

  • offer quality academic programs,
  • nurture leadership development, and
  • reach our goal of $375,000.
Our goal for the 2024-25 Grebel Fund is $380,000 Help us get all the way!

Make a credit card donation on Grebels pledge page. Simply select the fund at Grebel you wish to support and fill in your details. Your receipt for online donations will come from the University of Waterloo. Thanks!

To learn more about how your gift to the Music Department will impact Grebel students, contact Fred W. Martin, Director of Advancement.
519-885-0220 x24381

gamelan town sq
choir
Thursday, November 7, 2024

Music as a Serious Pursuit

“I've never considered music as a serious option for me until I gave it a try,” Michael Wu reflected. Michael is a third-year Math student at the University of Waterloo who is actively involved in the Music program at Conrad Grebel University College and also lives at Grebel.  

Michael’s interest lies in vocal music, which is why he has immersed himself in all the choirs that Grebel offers: Chapel Choir, Chamber Choir, and University Choir. He was also involved in the production of “Something Rotten!,” a musical put on by Grebel students two years ago. “I enjoy singing much more than just listening to music,” he explained. “Part of that is because I love creating music; when I sing my part and hear it blend perfectly with the other voices to form chords, it feels incredible. Singing those notes myself adds to that joy; it makes the experience even more fulfilling." 

Joel Woods
Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Completing the Circle of Music

Ever since he attended Ontario Mennonite Music Camp (OMMC) at age 12, Conrad Grebel University College student Joel Woods has entrenched himself within Grebel’s music community. Through joining numerous clubs, he has connected with others sharing that same passion for music while also finding an outlet to express himself in an artistic fashion. For these reasons, Grebel is excited to congratulate Joel as the recipient of the Abner Martin Award, a scholarship awarded annually to a full-time student in a graduate or undergraduate music program who is also affiliated with a congregation in Mennonite Church Eastern Canada.

Gamelan Ensemble
Monday, March 25, 2024

A Decade of Balinese Music – 10th Anniversary of the Gamelan Ensemble at Grebel

“Hear with the ears, feel with the body,” said I Dewa Made Suparta, Artist-in-Residence of Balinese music and performing arts at Conrad Grebel University College. “You must use your eyes, your brain, and your heart. You must feel your surrounding players. If each player does not connect with the beat, the music cannot breathe together.” As Artistic Director of Grebel’s Balinese Percussion Ensemble course and Community Gamelan Warga Santi, Dewa is preparing for the 10th anniversary concert at the end of the term. The concert is a celebration of a unique branch of music that has flourished and grown within Grebel’s music community.