The featured composition for this noon hour concert is a 25-minute piece titled Mama’s Painting: Louis Riel’s Dream by Dr Karen Sunabacka. The piece is inspired by an unfinished collection of paintings by her Métis grandmother Lenore Clouston titled “Louis Riel’s Dream.” The five paintings were to highlight the history of Western Canada through the stories of the indigenous peoples, illustrating the clashes of cultures and politics in Canada and pointing to a future where people of all races could live in harmony. Sunabacka decided to complete the project musically and used the prose of her mother (Joyce Clouston) to start each of the five movements of the piece. The final result is an interdisciplinary presentation of her grandmother’s vision.
