Biography : Charles-Eric Fontaine 

Montreal native Charles-Eric Fontaine is a conductor and oboist with a passion for contemporary music and composer-performer collaboration. His detailed attention to nuance in the score and devotion to collaborating musicians leads to vivid and intimate performances. He has conducted the Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, Ensemble Court-Circuit, Divertimento Ensemble, Paramirabo, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec.

He obtained his Master’s degree in conducting at McGill University in 2021 and learned alongside Alain Cazes, Guillaume Bourgogne, Lorraine Vaillancourt, Jean Deroyer and Sandro Gorli. He has conducted over thirty world premieres, made two recordings, including a work on Francesco Ciurlo's monographic CD with Ensemble Divertimento, and worked with Stephen McAdams and Robert Hasegawa in the ACTOR research program. As artistic director of Ensemble Éclat, the young conductor aspires to showcase the great works of the canon, while supporting the leading composers of the next generations.

Laureate of the Royaumont Foundation in 2023, Charles-Eric has received grants from the Austrian Society, the Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, and an award from the Italian Ministry of Culture.

Biographie : Charles-Eric Fontaine 

 Né en 1996, Charles-Eric Fontaine est un chef d’orchestre et hautboïste montréalais portant un fort intérêt pour la nouvelle musique et la collaboration entre interprète et compositeur. Il se démarque par son souci du détail et son attention pour les musiciens avec qui il travaille, résultant à un jeu intime et éclatant. Il a dirigé le Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, l’Ensemble Court-Circuit, Paramirabo, l’Ensemble Divertimento, le Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra et l’Orchestre Symphonique de Québec.

Charles-Eric a suivi ses études à l’Université McGill, où il obtient un baccalauréat en interprétation du hautbois, puis une maîtrise en direction d’orchestre en 2021. Il se forme auprès d’Alain Cazes, alors qu’il a aussi la chance de se perfectionner avec Guillaume Bourgogne, Lorraine Vaillancourt, Jean Deroyer et Sandro Gorli. Il a dirigé plus d’une trentaine de créations mondiales, enregistré deux disques dont une œuvre sur le CD monographique de Francesco Ciurlo avec l’Ensemble Divertimento et il a travaillé de pair avec Stephen McAdams et Robert Hasegawa dans le cadre du programme recherche ACTOR. Au sein de l’Ensemble Éclat, dont il assure la direction artistique, le jeune chef d'orchestre aspire à mettre en valeur les grandes œuvres du canon, tout en soutenant les compositeurs des générations à venir.

Lauréat de la Fondation Royaumont en 2023, Charles-Eric a reçu des bourses de l’Austrian Society, du Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, ainsi qu'un Prix du ministère de la Culture en Italie.

Richard Arrigo is an award-winning music educator, conductor, and performer with over three decades of experience shaping young musicians and enriching Ottawa’s music education landscape. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education (Honours, 1991) and a Bachelor of Education (1992), both from Western University.

In 1993, Richard relocated from Toronto to Ottawa to begin his teaching career at Gloucester High School. He later moved to Sir Wilfrid Laurier Secondary School, where he taught instrumental music and guitar. Since 2000, he has taught band and strings at Lisgar Collegiate Institute, where he also served as Head of Fine Arts and Business. At all three schools, he built dynamic music programs that consistently earned regional and national acclaim.

Richard’s ensembles have received numerous accolades, including multiple CBC Music in the Schools awards and invitations to MusicFest Canada, the Kiwanis Music Festival, the Ontario Provincial Music Festival, and annual appearances at the Ottawa International Jazz Festival (Youth Series). Since 2001, he has also produced and was musical director of a wide range of musical theatre productions, including The Addams Family, Mary Poppins, and Into the Woods, and has led biennial international performance tours, averaging 80  students per trip.

Beyond the classroom, Richard is an active performer and conductor. He is a founding member of the Celebration Brass Quintet and has performed with the Divertimento Orchestra, Vern Isaac Big Band, Bill Jupp Big Band, and the Kanata Symphony Orchestra. He currently serves as Music Director of the Ottawa Community Concert Band and has guest conducted ensembles such as Strings of St. John’s.

Richard’s leadership extends into hockey—both coaching and refereeing—as well as community service and professional mentorship. He was nominated for the Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence in 2023 and has received other notable honours, including the Queen’s University Baillie Award for Excellence in Secondary School Teaching(2010) and the James E. Brough Award from the Kiwanis Music Festival (2012).

He gratefully acknowledges his family for their love, unwavering support and encouragement.

John Kraus, originally from North Bay, Ontario, is an active musician, having founded and worked as the Music Director of the Durham

Chamber Orchestra from 1996-2007, the Lakeridge Youth Orchestra, 2002-2004, the Clarington Concert Band, 2011-2013, the

Music Director and conductor of the Northumberland Orchestra & Choir, 2013-2024, and is the current Music Director of the

Parkdale Orchestra, Ottawa. John has performed as a member of the Lavender Chamber Ensemble, a collective of professional

musicians who perform across South-Central Ontario and as a saxophone player with the Electric City Swing Band, Peterborough. In

the fall of 2017 John was nominated as one of five candidates for the Heinz Unger Award, a national honour administrated by the

Ontario Arts Council, recognizing professional conductors.

As an educator, John taught for over 30 years and is a member of the Ontario Music Educators Association promoting the value and

need for Music education in schools. He has lead workshops and clinics across the province as well as leading and conducting honour

ensembles as part of the Conference of Independent Schools Music Festival, held each spring at Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto.

John is a member of the Canadian Music Festivals Adjudicators Association, providing him the opportunity to hear student

performances across Canada. For many years in the summer months, John has been a faculty member for the Lake Field Music Camp,

an adult music camp based at Lakefield College School, Lakefield.

In addition, John hosts Maestro’s Picks, a weekly hour long radio show which can be heard on Northumberland 89.7 and Sudbury’s 96.7

CKLU-FM, featuring music of all styles.