I want to make you clap between movements.
Music, especially Western classical music, has a wealth of traditions and conventions built up around it. I think many of them are beautiful; some of them could use questioning. What if we do that together?
How I got here
I am a descendant of Mennonite settlers who arrived in southern Manitoba in the 1920s, displacing the Indigenous people of this place. At its best, I believe my ethnic/religious background has given me a sense of resourcefulness, responsibility, and interdependence in community. I seek to use these gifts in the service of healing, and to work towards justice for the land and its people.
I studied at Canadian Mennonite University and the University of Manitoba, then focused on early music studies through Tafelmusik’s Baroque Summer Institute followed by a Master’s of Early Music from McGill University. I have received guidance from many, including Kristjanna Oleson, Daniel Scholz, Dietrich Bartel, Hélène Plouffe, Olivier Brault, and Hank Knox. In 2016 I founded Musica Poetica, a historically-informed Baroque instrumental ensemble which shared early music with Winnipeg audiences in a relaxed and intimate setting until 2019.
Currently I work in Winnipeg as a freelance violist, Baroque specialist, and educator.
Events
Saturday, April 12 2025
Fidem In Fidibus: La Folia
2:00 PM
St Margaret’s Anglican Church, 160 Ethelbert St
Sunday, June 1 2025
Soli Deo Gloria: Haydn’s The Creation
7:00 PM
First Mennonite Church, 922 Notre Dame Ave
Tickets: $20 door
Sunday, June 22 2025
Buxtehude’s Magnificat
10:30 AM
Holy Trinity Church, 256 Smith St
Teaching
I consider teaching to be an integral part of my life as a musician. Working with students is a constant reminder to be curious, challenge my assumptions, and be open to interesting surprises which often make their way into my work as a performer.
I currently teach at home, through the Manitoba Conservatory of Music and the Arts, Sistema Winnipeg, and Westgate Mennonite Collegiate, and in the summer I can be found at International Music Camp at the International Peace Gardens. In past years I have also been on faculty for Cadenza Summer Music Week and directed the Collegium Musicum at the University of Manitoba.
get in touch!
tatianafriesenmusic(at)gmail(dot)com
Tatiana Friesen | viola | Winnipeg, MB, Canada 