Bruce Ubukata

Bruce Ubukata. Pianist, organist, harpsichordist, vocal coach, b Goderich, Ont, 3 Sep 1949; BA (Carleton) 1970. Bruce Ubukata studied privately with Greta Kraus in Toronto, Sir Peter Pears at Aldeburgh, and Pierre Bernac at St Jean de Luz, France. He has been an accompanist at the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) from 1972; for the Canadian Children's Opera Chorus (now Canadian Children's Opera Company) from 1975; and has been a repetiteur for the Canadian Opera Company (COC) and Festival Ottawa. Since 1977 he has been an accompanist and coach for summer courses at the Britten-Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies at Aldeburgh. In 1982 he co-founded with Stephen Ralls the Toronto-based vocal concert series The Aldeburgh Connection.

Ubukata has performed as organist with the Toronto Symphony (TS), Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and the Elmer Iseler Singers; as pianist for Mary Lou Fallis's one-woman shows in Canada and abroad; as accompanist on CBC; and frequently as accompanist at the Algoma, Guelph, Elora, and Shaw Festivals, the Festival of the Sound, and Music at Sharon. He has appeared regularly at the Aldeburgh Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and has given two extended tours of France. He has been accompanist for first performances of works by Srul Irving Glick, Derek Holman, and Harry Somers; and accompanied the Canadian Children's Opera Chorus on its CD of Holman's Sir Christëmas (1989, CCOC 0189-CD), and on its recording Dandelion Parachutes (1993, WRC8-6710). Ubukata has also recorded several cds with Ralls and other artists for The Aldeburgh Connection. He continued as accompanist and artistic director of The Aldeburgh Connection in its last season (2012-2013). Bruce Ubukata was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in 2012.