Artist Information
Bio
Denis Letourneau [violin] comes from a musical family; his father Jean Letourneau was the founder of the Edmonton Opera and his uncle Claude Letourneau founded Le Movement Vivaldi in Quebec. He danced in the Alberta Ballet Company and sang in the Edmonton Opera Chorus while pursuing his studies on the violin, and graduated with a B.Mus degree from the University of Alberta, with further studies at the Banff Centre. He became Concertmaster of the Okanagan Symphony in 1978, and has held that position continuously for over 30 years. He has been active in promoting the arts throughout the Okanagan, and was a founding member of numerous arts organizations. He is in demand as a jazz violinist, instructor and adjudicator, and in 2008 was awarded the Okanagan Arts Award in recognition for his contribution to cultural life in the Okanagan. He performs frequently with his wife, violinist and violist Susan Schaffer, in the string quartet 'Heartstrings', and as the duo 'Romanza del Arco'.