We love to sing! We believe in the transformational and healing power of Music. Our services include a variety of exciting and moving music.

Our services also include congregational singing, with songs and hymns from our Unitarian hymnals, Singing the Living Tradition and Singing the Journey, which feature a wide range of music covering the sources and principles of our tradition.

We welcome guest musicians both from within and outside our congregation who perform in different styles and forms. In recent years we have featured the Windermere String Quartet, Passport Duo (cello/piano), a traditional Chinese Erhu player, a Middle-Eastern oud and ney player, our resident rock band consisting of members of our congregation, a Balkan choir, and a wide range of instrumental and vocal soloists.

For more info or to participate in our ever-evolving music program, please contact Dallas Bergen, our Director of Congregational Music This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Our Director of Congregational Music – Dallas Bergen Dallas is an active singer, choral conductor and clinician. Prior to settling in Toronto, Dallas received his Bachelor of Music in Secondary Education from the University of Victoria, and later moved to New York where he conducted the New York Consort, and was a vocalist with the chamber choirs Canticum Novum, Cerddorion and Manhattan Concert Productions. He is a past member of the Canadian Chamber Choir and sang with the Elora Festival Singers for the 2008 Elora Festival where he also participated in the Festival Conductor’s Workshop with renowned conductors Stephen Layton and Noel Edison. Dallas was one of nine conductors selected to work with Dr. Stephen Alltop at the 2010 Unitarian-Universalist Musicians’ Network conference in Madison, Wisconsin. Dallas is currently a member of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, conducts the Harbourfront Chorus, and is the founding Artistic Director of Univox, a Toronto community choir for young adults. Dallas’ service to the choral arts extends to his work with Regent Park School of Music as the conductor of their Parkdale Children’s choir and with the Toronto Arts Council where he is acting co-chair of the Music Committee.

Dallas Bergen

Music for Children and Youth

Our children and youth sing at a number of services during the year, under the direction of our Director of Congregational Music or our resident musicians. With the continued growth of our music program and congregation, we hope to offer full-time choirs for children and youth in the near future.

Our Adult Choir

Our Adult Choir is a mixed-voice choir made up of non-auditioned singers. Choir members have a wide range of choral and singing experience, from those who have never sung in a choir to professional caliber singers, including our resident musicians who lead the choir sections.

The choir sings at about three Sunday services per month between September and June. We rehearse on Thursday evenings, 7-9 pm.

Much like the sources of our faith, we draw on music spanning five-hundred years, from the Renaissance to the present day; a cappella and accompanied, sacred (from many faith backgrounds) and secular, traditional and contemporary. Here is a sample of the repertoire performed by our choir:

• Down to the River to Pray – Appalachian hymn
• Esto Les Digo – Kinley Lange, Latin American, text: New Testament
• Avinu Malkeinu – Srul Irving Glick, Jewish traditional
• Freedom is Coming – South African Freedom Song
• That Lonesome Road – James Taylor, American folk-rock
• Earth Song – Contemporary spiritual/environmental
• The Fire of Commitment – Contemporary Unitarian Universalist
• Man in the Mirror – Michael Jackson (Pop), arranged by our resident musician, Lucas Marchand

If you love to sing and you would like to join us, please contact Dallas Bergen, our Director of Congregational Music This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

On Saturday, May 7 we presented our third annual Choral Extravaganza of area UU choirs in concert, this year featuring more than 100 choristers from the following southern Ontario Unitarian-Universalist choirs:

• First Unitarian Congregation of Toronto
• The Unitarian Fellowship of Peterborough
• The First Unitarian Church of Hamilton
• Don Heights Unitarian Congregation
• Neighbourhood Unitarian-Universalist Congregation

This concert was a fundraiser for the Regent Park School of Music, and we were joined by Richard Marsella, the RPSM’s Director. Our concerts in each each of 2009 and 2010 raised roughly $2400 to help support the RPSM. Toronto First has adopted the RPSM as a social responsibility project, and has a team of volunteers working with them on a regular basis.

Our Resident Musicians

Congregational Pianist – Lisa Iwasaki

Lisa Iwasaki holds ARCT diplomas in Piano Performance and in Teaching from The Royal Conservatory of Music, a Bachelor of Music in Education and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Toronto, and a Master of Music in Piano Performance from Southern Methodist University. Her piano studies have allowed her to work with teachers including Andrew Markow, David Karp, Fernando Laires, as well as, Nazzareno Carusi in Italy. Lisa's teaching experience includes group instruction, Yamaha music courses, Suzuki Piano, as well as traditional private piano from the beginner to the advanced levels. A former member of the faculty of the Community Education Division of the Eastman School of Music, Lisa joined The Royal Conservatory of Music faculty in 2004. A member of the Ontario Registered Music Teachers' Association, she is also nationally certified by the Music Teacher's National Association, and has written articles and given seminars for piano teachers and pedagogy students.

Resident Musician – Tahirih Vejdani

Tahirih Vejdani graduated with great distinction from the University of Regina with a double major in Vocal Performance and Music History. She has performed extensively as a soloist in Saskatchewan with the Regina Symphony Orchestra, Regina Philharmonic Chorus, Regina Lyric Musical Theater, Regina Summer Stage, Regina Male Voice Choir, Halcyon Chamber Choir and The Expressions. A diverse performer, Tahirih has been known to grace the stage as a singer, actress and dancer. She has had the opportunity to apprentice under actress Sheila McCarthy of the hit CBC show Little Mosque on the Prairie for the past four years and most recently joined Wildfire Dance Theatre of Stratford, Ontario in a tour to Arviat, Nunavut as part of a social and economic development arts project. In 2008, she was a nominee for the City of Regina Mayor's Arts and Business Awards in the category of Emerging Artist and in 2009 was the recipient of the Luther Medal of Distinction Award from the University of Regina. Now residing in Toronto, Tahirih sings professionally with The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, along with Univox, and the Toronto World Unity Choir.

Tahirih Vejdani

Resident Musician – Katy Harmer

Katy Harmer graduated from the University of Western Ontario's Bachelor of Music program in 2008, where she studied voice with Rachel Mallon. She has been involved in choral music her whole life, singing with the Canadian Children's Opera Company for many years in Toronto, university faculty choirs, church choirs, the Ontario Youth Choir (2007) and the Banff Choral Workshop (2008). In 2009, Katy was the assistant artistic director of the Conspirato Chamber Singers in London, Ontario. Currently, she is an alto in the Nathaniel Dett Chorale, and a rehearsal assistant for the Canadian Children's Opera Company.

Katy Harmer

Resident Musician – Lucas Marchand

Lucas Marchand has been singing on the stage since he was three years old. Growing up he gained recognition winning the Junior Vocal category in the BC festival of the arts and taking top spot in the Golden Gate International Music Festival in San Francisco. He went on to study voice at the University of Victoria where he earned his Bachelor's Degree in Music with distinction. Lucas then spent time touring with various groups, to parts of North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, performing various styles of music including Opera, Jazz, Pop, Salsa, R&B, and Chamber Music. He has shared the stage with performers like Tom Johnston, Martha Reeves, James Ingram, Nikki Yanovsky, Jacksoul, Colm Wilkinson, and Measha Brueggergosman. Currently Lucas performs as a chorister and featured soloist with the Nathaniel Dett Chorale and also teaches for the Nathaniel Dett Chorale's training choir program which provides musical training to local high school students. Lucas also works with Speech Level Singing international as a certified instructor and as Educational Advisor for Northeastern US and Canada. He also arranges and performs a-cappella pop music with Toronto-based rock-a-pella group Fine Grind.

Lucas Marchand

Resident Musician – Ben MacDonald

Ben joined us as a resident musician in September 2011.