Jennifer King
Energetic and insightful, Jennifer King is a versatile pianist, equally at home as a soloist and collaborator on the concert stage. She has established herself as a sought-after talent across Atlantic Canada. She has received recognition for her contributions to the musical life of Nova Scotia with scholarships from the Nova Scotia Talent Trust, nominations for Classical Album of the Year at the East Coast Music Awards and Music Nova Scotia Awards, and an Award of Appreciation from the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia in recognition of her contributions to musical life in the province.
Jennifer has released three albums: her debut release of night-inspired music with O Mistress Moon (2018), Doolittle: Minute Études “Excerpts” (Live) (2019) and Twilight Hour Collected Stories for Piano (2020). She is currently working on a new project called O Mistress Moon: Canadian Edition. This album is a sequel to her successful earlier recording of the same name featuring works by Canadian composers. The project features twelve contemporary piano works selected by King for their relationship to the environment, especially the moon, outer space, and the night. For this project, Jennifer teamed up with Halifax music producer Leaf Music to release twelve singles. Each of the monthly releases corresponds to a full moon in the calendar, beginning in February 2021 and continuing to January 2022.
Recent performances include live and recorded concerts with Jane Archibald (soprano for the Cecilia Concert series) and Betty Allison (soprano for the Scotia Festival Chamber Players Series). Even with the challenges of 2021, to date, Jennifer has given three solo live-streamed concerts for the Open Waters Festival, for the 40th celebration of the Association of Canadian Women Composers on International Women’s Day, and in April for the Scotia Festival Chamber Players Series featuring music from her three albums in combination with video and projections.
King moved to Nova Scotia from England in 2003, where she was an active musician and teacher.She has presented hundreds of recitals and concerts in many of Atlantic Canada’s concert series and alongside some of Canada’s most respected singers and musicians. She has also performed several Canadian premieres with three recent solo piano works dedicated to her by composers Derek Charke, Richard Gibson, and Amy Brandon. Jennifer enjoys exploring the world of classical music in the 21st century, whether with new music or past musical gems. She is not averse to taking risks and trying new ways of presenting and drawing in audiences previously unfamiliar with the wealth of music written for the piano.
Jennifer holds a Master of Music degree in solo piano performance from McGill University, a Bachelor of Music from Acadia University, and completed postgraduate diplomas at the University of Reading in the UK and the prestigious Royal Academy of Music in London England. In addition, she was a scholarship holder at the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music School, “the cradle of chamber music teaching in America” in Blue Hill, Maine, and a grant for contemporary music studies at the Britten Pears School of Advanced Musical Studies in the UK.
She presently sits as a member of the Atlantic division of the Canadian Music Centre.
