Authors: Tammy-Jo Mortensen

Looking for Canadian music for handbells? Look no further! The newly launched Handbell Musicians of Canada (HMC) has a new list up on their website . You will find their compositions spreadsheet under Resources . This is a list I built for a presentation at the International Handbell Symposium in...

Some of the most memorable moments I’ve spent with musicians of various churches where I’ve worked has been away from the church itself—on tour or at a retreat. Don’t get me wrong, the time spent at the church is really valuable in many ways, but you sure get to know...

I was just reading an article in the Spring 2021 edition of the University of Alberta Alumni magazine, New Trail , and a couple of headlines caught my attention, which then gave me food for thought for this issue of Gathering on ongoing racism in the church. It feels like...

The word affirming can have several meanings depending on context, but the definition can include: 1) stating a fact, 2) asserting strongly, and 3) offering someone support or encouragement. In the United Church context, we first started using the term affirming to mean the inclusion of all people of all...

In our communities, we all need to be mindful about discrimination and ableism. The word able, on its own or as a suffix, is loaded with many positive and negative meanings (capable, teachable, unable, disable). When someone asked me to distill thoughts about my work in music ministry down to...

There are some choral suggestions for Advent, Christmas, or Epiphany by Canadian women composers in the attached pdf. This list is by no means exhaustive. Sincere apologies for any composers who have been omitted.