Rich Coburn

Music Director / Pianist 

I was hired as the organist of Christ Church Calgary—whose choir is a regular guest at Westminster Abbey—despite having no formal organ training. I’ve developed a conflict resolution and negotiation workshop which I have shared with hundreds of young musicians through the Kennedy Center, San Francisco Conservatory, and the Association for Opera in Canada. I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit. 

Earlier in my career I focused most of that entrepreneurial energy on learning to understand classical music more deeply. I performed across North America and China. I worked as an operatic and choral music director, a pianist, an organist, a vocal coach, an arranger, and composer. 

But more recent events—starting with living in Richmond, Virginia following the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally in nearby Charlottesville—have forced me to confront my position as a Black person working in classical music. I started reflecting on my own experiences with the white supremacy of classical music and institutions. I felt less and less comfortable continuing to engage with these institutions without also doing something tangible to change them. 

This led me to create BIPOC Voices. Highlights of that project include creating the largest database of works for solo voice(s) and 2 or more instruments by BIPOC composers in the world, and the first-ever Canada-wide reports on how both orchestras and opera companies programmed equity-seeking composers. After a short stint working in DEI at the National Arts Centre, I am now returning to entrepreneurship to pursue projects that help orchestras across to amplify their social impact.