03/19/2026
Welcome to our vocal and instrumental adjudicator, Anna Marie Bekolay!
Anna Marie Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT is a multidisciplinary artist who creates evocative audience experiences through collaborative work with several regular music projects as well as freelance work, teaching, and adjudicating. She won a Gold Medal for her Voice Performance Associate diploma with the Royal Conservatory of Music in 2006 for the highest mark in the country. Anna absolutely adores teaching in her studio and adjudicating at festivals because these offer her so many opportunities to learn about how people learn music & how they explore expressive possibilities in their musical experiences. Several years ago, Ms Bekolay designed a piano study course she calls “Creative Piano” where students of all levels explore scales, patterns, common chord progressions, & some practical theory before embarking on learning or writing pieces of music – in this way, they learn about the patterns in music and can use that knowledge creatively throughout their musical explorations.
Her current regular performing projects include Celtic ensemble Back of the Bus, folk/prog-rock group The Whiskey
Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, and Skaravan. Anna recently guested with Nigerian-Canadian group Morit Music lead by
Moses and Rita Idowu (backup vocals & violin lines), Saskatoon Men’s Chorus directed by Deborah Buck (recorder &
violin soloist Dec 2024), Prince Albert Concert Choir directed by Perry Acorn (violin soloist & orchestra member:
violin & percussion winter 2024), Eclipse Chorus directed by Roy Sydiaha (spring & Dec 2025 along with Mac Talla Quartet), and several times, she has had the privilege to play with the string orchestra for the International Saito Conducting Workshop lead by Wayne Toews. Anna was also involved in Free Flow Dance Theatre’s Back Alley Antics 2024 playing her composition “A Song for Lost Time” on a Giant Double Bowed Psaltery made by luthier Weldon
Gray of graylorelutes.com. This piece was later used for a choreography called “Echoes” created by Jackie Latendresse & Free Flow Dance Theatre for a November 2025 event. In October 2024, Anna played for the release of Cassandra Stinn’s album Returnings. Returnings has returned to the stage a couple times since then – including one time with choreography in Free Flow Dance Theatre’s 30th Anniversary show (March 2025).
In 2025, Anna Marie Bekolay released an album on Bandcamp.com called Light. This album, created out of a collection of improvised vocalises, represents how her DanceSpace Concerts begin: an improvised vocalise and improvised movement/dance designed to inspire all present. In her DanceSpace Concert Series, Anna invites the audience on an emotional journey through artistic music programming & collaboration with a variety of musicians and dancers. The most recent DanceSpace Concerts include Music from the Golden Age of Piracy 1680 – 1720 in October 2024 and Witch & the Cycle of Feminine Archetypes in November 2025.
Anna is excited about The Whiskey Jerks’ 2025 album Solid Gold that includes her song “Misdirection” – the best answer to any of life’s challenges is songwriting!
Her greatest joy is being fully present while developing connections through sharing music with students, band mates, and audiences alike.
