Education
- DMA, University of Southern California
- MMus, University of Southern California
Biography
Joëlle Morton is a widely sought performer and teacher, specializing in a variety of period instruments, including Renaissance and Baroque violas da gamba, violoni and double basses. Active primarily as a soloist and chamber musician, Joëlle directs the Scaramella chamber music series in Toronto, but is also a regular guest for a wide variety of workshop teaching, chamber music projects and symposium lecturing engagements, the world over. In 2005, she designed and oversaw the implementation of the Consort Coop, a highly successful program for young professionals that is now a regular part of the annual summer Conclave for the Viola da Gamba Society of America. More recently, Joëlle has led specialty workshops for players of the viola da gamba in Brazil, Germany and Australia.
Closer to home, Joëlle appears as guest soloist or continuo player with a great many period ensembles in North America, including Tafelmusik, the New York Collegium, les Voix Humaines, Early Music Alberta, Rosa Barocca, Early Music Voices, Pegasus Early Music, New York State Baroque, I Furiosi, La Monica, Parthenia Consort of Viols, the Catacoustic Consort, Artek, Philomel, Concert Royal, Brandywine Baroque, Ensemble Soleil, Los Angeles Baroque, Musica Angelica and the Musicians in Ordinary.
As a scholarly researcher, Joëlle is generally considered one of the world’s authorities on the G violone, and her personal website (www.greatbassviol.com) serves as an important international resource to those interested in researching that instrument and other large bowed basses. For many years, she was the Editor for the International Society of Bassists, and during her tenure as such, she established and oversaw their Online Journal of Bass Reaseach (www.ojbr.com). But Joëlle’s research interests are much farther-reaching; her most recent work lays out and in fact, redefines, the full history and repertoire for the viola bastarda. Her areas of historical expertise have led to formal speaking engagements, most recently in Belgium, Brazil and Switzerland. She has published a great number of scholarly musical editions, including several volumes of music for the lyra viol, the complete works (for viol) by Orazio Bassani, and two Viennese cassations (for a quintet that includes Viennese bass) by J.B. Vanhal and Josef Mannl.
Since 2005, Joëlle has been leading the viol consort class at the University of Toronto. The ensemble is privileged for its weekly meetings to gather at Hart House where Joëlle is the curator of their spectacular collection of antique viols. At U of T, Joëlle also teaches historical basses—G and D violone, contrabasses tuned in both 4ths and 5ths (underhand and overhand bows, as desired) and Viennese bass.