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Artist Description | Toronto Mass Choir
In July 1988, history was made in Toronto. The founding members of the Association of Gospel Music Ministries decided to tap into one of the fastest growing gospel music phenomena of the day, the gospel choir. After many brainstorming sessions, it was decided to hold open auditions for those who were interested in forming a mass gospel choir. The response was overwhelming. Over 100 people committed their summer to the task of completing a live recording at the association’s gospel music convention that fall.
The initial recording session in October 1988 was very successful. Nobody wanted to quit. So after much prayer and discussion, the members and directors decided that the choir would continue, and as a result the seeds of the Toronto Mass Choir were sown.
The choir’s debut album, Great Is Thy Glory, was released in April 1990 on the Micah Records label. Toronto Mass Choir’s second live recording God is our Hope was released in 1994, followed in April 1998 by the choir’s Juno nominated album, Follow Him.
Toronto Mass Choir’s most recent recording, Instrument of Praise was released in February 2002 and won the 2003 Juno Award for Contemporary Christian/Gospel Music Album of the Year, the Vibe Award for Urban/Soul Album of the Year, the Urban Music Award for Best Gospel Recording, as well as the 2002 Covenant Award for Best Urban/Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year by the Canadian Gospel Music Association.
Karen Burke, a graduate of McMaster University and the Royal Conservatory of Music, was called upon to lead the diversified group of singers and musicians and continues to serve as the choir’s Director along with her husband, Oswald Burke, who is Executive Producer, and Assistant Director, Elvis Boddie. She also serves as the Music Teacher at Toronto District Christian High School.
Now 30 strong plus a five-piece band, the choir consists of members between the ages of 20 to 40 who are from various local church denominations including Baptist, Church of God, Wesleyan, Missionary, and Pentecostal.
The choir’s songs contain a lyrical theme of praise, hope and encouragement, simple yet profound. The vocal delivery is dynamic. The message is clear. The music is compelling. The influences of Jazz, Gospel, Reggae and Caribbean folk genres are evident.
The Toronto Mass Choir continues a busy concert schedule, which has taken them throughout Canada, the United States, the Caribbean and most recently Italy. The choir has appeared in many radio and television broadcasts for stations such as CBC Radio One, CITY-TV, FLOW 93.5 FM, 100 Huntley Street on Crossroads Television System and VisionTV.
Toronto Mass Choir has been a special guest at countless church services, festivals, award shows and venues such as Quebec’s La Festival de Musique Sacree de Saint-Roch, Calgary’s Vibe Awards, the Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival, the Canadian National Exhibition, Missionfest, the Empire Club of Canada, Roy Thompson Hall with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and at the Gospel Music Workshop of America conventions in Washington, DC, Atlanta and Detroit. The choir has also appeared with well-known gospel singers Tramaine Hawkins, Alvin Slaughter, Take 6 and Jessy Dixon.
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