A classically trained pianist, Jane Perry used her talents to build a community

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On the Calgary stage in 2018, Jane Perry appeared as a svelte, svelte figure with a bright smile and ready-to-come. As co-artistic director of that year's Unison Festival's Unisson Conference, he introduced acts that included 20 choirs dedicated to LGBTQ singers (and allies). Although Ms. Perry was used to sitting behind a piano or standing with her back to the audience as a choir conductor, she relished the role. His jubilant excitement helped fuel the crowd's excitement as he led them through the musical extravaganza he helped invent. This event was one of the triumphs of Ms. Perry's professional life.

Her sister, Ann Perry, said: “Although her incredible skills led her to pursue a professional career in chamber music, Jane, as always, followed her heart and dedicated her life to bringing people together in the community through music.” .

When Jane Perry started the One Voice Choir in 2011, Jane Perry is legendary for her work with the gay community, leading a revival of the tradition of musical excellence choirs for LGBTQ people and their allies. He also started a gay choir in Ottawa.

“To me, Jane was a community I loved for her passion for music, but even more so for her ability to create an environment where people of all ages and backgrounds could shine. She made a lot of people feel like they belonged and found a kindred spirit,” said Pam Rocker, a Calgary activist who advocates for LGBTQ people.

Ms. Perry, a community builder, concert pianist, director of three choirs, summer gardener, vegetarian and gay rights activist, died Jan. 17 in Kauai, Hawaii, two years after being diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer. He was 52 years old.

“He will be missed, but his legacy will live on in countless hearts,” Ms Roker said.

Jane Elizabeth Perry was born July 24, 1971 to Douglas Perry and Marilyn Perry (née Kerstead) in Campbellford, Ont. Born between Toronto and Ottawa. Jane began playing the piano at the age of four and was soon winning awards. The family spent the summer in Nova Scotia, where his father was ordained as a Baptist minister. He spent several years as a chaplain at Warkworth Prison, near Campbellford, before joining the faculty of Queen's Theological College, Kingston, in 1978, where he taught pastoral care until his retirement.

The Globe and Mail for Rev. “Doug had a strong sense of ethics and justice,” Perry's 2022 obituary said. “When his advocacy of LGBTQ inclusion put him at odds with dominant Baptist views in the 1990s, he found a new spiritual home in Chalmers United Church.”

Ms. Perry holds BA and MA in Piano Performance from the University of Ottawa and an Artist Diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Music. His musical career began in Ottawa, where he served as music director of the city's First Unitarian Congregation from 2000 to 2011. Although new to Unitarianism, Ms. Perry quickly made friends by volunteering her time at national and regional music workshops and group singalongs. Unitarian Conferences.

He made an immediate impression on Mary Bennett, executive director of the Unitarian Council of Canada from 2000 to 2008. At one conference in Vancouver, Ms. Perry “took the lead” and jumped in without any preparation. afternoon pre-conference workshop when a scheduled presenter is unavailable. “It engaged those who were there and changed the atmosphere from a negative experience to a very rewarding experience,” Ms Bennett said.

He also founded Ottawa's Tone Cluster (a self-described “very unique choir”) and directed the ensemble for 10 years, where he met his partner, Cora Castle.

The couple moved to Calgary in 2011 because bassist Mrs. Castle wanted to be closer to her family.

“It's impossible to lose Cora,” Ms. Perry explained to the hiring committee of the Calgary Unitarian Church, which offered her a job as their congregation's music director.

“Jane always said she wasn't our musical 'minister,' but in fact she served us with her music, her joy and her support of all of us,” said Pamela Rickey, president of Calgary Unitarians.

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After her move, the Calgary Renaissance Singers and Players persuaded Ms. Perry to join them as artistic director, even though she had little experience with medieval music.

“He accepted the call and brought new energy, creativity, joy and incredible musicianship to the organization,” said Marsha Haug, a board member of the Calgary Renaissance Singers and Players since 2012.

The year Ms. Perry came to Calgary, she also started the One Voice Choir. Kenzie Love, now the choir's board secretary, was so impressed by the ensemble's first Christmas concert that she auditioned and joined them in early 2012.

Mr. Love cited the choir's two club carousel concerts as examples of how Ms. Perry built community ties. The shows are named after Calgary's first gay bar, which closed in the mid-1970s. Cabaret style concerts featured club dance music. – recalled Mr. Love. “She (Ms. Perry) found people who worked at the Carousel Club and brought them to the concert. One of them became a member of the One Voice Chorus family, even though he was not a singer because of this experience.”

Likewise, in the spirit of reconciliation, Ms. Perry encouraged local indigenous leaders to participate in events such as the Unison Festival.

“She's amazing,” said Chantal Stormsong Chagnon, a local educator and activist in Calgary. “It has opened dialogue and fostered relationships for truth and reconciliation on many levels. He was great.”

He proved to be a very effective leader with the Calgary Renaissance singers and players. In addition to helping the ensemble win several important grants, Ms. Haug, a retired psychologist, Ms. Perry saw them through the pandemic with membership numbers that, unlike other choirs, remained unchanged.

“He had a gentle, kind and collaborative leadership style that welcomed the ideas of others as well as presenting his own ideas in an artistic way,” Ms. Haug said.

Mrs. Perry's sister, Ann, remembers Jane's playful side. Once he tried to make Anne laugh out loud in church by singing a six-verse hymn. As Jane teased her sister, she adored her musically gifted niece, Grace Perry-Howarth, who played the cello from an early age. The two enjoyed an “aunt and niece jam,” Ann said.

At Ms. Perry's last public concert last summer, she accompanied her nephew on a challenging Shostakovich cello sonata.

“Sometimes I can't do the fine motor skills in my hands the way I used to,” Ms Perry wrote on her Caring Bridge blog, explaining that her chemotherapy had caused neuropathy in her hands and feet. Nevertheless, he spent three weeks practicing the fourth part: “three pages of fast scales and crazy transition work.”

“It went really well,” he said later. “For me, it was a personal triumph — neuropathy be damned — and a heart-warming experience. … Will this be the only time I get to play recitals with my nephew until the end of my days? It's hard to say. But if it did, it was good. :).”

Mrs. Perry leaves her partner, Mrs. Castle; mother, Marilyn Perry; sister Anne and brother-in-law Scott Howarth; niece, Mrs. Perry-Howarth; and extended family.

Ms. Perry fulfilled a lifelong dream in January when she and Ms. Castle flew to Hawaii with friends. “During her time in Hawaii, she enjoyed the warmth and sunshine and the magnificent palm trees,” Ms. Castle wrote on the Caring Bridge blog.

“He went snorkeling and every morning he met the sunrise on the beach. I imagine Jane's spirit flying joyously through the palm fronds,' he continued, 'skimming the waves of the ocean, heading west into the free and bright sunset. If I listen carefully, I can hear his music going on.”

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