Sheila Garrett

Diploma; Bachelor of Music Performance with Distinction;
Certificate of Advanced Studies
 
Distinguished Instructor: Double Bass

Academy Artistic Facilitator: Double Bass

Assistant Principal Bass of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra 1977-2017, Sheila Garrett received her early musical training as a scholarship student at the Interlochen Arts Academy (Diploma). A graduate of the University of Michigan (Bachelor of Music Performance with Distinction), Sheila was awarded the Blatt Seigel Double Bass Prize to "a student showing outstanding potential as an orchestral player". She continued her studies, on full scholarship, at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, England, earning a Certificate of Advanced Studies. Summer studies include Tanglewood and the Interlochen Center for the Arts, where she was a featured soloist as a concerto competition winner. Her principal teachers were Lawrence Hurst, Leslie Martin, Thomas Martin, Homer Mensch, Peter Spring, and Oscar Zimmerman.

An active freelance musician, Sheila Garrett regularly appears with the Calgary Philharmonic and Red Deer Symphony Orchestras. In 2019 alone she was also engaged by the Calgary Bach Society, Calgary Festival Chorus, Calgary Opera, Kantorei Chorus, National Geographic Symphony for Our World, and Weird Al Yankovic Strings Attached show. Together with her husband Charles, former Principal Bass of the Calgary Philharmonic, Sheila has been a recitalist at the conventions of Bassworks and the International Society of Bassists. With the Alberta Chamber Players, she premiered a bass concerto by Alberta composer Allan Rae based on paintings by Salvador Dali. At the Pender Island Flute Retreat, it was her great honour to perform with pianist Colleen Athparia and flautist Gwen Klassen, founder, and director, in a concert featuring Bach Suite #2 and Bolling Jazz Suite. Programs of the Brahms Serenades and Saint Saens Carnival of the Animals with the Instrumental Society of Calgary in recent seasons were another big highlight. Sheila has collaborated with the Beau Quartet, Mount Royal Woodwind Quintet, Rosa Selvatica, and Conservatory faculty and guests artists performing virtually all of the standard bass chamber repertoire, many performances recorded by CBC.  

Recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Teaching Award, Sheila Garrett is a dedicated instructor and sought after clinician. She has coached for the Calgary Youth Orchestra, Banff International Festival of Youth Orchestras, and adjudicated for the Canimex Canadian Music Competition. Her students excel in competitions and have earned scholarships to prestigious post-secondary institutions and summer festivals. Eleven of her students have been members of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. Professionally, her students now hold positions in orchestras in Canada (including the Calgary Philharmonic), Europe, and the United States.

This summer 2020, Sheila Garrett joins the bass faculty as a Valade Fellow at the renowned Interlochen Summer Arts Camp.

Private Lesson Rate: $100.00 per hour.