about me

“I don’t sing because I’m happy; I’m happy because I sing.” – William James

Genevieve MacKay is a versatile violist, violinist, gambist, writer, and arts administrator based in North Vancouver, BC. She holds a Master of Arts in Ancient Culture, Religion, and Ethnicity from the University of British Columbia, and currently works full-time as a musician.

Genevieve’s artistic and teaching practice focuses firstly on the ability of music to create value and meaning in everyday life through the pursuit of excellence, and secondly on the many colours of sound made possible by bowed strings.

Working as an independent artist, she co-created Suspended Reverie for Stretch yoga studio, an innovative event combining live soundscapes and guided relaxation. She also independently produced, recorded, and released her debut solo EP alabast: inclusions.

She has published poetry in several Canadian magazines and is collaborating on a series of choral pieces with composer Chris Sivak. Her writing is informed by her studies of the ancient world and her love of nature.

As an educator, Genevieve is an experienced clinician, coach, and private teacher, working with students from ages 5 to 85. She directs the Debut Strings programme for WVYB (West Vancouver Youth Band), fostering a love of music and ensemble skills in the organization’s youngest students, and works closely to help mentor the senior ensembles as well. She maintains a private teaching studio in North Vancouver, where she lives, and is a faculty member at Place des Arts and the Serena Eades Academy of Music. She recently released a collection of compositions for string students and teachers, the first in her series Fun Music for Small People.

Genevieve sits on the board of BC Viols, an organization dedicated to supporting the viola da gamba and its players in British Columbia. She believes strongly in the role of robust and forward-thinking administration in the arts, and has worked behind the scenes in various capacities for Early Music Vancouver, Music on Main, the Pacific Baroque Orchestra, the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, the Vancouver Cantata Singers, and Small Stage.

Genevieve has performed with artists such as Sarah Slean, Michael Bublé, Rod Stewart, and Jann Arden, and organizations including Early Music Vancouver, the Vancouver Chamber Choir, Little Chamber Music, Vancouver New Music, Cellar Jazz, Infidels Jazz, Coastal Jazz, Redshift Music, and more. Her performance career has also included ensembles such as the Bill Coon Double Quartet, Lions Gate Sinfonia, Chilliwack Symphony, Kamloops Symphony, Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra, RumSalt Orchestra, and the indie band Sorry Buttons.