By Chloe Mee
Many of the Collingwood students who attended Wentworth cannot remember their days in elementary school without fondly remembering Ms Deighton. She is one of several dedicated teachers at our school who teaches music. I remember her best as my choir teacher. Currently, she teaches kindergarten as well as grades three, four, six and seven. She “loves this range of students, and [is] particularly enjoying teaching kindergarten again.” She was also the musical director of several musicals at Wentworth such as Annie, Beauty and the Beast, Peter Pan, and Shrek. Outside of Collingwood, she co-directs a community choir called Q-Choir at the Britannia Community Centre.
Last school year, Ms Deighton’s 6/7 Chamber Choir placed second in the National Music Festival in August. This was Ms Deighton’s fourth time taking her Chamber Choir to the Kiwanis Music Festival in Vancouver, “and the first time we have been selected to advance to provincials.” Following their participation in the provincial level Performing Arts Festival, her choir was selected to represent British Columbia at the national festival. This outstanding achievement is no surprise given Ms Deighton’s contagious enthusiasm for music and her caring nature, as well as her dedication to her students. As a former student of Ms Deighton’s, I can safely say that she helped to grow my love for singing and improved my confidence. After hearing of this accomplishment of both Ms Deighton and her singers, I was eager to learn more. Below you can listen to the recordings which were sent to the competition and earned second place nationally.
Ms Deighton’s first teaching job was in “Moose Factory, Ontario… a tiny island in the mouth of the Moose River that empties into James Bay. I taught music from grades K - 7 at the elementary school, the population of which was 97% Cree students. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn about Cree culture and traditions. I was particularly fascinated to learn about the strong fiddle tradition in this area. The fiddle was introduced to the community by the English employees of the Hudson’s Bay Company in the 1800s, and Cree fiddlers are still going strong to this day. I also enjoyed accompanying the students to outdoor school, learning about local vegetation, making bannock, and smoking duck in the tipi.”
She was born in Timmins, “a small mining community with a population of about 50,000 people in Northern Ontario.” She describes Timmins as the “city with [a] heart of gold,” and recently visited this summer to celebrate her grandmother’s 100th birthday. This venture allowed her to revisit her hometown with her partner and children. Ms Deighton also says that she is “somewhat of an anomaly in my immediate family, as no one studied music formally. As a young child, I begged to take piano lessons, and eventually, my parents gave in. I practised for years on my grandmother’s antique piano in the basement.” Ms Deighton was a percussionist when she played in bands. As a percussionist, she played in several pit bands and a play.
Outside of teaching, Ms Deighton loves to read. She is a Margaret Atwood enthusiast and is currently enjoying reading The Testaments having read The Handmaid’s Tale in school. She “loves training for triathlons, and hope[s] to start training again soon when life slows down a little bit.” Her favourite genres of music range from “EDM to jazz, classical to pop, however, when I return from a day full of music, I really just enjoy the sound of silence!” If a friend or family member were to choose three adjectives to describe her, they would be “passionate, caring [and] joyful,” and I couldn’t agree more.
Ms Deighton says that “music has always been central in my life. Music can express things that words can’t. This is why music is so central to movies - it sets the mood. And poetry set to music only enhances the impact of the words.” Initially, Ms Deighton thought that she would teach secondary school band, but realised that she really enjoyed working with younger students when she began teaching primary and intermediate years at Collingwood.
“I believe that music has made me a stronger, more resilient person. It takes a lot of courage to play in festivals and perform in band and choir. I started my musical career at the age of 8, performing in festivals on piano and in concert band soon after that. I can remember many crushing experiences when I didn’t perform as well as I’d hoped. I learned after many years that the mistakes aren’t so important, and it is really the passion and joy shining through that is really the key to an engaging performance.”
Her mentor is Janet Warren, the conductor of Higher Ground Women’s Vocal Ensemble, of which Ms Deighton is a member. “In addition to being a first-class musician, educator and conductor, she is an expert at creating community through choral singing. The women in this choir have become some of my closest friends over the past decade, and I have learned so much from Janet.” She has personally been impacted by joining the group since “after joining Higher Ground Women’s Ensemble, I gained a new appreciation for the deep, emotive qualities of choral singing that I didn’t find in the same way in concert band repertoire. Since that discovery, I have studied choral conducting every summer I could.”
When I asked her whether she would continue to pursue music in the future, Ms Deighton said: “for me, singing is a lifelong endeavour. I hope that I never have to stop. I would also like to direct a community choir of women, just as Janet did when she retired from teaching. It is such a rewarding experience. I will definitely continue to explore dance and taiko drumming, as they have also been a big part of my adult life.”
As advice for young artists, Ms Deighton said not to “expect to accomplish musical genius overnight - or ever. That isn’t necessary for enjoyment and success in music. Play music with other people. Write a song. Perform even when it is hard - it will get easier.”
I wish Ms Deighton all the best with her future aspirations. I am sure that she will continue to touch the hearts of many students to come, as well as remaining in the hearts of those she has already taught.
Many of the Collingwood students who attended Wentworth cannot remember their days in elementary school without fondly remembering Ms Deighton. She is one of several dedicated teachers at our school who teaches music. I remember her best as my choir teacher. Currently, she teaches kindergarten as well as grades three, four, six and seven. She “loves this range of students, and [is] particularly enjoying teaching kindergarten again.” She was also the musical director of several musicals at Wentworth such as Annie, Beauty and the Beast, Peter Pan, and Shrek. Outside of Collingwood, she co-directs a community choir called Q-Choir at the Britannia Community Centre.
Last school year, Ms Deighton’s 6/7 Chamber Choir placed second in the National Music Festival in August. This was Ms Deighton’s fourth time taking her Chamber Choir to the Kiwanis Music Festival in Vancouver, “and the first time we have been selected to advance to provincials.” Following their participation in the provincial level Performing Arts Festival, her choir was selected to represent British Columbia at the national festival. This outstanding achievement is no surprise given Ms Deighton’s contagious enthusiasm for music and her caring nature, as well as her dedication to her students. As a former student of Ms Deighton’s, I can safely say that she helped to grow my love for singing and improved my confidence. After hearing of this accomplishment of both Ms Deighton and her singers, I was eager to learn more. Below you can listen to the recordings which were sent to the competition and earned second place nationally.
Ms Deighton’s first teaching job was in “Moose Factory, Ontario… a tiny island in the mouth of the Moose River that empties into James Bay. I taught music from grades K - 7 at the elementary school, the population of which was 97% Cree students. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn about Cree culture and traditions. I was particularly fascinated to learn about the strong fiddle tradition in this area. The fiddle was introduced to the community by the English employees of the Hudson’s Bay Company in the 1800s, and Cree fiddlers are still going strong to this day. I also enjoyed accompanying the students to outdoor school, learning about local vegetation, making bannock, and smoking duck in the tipi.”
She was born in Timmins, “a small mining community with a population of about 50,000 people in Northern Ontario.” She describes Timmins as the “city with [a] heart of gold,” and recently visited this summer to celebrate her grandmother’s 100th birthday. This venture allowed her to revisit her hometown with her partner and children. Ms Deighton also says that she is “somewhat of an anomaly in my immediate family, as no one studied music formally. As a young child, I begged to take piano lessons, and eventually, my parents gave in. I practised for years on my grandmother’s antique piano in the basement.” Ms Deighton was a percussionist when she played in bands. As a percussionist, she played in several pit bands and a play.
Outside of teaching, Ms Deighton loves to read. She is a Margaret Atwood enthusiast and is currently enjoying reading The Testaments having read The Handmaid’s Tale in school. She “loves training for triathlons, and hope[s] to start training again soon when life slows down a little bit.” Her favourite genres of music range from “EDM to jazz, classical to pop, however, when I return from a day full of music, I really just enjoy the sound of silence!” If a friend or family member were to choose three adjectives to describe her, they would be “passionate, caring [and] joyful,” and I couldn’t agree more.
Ms Deighton says that “music has always been central in my life. Music can express things that words can’t. This is why music is so central to movies - it sets the mood. And poetry set to music only enhances the impact of the words.” Initially, Ms Deighton thought that she would teach secondary school band, but realised that she really enjoyed working with younger students when she began teaching primary and intermediate years at Collingwood.
“I believe that music has made me a stronger, more resilient person. It takes a lot of courage to play in festivals and perform in band and choir. I started my musical career at the age of 8, performing in festivals on piano and in concert band soon after that. I can remember many crushing experiences when I didn’t perform as well as I’d hoped. I learned after many years that the mistakes aren’t so important, and it is really the passion and joy shining through that is really the key to an engaging performance.”
Her mentor is Janet Warren, the conductor of Higher Ground Women’s Vocal Ensemble, of which Ms Deighton is a member. “In addition to being a first-class musician, educator and conductor, she is an expert at creating community through choral singing. The women in this choir have become some of my closest friends over the past decade, and I have learned so much from Janet.” She has personally been impacted by joining the group since “after joining Higher Ground Women’s Ensemble, I gained a new appreciation for the deep, emotive qualities of choral singing that I didn’t find in the same way in concert band repertoire. Since that discovery, I have studied choral conducting every summer I could.”
When I asked her whether she would continue to pursue music in the future, Ms Deighton said: “for me, singing is a lifelong endeavour. I hope that I never have to stop. I would also like to direct a community choir of women, just as Janet did when she retired from teaching. It is such a rewarding experience. I will definitely continue to explore dance and taiko drumming, as they have also been a big part of my adult life.”
As advice for young artists, Ms Deighton said not to “expect to accomplish musical genius overnight - or ever. That isn’t necessary for enjoyment and success in music. Play music with other people. Write a song. Perform even when it is hard - it will get easier.”
I wish Ms Deighton all the best with her future aspirations. I am sure that she will continue to touch the hearts of many students to come, as well as remaining in the hearts of those she has already taught.