Standing Wave and Trio Garibaldi, both ensembles with close ties to UBC School of Music are nominated for Classical Artist or Ensemble of the Year at this year’s BreakOut West Western Canadian Music Awards.
The winners will be unveiled during BreakOut West in Victoria, BC, September 30–October 4, 2026.
Image credit: BreakOut West
Standing Wave
Vancouver’s cutting-edge contemporary chamber ensemble Standing Wave has been a partner ensemble to the UBC School of Music since 2004. The Juno-nominated sextet has commissioned and premiered well over 100 works in its 30-year history, and its UBC ties run deep. The nominated lineup includes faculty members Vern Griffiths (percussion) and Christie Reside (flute), alongside alumni A.K. Coope (clarinet) and Allen Stiles (piano). Standing Wave previously won the Western Canadian Music Award for Classical Artist/Ensemble of the Year at BreakOut West in 2017, and again in 2022 — making this latest nomination a mark of sustained excellence from one of western Canada’s most celebrated new music ensembles.
Trio Garibaldi
Also nominated in the same category is Trio Garibaldi, the clarinet-viola-piano ensemble was founded in 2022. The Trio brings together clarinetist Jose Franch-Ballester, violist Marina Thibeault, and pianist David Fung, all of whom were affiliated with UBC at the time of the ensemble’s creation. Franch-Ballester and Fung remain faculty members at the UBC School of Music; Thibeault, a former faculty member, has since joined the faculty at McGill University. The ensemble’s debut album In Faded Sepia, released in March 2026 on ATMA Classique, brings together works by Lowell Liebermann, Dorothy Chang, and Stephen Chatman.
The School congratulates all nominees and looks forward to celebrating their achievements at BreakOut West this September.
Check out all the nominations at BreakOut West Western Canadian Music Awards here.
