Dorothy Weldon

Weldon, Dorothy

Dorothy (Ellen) Weldon. Harpist, teacher, b Montreal 27 Jul 1929; premier prix harp (CMM) 1951. She studied at the CMM with Germaine Malépart (piano) and Marcel Grandjany (harp) and in 1947 made her debut at the Sarah Fischer Concerts, where she won a scholarship. She toured Quebec for the JMC (YMC), as a soloist in 1952 and as both soloist and accompanist in 1961-2 with the soprano Renée Maheu and in 1968-9 with the soprano Jacqueline Martel. She participated in the premieres of Michel Perrault'sMargoton for harp and strings in 1955 and Fontaines douces, noires fontaines for tenor and two harps in 1956 and Kelsey Jones'Trio for flute, viola, and harp in 1955. As a soloist she performed with the Quebec Symphony Orchestra in 1947 and 1951, the CBC 'Little Symphonies' Orchestra in 1951 and 1952, the MSO in 1958, 1974, and 1978, the Victoria Symphony Orchestra in 1965, and the McGill Chamber Orchestra in 1971. Her repertoire included Handel's Concerto, Opus 4 No. 6, Mozart's Concerto for flute and harp, Ravel's Introduction and Allegro, Debussy's Danse sacrée et danse profane, and Pierné's Concertstück. She has performed on CBC radio and TV programs, including 'Concerto' in 1975 and 'Les Beaux Dimanches' in 1976, playing among other works Grandjany's Aria dans le style ancien and Weinzweig'sConcerto. She became a member of the MSO in 1947 and principal harp in 1971. In 1951 she began to teach at the CMM, and Claude Hill, Manon LeComte, and Margot Morris were among her pupils. She and her husband, the clarinetist Rafael Masella, premiered Grandjany's Impromptu in 1955, and George Fiala'sSonata Breve in 1980 and Duettino Concertante in 1986. With the violinist Arthur Garami, Weldon also premiered Perrault's Dialogue in 1970, and Fiala's Duo Sonata in 1971.