Thursday, July 16, 2009

After Open-Heart Surgery, Measha Brueggergosman Receives Honorary Degree in Fredericton

[“Measha Brueggergosman is rebounding after an emergency procedure to repair a dissected aorta, a rare and often fatal affliction.” (Photo: The Globe & Mail, Toronto, June 29, 2009)]

The African-Canadian soprano Measha Brueggergosman was the subject of a previous article by Sergio Mims,"EbonyJet.com Interviews African Canadian Soprano Measha Brueggergosman."
CBC News
CBC.ca/
“Canadian soprano Brueggergosman gets honorary degree”

Last Updated: Thursday, July 16, 2009
“Canadian soprano Measha Brueggergosman was in her hometown of Fredericton on Wednesday night to receive an honorary degree from St. Thomas University during its summer convocation.
With the international opera star was one of her first voice instructors, Mabel Doak, who also received an honorary degree. The liberal arts university's convocation was planned as a time to celebrate the relationship between students and teachers.

Brueggergosman, 32, said it meant a lot to receive the degree in her hometown, and with her teacher by her side. 'It’s all the more special that I get to receive it with Mabel Doak, who was a very important mentor for me in my early education, and is also a pillar of the Fredericton community,' she said. 'When I was studying with Mabel, it was really the beginning of my formation as an artist, as a student, as a teacher myself, as somebody who had hoped to be the very best at what I could do.'”

Brueggergosman was awarded her degree based on her contribution to the arts. In June, she underwent emergency open-heart surgery to repair a torn aorta. She is under doctor’s orders to rest for at least a month, and three appearances with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra as well as a performance in Austria were cancelled. The internationally renowned opera star has won a Juno Award, and performed for the Queen and Nelson Mandela. She recently achieved a dramatic weight loss of about 150 pounds, which she said was a result of Bikram yoga.”

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