# Sheila Henig > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sheila_Henig > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sheila_Henig.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheila_Henig > Source revision: 1354430028 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Canadian pianist and soprano (1934–1979)}} {{Infobox person | name = Sheila Henig | birth_date = {{Birth date|1934|02|19}} | birth_place = [Winnipeg](/source/Winnipeg), [Manitoba](/source/Manitoba), Canada | death_date = {{Death date and age|1979|05|15|1934|02|19}} | death_place = [Toronto](/source/Toronto), [Ontario](/source/Ontario), Canada | education = | alma_mater = | occupation = {{Plainlist| * Pianist * Soprano }} | spouse = William Sidney | children = 2 }} '''Sheila Henig''' (February 19, 1934 – May 15, 1979) was a Canadian pianist and soprano. She performed as a soloist with the [Halifax](/source/Symphony_Nova_Scotia), [Toronto](/source/Toronto_Symphony_Orchestra) and [CBC Symphony Orchestra](/source/CBC_Symphony_Orchestra)s as well as the [Houston Symphony Orchestra](/source/Houston_Symphony). Henig toured Canada as well as some European nations. She also appeared in concerts broadcast on radio and television by the [CBC](/source/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation) and was a panelist on the [CBC Radio](/source/CBC_Radio) program ''Music and Opinion'' in 1973. A posthumous biography on Henig authored by her father and the freelance writer Madeline Thompson was published in 1982. ==Biography== On February 19, 1934,{{cite encyclopedia|last=Schabas|first=William|title=Sheila Henig|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sheila-henig-emc|encyclopedia=[The Canadian Encyclopedia](/source/The_Canadian_Encyclopedia)|date=July 9, 2007|accessdate=May 11, 2021|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511211937/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sheila-henig-emc|url-status=live}} Henig was born in [Winnipeg](/source/Winnipeg).{{cite book|last=Lonn|first=George|title=Faces of Canada|chapter=Sheila Henig|url=https://archive.org/details/facesofcanada00lonn/mode/2up|year=1976|publisher=Pitt Publishing Company|location=Toronto, Ontario|pages=311–315|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Internet Archive|url-access=registration}} She was the daughter of Harry Henig and his wife. Henig was able to sing and dance by the age of two, performing in English and doing aerobics, tap dance and toe dance at a high level. In April 1938, she ventured to Los Angeles for an extended visit so she could audition.{{cite news|last=Royle|first=J. C.|title=Sheila, Aged 4, Hopes That Films Need Brains|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500166/sheila-henig-the-winnipeg-tribune-1938/|work=[The Winnipeg Tribune](/source/The_Winnipeg_Tribune)|page=3|date=March 24, 1938|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511173624/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500166/sheila-henig-the-winnipeg-tribune-1938/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Baby Race Is Started For Hollywood Jobs|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498084/sheila-henig-childhood-montreal-gazette/|work=[Montreal Gazette](/source/Montreal_Gazette)|agency=[The Canadian Press](/source/The_Canadian_Press)|page=7|date=March 25, 1938|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144122/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498084/sheila-henig-childhood-montreal-gazette/|url-status=live}} There, [Eddie Cantor](/source/Eddie_Cantor) recommended Henig not be pushed but be allowed to develop further before making public presentations. She took on his advice and attended dancing and vocal lessons and made occasional appearances in Winnipeg. By the age of 11, Henig had decided she wanted to become either a grand opera singer or a pianist. She won the Rose Bowl at Toronto's [Kiwanis Music Festival](/source/Kiwanis_Music_Festival), but subsequently opted to be a pianist when she was aged 18 because her voice was not sufficiently developed enough. Under Jean Broadfoot and Gordon Kushner in Winnipeg and under [Margaret Miller Brown](/source/Margaret_Miller_Brown) at [The Royal Conservatory of Music](/source/The_Royal_Conservatory_of_Music), Henig studied piano. She studied voice with Dorothy Allan Park and Lillian Smith Weichel. Henig earned the $1,000 Eaton Graduating Scholarship in Music for being the "student graduating with the highest standing from the Royal Conservatory of Music" in 1955.{{cite news|title=$,1000 Scholarship|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77497954/sheila-henig-1000-scholarship-1955/|work=[Calgary Herald](/source/Calgary_Herald)|agency=The Canadian Press|page=5|date=May 30, 1955|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144121/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77497954/sheila-henig-1000-scholarship-1955/|url-status=live}} She performed as a soloist with the [Halifax](/source/Symphony_Nova_Scotia), [Toronto](/source/Toronto_Symphony_Orchestra) and [CBC Symphony Orchestra](/source/CBC_Symphony_Orchestra)s as well as the [Houston Symphony Orchestra](/source/Houston_Symphony). Henig qualified for the finals of each of the 1956 and 1957 Naumberg competitions. In 1957, she made her debut in New York, performing [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](/source/Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart)'s [Sonata in A minor](/source/Piano_Sonata_No._8_(Mozart)) at [Steinway Concert Hall](/source/Steinway_Hall) on December 21.{{cite news|title=Winnipeg-Born Pianist To Make New York Debut|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500615/sheila-henig-ottawa-citizen-1957-p19/|work=[Ottawa Citizen](/source/Ottawa_Citizen)|agency=The Canadian Press|page=19|date=December 20, 1957|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144119/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500615/sheila-henig-ottawa-citizen-1957-p19/|url-status=live}} Henig went on to be the guest artist with the [Victoria Symphony Orchestra](/source/Victoria_Symphony) during her [British Columbia Coast](/source/British_Columbia_Coast) debut in [Sidney, British Columbia](/source/Sidney%2C_British_Columbia) on November 6, 1959.{{cite news|last=Gruber|first=Hans|title=Brilliant Dvorak Concerto Suffered Unjust Neglect|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498630/sheila-henig-times-colonist-1959-p9/|work=[Victoria Daily Times](/source/Times_Colonist)|date=November 7, 1959|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144124/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498630/sheila-henig-times-colonist-1959-p9/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Pianist to Visit Sydney|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500642/sheila-henig-vancouver-sun-1959-p21/|work=[Vancouver Sun](/source/Vancouver_Sun)|page=6|date=October 24, 1959|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144119/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500642/sheila-henig-vancouver-sun-1959-p21/|url-status=live}} She also became nationally known by appearing in concerts broadcast on radio and television by the [CBC](/source/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation) and was a panelist on the [CBC Radio](/source/CBC_Radio) program ''Music and Opinion'' during 1973. In 1961, Henig went to Europe on a short visit, partaking in the International Competition for Musical Performers in Geneva and winning the Laureate there. She made her European debut in the [Concertgebouw](/source/Concertgebouw%2C_Amsterdam) in Amsterdam in the same year. After Canada heard of the news of her European debut, Henig undertook a number of engagements. In 1964, she undertook a more extensive tour of Europe, vising Austria, Greece and Spain and ended her tour at [Wigmore Hall](/source/Wigmore_Hall) in London. Henig also recorded extensively for the BBC.{{cite news|title=Henig with VSO|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77499119/sheila-henig-richmond-review-1977-p17/|work=Richmond Review|page=17|date=January 26, 1977|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144120/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77499119/sheila-henig-richmond-review-1977-p17/|url-status=live}} Seven years later, Henig did a concert at the [National Gallery of Art](/source/National_Gallery_of_Art) in Washington, D.C. She was praised by the critic [Paul Hume](/source/Paul_Hume_(music_critic)) as "... impressive ... superb ... brilliant." Approaching the mid-1970s, Henig made fewer public appearances because she wanted to spend more time with her husband and two children.{{cite news|last=Gardiner|first=Eunice|title=Successful with help of husband and housekeepers|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77499010/sheila-henig-ottawa-journal-1972-p45/|work=[Ottawa Journal](/source/Ottawa_Journal)|page=45|date=April 20, 1972|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511173623/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77499010/sheila-henig-ottawa-journal-1972-p45/|url-status=live}} She was featured on the album ''Piano Portraits'' released by [Attic Records](/source/Attic_Records) in 1975.{{cite news|last=Peterson|first=Maureen|title=Recordings: Piano Portrait's a dog's breakfast|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500977/piano-portraits-1975-ottawa-journal/|work=Ottawa Journal|page=43|date=August 30, 1975|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144120/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500977/piano-portraits-1975-ottawa-journal/|url-status=live}} Henig undertook a second tour of Europe lasting three weeks in the following year.{{cite news|title=Concert pianist Sheila Henig to tour Europe|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498425/sheila-henig-calgary-herald-1976-p15/|work=Calgary Herald|agency=The Canadian Press|date=February 5, 1976|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511211909/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498425/sheila-henig-calgary-herald-1976-p15/|url-status=live}} She also performed at the [Stratford Festival](/source/Stratford_Festival) and at the [Charlottetown Festival](/source/Charlottetown_Festival). In early 1978, Henig made her recital debut in New York at Carnegie Hall, performing as a chamber musician, singer and soloist as an accompanist for the Soviet oboist Senia Trubashnik.{{Cite news|last=Horowitz|first=Joseph|date=March 5, 1978|title=Music. Debuts in Review: Sheila Henig as Pianist, Singer, Chamber Artist|work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/03/05/archives/music-debuts-in-review-willard-cobb-tenor-makes-debut-as-recitalist.html|access-date=May 11, 2021|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511173624/https://www.nytimes.com/1978/03/05/archives/music-debuts-in-review-willard-cobb-tenor-makes-debut-as-recitalist.html|url-status=live}} ==Personal life== Henig was married to the pharmacist William Sidney. They had two children.{{cite news|last=Macdonald|first=Vivian|title=Native music highlight|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500081/sheila-henig-ottawa-citizen-1972-p46/|work=Ottawa Citizen|page=46|date=April 20, 1972|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511144122/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77500081/sheila-henig-ottawa-citizen-1972-p46/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Briefly; Sheila Henig dies aged 44|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/387118405|work=[The Globe and Mail](/source/The_Globe_and_Mail)|page=15|date=May 17, 1979|accessdate=May 11, 2021|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527210211/https://www.proquest.com/docview/387118405|id={{ProQuest|387118405}}|url-status=live}} On 15 May 1979, she was found dead at the wheel of her car in the garage of her home in Toronto.{{cite news|title=Pianist, 44, found dead|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77497926/sheila-henig-death-ottawa-citizen-1979/|work=Ottawa Citizen|agency=The Canadian Press|page=77|date=May 17, 1979|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511211850/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77497926/sheila-henig-death-ottawa-citizen-1979/|url-status=live}} The cause of death was ruled as suicide. ==Approach and legacy== She consistently spent five to six hours a day practising.{{cite news|last=St. D. Johnson|first=Audrey|title=The Sounding Board|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498824/sheila-henig-times-colonist-1960-p6/|work=Victoria Daily Times|date=October 22, 1960|accessdate=May 11, 2021|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 12, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512150222/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/77498824/sheila-henig-times-colonist-1960-p6/|url-status=live}} Henig only played classical music and did not perform [12-tone](/source/Twelve-tone_technique) works since she did not have much sympathy for that type of music. In 1982, a biography on Henig entitled ''Elusive Summit: The Biography Of Sheila Henig'' authored by the freelance writer Madeline Thompson and Henig's father was published.{{cite news|last=Montagnes|first=Anne|title=Sheila Henig's sad career as a concert pianist and the numerous stories in Clayoquot's people Of Many Books|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/386692200|work=The Globe and Mail|page=E15|date=February 27, 1982|accessdate=May 11, 2021|url-access=subscription|archive-date=May 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527210206/https://www.proquest.com/docview/386692200|id={{ProQuest|386692200}}|url-status=live}} ==References== {{reflist|30em}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Henig, Sheila}} Category:1934 births Category:Canadian sopranos Category:20th-century Canadian classical pianists Category:Musicians from Winnipeg Category:The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni Category:20th-century Canadian women singers Category:1979 suicides Category:1979 deaths Category:Suicides by carbon monoxide poisoning Category:Suicides in Ontario Category:20th-century Canadian women pianists Category:Singers from Manitoba --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sheila Henig](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheila_Henig) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheila_Henig?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.