Person

Balfour, Andrew, 1967-

1967-

Andrew Balfour was born in 1967 in Fisher River, Cree Nation, located north of Winnipeg.

He is a Cree composer and conductor. He was taken from his birth mother at six months old as part of the Sixties Scoop and adopted by a white settler family of Scottish descent. Balfour's adoptive father was a minister at All Saints’ Anglican Church in Winnipeg, and his mother was a violinist. His adoptive family would encourage his interest in music, which developed through choral singing and playing trumpet and trombone. Balfour attended Brandon University but later dropped out and struggled with alcohol dependence. In 1992, he was arrested for vandalism and placed in Milner Ridge Correctional Centre. After his time in prison, he began singing in an informal choir and in 1996 founded the vocal ensemble Dead of Winter (formerly Camerata Nova) and became its artistic director. This marked the beginning of his composition career. His works have been performed and broadcast locally, nationally, and internationally by renowned orchestras and choirs. Balfour is devoted to music education and outreach, especially in schools in low-income areas of Winnipeg and northern communities.