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![\"Cris](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4233803_web1_Cris-Derksen.jpg\")
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Cris Derksen (Facebook)<\/p>\n
\u201cMy extraordinary, gifted, radiant, cherished niece Cris may have left us prematurely, but her profound legacy and enchanting music will perpetually uplift me,\u201d Johnson wrote. \u201cThere has to be a divine purpose why I had to bid farewell to her merely a week after laying my brother Bernie, her dad, to rest. She serenaded him with her cello one final time, and this poignant moment will forever be etched in my memory as a testament to her remarkable talent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Melody McKiver, assistant professor at the University of Manitoba Desautels Faculty of Music, described the Juno-nominated artist as \u201ca pillar of our Indigenous classical community.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of my closest friends, most important mentors, co-conspirators,\u201d McKiver wrote on Facebook. \u201cWe\u2019ve laughed, fought, and always always had each other\u2019s backs. It\u2019s been a running joke for over a decade being mistaken for each other on three (?!) different continents even though we always maintained that we don\u2019t look alike but my cello shrank in the wash. Much to our annoyance, we became the shared face of Banff Centre programming for years and years. I love you Cris and Bobby (Rebecca).\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond their work with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Derksen was also a frequent collaborator with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, including a May 2025 performance of Awasowin.<\/p>\n
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Earlier this month, Derksen\u2019s music was also featured in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet production The Four Seasons, which ran from April 30 to May 3.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Musicians of the WSO are saddened to hear of the passing of Cris Derksen,\u201d the group said in a social media post Sunday. \u201cWe recently performed two of her works with the RWB and also collaborated with her in the pit for her ballet T\u2019el: The Wild Man of the Woods. We feel this loss to our musical community deeply and offer our condolences to her family, friends, and colleagues.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derksen also founded the Indigenous Classical Gathering at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, served as artistic advisor for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and chaired the equity committee for Orchestras Canada.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know that Cris\u2019 legacy will live on through their music, commitment to music education, championing of new works, and in establishing supports and opportunities for Indigenous artists,\u201d the CPO said in a Facebook post Sunday. \u201cOur hearts are heavy and our thoughts are with her family, friends, and everyone who was impacted by Cris.\u201d<\/p>\n
scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
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Scott Billeck Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade\u2019s worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024.\u00a0 Read more about Scott<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Scott produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n
Reporter
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