Praise The Ward

Paule Barsalou (violin)

Peggy Lin (cello)

Ken Gee (piano)

Classical favourites by Brahms, Mozart, Debussy and more!

Peggy Lin began her music studies in Taiwan, where she earned her bachelor's degree from Sun Yat-sen University before moving to the USA for a Master’s degree in Cello Performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Throughout her academic and professional career, Peggy has participated in many prestigious international music festivals, including Kent Blossom and the Pyeongchang Music Festival in Korea. She had the privilege of studying under esteemed cellists such as Jian Wang and Hans Jensen. Her performance experience includes freelance engagements with local orchestras, such as the Mansfield Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland Women's Orchestra.

She currently teaches at both Guelph Suzuki String School and her own studio. Her diverse experiences and passion for music continue to inspire her teaching and performances.

Paule Barsalou holds a BM in performance from Laval University and an MM in performance and Suzuki pedagogy from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Paule has been teaching at the Suzuki String School of Guelph since 1989 and was artistic director of the school in 2004 to 2021. She is the coordinator of the SSSG long-term teacher training program. She has been a sanctioned Suzuki teacher trainer since 2003 and trained musicians in the Suzuki approach at institutes and workshop throughout Canada. She was the principal second violin of the Guelph Symphony Orchestra. Paule is a former director of the Southwestern Ontario Suzuki Institute, which she led from 1996 to 2009.

Ken Gee is the founder/artistic director of Guelph Musicfest, celebrating its 20th season in 2026. He was born in Hamilton but is now a longtime resident of Guelph. 

He has performed an impressive amount of string and piano chamber music, especially repertoire for violin & piano, cello & piano, and piano trio, quartet and quintet. Ken has also given many concerto performances with various orchestras (including Bach, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Bloch, and the Canadian premiere of the Yellow River Concerto), as well as solo piano recitals.

Aside from performing, Ken was a longtime board member and former Chair of the Guelph Youth Music Centre. He now President of the Guelph Kiwanis Music Festival and an active member of the festival’s organizing committee. In 2008, he was the recipient of a City of Guelph Mayor’s Award.