LSM Newswire

Winners of the 70th edition of the OSM Standard Life Competition

2009-11-22T10:40:00.000-05:00

PRESS RELEASE

For immediate distribution

The OSM reveals the identities of the winners of the 70th edition
of the OSM Standard Life Competition
(piano and percussion)

Montreal, November 21, 2009 – The winner of the OSM Standard Life Grand Prize is Jan Lisiecki, pianist from Alberta, born in 1995. The 70th edition of the OSM Standard Life Competition wound up after four days of auditions (semi-finals and finals) in Tanna Schulich Recital Hall at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music. Twenty-one (21) competitors took part in the semi-finals of the Competition, this year devoted to piano and percussion.

The jury chairman and judge (semifinals, finals - piano and percussion) was Henry Fogel. Mr Fogel is Dean of the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University as of July 2009, President and CEO of the American Symphony Orchestra League from 2003 to 2008, and President and CEO of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 1985 to 2003. "The 70th OSM Standard Life Competition was an extraordinary and thrilling event to be part of. The musical quality was exceedingly high, the world class jury was a model of what a competition jury should be, and the Orchestre symphonique de Montreal's staff and volunteers did a fabulous job in organizing it. It has been a privilege for me to be a part of it" said Henry Fogel.

The jury for the semi-finals in the piano category was made up of Michel Béroff, concert pianist and Professor at the Paris Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse, and Robert McDonald, Professor at The Juilliard School of Music in New York. In the percussion category, it was made up of Louis Charbonneau, Principal Timpani with the OSM from 1950 to 1998, and Emmanuel Séjourné, percussionist and Head of Percussion Department of the Strasbourg Conservatoire.

For the finals, the following judges joined the semi finals’ jury: Earl Blackburn, Senior Vice-President and Agent with Opus 3 Artists, and Walter Homburger, Artist Manager since 1947 and General Director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 1962 to 1987.

The jury for the preliminary round, in the piano category, consisted of Lise Boucher, pianist and Head of the competition Prix d'Europe, Stéphane Lemelin, concert pianist, Professor and Chair of the School of Music at Ottawa University, and member of Trio Hochelaga, and Natalie Pepin, pianist and Professor Emeritus at Université de Montréal. In the percussion category, it was made up of Ian Bernard, Principal Timpani at the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, Serge Desgagnés, Principal Percussion with the OSM, and Carol Lemieux, percussionist and Director of the Conservatoire de musique de Québec.

THE RESULTS

OSM Standard Life GRAND PRIZE

The winner of the OSM Standard Life Grand Prize is Jan Lisiecki, pianist from Alberta born in 1995. This prize is awarded to one of the first-prize winners (piano and percussion) who made the strongest impression during the Competition.

In addition to receiving a $10,000 scholarship offered by Standard Life, the winner will perform in aconcert with the OSM, under the direction of Roberto Minczuk, on January 12, 2010 in Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at Place des Arts, as part of the OSM 2009-2010 Season. The Grand Prize OSM Standard Life also include:

The Espace musique Prize: a professional recording in one of the CBC studios

A recital at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, as part of the 2010-2011 NACC season

A concert with the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra in St. John’s, Newfoundland, as part of the 2010-2011 NSO season

The Orford Arts Centre Prize: a recital at the Orford Arts Centre presented in 2010

The first prizes

A $10,000 Standard Life Scholarship, awarded in each of the three categories

Piano category (class A): the winner is Tristan Longval-Gagné, Québec, (21 years old)

Piano category (class B): the winner is Jan Lisiecki, Alberta (14 years old)

Percussion category: the winner is Benjamin Duinker, Nouvelle-Écosse, (26 years old)

The second prizes

A $5,000 scholarship, offered by Marjorie and Gerald Bronfman, piano category, class A.

The winner is: Alexander Malikov, Alberta, (20 years old)

The $5,000 Rosemary-Bell and Gabrielle-Côté scholarship, offered by the OSM Volunteer Committee, piano category, class B

The winner is: Meagan Milatz, Saskatchewan (16 years old)

The $5,000 V. E. Lambert scholarship, offered by the Succession Lambert-Fortier-Gagnon, percussion category

The winner is: Clara Warnaar, Québec, (18 years old)

The third prizes

The $2,000 V.E. Lambert scholarship, offered by the Succession Lambert-Fortier-Gagnon, piano category, class A

The winner is: Olivier Hébert-Bouchard, Québec, (21 years old)

The $2,000 Aline-Hector-Perrier scholarship, offered by the Fonds Les Amis de l'Art, piano category, class B

The winner is: Simon Boily Proulx, Québec, (16 years old)

A $2,000 scholarship, offered by an anonymous contributor, percussion category

The winner is: Noam Bierstone, Ontario, (19 years old)

Prizes for the best performance of a Canadian work

A $2,000 scholarship, offered by the Groupe Archambault, piano category, class A

The winner is: Tristan Longval-Gagné, Québec (21 years old)

Marc-André Hamelin, Etude no 2, "Prélude et fugue"

A $2,000 scholarship, offered by the OSM Musicians Association, piano category, class B

The winner is: Jan Lisiecki, Alberta (14 years old)

Marjan Mozetich, Prélude, extrait de Three Pieces for Piano

A $2,000 scholarship, offered by the OSM Volunteer Committee, percussion category

The winner is: Benjamin Duinker, Nouvelle-Écosse (26 years old)

Alcides Lanza, Diastemas

The other prizes

The Paul Merkelo scholarship: open to all participants and awarded by a jury chaired by Paul Merkelo, principal trumpet of the OSM, the $2,000 scholarship aims at encouraging musical excellence and providing relevant financial assistance to a candidate's proposed training program

The winner is: Charles Richard-Hamelin, (piano), Québec, (26 years old)

The Banff Centre Prize: three scholarships covering tuition and accommodation for a three-week session in the Music and Sound Department at the Banff Centre for the Arts, in 2010

· Piano category (class A): the winner is Charles Richard-Hamelin, Québec, (26 years old)

· Piano catégorie (class B): the winner is Jan Lisiecki, Alberta, (14 years old)

· Percussion catagory : the winner is Clara Warnaar, Québec, (18 years old)

The Domaine Forget Prize: one scholarship covering tuition and accommodation for a two-week music session within the framework of the Rencontres de musique nouvelle en Charlevoix, at the Domaine Forget in 2010

The winner is: Noam Bierstone, (percussion), Ontario, (19 years old)

The Orford Arts Centre Prize: three scholarships covering tuition and accommodation for a two-week music session at the Orford Arts Centre, in 2010

· Piano category (class A): the winner is Tristan Longval-Gagné, Québec, (21 years old)

· Piano category (class B): the winner is Simon Boily Proulx, Québec, (16 years old)

· Piano category (class B): the winner is Meagan Milatz, Saskatchewan, (16 years old)

The Toronto Summer Music Festival Prize: two scholarships covering tuition for a music session lasting up to four weeks at the Toronto Summer Music Academy, in 2010

· Piano category (class A): the winner is Alexander Malikov, Alberta, (20 years old)

· Piano category (class B): the winner is Benjamin Woo, Colombie-Britannique (18 years old)

The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal congratulates all the winners and thanks the partners who made it possible to stage this competition. Sponsored for 18 years by the Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada, the OSM Standard Life Competition, this year under the presidency of Mr. Jean Élie, is a Canada-wide competition offering $100,000 in prizes and scholarships.

About Standard Life

Standard Life is an important Scottish asset-management group that carries out its activities around the world, including in Canada for more than 175 years. Today it specializes in investment products for retirement and in insurance for individuals and for companies. With 2,000 employees based in Montreal and across Canada, the Canadian operation is Standard Life’s largest outside the U.K.

For more information: www.standardlife.ca

The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal is presented by Hydro-Québec

Info: OSM.ca

Elektra Women's Choir presents Chez Nous: Christmas with Elektra Nov 28

2009-11-16T17:50:00.000-05:00

Elektra Women's Choir

Morna Edmundson, Artistic Director

present

Chez Nous: Christmas with Elektra

Saturday November 21, 2009
New Westminster Christian Reformed Church - 2 pm
8255 13th Ave, Burnaby BC

Ryerson United Church - 7:30 pm
2195 W 45th Ave, Vancouver BC

Ticketmaster 604.280.3311 $26 | $20 info: 604.739.1255
www.elektra.ca

With Special Guests:
Ed Henderson, guitar
Jodi Prosnick, bass
Zing! Children's Choir, Lisa Reimer, director
Stephen Smith, piano & organ

Chez Nous: Christmas with Elektra is your invitation into the season as the choir celebrates the approaching holidays with music ranging from ancient carols to brand new commissions from Ed Henderson and Tim Corlis.

The featured work is William Mathias' lyrical setting of Salvator Mundi, a Christmas carol sequence based on seven carols from the 15th - 17th centuries. Mathias was considered one of the greatest of Welsh composers, whose technical sophistication never got in the way of his love of lyrical vocal lines and the sense of text, occasion and emotional spirit of his music. Salvator Mundi calls for "piano 4 hands" and we are honoured to welcome the VSO's Maestro, Bramwell Tovey, to share the piano bench with Elektra's own Stephen Smith.

Artistic Director, Morna Edmundson, has gathered some of Vancouver's top musicians to join in the festivities and share their musical gifts. Elektra is pleased to welcome composer and guitarist, Ed Henderson, Jodi Proznick on acoustic bass, and Zing! Children's Choir directed by Lisa Reimer to Chez Nous: Christmas with Elektra.

Expect familiar carols to sing along with, new favourites, seasonal readings and treats for the kids, and of course, the brilliant singing of Elektra to help launch your holiday preparations!

Elektra gratefully acknowledges the ongoing support of the Canada Council for the Arts, City of Vancouver, Government of British Columbia, CBC, LadnerBordenGervais, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Martha Lou Henley Charitable Foundation, Hamber Foundation, and Wolrige Foundation. Elektra also thanks its many generous individual donors and volunteers - their support makes us sing.

A Traditional Christmas with the VSO

2009-11-16T17:49:00.001-05:00

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra spreads the Holiday Spirit throughout Metro Vancouver

Vancouver BC – What better way to get into the festive spirit than by attending Metro Vancouver’s most beloved Holiday Music Tradition? Join VSO Assistant Conductor Evan Mitchell as he returns to lead the Orchestra in a celebration of Christmas, with carols, sing-a-longs, and selections from Handel’s Messiah, Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, and other Holiday favourites. Vancouver’s very own Bard, Christopher Gaze, narrates, while two superb choirs, EnChor and UBC Opera Ensemble, provide accompaniment.

Christmas comes alive in fourteen performances that take place in six different communities across Metro Vancouver, including St. Andrew’s Wesley Church in downtown Vancouver and venues in Burnaby (Michael J. Fox Theatre), South Delta (South Delta Baptist Church), Surrey (Bell Performing Arts Centre), North Vancouver (Centennial Theatre) and West Vancouver (Kay Meek Theatre).

The VSO’s Traditional Christmas concerts have been a mainstay of the holiday season for several years and never fail to fill audiences with the joy of the season! Both afternoon and evening performances will be offered, which make wonderful gifts for family, friends, coworkers, and clients alike. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience the true spirit of Christmas - tickets sell out very quickly, so get yours today!

Tickets are $34 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available) and available by phone at 604.876.3434 or online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

CONCERT INFO

A Traditional Christmas
Evan Mitchell, conductor
Christopher Gaze, host
UBC Opera Ensemble, choir
EnChor, choir

Concert program includes selections from Handel’s Messiah, Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, Puccini’s La Boheme, and other Holiday favourites.

St. Andrew’s Wesley Church, Vancouver
December 10, 7:30pm
December 11, 7:30pm
December 12, 4pm & 7:30pm

Michael J. Fox Theatre, Burnaby
December 13, 4pm & 7:30pm

South Delta Baptist Church, Delta
December 16, 4pm & 7:30pm

Bell Performing Arts Centre, Surrey
December 17, 4pm & 7:30pm

Centennial Theatre, North Vancouver
December 18, 4pm & 7:30pm

Kay Meek Theatre, West Vancouver
December 19, 4pm & 7:30pm

Presenting Sponsor: YVR Vancouver Airport Authority

The VSO’s Traditional Christmas Concerts have been endowed by a generous gift from Sheahan and Gerald McGavin, C.M., O.B.C.

Parsons Dance presents an all-new version of REMEMBER ME at The Joyce Theater - Feb 2-14, 2010

2009-11-16T17:46:00.001-05:00

PARSONS DANCE 
presents 
REMEMBER ME 
an all-new version of the dance/rock opera with the lead vocalists and music of the
 Grammy Award-nominated 
EAST VILLAGE OPERA COMPANY 
The Joyce Theater, February 2 - 14, 2010

Parsons Dance presents REMEMBER ME, an all-new version of last season's collaboration with the lead vocalists of East Village Opera Company (EVOC), featuring the music of the acclaimed rock opera band at The Joyce Theater from February 2-14, 2010. Following last season's World Premiere at The Joyce Theater, a PBS Special and a year-long national tour, REMEMBER ME returns to NYC with new choreography, lighting design by Tony Award-winning designer Howell Binkley and costume design by Project Runway designer Austin Scarlett. Program A features REMEMBER ME with EVOC's two lead vocalists live onstage with Parsons Dance. Program B will feature Parsons Dance favorites including the stroboscopic Caught.

"Awesome dancing and a backbeat to knock it all home. Eye-popping digital effects. Excellent showbiz-savvy performers. Perpetually smoldering. Lusty, sensual movement."
- Deborah Jowitt, The Village Voice

David Parsons, Tyley Ross (lead male vocalist and co-founder of EVOC) and AnnMarie Milazzo (lead female vocalist) have created a storyline that connects EVOC's signature operatic arias (fourteen songs from the band's albums) with David Parsons' original choreography. REMEMBER ME is a thoroughly modern re-telling of a classic story of a tragic love triangle. With contemporary dance, aerial dance, live and recorded music, video projections, complex digital lighting and visual effects, REMEMBER ME is the most ambitious production created by Parsons Dance in its 22 year history.

"After completing our first national tour of Remember Me, we are thrilled to bring this show back to New York audiences, in a completely revamped version," said David Parsons, artistic director of Parsons Dance.

EVOC's signature works re-imagine opera arias as popular songs, including pieces by Verdi, Puccini, Mozart and Schubert. These classics collide with electric sounds from the golden era of rock and roll, pop, R&B, and soul, exploding into a mosaic of sound in a triumphant musical celebration. They have received commissions to pen new works from both the New York Public Theatre and New York City Opera, with whom they have also performed at Lincoln Center. EVOC alternately headlines in prestigious classical concert halls and rock clubs, and records exclusively for Decca/Universal records. They have released three CD's. "Pop-infused, hard-hitting arrangements of arias and ensembles from classic operas. The group has won fans among both opera buffs and rockers."- The New York Times

Parsons Dance creates American works of extraordinary artistry that are engaging and uplifting to audiences throughout the world. It is the goal of Parsons Dance to make contemporary dance accessible to the widest possible audiences. In addition to choreography and performance, Parsons Dance positively impacts children, students, and communities through student performances, lecture-demonstrations, master classes, post-show discussions and more. Parsons Dance has a company of eleven full-time dancers and maintains a repertory of more than 70 works choreographed by David Parsons, twenty of which feature originally commissioned scores by leading composers and musicians, including Dave Matthews, Michael Gordon and Milton Nascimento. Parsons Dance has collaborated with many other leading artists, including Julie Taymor, William Ivey Long, Annie Leibovitz, Donna Karan and Alex Katz (to name a few). The New York Times called David Parsons "one of the great movers of modern dance." New York Magazine referred to him as "one of modern dance's great living dance-makers."

Parsons Dance dancers are Julie Blume, Eric Bourne, Sarah Braverman, John Corsa, Zac Hammer, Lauren Putty, Miguel Quinones, Abby Silva, Billy Smith, Melissa Ullom and Steven Vaughn.

The two programs follow:

Program A:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday at 7:30pm; Thursday - Saturday at 8pm
REMEMBER ME featuring the music of EVOC: Overture, Maria, Mari!, Habanera, Che Gelida Manina, Flower Duet, La Donna E Mobile, Ave Maria, O Mio Babbino Caro, Una Furtiva Lagrima, Ebben? Ne Andro Lontana, When I Am Laid in Earth, Butterfly Duet

Program B:
Saturday and Sunday at 2pm - Family Matinees
Caught (female dancer), Hand Dance, Wolfgang, Sleep Study, Scrutiny, Caught (male dancer)

Caught (1981) is an internationally renowned stroboscopic dance masterpiece that features a solo dancer performing more than 100 leaps in less than six minutes. Each leap is "caught" by the flash of a strobe light, to create a breathtaking illusion of flight. Caught has been performed thousands of times, worldwide, for more than 27 years. Hand Dance (2003), a playful work set to the vibrant music of Kenji Bunch, features ten "hands" that decide to take on a life of their own. Through gesture and mime, five dancers offer "an endless variety of imaginative evocations, from grasping and forming pistons of a locomotive to playing air cello." Imaginative and fun, Hand Dance leaves audiences laughing and begging for more. A relentless display of movement, Wolfgang (2005) juxtaposes the classical music of Mozart with the modern choreography of David Parsons. This piece highlights the dancers' technique and musicality, while underscoring their ability to make the constant motion seem effortless and fluid. Sleep Study (1987), a delightfully charming crowd-pleaser, translates common, universal movements into clever choreography. Audience-goers of all ages can easily recognize and identify with the familiar bedtime stirring that David Parsons has cleverly infused with humor, creating a true slumber party. In Scrutiny (1987), David Parsons explores the societal pressures to conform. This work premiered with the Parsons Dance Company on August 25, 1987 in Beckett, Mass. as part of Jacob's Pillow. It received a land grant from Jacob's Pillow.

Parsons Dance will perform February 2-14, 2010 at The Joyce Theater, with performances Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday at 7:30pm; Thursday - Saturday at 8pm; and Saturday and Sunday at 2pm. The Joyce Theater is located at 175 Eighth Avenue (at 19th Street), NYC. Tickets start at$10 and are available by phone at 212-242-0800 or joyce.org.

Parsons Dance is committed to building new audiences for contemporary dance by creating American works of extraordinary artistry that are engaging and uplifting to audiences throughout the world. The company tours regionally, nationally and internationally. Since 1985, Parsons Dance has toured an average of 32 weeks per year, to a total more than 235 cities, 30 countries, six continents and millions of audience members. Many others have seen Parsons Dance on PBS, Bravo, A&E Network, and the Discovery Channel. Millions watched Parsons Dance perform live in Times Square as part of the internationally broadcast, 24-hour Millennium New Year's Eve celebration. In New York City, Parsons Dance has been featured at The Joyce Theater, City Center, New Victory Theater, Central Park Summerstage, Guggenheim Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art and The World Trade Center.

David Parsons (Artistic Director/Founder) has enjoyed a remarkable career as a performer, choreographer, teacher, director and producer of dance. Mr. Parsons was born in Chicago and raised in Kansas City. He was a leading dancer with The Paul Taylor Dance Company, where Mr. Taylor created many roles for him in works such as Arden Court, Last Look and Roses. He is a recipient of the 2000 Dance Magazine Award, as well as the 2001 American Choreography Award, for his work as a co-producer of AEROS, a production featuring the Romanian Gymnastic Federation that was featured on Bravo. Mr. Parsons has created more than 70 works for Parsons Dance. He has received commissions over the years from The American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the American Dance Festival, Jacob's Pillow, the Spoleto Festival and Het Muziektheater in Amsterdam, to name a few. His work has been performed by Paris Opera Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Nederlands Danse Theatre, National Ballet of Canada, Hubbard Street Dance and BatSheva Dance Company of Israel, among many others. In June 2007, Mr. Parsons was honored to be the very first contemporary choreographer ever to stage work at the centuries-old Arena di Verona, in Verona Italy, where he choreographed Verdi's Aida. The Arena is one of Italy's most respected operatic venues. In September 2007, he directed and choreographed Gotham Chamber Opera's production of María de Buenos Aires, which made its world premiere at a sold-out engagement in New York, at NYU's Skirball Center for the Arts.

East Village Opera Company was formed in New York City's East Village in 2004 by Canadians Peter Kiesewalter and Tyley Ross. The East Village Opera Company turned the heads of New York's music community with a series of electric genre defying shows at Joe's Pub, the intimate venue housed by the Public Theatre. Initially meant as a one-off project, they were quickly signed to Decca/Universal records and met with universal praise from both classical and rock critics and fans. The Washington Post proclaimed that "Opera crossover acts are becoming a veritable cottage industry, but the East Village Opera Co. is markedly different." They have toured the world with a unique live show, combining a seemingly incongruous classical string section with a powerhouse rock band. Time Out New York stated that the group "electrifies the classics for a new generation." The Associated Press mused the band was "dramatic" and "mesmerizing" while the Wall Street Journal agreed, noting "The band rocks hard, and deranges the opera stuff with savvy skill." In a rare feat not many artists can claim, EVOC headlines around the world in both eclectic rock clubs as well as some of the most prestigious classical concert halls. The band's appeal is evident in both cases. The Chicago Tribune raved "Nobody puts a fresher, friskier contemporary spin on opera's greatest hits than the East Village Opera Company." The band has also performed at esteemed events such as the Sundance Film Festival, the Miss USA pageant (nationally televised on NBC), and the world-premiere of "The Da Vinci Code" in Hong Kong. EVOC's PBS Special "EVOC LIVE" was celebrated with an Emmy at the 2006 Emmy Awards. Their most recent Decca album entitled Olde School was nominated for a Grammy in the Classical Crossover Album category.

Tyley Ross (Male Vocalist / EVOC co-founder) A native of Ottawa Canada, Tyley started performing professionally in his early teens while still a student at Canterbury's school of the Arts. In the years since then, has been a street busker, a cartoon and voice artist, acted for the small and large screen, written and recorded two solo albums (his composition You Take My Breath Away was featured in the film Woman Wanted directed by Kiefer Sutherland and starring Holly Hunter), and he has performed as a guest soloist with orchestras across Canada and in the USA. After being discovered by Pete Townshend of The Who in 1994, Tyley was cast in the title role of the Canadian premiere of the Who's Tommy. For his work in that show, he was honored with the Dora Award for Outstanding Performance in a Musical. He spent the next ten years on musical stages across North America, including starring roles at the Shaw and Stratford Festivals, and on Broadway. In 2001, Tyley was introduced to Peter Kiesewalter and they began experimenting with recording opera arias in a variety of modern contexts. This project led to the release of the CD La Donna and the unveiling of the East Village Opera Company in 2004 with a series of acclaimed performances at New York's Joe's Pub. Within a year the band had signed a multi-record deal with Decca/Universal, and has since released two CD's: East Village Opera Company (2005) and Olde School (2008). Tyley has his master's degree in voice studies from London's Central School of Speech and Drama.

AnnMarie Milazzo (Female Vocalist) is a singer, arranger, composer and lyricist living in NYC. She has done the vocal arrangements for Spring Awakening, the Broadway musical at the Eugene O'Neill Theater; Next To Normal, which premiered Off Broadway at Second Stage Theatre; Bright Lights, Big City at New York Theatre Workshop; and the Paramount feature film "The Marc Pease Experience" starring Ben Stiller. Some of her most recent work includes a new musical Pretty Dead Girl, which premiered at The Sundance Film Festival and is now being produced by the Araca Group in New York City, book by David Henry Wang. Also currently in progress is the musical Sea Change based on the Lois Gould novel, book by Karen Hartman. AnnMarie is the lyricist for Franco Dragone's Carmen, which premiered at The Jolla Playhouse and will open in Madrid, 2009. She is currently writing lyrics for Cirque du Soleil's, Le Reve, at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. AnnMarie's singing credits include working with artists such as Angelique Kidjo on her Black Ivory Soul Tour also singing with Carlos Santana. She also toured with Jonatha Brooke and performed on her DVD Back In The Circus, shot live in NYC.

The Joyce Theater Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization, has proudly served the dance community and its audiences since 1982. The founders, Cora Cahan and Eliot Feld, acquired and renovated the Elgin Theater in Chelsea, which opened as The Joyce Theater in 1982. The Joyce is named in honor of Joyce Mertz, beloved daughter of LuEsther T. Mertz. It was LuEsther's clear, undaunted vision and abundant generosity that made it imaginable and ultimately possible to establish the theater. One of the only theaters built by dancers for dance, The Joyce Theater has provided an intimate and elegant New York home for more than 290 domestic and international companies. The Joyce has also commissioned more than 130 new dances since 1992. In 1996, The Joyce created Joyce SoHo, a dance center providing highly subsidized rehearsal and performance space to hundreds of dance artists. New York City public school students and teachers annually benefit from The Joyce's Dance Education Program, and adult audiences get closer to dance through pre-engagement Dance Talks and post-performance Humanities discussions. The Joyce Theater now features an annual season of approximately 48 weeks with over 340 performances for audiences in excess of 135,000. Additionally, for the last five years The Joyce has co-produced Evening Stars as part of the River To River Festival in Battery Park.

The World Premiere production is made possible by lead commissioning support from The Ellsworth Kelly Foundation; and Dr. and Mrs. Edward J. Prostic, in honor and memory of their daughter Elizabeth Anne Prostic.

For more information, visit parsonsdance.org and eastvillageoperacompany.com.

PARSONS DANCE
The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue (at 19th Street), NYC
February 2-14, 2009
Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday at 7:30pm; Thursday - Saturday at 8pm; Saturday and Sunday at 2pm
Tickets start at $10
JoyceCharge: 212-242-0800
joyce.org

Iván Fischer conducts The Cleveland Orchestra in program featuring Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2 at Severance Hall on December 3, 4, and 5

2009-11-16T17:42:00.000-05:00

Richard Goode is soloist in Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3

CLEVELAND, November 3, 2009 – Guest conductor Iván Fischer will lead The Cleveland Orchestra in a program featuring Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 at Severance Hall on Thursday, December 3; Friday, December 4; and Saturday, December 5, at 8:00 p.m. Richard Goode will be soloist in Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3.
The program begins with Carl Maria von Weber’s Overture to Der Freischütz, followed by Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Opus 37. After intermission, the program concludes with Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Opus 27.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Hungarian conductor Iván Fischer has been music director of the Budapest Festival Orchestra since he founded the ensemble in 1983. He also currently serves as principal conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington D.C. and as principal artist of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (along with Vladimir Jurowski and Sir Simon Rattle). Mr. Fischer has led Mozart productions at the Vienna State Opera and has also conducted the major opera companies of Brussels, Budapest, Frankfurt, London, Paris, and Zurich. He appears regularly with the leading orchestras of Amsterdam, Berlin, Dresden, and Paris, among other cities, and also has a close relationship with the Munich Philharmonic, with whom he has been conducting a three-year Mahler project that began in December 2007. Mr. Fischer made his Cleveland Orchestra debut at the 1998 Blossom Festival and made his Severance Hall debut in October 1999. His most recent engagement with the Orchestra was in February 2007.
American pianist Richard Goode is acknowledged world-wide for his interpretations of Classical and Romantic repertoire, and for music-making of tremendous emotional power, depth, and expressiveness. His recording of the five Beethoven piano concertos with Iván Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, released on the Nonesuch label in May 2009, was nominated for a Gramophone Magazine “Concerto of the Year” award. During the 2007-08 season, Mr. Goode performed at and curated a multi-event residency at the South Bank Centre in London as artist-in-residence. He also was a Carnegie Hall Perspectives artist. This season, he collaborates with Jonathan Biss to perform piano duos by Beethoven, Debussy, Schubert, Schumann, and Stravinsky in Boston, New York, and Philadelphia. Mr. Goode currently serves with Mitsuko Uchida as co-artistic director of the Marlboro Music School and Festival in Vermont. He made his Cleveland Orchestra debut in March 1992 and most recently performed with the Orchestra in March 2004.

TICKET PRICES (Add $5 for Saturday): Orchestra: $71, $47; Dress Circle: $93, $55; Balcony: $71, $55, $31.

FREE CONCERT PREVIEWS:

Concert Previews will be given prior to the December 3, 4, and 5 concerts, beginning at 7:00 p.m., in Reinberger Chamber Hall. Robert Cassidy, a member of the piano faculty at Cleveland State University, will give the Preview. Concert Previews are designed to enrich the concert-going experience by providing historical background and critical insight into the music performed at each concert. This series is funded by a generous endowment gift from Dorothy Humel Hovorka.

CALENDAR LISTINGS:

Thursday, December 3, at 8:00 p.m.
Friday, December 4, at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 5, at 8:00 p.m.

Severance Hall

THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
IVÁN FISCHER, conductor
RICHARD GOODE, piano

WEBER Overture to Der Freischütz
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3
RACHMANINOFF Symphony No. 2

Ticket Prices: $31-$98 – Call (216) 231-1111 or 800-686-1141, or order online at clevelandorchestra.com

Season Sponsor: UBS
Guest Artist Fund: The Hershey Foundation

Concert Preview, in Reinberger Chamber Hall beginning at 7:00 p.m.
Preview Speaker: Robert Cassidy, member of the piano faculty, Cleveland State University

The Collegiate Chorale Presents Gala Concert A JUBILANT SONG - 12/1

2009-11-16T17:39:00.001-05:00

The Collegiate Chorale, led by Maestro James Bagwell in his inaugural concert as The Chorale's newly appointed Music Director, presents A JUBILANT SONG, a celebration of the organization's remarkable history of exceptional conductors, noteworthy commissions and premieres, and multi-faceted choral programming on December 1, 2009 at 7pm at Carnegie Hall. Tickets are $25-$125 and are available through CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800, at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, or online at www.carnegiehall.org. For more information, visit www.collegiatechorale.org.

As the new Music Director, Mr. Bagwell will give tribute to his predecessors and usher in a new era of The Collegiate Chorale. Tony® Award winner Roger Rees will host the evening. A JUBILANT SONG will feature Salvatore Licitra, tenor (who debuted at Carnegie Hall with The Collegiate Chorale in 2003 in Verdi's La forza del destino); Daniel Mobbs, bass-baritone; Emily Pulley, soprano; Anita Johnson, soprano; Robert Mack, tenor; Erin Morley, soprano; Vale Rideout, tenor, Krysty Swann, mezzo-soprano, Jenny Lin, piano; Kalif Omari Jones, boy soprano; and the American Symphony Orchestra. A benefit dinner with Mr. Bagwell and the artists at Carnegie Hall's Rohatyn Room will follow the concert.

"Before coming on board with The Chorale, one of the things which attracted me the most was its rich history of musical and programming diversity, going all the way back to the ideals of founder Robert Shaw and continuing steadily through the tenures of all subsequent Music Directors, particularly the late Robert Bass - and so I wanted this first concert under my baton to capture the essence of that diversity. We will perform works from Gabrieli to Dello Joio, and from Kopylov to Bernstein and Lerner. The programming will include Verdi and Meyerbeer arias, the beloved Beethoven Choral Fantasy, a couple of exquisite a cappella choral pieces, and musical theater excerpts from Bernstein and Lerner's A White House Cantata. Many of the works we will perform hearken back to earlier concerts, including the Kopylov Heavenly Light, which was on The Chorale's very first public program in 1942," said James Bagwell, music director of The Collegiate Chorale.

The evening's program follows:

Beethoven, Choral Fantasy; Gabrieli, In Ecclesiis; Kopylov, Heavenly Light (part of the first public program presented by The Collegiate Chorale on March 8, 1942); Dello Joio, A Jubilant Song; Shaw/Parker, Set Down Servant; Meyerbeer, O Beau Pays, from Les Huguenots; selected arias from Verdi's Un ballo in maschera; and La forza del destino; excerpts from Bernstein and Lerner's A White House Cantata (which received its New York Premiere in March 2008 by The Collegiate Chorale); and the Libiamo Chorus from La Traviata.

The Collegiate Chorale, among New York's foremost vocal ensembles, has added to the richness of the city's cultural fabric for more than 65 years. Founded in 1941 by the legendary conductor Robert Shaw, The Chorale achieved national and international prominence under the leadership of Robert Bass. The Chorale has established a preeminent reputation for its interpretations of the traditional choral repertoire, vocal works by American composers, and rarely heard operas-in-concert, as well as commissions and premieres of new works by today's most exciting creative artists. In the summer of 2009, The Chorale performed for the fourth season at Switzerland's Verbier Music Festival. In July 2008, The Chorale toured with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Zubin Mehta in Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Jerusalem.

The mission of The Collegiate Chorale is to enrich its audiences through innovative programming and exceptional performances of a broad range of vocal music featuring a premier choral ensemble. Inherent in its mission is The Chorale's belief that choral music is a compelling collaboration that creates a powerful, shared experience unifying listeners and musicians of all backgrounds, beliefs and ages.

James Bagwell maintains an active schedule throughout the United States as a conductor of choral, operatic, and orchestral music. He has recently been named Principal Guest Conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra in New York. Since 2003 he has been Director of Choruses for the Bard Music Festival, conducting and preparing choral works during the summer festival at the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College. He has also prepared The Concert Chorale of New York for performances with the American Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Mostly Mozart Festival (broadcast nationally in 2006 on Live from Lincoln Center), all in Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. In 2005 he was named Music Director of The Dessoff Choirs in New York, who under his leadership have made numerous appearances at Carnegie Hall in addition to their regular season. In 2009 the Dessoff Symphonic Choir appeared with the New York Philharmonic performing both Mahler's Eighth Symphony and Britten's War Requiem for Lorin Maazel's final concerts as Music Director.

James Bagwell has trained choruses for a number of major American and International orchestras, including the San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, NHK Symphony (Japan), St. Petersburg Symphony, The American Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. He has worked with noted conductors such as Lorin Maazel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Michael Tilson Thomas, Louis Langrée, Leon Botstein, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Raymond Leppard, James Conlon, Jesús López-Cobos, Erich Kunzel, Leon Fleischer, and Robert Shaw.

For eleven seasons, he has been Music Director for the May Festival Youth Choir in Cincinnati, which was recently featured on the radio program From the Top. He has conducted some 25 productions as Music Director of Light Opera Oklahoma, including Candide, Sweeney Todd, and The Merry Widow, among others. At Bard SummerScape he has led numerous theatrical works, most notably Copland's The Tender Land, which received unanimous praise from The New York Times, The New Yorker, and Opera News. He frequently appears as guest conductor for orchestras around the country and abroad, including the Jerusalem Symphony, Tulsa Symphony, and the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra. For three seasons he was Artistic Director of The Indianapolis Symphonic Choir. He holds degrees from Birmingham-Southern College, Florida State University, and Indiana University. He has taught since 2000 at Bard College, where he is Director of the Music Program.

For more information, visit www.collegiatechorale.org.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Anita Johnson Career highlights include: Marie in The Daughter of the Regiment and Oscar in Un Ballo In Maschera with Michigan Opera Theatre; Konstanze in Die Entfuhrung Aus Dem Serail with Italy's Spoleto Festival; the Princess in L'Enfant Et Les Sorileges and Clara in Porgy And Bess with New York City Opera; Giannetta in L'Elisir D'Amore, Javotte in Manon, and Barbarina in Le Nozze De Figaro with the Metropolitan Opera; Sophie in Der Rosnekavalier, Gretel in Hansel Und Gretel, Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Musetta in La Boheme, Sophie in Werther, Servillia in La Clemenza Di Tito, and Olympia in Les Contes D'Hoffmann, as the resident lyric coloratura soprano with Germany's Nationaltheater Mannheim; Musetta in La Boheme with Opera Pacific; Clara in Porgy And Bess with Atlanta Opera; Zerbinetta in Ariadne Auf Naxos with New Orleans Opera and Opera North; Gilda in Rigoletto with Knoxville Opera and Milwaukee's Florentine Opera; Susanna in Le Nozze Di Figaro and Norina in Don Pasquale with Florentine Opera; Pamina in The Magic Flute with Opera Memphis; Adele in Die Fledermaus with Opera Grand Rapids; and Lucia in The Rape Of Lucretia with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Concert highlights have included the Mermaid in Weber's Oberon with The Collegiate Chorale at Carnegie Hall; Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Baltimore Symphony; Carmina Burana with the Louisville Orchestra; Barber's Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with the New Haven Symphony; and Messiah with the New Choral Society of Central Westchester.

The Italian Salvatore Licitra is one of the leading tenors in the beautiful and highly sought-after dramatic Italian repertoire where he shows his 'worthiness of the great Italian tradition' (The New York Times). A frequent guest at major opera and concert stages in Europe, the United States and the Far East, his repertory includes Verdi's Aida, Un Ballo in Maschera, La Forza del destino, Ernani, Macbeth, Don Carlos and Il Trovatore as well as Puccini's Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Il Tabarro, Bellini's Norma, Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur, Giordano's Andrea Chenier, Leoncavallo's Pagliacci and Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana. Engagements of the 2009-2010 season include opera and concert performances in Europe, the United States and Japan. Season highlights will be a new Ernani production at the Lyric Opera Chicago and his role debuts as Calaf in Turandot at the New York Metropolitan Opera and as Dick Johnson in a new production of La fanciulla del West at the San Francisco Opera.

Jenny Lin is one of the most respected young pianists today, admired for her adventurous programming and charismatic stage presence. Her ability to combine classical and contemporary literature has brought her to the attention of international critics and audiences. She has been acclaimed for her "remarkable technical command" and "a gift for melodic flow" by The New York Times. The Washington Post praises "Lin's confident fingers... spectacular technique..." and Gramophone Magazine has hailed her as "an exceptionally sensitive pianist." Martha Argerich wrote: "Miss Jenny Lin is a very gifted young musician and a brilliant pianist." Jenny's recent orchestral engagements have included Manuel de Falla's Nights in the Garden of Spain with the La Orquesta Sinfónica de Gijón; Ernest Bloch's Concerto Grosso No. 1 with the SWR Rundfunkorchester; the world premiere of Stefano Gervasoni's Piano Concerto with the Orchestra Sinfonica Nationale della RAI; Messiaen's Oiseaux Exotiques with the Spoleto Festival Orchestra; Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 with the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan; and tour of Asia in Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 2 with Philharmonia Taiwan. She has also appeared with the Flemish Radio Orchestra, the Nürnberger Symphoniker, Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Erato Philharmonia, Rumanian Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta de Valencia, and performed with conductors such as Lothar Zagrosek, Jiri Starek, Urs Schneider, Peter Bay, Jac van Steen, Ovidiu Balan, Wen-Pin Chien, Kek-Tjiang Lim, John Kennedy, and Oliver Diaz.

Tenor Robert Mack's career highlights include Remus, Treemonisha with The Collegiate Chorale; Snake/Vain Man, The Little Prince with NYCO; Alfredo, La Traviata with The Martina Arroyo Foundation. Performances with the New York City Opera include Goro, Madame Butterfly; Goopy, Haroun and the Sea of Stories; Remendado, Carmen; the Ballad Singer, Of Mice and Men; Pong, Turandot; Don Curzio, The Marriage of Figaro; Spoletta, Tosca; Second Shepherd, Daphne; Arturo, Lucia Di Lammermoor, and Rinuccio, Gianni Schicchi. Mack debuted the role of Sportin' Life, Porgy and Bess with New York City Opera and Opera Carolina. He recorded the role of Sportin' Life with The Nasvhville Symphony on Decca Records. Mack has toured with the nationally acclaimed "Three Mo' Tenors" and in addition has made outstanding appearances with Houston Grand Opera, Opera Company of Philadelphia and Indianapolis Opera. He sang the role of John/William Still in She Never Lost A Passenger with Syracuse Opera. He was also a featured tenor soloist for The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre's signature work, Revelations. In past seasons he made debuts with Houston Grand Opera, Bastille in Paris and the Teatro Real in Spain. He has also performed in Italy, Germany, Japan and Luxembourg. Mack toured with Broadway's National and European tour of Smokey Joe's Café directed by Jerry Zaks and in 2002 he was directed by Stewart Lane in the production of Ain't MisBehavin.

American bass-baritone Daniel Mobbs has won praise on both sides of the Atlantic for his "solid, resonant voice and boundless energy...his stage presence virtually ensured that he was the focal point of nearly every scene in which he appeared," as written in The New York Times. In the summer of 2009, Mr. Mobbs bows as Assur in Semiramide at Caramoor International Music Festival. At the Bard SummerScape Festival, he will participate in a concert of Wagner arias with the American Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Leon Botstein. In the fall of 2009, Mr. Mobbs will join Boston Lyric Opera, adding the role of Escamillo in Carmen to his vast repertoire, Leporello in Don Giovanni with Virginia Opera, and Ormonte in Partenope at New York City Opera. He later collaborates with the New York Choral Society for Mozart's Requiem and James DeMars' Tito's Say.

Soprano Erin Morley, a member of the Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artist Development Program since the 2007-08 season, is one of today's most promising coloratura sopranos. Most recently, her Marguerite de Valois in Les Huguenots at the Bard Festival was described by The New York Times as a "formidable performance." Erin Morley's roles at the Metropolitan Opera have included the 2nd Niece in Peter Grimes, Masha in The Queen of Spades, and Frasquita in Carmen in the company's 125th Anniversary Gala. In their 2009-2010 season she sings Echo in Ariadne auf Naxos, the Dew Fairy in Hansel and Gretel, and the Daughter in The Nose. Other notable engagements this season include the soprano solos in Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream, with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Bernard Haitink and a Gala Concert with The Collegiate Chorale at Carnegie Hall. Ms. Morley has sung with the New York City Opera; as Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier, in a 2006 Gala Benefit, and as Giannetta in L'Elisir d'Amore. Also an alumna of Wolf Trap Opera Company, Ms. Morley debuted the role of Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos n 2008. She sang Laoula in Chabrier's L'Étoile, and Frasquita with Wolf Trap as well.

Soprano Emily Pulley's radiant voice and electrifying acting have won her both national and international acclaim. Opera News writes, "Pulley's bright, perceptively shaded tone and sensitive, responsive acting make her a refreshing heroine, always playing the role rather than the star turn." The New York Times described her portrayal of the title role of Floyd's Susannah as being, "sung with unfailing warmth, radiance, and spirit," and elsewhere has lauded her singing as "faultless and exquisite." A frequent presence at the Metropolitan Opera, Ms. Pulley's roles in the legendary house include Marguerite in Faust, Nedda in I pagliacci, Blanche in Dialogues of the Carmelites, Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel, Anne Trulove in The Rake's Progress, Musetta in La bohème, Valencienne in The Merry Widow, Thérèse in Les Mamelles de Tirésias, and First Lady in a new production of Die Zauberflöte directed by Julie Taymor. She made her debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as Mimi in La bohème.

In New York, Roger Rees played the title role in The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (Tony Award for Best Actor, the British Olivier Award, and Emmy nomination); Indiscretions (Tony and Drama Desk nominations); Jon Robin Baitz' The End of the Day (Obie Award); Uncle Vanya; The Rehearsal (Roundabout Theater); The Uneasy Chair (Playwrights Horizon); The Misanthrope (Classic Stage Company), and the musical A Man of No Importance (Lincoln Center Theatre). Movies: Bob Fosse's Star 80; Mel Brooks' Robin Hood: Men in Tights; If Looks Could Kill; The Substance of Fire; Trouble on the Corner; Sudden Manhattan; Next Stop Wonderland; A Midsummer Night's Dream; The Emperor's Club; Scorpion King; Julie Taymor's Frida; Peter Greenaway's The Tulse Luper Suitcases; Going Under; Crazy Like A Fox; The Treatment; The Pink Panther; Garfield 2; Prestige; The Invasion; The Narrows; Happy Tears. Television: "Cheers" (as Robin Colcord); "MANTIS;" "Boston Common;" "My So-Called Life;" "Titanic, Liberty;" "Double Platinum;" "The Crossing;" "West Wing" (as Lord John Marbury); "OZ;" "Max Bickford;" "Law and Order;" "Related;" "Grey's Anatomy"(as Dr. Colin Marlowe). Mr. Rees is an Associate Artist of the Royal Shakespeare Company; some favorite RSC productions include - Hamlet (title role), Love's Labour's Lost, Julius Caesar, Cymbeline, Othello, Pericles, Revenger's Tragedy, Henry VIII, Merry Wives of Windsor, Much Ado About Nothing, Indians, The Winter's Tale, Twelfth Night, The Plebieans Rehearse the Uprising, The Way of the World, London Assurance, The Suicide, Three Sisters and Nicholas Nickleby. Mr. Rees originated the role of Henry in Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing in London's West End, and the role of Kerner in Stoppard's Hapgood; he played for a year in the West End in his own thriller, Double Double, co-authored with Eric Elice, author of the hit musical Jersey Boys. In 1984/6 Mr. Rees was Associate Artistic Director for the Bristol Old Vic Theatre in Britain, directing, among other plays, Julius Caesar; Turkey Time; John Bull. Mr. Rees just completed three years as Artistic Director of the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Massachusetts. Where, among much else, he directed The Film Society; The Rivals; The Taming of the Shrew - (directing and playing Petruchio opposite Bebe Neuwirth); Simon Grey's The Late Middle Classes; Anything Goes; Double Double and Herringbone starring B.D. Wong. Other directing credits in the USA includes: TV - "OZ" (HBO): Red Memories (New York Stage and Film); Mud, River, Stone (Playwrights Horizons); The Merry Wives Of Windsor; Loves Labour's Lost (Old Globe Theatre, San Diego); Arms and the Man (Roundabout Theatre); and he conceived and directed: Here Lies Jenny which starred Bebe Neuwirth at the Zipper Theatre in New York and the Post Street Theater, San Francisco; Peter and the Starcatchers, La Jolla Playhouse, co-directed with Alex Timbers.

American tenor Vale Rideout has garnered critical acclaim for his musical artistry and superb stagecraft throughout the United States and Europe. Possessed of both a beautiful instrument and an ability to consistently deliver passionate, energetic performances, he is equally in demand for leading tenor roles from the standard repertory to contemporary premiere works. Vale Rideout's engagements in the 2009-10 season include Peter Quint in The Turn of the Screw with Boston Lyric Opera, Shallard in Elmer Gantry with Florentine Opera, Roderick in Glass' The Fall of the House of Usher with Nashville Opera Association, Alfredo in La traviata with Pacific Opera Victoria, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni with Palm Beach Opera, Egeo in Cavalli's Giasone with Chicago Opera Theatre, as soloist with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in "A Christmas Celebration," and in Vaughan Williams' "Hodie" with Highland Park United Methodist Church. His engagements in 2008-09 included his debut with the New York Philharmonic and the continuation of his ongoing collaboration with Lorin Maazel in Britten's War Requiem; the roles of Nadir in Les Pêcheurs des perles with Opera Columbus; the title role in Faust with Opera Tampa; Sam in Susannah with Mobile Opera; Gernando in Haydn's L'isola disabitata with Gotham Chamber Opera; Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor with Central City Opera; and Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance at the Chautauqua Institution. On the concert stage he performed Carmina Burana with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra; the world premiere of Steven Stucky's August 4, 1964 with Dallas Symphony; and Messiah with the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra.

Mezzo-soprano Krysty Swann is the recipient of the New York City Opera 2009 Richard F. Gold Career Grant and the 2008 Intermezzo Foundation Award, given by the prestigious Elardo International Opera Competition. Other recent awards include the Silver Prize with Opera Index and a Licia Albanese- Puccini Foundation grant for 2006-07 and 2008-09. Krysty Swann recently covered the title role of Margaret Garner in the New York premiere of Richard Danielpour's opera with New York City Opera and made her Avery Fisher Hall debut in Verdi's Requiem. In addition, she joined the roster of Opera Orchestra of New York for performances of Puccini's Edgar under Eve Queler. Ms. Swann has also appeared with Michigan Opera Theatre and the International Vocal Arts Institute, Israel. This past season, Ms. Swann appeared as Emilia in Kurt Weill and Ira Gershwin's The Firebrand of Florence with The Collegiate Chorale conducted by Ted Sperling and an opera gala concert with Springfield Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Swan also participated in various outreach programs with New York City Opera. In the 2009-10 season, she will return to the New York City Opera as Suzuki in Madama Butterfly.

The American Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski. Under the music direction of Leon Botstein since 1992, the American Symphony has pioneered the performance of thematically organized concerts, linking music to the visual arts, literature, politics, and history. In addition, the American Symphony Orchestra performs in a lecture/concert series with audience interaction called Classics Declassified at Peter Norton Symphony Space. It is also the resident orchestra of the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, where it performs an annual concert series as well as in Bard's annual SummerScape Festival and the Bard Music Festival. ASO maintains an award-winning music education program which is presented at numerous high schools through New York, New Jersey, and Long Island. Among the American Symphony's recent recordings are music by Copland, Sessions, Perle, and Rands for New World Records, and music of Ernst von Dohnányi for Bridge Records. Its recording of Richard Strauss's opera Die ägyptische Helena with Deborah Voigt and of Strauss's Die Liebe der Danae were made for Telarc. Other recordings with Leon Botstein include Franz Schubert: Orchestrated on the Koch International label, with works by Joachim, Mottl, and Webern, and, on the Vanguard Classics label, Johannes Brahms's Serenade No. 1 in D major, Op. 11 (1860). The American Symphony inaugurated São Paolo's new concert hall and has made several tours of Asia and Europe. It has performed with the Peer Gynt Theater Company of Norway in Central Park, and has a long history of appearing in charitable and public benefits for such organizations as Sha'are Zedek Hospital, the Jerusalem Foundation, and PBS. The American Symphony Orchestra has had an illustrious history of music directors and guest conductors. Succeeding Leopold Stokowski, who directed the Orchestra from 1962 to 1972, were Kazuyoshi Akiyama (1973-1978), Sergiu Comissiona (1978-1982), Moshe Atzmon and Guiseppe Patane (co-directors 1982-1984), John Mauceri (1985-1987), and Catherine Comet (1990-1992). Notable guest conductors have included Leonard Bernstein, Karl Böhm, Aaron Copland, Morton Gould, Aram Khachaturian, James Levine, André Previn, Yehudi Menuhin, James de Priest, Gunther Schuller, Leonard Slatkin, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Sir William Walton.

ADDITIONAL PROGRAMS FOR THE CHORALE'S 2009-10 SEASON
For season subscriptions please contact The Chorale office at 646.202.9623 or visit www.collegiatechorale.org.

OPERA-IN-CONCERT / AMERICAN MASTERS
The Grapes of Wrath at Carnegie Hall
Monday, March 22, 2010 at 8pm
Music by Ricky Ian Gordon
Libretto by Michael Korie

featuring
Jane Fonda - Narrator
Nathan Gunn - Tom Joad
Victoria Clark - Ma Joad
Elizabeth Futral - Rosasharn
Anthony Dean Griffey - Jim Casy
Peter Halverson - Pa Joad
Stephen Powell - Uncle John
Andrew Wilkowske - Noah
Steven Pasquale - Al
Christine Ebersole - Mae/Waitress
Matthew Worth - Ragged Man/Connie Rivers/Truck Driver
Madelyn Gunn - Ruthie

American Symphony Orchestra
Ted Sperling, Conductor
Eric Simonson, Director
Frances Aronson, Lighting Designer
Wendall Harrington, Projection Designer

CHORAL CLASSIC
Israel in Egypt at Skirball Center for the Performing Arts, New York University
Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 8pm
Music by George F. Handel

featuring
Sari Gruber, soprano
Brian Asawa, alto
Rufus Muller, tenor

The American Symphony Orchestra
James Bagwell, Conductor

National Keeping Score telecasts augmented by DVDs, Blu-Rays, and now CDs and On-Demand Steaming

2009-11-13T16:57:00.000-05:00

PBS Now Streaming Keeping Score Documentary Episodes On Demand

Coinciding with the current PBS telecasts of the second season of the San Francisco Symphony’s Keeping Score documentary series hosted by Michael Tilson Thomas, the orchestra is releasing on CD concert performances of all of the works featured in the series. The CDs include Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, Ives’s Holidays Symphony paired with Copland’s Appalachian Spring, Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony, Stravinsky’s Firebird and selections from The Rite of Spring, Beethoven’s Eroica and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4.

These CDs are in addition to the orchestra’s releases of all Keeping Score documentaries and performances on DVD, as well as the Season 2 documentaries and performances on Blu-Ray. The Season 2 Keeping Score documentaries, currently airing on PBS stations across the country (check local listings), explore the music and stories behind Hector Berlioz’s symphonic love letter Symphonie fantastique, Charles Ives’s sonic portrait of New England in his Holidays Symphony, and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5, a work that may have saved his life.

In addition, PBS is making all Keeping Score documentary episodes available for free on-demand.. The new Season 2 episodes (Berlioz, Ives, and Shostakovich), as well as previous Keeping Score documentaries on Beethoven, Copland, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky can be viewed on demand at http://video.pbs.org/searchForm/?q=Keeping+Score

Keeping Score CDs and video are available for purchase as follows:

CDs of the Companion Concerts: All six Keeping Score Companion Concert CD titles are available now at shopsfsymphony.org and the San Francisco Symphony Store in the Davies Symphony Hall lobby. Retail Stores everywhere else will carry them in 2010.

Digital Audio Downloads of the Companion Concerts: All six Keeping Score Companion Concert titles are now available from iTunes and ClassicalArchives.com

Digital Video Downloads of the Documentaries: The Beethoven, Berlioz, Copland, Ives, Shostakovich, and Stravinsky Keeping Score documentaries are available now from the iTunes store, Xbox and other online video retailers.

DVDs of the Documentaries and Concerts: Keeping Score Season 1 and 2 documentaries and companion concerts on DVD are available for purchase now from shopsfsymphony.org and at the Symphony Store in Davies Symphony Hall.

Blu-Ray Videos of the Documentaries and Concerts: All three Keeping Score Season 2 documentaries and companion concerts on Berlioz, Ives, and Shostakovich will be available on Blu-Ray in 2010.

PBS Digital Video Streaming of Documentaries:

PBS is offering online streaming of the Beethoven, Berlioz, Copland, Ives, Shostakovich, Stravinksy, and Tchaikovsky Keeping Score documentary episodes at http://video.pbs.org/searchForm/?q=Keeping+Score

Keeping Score was created by the San Francisco Symphony to make classical music more accessible to people of all ages and musical backgrounds. It opened with a pilot program on Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, which aired on PBS stations in June 2004. In November 2006 more than five million viewers tuned into Keeping Score Season 1 with episodes on Beethoven, Stravinsky, and Copland. The PBS telecasts were augmented by an interactive Web site for each program, a national radio series hosted by Michael Tilson Thomas, documentary and live-performance DVDs, and an education program for K-12 schools The current Keeping Score Season 2 programs on PBS are now offered in high definition and surround-sound and are also enhanced by companion Web sites for each episode, DVDs and Blu-Rays of the documentary programs and related performances, and an expanded K-12 education program.

CD Descriptions

Berlioz Symphonie fantastique (SFS 0033)
This companion concert recording for Keeping Score Season 2—Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, as seen on PBS—was recorded live in Davies Symphony Hall in December 2007. Video of this performance is included on the DVD with the documentary of Keeping Score: Berlioz’s Symphonie fanstastique.

Ives Holidays Symphony and Copland Appalachian Spring (SFS 0034)
This companion concert recording for Keeping Score includes Charles Ives's Holidays Symphony performed by the San Francisco Symphony, which was featured on the Season 2 program, Keeping Score: Ives Holidays Symphony. The recording of Copland's Appalachian Spring, performed here in the original 13-instrument chamber arrangement, was featured on the Season 1 Keeping Score episode and DVD Copland and the American Sound.

Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 (SFS 0035)
This companion concert recording for Keeping Score Season 2: Shostakovich Symphony No. 5, as seen on PBS, was recorded live in Davies Symphony Hall in November 2007. Video of this performance is included on the DVD with the documentary Keeping Score: Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5.

Beethoven Symphony No. 3 Eroica (SFS 0031)
This companion concert recording for Keeping Score Season 1:Beethoven’s Eroica, as seen on PBS, was recorded live in Davies Symphony Hall in May 2004. Video of this performance is included on the DVD with the documentary Keeping Score: Beethoven’s Eroica.

Stravinsky The Rite of Spring and selections from The Firebird Suite (SFS 0032)
This companion concert recording for Keeping Score Seasion 1: Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, as seen on PBS, was recorded live in Davies Symphony Hall in September 2004. It includes the complete The Rite of Spring plus three movements from The Firebird Suite (1919 version). Video of these performances are included on the DVD with the documentary Keeping Score: Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring.

Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 (SFS 0030)
This companion concert recording for Keeping Score Season 1: MTT on Music, as seen on PBS, was recorded live in Davies Symphony Hall in May 2002. Video of this performance is included on the DVD with the documentary Keeping Score: MTT on Music – Tchaikovsky’s 4th Symphony.

Limited Run Return Engagement- three shows only!

2009-11-13T16:55:00.000-05:00

Theatre Panache
Presents

By David Langlois
Directed by Heather Markgraf Lowe
Musical Direction by Marian Siminski

Encore performances- November 21, 22, 2009

To see an inspired clip from Till We Meet Again please go to:
Till We Meet Again

"Till We Meet Again is a must-see play. … Simply put, Till We Meet Again is a classic in the making."

-Translated excerpt from André Lapointe, RegardEnCoulisse.com

MONTREAL, November 2009 – For those who missed Till We Meet Again in October, the show is back for three performances only, having played to enthusiastic and standing-ovation crowds through Ontario. This wartime musical production offers a true account of how a live CBC-based radio program connected a nation during the uncertainty and emotion of World War II. The themes are as relevant today as they were then in this historical Canadian journey seen through reports through the eyes of Canadian soldiers and the people back home.

Based on playwright David Langlois' months of careful research including dozens of interviews with veterans, Till We Meet Again authentically recreates life in Canada in the 1940's. Audiences enjoy lively songs, dance, and ad jingles, contrasted with live news of the day, reports from the front and actual letters to and from the soldiers. This was a time of people trying to make sense of a world in turmoil. Directed by Heather Markgraf Lowe and presented in the beautiful Oscar Peterson Concert Hall on Concordia University's Loyola Campus, the outstanding cast includes Jane Hackett, Dan Jeannotte, Amanda LeBlanc, Pierre Lenoir, Stephanie McNamara, Michael Daniel Murphy and Marian Siminski. The talented creative team includes lighting designer Eric Mongerson, set designer Chris Brown, choreographer Lorna Wayne and costume designer Karen Pearce. The stage manager is Daveen Garland.

Many people who have seen the show come back again and again, bringing friends and family. "They're all enthralled," Richard Fitzgerald, the show's Executive Producer, describes of watching productions of the show and audience reaction. "People start to see the storylines (as parallels). The past becomes real again ... it brings history alive. It's a show for all ages." Initially brought to the stage in 2002, Till We Meet Again was first workshopped on a much smaller scale, Fitzgerald explains, eventually building up rich back stories and other aspects of the production. Wanting to bring the show to bigger audiences in bigger theatres, this version will complete a 36-performance run across Ontario and Quebec throughout the fall, he adds. It is the story of "love and human decency" against the backdrop of World War II. -Rick Fitzgerald in the East Ottawa Star

"Till We Meet Again is a worthy, meaningful, pleasantly entertaining event."

-Pat Donnelly, Montreal Gazette

Till We Meet Again includes performances of nearly 30 of the most popular hits of the 1940's filled with romance, comedy, army life and hope. Each one beautifully evokes the sounds and emotions of the World War II era. Audiences will enjoy solos, duets, trios and choreographed medleys to classic songs like Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy and Lilli Marlene, among others. This show leaves audience members feeling proud and inspired.

Theatre Panache's Artistic Director Heather Markgraf Lowe (founder of Hudson Village Theatre) was thrilled to restage Till We Meet Again for its tour that began and closes here in Montreal. The performances in Ottawa mark a memorable return to the Canadian War Museum when the all-Canadian cast proudly performs there following Remembrance Day.

For background info, bios and full song list, please visit www.tillwemeetagain.ca

Till We Meet Again – 3 shows only
Theatre Panache
At Oscar Peterson Concert Hall on Concordia University's Loyola Campus
7141 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest
www.tillwemeetagain.ca

Showtimes
Matinees: Nov. 21, 22 at 2:00 pm
Evening: Nov. 21 at 8:00 pm

Tickets available at the box office and from Admission - 514 790-1245 www.admission.com
(Service charges applicable- save money by purchasing tickets directly at the box office.

I think there is sweetness in Heather Markgraf Lowe, which she brings to her direction of this play. … the talented Jane Hackett (who also rocked in Slow Dance with a Hot Pick Up this year). Amanda LeBlanc was delightful as Maxine Martine. Stephanie McNamara was a fabulous Alice Thompson and Marian Saminski did a terrific job as musical director, and played a convincing Dixie Coleman. Michael Daniel Murphy was good as Ron Houseman but had to play next to the inimitable Pierre Lenoir as the lead: a consummate professional. He knows how to deliver song or a line and how to take a joke to the brink of milking it then pulling back with panache.

- Anna Fuerstenberg, RoverArts.com

The National Arts Centre Orchestra confirms Yosuke Kawasaki as tenured Concertmaster

2009-11-13T16:54:00.001-05:00

OTTAWA, November 3, 2009 — The National Arts Centre Music Department is very pleased to announce that on Friday, October 30, 2009 the Concertmaster Audition Committee voted to award violinist Yosuke Kawasaki tenure in the position of Concertmaster of the National Arts Centre Orchestra.

Pinchas Zukerman, Music Director of the NAC Orchestra, said "I was extremely overjoyed by Yosuke Kawasaki's tenured appointment to Concertmaster. The leadership he has demonstrated, along with his incredible sound, have already produced tremendous changes in the orchestra. In addition to his musicianship, his work ethic is second to none, and he is simply a superb human being. NACO is delighted to have such a wonderful person as its concertmaster, and Canada is very lucky to have such an extraordinary musician representing the country."

Violinist Yosuke Kawasaki was originally named concertmaster of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in June 2007.

BIOGRAPHY

Violinist Yosuke Kawasaki was named concertmaster of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in June 2007.. He is also Principal Guest Concertmaster of the Century Orchestra Osaka, and Concertmaster of the Mito Chamber Orchestra and Saito Kinen Orchestra in Japan, both under the direction of Seiji Ozawa. He began his professional orchestral career as Concertmaster of the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra from 1999 to 2001. Mr. Kawasaki has toured extensively as a chamber musician in North and South America, Europe and Japan. He is a founding member of the D'Amici String Quartet along with world renowned musicians Federico Agostini, James Creitz and Sadao Harada. Mr. Kawasaki is also a founding member of Trio+, a piano trio with pianist Vadim Serebryany and cellist Wolfram Koessel that made its Japan debut at Suntory Hall performing the Beethoven Triple Concerto. Mr. Kawasaki's upcoming projects include solo engagements with Mito Chamber Orchestra and Singapore National Youth Orchestra as well as live chamber music recordings of works by Mozart and Schumann. His most recent recordings include chamber works by Beethoven and Mozart on the TDK Core Label. He has also recorded Bach's Double Concerto and the Complete Brandenburg Concertos with Walter van Hauwe and the Saito Kinen Chamber Players, both on the King Label. Mr. Kawasaki began his violin studies at the age of six with his father Masao Kawasaki and continued with Setsu Goto. At the age of ten he was accepted into The Juilliard School Pre-College Division. He then continued his education and graduated from The Juilliard School in 1998 under the tutorship of Dorothy DeLay, Hyo Kang, Felix Galimir and Joel Smirnoff.

The Cleveland Orchestra and the Greater Cleveland Partnership, in cooperation with the City of Cleveland, seek nominations for the seventh annual Dr.

2009-11-13T16:51:00.000-05:00

Awards to recognize an adult, a business or organization, and a youth who have positively impacted Cleveland in the spirit of the teachings and example of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Presentation to take place at The Cleveland Orchestra’s Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Concert on January 17, 2010

CLEVELAND, November 3, 2009 – In cooperation with the City of Cleveland, The Cleveland Orchestra and the Greater Cleveland Partnership are currently accepting nominations for the seventh annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award, which will be presented at the Orchestra’s Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Concert at Severance Hall on Sunday, January 17, 2010, at 7:00 p.m. Awards will be presented in three categories in recognition of the services and achievements of an adult, a youth, and a business or organization that have positively impacted Cleveland in the spirit of the teachings and example of Dr. King.

Nomination and Selection Process

Members of the community may submit nominations for award consideration. Nomination forms are available through the websites of The Cleveland Orchestra (clevelandorchestra.com), the Greater Cleveland Partnership (gcpartnership.com), the City of Cleveland (city.cleveland.oh.us), or by calling The Cleveland Orchestra’s Department of Education and Community Programs, (216) 231-7355. Nomination forms are due by Thursday, December 17, 2009, and should be mailed to MLK Community Service Award, Attention: Education and Community Programs, The Cleveland Orchestra, 11001 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, or emailed to sjones@clevelandorchestra.com with Subject Line: MLK Community Service Award Nomination.

A six-person panel composed of community leaders will select award recipients. The Nomination Committee will be chaired by Robert P. Madison, CEO, Robert P. Madison International, Inc. and a member of the Musical Arts Association Board of Trustees.

Award Presentation and Concert

The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award will be presented to the outstanding adult, youth, and outstanding business or organization at The Cleveland Orchestra’s 29th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Concert on January 17, 2010. The concert will take place at Severance Hall at 7:00 p.m., under the direction of Cleveland Orchestra Music Director Franz Welser-Möst. Cellist Tony Rymer, first prize winner from the 2009 Sphinx Competition for Black and Latino string players, Senior Division, will make his Cleveland Orchestra debut as soloist in a performance of Dvořák’s Cello Concerto in B minor, Opus 104 (First Movement). The Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Chorus and the Central State University Chorus, with conductor William Henry Caldwell, will also participate in the concert.

Admission to the concert is free, but tickets are required. Tickets will be available on a first-come, first-served basis beginning December 26, 2009, through the Severance Hall Ticket Office. Patrons can stop by the Ticket Office Monday through Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., or Saturdays between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., or call the Ticket Office at (216) 231-1111 or 1-800-686-1141. A limited number of tickets will also be available via the Cleveland Orchestra website at clevelandorchestra.com. There is a limit of 2 tickets per person.

This concert is sponsored by KeyBank, a Cleveland Orchestra Partner in Excellence, with additional support from The Cleveland Foundation. The musicians of The Cleveland Orchestra donate their services for this concert as a benefit to the Musical Arts Association sustaining fund.

For more information about award nominations and the MLK Celebration Concert on January 17, 2010, please contact The Cleveland Orchestra’s Department of Education and Community Programs at (216) 231-7355.

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Roy Thomson Hall present The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra; Long Yu, conductor / Yuja Wang, piano - Monday, November

2009-11-13T16:48:00.000-05:00

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Roy Thomson Hall present
The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
Long Yu, conductor / Yuja Wang, piano
Monday, November 16, 2009 / 8:00 PM / Roy Thomson Hall
Tickets: $128 to $29 – Call RTH Box Office 416 872 4255
Online at www.roythomson.com or www.tso.ca

Toronto, ON, November 3, 2009 – The great Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, one of the world’s oldest classical ensembles, makes its Canadian debut at Roy Thomson Hall on Monday, November 16 at 8 pm under the leadership of its dynamic new Music Director, Maestro Long Yu. The featured soloist is the phenomenal 22-year-old pianist Yuja Wang, who joins the orchestra for a performance of Rachmaninoff’s beloved romantic masterpiece, Piano Concerto No. 2. The captivating program also includes Mussorgsky’s exquisite “Dawn on the Moscow River” (Prelude to the opera Khovantchina); and an intriguing work by Chinese composer Chen Quigang, Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled), for orchestra, two sopranos (combining Western bel canto and Peking opera techniques) and three soloists on traditional Chinese instruments (Erhu, Pipa and Guzheng).

The concert is part of a 12-city, two-week North American tour commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China and the orchestra’s 130th Anniversary. Toronto is the only Canadian city on this historic tour.

The fascinating history of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is also the history by which Chinese symphonic music developed. Initially formed in 1879 as the Shanghai Public Band, it had 20 Filipino musicians and a French conductor; and after the arrival of Italian pianist/conductor Mario Paci in 1919, the orchestra promoted Western classical music and trained young Chinese talents in this style. In 1951, under its first Chinese conductor Huang Yijun, the 56-member orchestra, which also included Russian musicians, was soon renamed the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and within five years its players were entirely Chinese. From 1984 to 2009, under the direction of Chen Xieyang, the orchestra served as a distinguished musical ambassador both at home and abroad and toured extensively, performing repertoire from every corner of the globe, including premieres of more than 1,000 Chinese symphonic works. The orchestra’s extensive discography includes Tan Dun’s Oscar- and Grammy Award-winning soundtrack for the hit film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Renowned conductor Long Yu is the new Principal Conductor of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. He is also the Principal Conductor of both the China Philharmonic Orchestra and the Guangzhou Symphony, and has been a guest conductor for many of the world’s major orchestras and opera companies. He last appeared at Roy Thomson Hall in 2005 with the China Philharmonic Orchestra and piano soloist Lang Lang.

Beijing-born pianist Yuja Wang is widely acclaimed for her “powerhouse technique and penetrating musicality” (New York Times), and has already made astonishing debuts with many of the world’s top orchestras, including Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Tokyo. Her debut CD for Deutsche Grammophon, Sonatas and Etudes, released in April 2009, has received ecstatic reviews, plus Gramophone magazine’s prestigious “Young Artist of the Year”Award.

Roy Thomson Hall and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra have partnered for three guest orchestra co-presentations in the 2009-2010 season, bringing some of the world’s best orchestras to the Toronto stage, beginning with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. On February 24, 2010 Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra; and on April 6, 2010 Christoph Eschenbach conducts the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra with piano soloist Lang Lang.

Canadian Jazz Legend "Oliver Jones" performs Sat. NOV 14 @ 8pm @ JPEC's Opening Concert Series

2009-11-13T16:45:00.000-05:00

Oliver Jones Trio
JPEC’s Opening Concert Series
@ Glenn Gould Studio
Saturday, November 14 @ 8pm

WHAT: Oliver Jones Trio - In the opening concert of JPEC’s inaugural concert series, pianist and Canadian jazz legend Oliver Jones takes the stage with his acclaimed trio. Oliver Jones is a Justin Time recording artist, a Juno Award winner, and recipient of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Oliver Jones’ inspiration is not confined to the artistic community. He’s also the proud recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. award, celebrating his contributions to the Black Community in Canada and in his native Montreal. In 1993 he received the Order of Québec, the province’s highest honour, and the next year he was awarded the Order of Canada, for "outstanding achievement in the arts." That same year, at the invitation of the Government of Canada, Jones toured several cities in China with bassist Dave Young and drummer Barry Elmes.

TICKETS: $70 VIP (includes a pre-concert reception and post-concert meet-and- greet with the artists)
$45 Regular
$20 Student/Rush (must be purchased in person with proper ID; rush seats available 30 minutes before performance time)
Tickets available from the Roy Thomson Hall box office (416) 872-4255 or buy now online from www.jazzcentre.ca

WHERE: Glenn Gould Studio, 250 Front Street West
 WHEN: Saturday, November 14, 2009 @ 8pm

INFO: Jazz Performance and Education Centre (JPEC) www.jazzcentre.ca inspires and grows audiences for Jazz music through performances, education and recordings. It will be a sophisticated first class venue and education centre for local and International musicians to showcase their talent. The facility will expand Toronto’s reputation as one of the most vibrant cities in North America to experience live Jazz, thereby creating an environment that nurtures local talent and develops a new and diverse audience. JPEC will provide a Hall of Fame and Archive of Canadian and International Jazz history.

Founded in 2006, JPEC is dedicated to the preservation and continued development of jazz music in Canada. In August 2008, JPEC was incorporated as a not-for- profit organization and received charitable status in May 2009. JPEC’s mandate is to increase the audience for Jazz – “a universal language”, through performances, education and recordings. In order to fulfill its mandate, it is vital that JPEC establish a sophisticated first class venue. JPEC is proudly inspired and draws heavily from the well known Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York – replicated on a smaller scale.

Handel à Darmstadt : jeudi 19 novembre 19h15

2009-11-13T16:41:00.000-05:00

Handel à Darmstadt, récital de clavecin commenté par Geneviève Soly, le jeudi 19 novembre 2009 à 19 h 15 au Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal - Auditorium Maxwell-Cummings, Pavillon Michael et Renata Hornstein.

Montréal, le 1 novembre 2009 — Le jeudi 19 novembre 2009 à 19 h 15, Geneviève Soly présente un récital de clavecin commenté au Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal. Ce concert est le premier de la 23ème saison des Idées heureuses et est présenté en coproduction avec la fondation Arte Musica dans le cadre des Journées Handel.

Pour illustrer les liens qui unissent Georg Frideric Handel et Christoph Graupner, maître de chapelle à la cour de Darmstadt (Allemagne), la claveciniste Geneviève Soly interprète des œuvres de Handel, dont on souligne cette année le 250ème anniversaire de la mort, extraites du Livre de clavecin de Darmstadt, tout en faisant un clin d'œil à C. Graupner.

PRÉSENTATION

 La production de Handel est considérable et touche tous les genres pratiqués à son époque : opéras, oratorios, musique de chambre vocale ou instrumentale et musique religieuse. Reconnu comme un claveciniste et un organiste virtuose, il fut adulé en son temps et reste encore aujourd'hui un des compositeurs les plus joués sur les scènes lyriques.

Grâce au travail soutenu du musicologue et éditeur Terence Best, la datation des œuvres de clavecin de Handel est connue depuis peu. La plupart furent composées pendant sa période hambourgeoise (1703-1706). C'est précisément pendant ce temps qu'un autre musicien allemand, également célèbre en son temps, bien que tombé dans l'oubli depuis, devient claveciniste de l'opéra de Hambourg où Handel est violoniste : Christoph Graupner. Celui-ci partira en 1709 pour la cour de Darmstadt où il passera le restant de sa longue et fructueuse existence comme maître de chapelle de cette cour, qui fut culturellement très active et renommée pour sa splendide musique. On y entendait alors les meilleurs auteurs du temps.
Il n'est pas étonnant, connaissant ces circonstances, de retrouver 25 pièces de clavecin de Handel, rassemblées dans un important volume manuscrit du XVIIIe siècle, conservé à la cour de Darmstadt (Allemagne), et appelé le Livre de clavecin de Darmstadt.

Ce livre manuscrit, copié vers 1720 par le chanteur et futur maitre de chapelle Samuel Endler comprend, outre 6 œuvres (25 pièces) de Handel, 17 partitas (136 pièces) de C. Graupner, une partita de Kuhnau (le maître de Graupner) et plusieurs autres de G. P. Telemann.

Un lien musical et stylistique évident lie Handel à Graupner dans leur musique de clavecin. Fait amusant, le thème d'une pièce de la partita en sol majeur de Graupner (GWV 145), copiée dans ce livre manuscrit, a été utilisé par Handel dans sa sonate pour clavecin en sol majeur (HWV 579). Handel réutilisera ce thème à deux reprises : dans une sonate de son oratorio Il Trionfo del Tempo e del disinganno (1707) et dans l'air Vo' far Guerra de l'opéra Rinaldo (1711).

Le récital est donné sur un clavecin de facture allemande d'après Michael Mietke (Berlin, vers 1720), construit par Matthias Griewisch (Baumenthal, 2007), appartenant à Geneviève Soly. 

GENEVIÈVE SOLY

Passionnée de l'époque baroque, Geneviève Soly fondait à Montréal en 1987, Les Idées heureuses. L'organisme s'est taillé une place privilégiée dans le paysage musical québécois, avec plus de 80 programmes de concerts et au-delà de 350 activités artistiques, présentés principalement au Québec.

L'énergie qu'elle déploie pour mieux faire connaître le répertoire baroque lui a valu, en 1997, le Prix Opus décerné par le Conseil québécois de la musique dans la catégorie Personnalité de l'année et le titre de Personnalité de la semaine octroyé par le quotidien montréalais La Presse, dans l'édition du 2 avril 2006.

Grâce au travail à son travail de recherche, Les Idées heureuses est aujourd'hui associé à la redécouverte et à la diffusion de l'œuvre du compositeur allemand du XVIIIe siècle, Christoph Graupner.

INFORMATIONS
 Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, Auditorium Maxwell-Cummings, Pavillon Michael et Renata Hornstein,  1379 rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montréal - métro Guy-Concordia
 Billets : 25$ : 30 ans et plus, 12,50$ : de 13 à 29 ans 
Réservation : 514 843 5881 - www.ideesheureuses.ca

Geordie Productions seeks children to play the role of Tiny Tim in upcoming production of A Christmas Carol

2009-11-13T16:39:00.002-05:00

November 2, 2009 (MONTREAL) - Geordie Productions has launched its search for children to play the role of Tiny Tim in its upcoming Mainstage production of A Christmas Carol, premiering at the D.B. Clarke Theatre from December 4th - December 18th, 2009.

This unique, non-remunerated opportunity to appear on-stage in a professional production is open to children age 7 - 11 of all race and gender. No acting experience necessary! There are no prior rehearsals for the selected participants, but they will be required to arrive one hour prior to their performance time and will be guided throughout duration of the performance by members of the company.

This large-scale adaptation of Charles Dickens' timeless holiday classic is presented by Geordie in its Montreal Mainstage Series that has included such acclaimed productions as: The Little Prince, The Jungle Book and Alice Through the Looking Glass. Adapted by Alexandria Haber, directed by Dean Patrick Fleming and with 12 adult actors and a team of award-winning designers and choreographer, Geordie's A Christmas Carol is set be THE holiday event for all ages.

To apply to be Tiny Tim, Bob Crachit's frail but generous and loving son who helps Scrooge learn the true meaning of the holidays, applicants are asked to submit:
· a recent head-to-toe photo
· a short letter telling us what's the best gift you've ever received or given someone and why?

Complete application forms and details are available from Geordie's website: www.geordie.ca. Up to 26 applicants will be selected based on creativity and enthusiasm of their responses, as well as applicant's physical size and availability. Geordie Productions is committed to equality.

The deadline for submissions is Friday, November 20th. Entries can be sent by email to auditions@geordie.ca; or mailed to Geordie Productions, 4001 Berri, Suite #103, Montreal, QC (H2L 4H2). Selected participants will be announced on November 25th, 2009.

Geordie Productions is a member of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres and engages under the terms of the Canadian Theatre Agreement, professional Artists who are members of Canadian Actors' Equity Association. A Christmas Carol is a co-production with Concordia University's Department of Theatre.

Nuits D'Afrique …des spectacles TOUTE l'année! présentent la nouvelle série de concerts

2009-11-13T16:34:00.000-05:00

Montréal, le 2 novembre 2009- Les Productions Nuits d'Afrique innovent une fois de plus en présentant la série de concerts « CORDES à CORDES » au mythique Club Balattou dont l'ambiance chaleureuse et plus intimiste, s'avère tout à fait propice à l'écoute de cette nouvelle série de spectacles acoustiques.

Au cœur de ces concerts une fabuleuse diversité d'instruments à cordes d'ici, d'ailleurs de maintenant et d'autrefois mis de l'avant par des artistes de renom, issus de la scène locale, nationale et internationale.

Pincées, frappées ou frottées, les cordes sonnent et résonnent depuis plusieurs milliers d'années à travers le monde.. Cette nouvelle série de concerts fait découvrir en mots et en musique l'origine de nombreux instruments à cordes , parmi ceux-ci , la guitare sous toutes ses formes, la basse, la contrebasse, le banjo, le guembri, la kora, le oud, le ngoni, le mbolon, la cithare, la mandoline, le violon, le sokou…..

Les artistes choisis afin de faire partie de cette programmation éclectique ont de plus tous accepté de venir parler de l'instrument à corde qui les fait vibrer…Ainsi, chaque prestation sera précédée d'une courte présentation de l'instrument au centre de chaque concert. Il est à noter que la plupart des artistes inclus dans cette programmation ont revisité leur répertoire afin que leur instrument à corde respectif soit à l'honneur et des plus présent dans les pièces musicales qu'ils ont choisies de présenter.

Egalement à souligner l'implication de Guitares Godin , fier partenaire de la série « CORDES à CORDES qui permettra aux spectateurs présents d'avoir la chance de remporter 2 prestigieuses guitares. Les coupons de participation seront disponibles au Club Balattou dans le cadre de chaque concert de la série.

La série « CORDES à CORDES » a été lancée officiellement le dimanche 25 octobre avec la formation ougandaise Kinobé & Soul Beat Africa qui mettait de l'avant l'Adungu et la Kora. Cette nouvelle série fera également partie intégrante de la programmation de la 24ième édition du Festival International Nuits d'Afrique.

Programmation

Dimanche 15 Novembre
Nazir & Gnawadima –( Maroc)

Hajhouj - Gembri
Dimanche 22 novembre
DRAMANE KONÉ – (Mali)

N'Goni
Dimanche 6 décembre
Diely Mori Tounkara & ses invités – (Mali)

Kora :
Mercredi 9 Décembre
Rommel Ribeiro solo (Brésil)

Guitare
Mardi 12 Janvier
Zal Idrissa Sissokho (Sénégal)

Kora
Dimanche 24 Janvier
Aboulaye Koné & Bolokan acoustique (Cote d'Ivoire)

Guitare mandingue
Dimanche 31 Janvier
Hassan El Hadi (Maroc)

-Oud
Dimanche 7 Février
Oumar N'diaye Xosluman (Sénégal)

- guitare folk -
mercredi 17 Février
Abdel Karim SaaDa (Algérie)

- Banjo
au Club Balattou
4372, boul. St-Laurent (coin Marie-Anne) - Montréal
Au Club Balattou – (514) 845-5447

www.balattou.com
www.festivalnuitsdafrique.com

Nouveauté : Musique sacrée à la cour de Louis XV

2009-11-13T16:32:00.000-05:00

Les Éditions du Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles publient en partition un deuxième grand motet de Nicolas Bernier, grande figure des compositeurs de la cour à la charnière des 17e et 18e siècles. Cette nouveauté s'inscrit dans un vaste chantier de restitution et de publication des 18 grands motets du compositeur mantois qui soient encore conservés de par le monde.

Composé au tout début du 18e siècle, la musique du grand motet Benedic anima mea Domino, tiré du psaume 103, nous est parvenue incomplète : seules les parties de dessus instrumental (violons et bois) et de basses sont encore conservées, avec le chœur et les chanteurs solistes, bien que le déroulé musical soit complet. A partir de l'étude du style du compositeur, des pratiques de l'époque et de l'analyse des partitions, le Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles s'est lancé dans un vaste chantier de restauration des parties orchestrales manquantes des motets de Nicolas Bernier. Ainsi, la majesté du motet retrouve la couleur si particulière de l'orchestre français à 5 parties dans ce superbe motet « à numéro », à la manière de Lalande, enchaînant des séquences courtes de symphonies, solo, duos et chœur rendant au plus près les intentions du texte.

Nicolas Bernier (1665-1734), sous-maître de la Chapelle royale (Louis XV)
Benedic anima mea Domino, transcription cmbv
collection Chœur et orchestre, © 2009, 33 pages, 19,4x24,1 cm, conducteur broché, ISMN M-56016-177-8. Restauration des parties intermédiaires de l'orchestre par Bernard Thomas. Avec le soutien du Syndicat d'Agglomération de Marne-la-Vallée/Val Maubuée et en partenariat avec la classe d'écriture de Raphaël Picazos au Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional du Val Maubuée. Avec introduction (français), texte et traduction.

cah-177 Benedic anima mea Domino, conducteur........................................................ 17,00 €
cah-177-mv Benedic anima mea Domino, voix/bc................................................................ 9,50 €
cah-177-mo Benedic anima mea Domino, matériel d'orchestre en location........................ 130,10 €

site institutionnel : http://www.cmbv.fr
boutique en ligne : http://editions.cmbv.fr

New release: French baroque motet for choir and orchestra

The Editions du Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles have just published another musical work of Nicolas Bernier, one of the most important composers of the French Court at the end of the 17th and the beginning of the 18th century, along with Lalande and Campra. This new publication is part of a project for the reconstitution and the publication of the 18th grands motets of the composer already preserved.

Written in the beginning of the 18th century, the music of Benedic anima mea Domino, from psalm 103, is incompletely preserved: we only know the parts for the dessus (violins and woodwinds), the basses, the choir and the vocal soloists. The Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles began the large task of restoring the lost inner parts of the orchestra, beginning with a study of the style of the composer, the knowledge of practices current in the period and analysis of the scores. Then, the majestic French grand motet finds again its characteristic colour of the five part orchestra. This beautiful motet, composed on the model established by Lalande, linking short musical passages of symphonies, solo, duets and choirs to be as near as possible to the feeling of the text.

Nicolas Bernier (1665-1734), sous-maître de la Chapelle royale (Louis XV)
Benedic anima mea Domino, cmbv transcription

Series Chœur et orchestre, © 2009, 33 pages, 19,4x24,1 cm, full score paperback, ISMN M-56016-177-8. Restoration of the inner orchestral parts made by Bernard Thomas. With the patronage of the Syndicat d'Agglomération de Marne-la-Vallée/Val Maubuée and in partnership with professor Raphaël Picazos from the music school of Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional du Val Maubuée. With an introduction in French and text of the psalm (Latin/French).

cah-177 Benedic anima mea Domino, conducteur..................................................... 17,00 €
cah-177-mv Benedic anima mea Domino, voices and figured bass..................................... 9,50 €
cah-177-mo Benedic anima mea Domino, set of parts for rent....................................... 130,10 €

Rabbit Rabbit

2009-11-13T16:27:00.000-05:00

Rabbit Rabbit
Écrit par
Amy Lee Lavoie

Dmise en scène de
Guy Sprung

Avec
Ashley Dunn
Howard Rosenstein

Larry, un clown pédophile, a rendez-vous avec Britney, une prostituée adolescente employée par un service d'escorte fétichiste. Britney n'a pas beaucoup de succès avec ses clients dernièrement et son pimp menace de lui montrer la porte. Larry a réquisitionné la fille qu'il fréquente d'habitude, une fille de 12 ans appelée Sabrina, mais elle n'était pas disponible. Il a vraiment besoin de son fix habituel car il a le béguin pour une jeune fille qu'il doit voir la semaine prochaine, à son anniversaire, lors d'un prochain job. Il a peur de ce qu'il fera s'il ne soulage pas ses besoins. Dans la chambre d'hôtel, c'est le jour J. Malgré des ébats sexuels embarrassants et traumatisants, malgré la nervosité de Britney et la déception de Larry, les deux personnages se créent un lien unique. Petit à petit, la chambre d'hôtel se transforme en confessionnal pour secrets sinistres et rêves d'avenir.

Heures et Dates Du 10 au 29 novembre
Prévues 10 et 11 novembre
Première 12 novembre
Du mardi au samedi 20h00
Matinée dimanche 14h00
Lundi FERMÉ

Billets
Admission générale : 20 $
Âge d'or/Étudiants : 15 $
Groupes (6+) : 10 $ (de même que pour les prévues)

Lieu
Bain St-Michel
5300, rue St-Dominique

Billetterie
(514) 987 – 1774
box-office@infinitheatre.com

***

Rabbit Rabbit
Written by
Amy Lee Lavoie

Directed by
Guy Sprung

Starring
Ashley Dunn
Howard Rosenstein

Larry is a paedophilic birthday clown who sees a twelve-year-old prostitute regularly to keep his proclivities under control. She's not available this week so he's stuck with Britney, a voluptuous teenage 'pro', head over heals in love with her pimp, Ace, who's threatened to boot her out if she doesn't start bringing in some serious cash. Larry has his sights set on a little girl coming to his next clown gig, so the pressure's on; he knows what he'll do if he doesn't get relief. He needs someone who 'knows the routine'. Britney has to make Larry a happy camper so she and Ace can live happily ever after. The dingy hotel room becomes a confessional where life secrets are shared and the spectre of loneliness is denied, even if only for a little while.

Dates & Times Nov. 10 - 29
Previews Nov. 10 & 11
Opening Nov. 12
Tues. through Sat. 20:00
Sunday Matinée 14:00
Monday DARK

Tickets
General Admission $20
Seniors & Students $15
Groups (6 or more) $10

Venue
Bain St-Michel
5300, St-Dominique

Box Office
(514) 987 – 1774
box-office@infinitheatre.com

Baritone Andrew Garland Reprises Laitman's "Men with Small Heads" in Tribute to Living American Composers

2009-11-13T16:25:00.000-05:00

Andrew Garland Reprises Laitman's "Men with Small Heads" in Tribute to Living American Composers

Lori Laitman's humorous treatment of the poetry of Thomas Lux resonates widely with baritones, especially with Andrew Garland, who reprises the cycle Men with Small Heads in two upcoming recitals titled Living American Composers. The recitals will take place in New York City and Cincinnati and will also feature songs by Rorem, Paulus, Kohn and Cipullo.

Garland's November 2008 Weil Recital Hall performance of Laitman's cycle with pianist Donna Loewy garnered high praise from the press: "Garland thoroughly owned these quirky settings of child's-eye-view poems by Thomas Lux …Whether as the perspective-challenged six-year-old of the title song, a youth lusting after a jar of maraschino cherries, the proud owner of a tin parrot pin whose charm is lost on others or a deliciously sibilant snake warning swimmers out of his lair, Garland was utterly engaging. Laitman's sense of humor enhances her considerable skill as a text-painter, and this set was easily the highpoint of the concert."(Opera News). The title song of the cycle was named Best American Art Song by the 2004 San Francisco Song Festival and appears on Laitman's 2003 CD Dreaming.

Lori Laitman is one of America's most prolific and widely performed composers of vocal music. She has composed nearly 200 songs, setting the words of classical and contemporary poets from Emily Dickinson to Richard Wilbur. "It is difficult to think of anyone before the public today who equals her exceptional gifts for embracing a poetic text and giving it new and deeper life through music." (The Journal of Singing)

Laitman's new opera, The Scarlet Letter, premiered in 2008 to rave reviews. "Composer Lori Laitman has written gorgeous music that works hand-in-glove with the words of librettist David Mason and underpins the very essence of this psychological-social drama...the few arias are at key moments and are stunningly effective." (The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette). The opera, commissioned by The University of Central Arkansas, is based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's literary masterpiece, as adapted by award-winning poet David Mason. Mason and Laitman are continuing as collaborators on a new opera, based on Mason's verse novel, Ludlow. Currently they are working on Vedem, a Holocaust oratorio which tells the story of the boys at Terezín and their secret journal. Vedem was commissioned by Music of Remembrance and will premiere at Benaroya Hall in Seattle, WA on May 10, 2010.

Music of Remembrance also commissioned Laitman's song cycle The Seed of Dream, released on Naxos to critical acclaim. The cycle sets the poetry of Vilna Ghetto survivor Abraham Sutzkever. Dr. Sharon Mabry, in The Journal of Singing, pronounced the work "a masterpiece that should not be missed!"

Since launching her career in 1991, Laitman's music has been performed frequently in the US and abroad. Some recent U.S. venues include The Frye Art Music and Benaroya Hall in Seattle, WA; The Kennedy Center and The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC; Weill Recital Hall and Merkin Hall in New York, NY; The Granada in Santa Barbara, CA and The USC Fisher Museum in Los Angeles, CA. Her discography also continues to grow, with releases on Albany Records, Naxos, Channel Classics and other labels, showcasing the talents of some of today's top musicians, among them Jennifer Check, Sari Gruber, Warren Jones, Maureen McKay, Robert McPherson, Lee Poulis, Barbara Quintiliani, Randall Scarlata and William Sharp. Laitman frequently travels to universities and festivals to present master classes on her music.

Within These Spaces, Laitman's latest solo CD released in May 2009, is receiving exceptional praise: "This is music of depth and richness that connects with the soul." (American Record Guide); "Her affinity for the voice…is beyond doubt…her songs represent outpourings of great beauty." (Fanfare Magazine). Gramophone Magazine called Laitman's Becoming a Redwood: "An extraordinarily impressive achievement…[which indicates] increasing evidence of a major talent. Lori Laitman's beautiful, sensitively crafted songs deserve to be performed widely." In a review of her 2000 release, Mystery, Opera News says: "Composer Lori Laitman knows how to let the voice soar and explore…spinning lyrical neo-romantic vocal lines over shifting post-modern sonorities." A Journal of Singing review says of her 2003 album, Dreaming: "This is a stunning collection of widely varied songs by one of the finest art song composers on the scene today...Lori Laitman deservedly stands shoulder to shoulder with Ned Rorem for her uncommon sensitivity to text, her loving attention to the human voice and its capabilities, and her extraordinary palette of musical colors and gestures."

Laitman graduated magna cum laude from Yale College and received her Master of Music degree in flute performance from The Yale School of Music. Her recordings are available on her website, www.artsongs.com, as well as Amazon and ITunes.

Laitman is represented by Jona Rapoport Artist Management.

Living American Composers - Recital Details:

November 10, 2009, 8 pm, Christ and St. Stephen's Church, 122 W. 69th St, New York, New York. Tickets: $15, $5 for students. For more information, please visit www.csschurch.org

February 23, 2010, 8 pm, Werner Hall, Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Cincinnati, OH. For more information, please visit www.ccm.uc.edu

Visit Lori Laitman's Official Website:
www.artsongs.com

VO Announces Golden Anniversary Concert Program

2009-11-13T16:22:00.000-05:00

Celebration includes performances by Brett Polegato,Tracy Dahl and Sally Dibblee, as well as video presentations from Ben Heppner and Richard Margison

Vancouver, BC ~ Vancouver Opera announced today the program for the Scotiabank Group Golden Anniversary Concert, to take place at the Orpheum Theatre on Friday, November 6, 2009. Conducted and hosted by VO Music Director Jonathan Darlington, and directed by Michael Cavanagh, the Scotiabank Group Golden Anniversary Concert celebrates VO’s milestone season with a sublime evening of magnificent performances.

Highlights of the evening’s program include:

• Overture from Bernstein’s Candide
• “Tu che di gel sei sinta”, Liù’s aria from Puccini’s Turandot, sung by Sally Dibblee
• A special sneak preview of Lillian Alling, a new opera by John Estacio and John Murrell. Commissioned by VO, this brand-new Canadian opera will round out the Golden Anniversary celebrations when it premieres in October 2010.
• “Là ci darem la mano“ and ”Dalla sua pace” from Mozart’s Don Giovanni, sung by Brett Polegato and Kathleen Brett, and Benjamin Butterfield
• The touching duet “Mir ist die Ehre widerfahren….” from Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, sung by Kimberly Barber and Tracy Dahl
• “Il lacerato spirito” from Verdi’s Simon Boccanegro, sung by bass Alain Coulombe with the Vancouver Opera Chorus
• “Pierrot's Tanzlied” from Korngold's Die tote Stadt, sung by Brett Polegato
• “Ton coeur n'a pas compris le mien... “ from Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers, sung by Kathleen Brett and Benjamin Butterfield
• “Va Tosca” from Puccini’s Tosca, sung by Yalun Zhang with the Vancouver Opera Chorus

The evening will also include a special ensemble performance of Act 2 of Johann Strauss’s beloved and highly entertaining Die Fledermaus, with some celebrity guests making surprise appearances.

Tickets

The Scotiabank Group Golden Anniversary Concert & Gala celebration takes place on Friday, November 6, 2009.

The Concert begins at 7:00pm at the Orpheum Theatre; the Gala dinner follows, at the historic Commodore Ballroom.

Tickets to the Golden Anniversary Concert are $19 - $75 and are available at www.vancouveropera.ca or through the VO Ticket Centre at 604-683-0222.

Gala Package tickets include both the Concert and Gala portions of the evening as well as a private pre-Concert Reception and valet parking. The Gala Package is $650 (includes $300 tax receipt) and is available exclusively through the VO Ticket Centre at 604-683-0222.

Artists and program are subject to change.

Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Acclaimed String Trio Tiime for Three Establish Three-Year Relationship

2009-11-13T16:17:00.002-05:00

"CLASSICALLY-TRAINED GARAGE BAND" BECOMES ISO'S FIRST ENSEMBLE-IN-RESIDENCE AND WILL TAKE A LEAD ROLE IN THE SYMPHONY'S NEW AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVES AND STUDENT MENTORSHIP

INDIANAPOLIS—For the first time in its 79-year history, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra has created a residency program tied to an ensemble group rather than an individual artist or composer. As the new ensemble-in-residence for the Indianapolis Symphony, the dynamic string trio Time for Three will bring its unique sound and innovative approach to composing and performing music on stage and throughout the community beginning in November of this year and ending with the 2011-2012 season.

Time for Three members—Zach De Pue, violin and ISO Concertmaster, Nick Kendall, violin, and Ranaan Meyer, double bass—began playing together as students at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and formed the group after discovering their affection for improvisation and blending jazz, classical, bluegrass and country western music in new and different ways. The self-described "classically-trained garage band" has appeared with the ISO on multiple occasions at the Hilbert Circle Theatre, Marsh Symphony on the Prairie and at other select events. As the Orchestra's official ensemble, the group plans to bring its music to new audiences and new venues throughout Indiana; establish relationships with and inspire student musicians from selected residency schools; develop a leadership role with programming for, and performances in, the ISO's Stella Artois Happy Hour at the Symphony series; and together with the ISO musicians and artistic staff, create new opportunities that attract the next generation to the performing arts.

"I am excited about the possibilities that our partnership with Time for Three opens up for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra," said Simon Crookall, President and CEO of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. "We have seen what a dynamic affect the group has on our audiences, who are charmed and invigorated by their amazing talent, enthusiasm and charisma. Building on the relationship that Zach has already established with the Orchestra and with the public, it is wonderful to welcome Nick and Ranaan to the ISO family! There is no better way to reach out to new audiences in Indianapolis than by collaborating with this dynamic trio."

Time for Three's concert schedule with the ISO includes Lilly Classical Series performances Nov. 5-7 and in February and May of next year for Happy Hour at the Symphony. Working with the ISO's Learning Community, the group will be scheduling appearances and community events and developing official relationships with Broad Ripple and Perry Meridian high schools in order to work one-on-one with students in the music programs. More up-to-date information on the residency and events associated with the group will be available at a new web site, www.ISOTf3.org beginning Nov. 1.

"Being invited to partner with the ISO is a thrill for us, a career highlight, and an inspiring opportunity to be a part of an institution we strongly believe in," said Nick Kendall. "The ISO is a foundation for us, and together with the musicians and creative leadership of the Orchestra, we hope to provide additional energy to the already mighty strength of this organization. We want to evolve the art form and spread the word in a heartland community we are quickly falling in love with."

Time for Three Community Events and Concerts in 2009-2010

Time for Three: Roots and Wings
Monday, Nov. 2, 2009
7 p.m.
Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation
Explore the creative process of the dynamic trio, Time for Three. The group will demonstrate its approach to adapting existing melodies by experimenting with some songs from the Jewish tradition.
Public welcome; free

Young Professionals Breaking Boundaries
Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009
5:30-7:30 p.m.
Hilbert Circle Theatre Wood Room
A presentation, short performance and a question and answer session for members of IndyHub and Lacy Leadership Association.

Symphonic Hits Powered by Lilly
Time for Three Performs Jennifer Higdon's Concerto 4-3
Nov. 5, 11 a.m.
Nov. 6, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 7, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased at www.IndianapolisSymphony.org or (317) 639-4300.

Spirited Chase
Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009
WFYI
9 a.m.
Time for Three will help kick off this annual signature event of the 2009 Spirit and Place Festival.
Public welcome; free

Time for Three: World View, One Sound
February 2010 (exact date to be determined)
7 p.m.
Marian University Chapel
Hear the sound that's breaking down musical barriers and discover how this trio is defying the limits of their instruments and industry one note at a time.
Free; open to the public.

Stella Artois Happy Hour at the Symphony featuring Time for Three
Feb. 18 & May 6, 2010
Hilbert Circle Theatre
Happy Hour begins at 5 p.m.; Concert starts at 6:30 p.m.
$20/person
Tickets can be purchased at www.IndianapolisSymphony.org or (317) 639-4300.

For a complete calendar of information, go to www.ISOTf3.org.

ISO Residency Programs

The ISO has collaborated with four artists-in-residence—pianists Barry Douglas, Pascal Rogé and André Watts and baritone Nathan Berg—all during former Music Director Raymond Leppard's tenure. In addition, Gabriela Lena Frank just completed a residency program in the 2008-09 season with the premiere of Peregrinos (Pilgrims), and David Ott joined the ISO in 1990 as a composer-in-residence and created five works—Music of the Canvas (1990), Indianapolis Concerto (1993), Improvisations on the "Clara Songs" from Egmont (1994), Garden of Secret Thoughts (1996) and Triple Concerto (1997).

About Time for Three

What started as a trio of musicians who jammed together backstage while students at Philadelphia's Curtis Institute for Music evolved into Time for Three -- a charismatic ensemble with a reputation for limitless enthusiasm and no musical boundaries. The members -- Zach De Pue, violin; Nick Kendall, violin; and Ranaan Meyer, double bass -- carry a passion for improvisation, composing and arranging, all prime elements of the ensemble's playing. Zach De Pue and Nick Kendall first discovered their mutual love of fiddling in the country western and bluegrass styles. Bassist Ranaan Meyer then introduced them to his deep roots in jazz and improvisation. After considerable experimentation, the three officially formed Tf3. The ensemble gained instant attention in July 2003 during a lightning-induced power failure at Philadelphia's Mann Music Center. While technicians attempted to restore onstage lighting, Ranaan and Zach, who were both performing with The Philadelphia Orchestra, obliged with an impromptu jam session that included works as far afield from the originally scheduled symphony as "Jerusalem's Ridge," "Ragtime Annie," and "Orange Blossom Special." The crowd went wild.

Tf3 sets itself apart not only with its varied repertoire performed with astonishing technical acuity, but also through its approach. Its high-energy performances are free of conventional practices, drawing instead from the members' differing musical backgrounds. The trio also performs its own arrangements of traditional repertoire and Ranaan Meyer provides original compositions to complement the trio's offerings. Tf3 has performed on many of the nation's important stages, including the Mann Music Center, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and Joe's Pub in New York. In addition to their albums, they have been seen and heard frequently on various television and radio broadcasts throughout the country, including numerous times on Public Television and NPR, and were featured in a documentary film about Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square directed by Robert Downey, Sr. The group also recorded the soundtrack to the History Channel's production, The Spanish-American War.

The ensemble has begun a major commissioning program to expand its unique repertoire for both symphony orchestras and concert series. One of these projects has involved a new work written by celebrated composer Jennifer Higdon, premiered in six performances by Tf3 with The Philadelphia Orchestra and Christoph Eschenbach in January 2008. Future commissions will include works by Chris Brubeck and William Bolcom. In addition to its demanding performance schedule, the trio is committed to reaching younger audiences and has participated in a number of educational residencies and outreach concerts including Paul Newman's Hole In The Wall Gang Camp (for which they have helped raise over $8 million along with Whoopi Goldberg, Alec Baldwin, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Joanne Woodward); The Fox Channel's "Good Morning Philadelphia" telecast from the Kimmel Center; the Liberty Awards Ceremony honoring Colin Powell; and the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce's morning debate banquet for gubernatorial candidates Edward Rendell and Mike Fisher. Tf3 was also featured in the Pennsylvania Society's televised annual gala from New York's Waldorf-Astoria.

The 2009-10 season finds Time for Three continuing a rigorous North American performance schedule. Highlights include appearances with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra under Marin Alsop; Fort Worth Symphony under Miguel Harth-Bedoya; Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra; and a debut of a Chris Brubeck commission with the Boston Pops under Keith Lockhart. Also in 2009-10, the group furthers its commitment to outreach by launching a multi-year residency with the Indianapolis Symphony and makes its Carnegie Hall debut on the Family Concert Series.

PSA: Bridge of Song: Revalia & Chor Leoni, November 21

2009-11-13T16:15:00.000-05:00

Chor Leoni
Diane Loomer, C.M., Artistic Director

presents

Bridge of Song: Revalia & Chor Leoni

featuring

RevaIia Male Chamber Choir (from Estonia)
Hirvo Sirva, director

* Grand Prix & First Prize, 1st British International Male Voice Choral Festival
* Best Male Choir, 8th International Choral Competition "Tallinn 2003"
* 2003 Choir of the Year, Estonian Choral Society
Saturday, November 21, 2009 7:30 pm
Shaughnessy Heights United Church
1550 W 33rd Ave, Vancouver BC

Adults $25 | Students/Seniors $20
Ticketmaster.ca 604.280.3311

Chor Leoni is proud to present the esteemed Estonian choir, the Revalia Male Chamber Choir, in concert on Saturday, November 21 (7:30 pm) at Shaughnessy Heights United Church. Revalia was formed in the autumn of 1998 by Hirvo Surva, a long-term conductor of the Revalia Boys' Choir. The majority of the members of the Revalia Male Chamber Choir are former members of different boys' choirs from all over Estonia. The choir has 30 members with the average age of 25 years.

In the relatively short time they have been together, Revalia has become a perennial winner at festivals and competitions, so much so that in 2003 they were named the Estonian Male Choir of the year. For more information on Revalia please visit http://www.meeskoor.ee/eng_index.php

Vancouver's Chor Leoni will open the concert with a short set before handing the bulk of the programme over to our guests. The evening will close with the two choirs performing together.

PSO Announces Grants in Support of Equipment and Instruments

2009-11-13T16:08:00.001-05:00

PORTLAND, Maine – The Portland Symphony (PSO) announced today grants and gifts from foundations, corporations and individuals towards the purchase of new equipment and instruments.

As part of Robert Moody's vision to broaden the concert experience by adding visual elements, the Symphony has purchased a new high power long-throw projector. The following donors provided generous funding towards the purchase of the projector: Acadia Insurance, the George A. Ramlose Foundation, Dr. Michael and Barbara Shapiro, and Dr. Nicholas Nelson. The projector allows the PSO to project text and images on a screen over the stage which can serve both artistic and educational functions.

The Davis Family Foundation provided funds for the purchase of a new marimba made by Bill Youhass of Fall Creek Marimbas.

The PSO's 2009-10 season is sponsored by IDEXX Laboratories. For complete season information, including artist biographies; program notes; and Online Insights, provided with support from season Enrichment Sponsor Fairpoint Communications; visit www.portlandsymphony.com.

Orchestrations of grace and dramatic flair in evening of Mahler and Schubert - Nov. 14

2009-11-13T16:04:00.001-05:00

Classic Landmarks Masters

Magical vocal landscape and stream of lovely melodies in evening of
Mahler and Schubert

Saturday, November 14th – 8:00 pm

Edmonton, AB … Graceful melodies and dramatic flair lie within your Edmonton Symphony Orchestra’s (ESO) next Classic Landmarks Masters series performance. Award-winning and infectiously exuberant conductor Giancarlo Guerrero returns to the Francis Winspear Centre for Music to lead the orchestra and elegant Canadian soprano Laura Whalen through orchestrations of contrast and influence.

Themes from Mahler’s song “The Heavenly Life” are the basis of his Fourth Symphony. The poetic and musical summit will be brought to life with a soaring soprano solo in the passionate final movement. Making her ESO debut, Laura Whalen sings a deliberately naïve impression of heaven, inviting us into a fairytale realm and innocent vision of paradise.

The effervescent charm of Rossini and the muscular feel of Beethoven infuse Schubert’s youthful Sixth Symphony. In this ESO premiere, streams of lively and innocent melodies are distinguished by brusque contrasts that deftly maintain the work’s overall buoyancy.

Guests are invited to join ESO Resident Conductor Lucas Waldin at Symphony Prelude - 7:15 pm in the Upper Circle (Third Level) Lobby – to learn more about the influential works that will be presented.

Ticket prices for this performance range from $20 – $69 (agency fees apply). Student and senior $20 rush tickets are on sale, subject to availability, two hours prior to performance time. Tickets are available through the Winspear Centre Box Office at (780) 428-1414, toll-free 1-800-563-5081, or online at edmontonsymphony.com.

The next performance of the Classic Landmarks Masters series takes place on November 27th & 28th, as Katherine Chi plays Beethoven. The ESO premieres a titan of the opera repertoire, Wagner’s glorious Die Meistersinger, in a new orchestral “tribute,” and welcomes Calgary native Katherine Chi as guest soloist in Beethoven’s “Emperor” Piano Concerto.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, marking its 58th season in 2009-2010, has taken its place as one of Canada's foremost orchestral ensembles. Its current roster includes 56 musicians from Canada and around the world, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from the great classical masterworks to pops and children's concerts. The presence of the orchestra and its enrichment of the community's quality of life are key elements in the stature and profile of Edmonton on the national and international scene.

Winspear Centre Box Office:
#4 Sir Winston Churchill Square
(780) 428-1414 or 1-800-563-5081
www.edmontonsymphony.com

Biographies

Giancarlo Guerrero's 09/10 season marks his first as Music Director of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. A champion of new music, a new CD on Naxos of music by Michael Daugherty, with the Nashville Symphony, was released in September 2009. Mr. Guerrero's guest conducting engagements in the 09/10 season include in Milwaukee, New Jersey, and Fort Worth, the Pacific Symphony, in Costa Mesa, as well as the Curtis Institute of Music. He recently made two important debuts abroad: his European debut with the Gulbenkian Orchestra, where he was immediately invited to return, and his UK Debut with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. He has also recently made successful debuts with several major American orchestras, including the Baltimore Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Seattle Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Also in demand in Central and South America, Giancarlo Guerrero conducts regularly in Venezuela with the Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar, with which he has had a special relationship for many years. His debut at the Casals Festival with Yo-Yo Ma and the Puerto Rico Symphony in 2005 was followed by return engagements in 2006 and 2007. He also made his debut at the Teatro Colón in Argentina in 2005. In June 2004, Guerrero was awarded the Helen M. Thompson Award by the American Symphony Orchestra League, which recognizes outstanding achievement among young conductors nationwide. Guerrero holds degrees from Baylor and Northwestern universities. He was most recently the Music Director of the Eugene Symphony. From 1999 to 2004, Mr. Guerrero served as Associate Conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra. Prior to his tenure with the Minnesota Orchestra, he served as music director of the Táchira Symphony Orchestra in Venezuela.

Mr. Guerrero last conducted the ESO in November, 2007.

Laura Whalen has made her mark as a lyric soprano whose performances are notable for beauty of tone and musical finesse. Ms. Whalen’s 2009-2010 season is a mix of concert and opera appearances beginning with Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus for Opera Hamilton. Beethoven’s Missa solemnis marks her return to Ottawa’s National Arts Centre, and Calgary Opera audiences hear her as Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni. Ms. Whalen has been called on for some of the most important leading roles in the repertoire, including the tragic heroine in Roméo et Juliette and Pamina in Die Zauberflöte. Ms. Whalen’s concert schedule has been equally demanding with performances of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Poulenc’s Gloria, Mozart’s Requiem, Krönungmesse, and Vesperae solennes de confessore.

Laura Whalen toured Spain and Portugal singing Die Schöpfung in the summer of 2004. She debuted with the Canadian Opera Company as Der Waldvogel in Siegfried, and for Chicago Opera Theatre as Helena in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She won acclaim in Carmina Burana with the Washington (D.C.) Choral Arts Society conducted by Leonard Slatkin. Career highlights have included the creation of the title role in Filumena by Estacio and Murrell for Calgary Opera (later for an Edmonton performance filmed by CBC), Mimi in La Bohème for Pacific Opera Victoria, and the Governor General’s Award telecast from the National Arts Centre conducted by Mario Bernardi. She toured Europe with the Caritatis Choir singing Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem, and has been featured with orchestras in Quebec, Toronto, Calgary, Florida, Hamilton, and Winnipeg. Ms. Whalen holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music from the University of Victoria and an Opera Diploma from the University of Toronto. She studied at the Britten-Pears School in England and has received awards from the Vancouver Opera Guild, Canadian National Music Festival and the National Association of Teachers of Singing.

Ms. Whalen has sung in Filumena with Edmonton Opera in 2005 with the ESO accompanying, but this performance is her debut with the ESO.

Sonic Reality Announces EpiK DrumS- A Ken Scott Collection

2009-11-13T15:59:00.000-05:00

Virtual Drum Instrument for Authentic Classic Grooves

October 2009, Sunrise FL, USA- As part of the Ken Scott Collection Series, Sonic Reality is proud to announce “EpiK DrumS – A Ken Scott Collection”. The product is a massive virtual instrument/plug-in for drum kits and grooves with the authentic sound and feel of classic rock records. It features 5 of the world’s best drummers recorded by legendary producer/engineer Ken Scott.

In EpiK DrumS, Ken recreated the drum sounds of multi-track studio sessions he recorded with David Bowie, Supertramp, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Dixie Dregs, Missing Persons, Elton John and The Beatles. Authentic classic drum sounds were achieved from using the same rare recording equipment, the same instruments, expert technical assistance from Ross Garfield “The Drum Doctor”, advanced sound development by Sonic Reality and collaboration with the original drummers Bill Cobham, Terry Bozzio, Woody Woodmansey, Bob Siebenberg and Rod Morgenstein. All together this makes up one of the most EPIK productions ever for a software drum instrument.

Features:

• Virtual Drum & Groove Instrument/Plug-in for authentic classic drums
• Multi-track drum kits and audio grooves recorded by legendary engineer/producer Ken Scott
• Unique Kits and Grooves of top drummers: Bill Cobham, Bob Siebenberg, Terry Bozzio, Woody Woodmansey and Rod Morgenstein
• Over 80 Gigabytes of high quality 24 bit drum samples
• Over 2,000 audio grooves ranging from classic rock and pop time signatures to fusion and unique style complex grooves rarely found in sample libraries.
• Seven Advanced Expressive Drum Kits in the style of artists such as David Bowie, Supertramp, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Dixie Dregs, Missing Persons, Elton John and The Beatles.
• Flexible mix and match kit pieces for unlimited custom drum kits as well as percussion.
• “Out of the box” album mixes by Ken Scott as well as discrete mixing control for both instant gratification and flexibility.
• Midi Drum Kits mapped in GM, iMap™, V-Drum™, Performance and Custom modes with midi learn for the ability to play from a keyboard or any electronic drum kit.
• Includes Sonic Reality’s proprietary Multi-track Rex™ Grooves which are real live-played drum loops mapped to the keyboard. Snap to the tempo of your host while providing full discrete mic mixing capability between directs, overheads, room and more.
• Includes the Infinite Player powered by Kontakt for compatibility as a plug-in for every major DAW as well as stand-alone for the Mac and PC.
• Mix and match custom kits compatible with other Drum Masters series titles.
• The combination of authentic grooves and playable drum kits allows you to create the most realistic drum tracks for your music.

PRICE: $749. MSRP ($599. Street)
Availability: Q4, 2009 (Available Now on Pre-Order >From ALL Sonic Reality Dealers)

Check out Epik Drums on the web: http://www.epikdrums.com

***ABOUT KEN SCOTT

Ken Scott is a legendary British recording engineer and producer who recorded The Beatles, David Bowie, Elton John, Supertramp, Pink Floyd, Jeff Beck, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Billy Cobham, Duran Duran, Dixie Dregs, Missing Persons, Devo, Lou Reed, America, George Harrison and many other iconic artists in music history. He had his start in the 60s working as a Tape Op at Abbey Road Studios and from there went on to engineer and produce some of the most acclaimed albums of the 20th Century. Ken has recorded timeless songs such as "I Am The Walrus", "Rocket Man", "Ziggy Stardust", "Dreamer", "Walk On The Wild Side" and many others. One of the unique aspects of Ken’s career in music is the diversity of iconic styles he has been a part of from the 60’s to today… from the birth of Modern Rock ‘n’ Roll (Beatles) to Glam Rock (Bowie) to Fusion (Mahavishnu Orchestra) to New Wave (Missing Persons, Devo) and more.

Ken Scott has collaborated with Sonic Reality to capture samples in a modern software instrument with some of the most sought after distinct character sounds he has recorded over the years. These are sounds that might otherwise be lost in history, but with the same great ears, technique and style Ken has preserved a sonic part of his legacy to bring inspiration to new musicians all over the world.

ABOUT SONIC REALITY

Sonic Reality is an award-winning sound developer that has provided samples for leading music software and hardware keyboard and electronic drum manufacturers such as Yamaha, Alesis, Roland, IK Multimedia, Propellerheads, Native Instruments, Cakewalk, Mackie, Apple and more. They developed Sonic Refills, R.A.W. Loop Libraries and an expanding line of Infinite Player/Kontakt-based virtual instruments such as Drum Masters, Serafine FX Tron, Cinema Sessions and many others. Sonic Reality co-developed virtual instruments like Ocean Way Drums, Miroslav Philharmonik, Sonik Synth 2, SampleMoog and SampleTron. The company was founded in the mid-90's by keyboardist/producer Dave Kerzner and has since followed a steady mission to "Sample Everything".

Web Site: http://www.sonicreality.com
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Canadian Opera Company Overcomes 2008-09 Operating Deficit by Accessing cash Reserves

2009-11-13T15:57:00.001-05:00

Toronto, Canada – Today at the Canadian Opera Company's (COC) Annual General Meeting, COC Board President Paul Spafford announced that the COC is riding on a wave of success: the last three seasons have played to capacity houses; its subscription rate is among the highest in North America; and, in 2009/10, only the Metropolitan Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago will perform more than the COC. Critical and popular response to the 2008/09 season was outstanding and the season played to 99.7% capacity and reached a new single season revenue record of $12,634,000, a 2.7% increase over the previous season.

In spite of these successes, the COC's fundraising programs were not immune to the effects of the global economic crisis. After six consecutive years of surpluses, the COC has incurred an operating deficit of $1.6 million for the 2008/09 season, directly attributed to a shortfall in the company's annual fundraising programs. Although the COC received contributions from over 5,000 patrons in 2008/09, the company was $1.1 million behind in its fundraising goals budgeted for the year. In addition, the company did not receive $500,000 in endowment earnings expected from The Canadian Opera Foundation (COF) due to a shortfall in investment performance.

Fortunately, the COC is able to overcome the deficit and finish the year with a modest $25,000 surplus by accessing an allocation from a special cash fund held by The Canadian Opera Foundation. This cash fund was created from the COC's prior operating surpluses and is specifically earmarked to support artistic goals for future seasons.

"There's no question it has been a challenging year financially, but the good news is that the COC is an extremely successful company by all other measures. We pride ourselves on cost efficiency with no loss to artistic achievement. Fortunately, we've been able to access some reserves this year from past surpluses," said Paul Spafford, President of the COC Board. "The COC's success is the result of hard work, prudent fiscal practices, a passionate commitment to producing the best art possible and thankfully, a loyal audience and many generous donors. We are greatly energized by the support we receive and future opportunities to improve the company's already-high artistic standards."

"It has been an extremely exciting first year for me as General Director. I am very pleased and proud to lead a company that produces opera at a level as high as, or higher than, any other North American company with a much smaller budget than those of our North American peers," said Alexander Neef, General Director. "And, I have been particularly encouraged to see enthusiastic and full houses in the opera house for every performance. I'm glad that we can engage audiences with the breadth and depth of repertoire we produce because it bodes very well for the future of the COC and opera in Canada."

During the 2008/09 season, box office revenues represented 41% of total operating revenues, with fundraising and sponsorship accounting for 33%, government funding accounting for 23%, and the remaining 3% coming from other income sources such as space and production rentals.

Artistically, the 2008/09 season saw 64 performances of seven operas on the mainstage of the
Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, and four performances of the Ensemble Studio production in the Imperial Oil Opera Theatre. The 2008/09 mainstage season included company premieres of Prokofiev's monumental War and Peace, Dvořák's dreamy Rusalka and Britten's magical A Midsummer Night's Dream, as well as a new production of Beethoven's Fidelio, a moving and powerful production of Verdi's Simon Boccanegra, a witty take on Mozart's Don Giovanni, and the COC's beloved production of Puccini's La Bohème. Overall, the subscription season was performed to a record level of 99.7% of capacity.

In January 2009, General Director Alexander Neef appointed conductor Johannes Debus as the COC's new Music Director. Mr. Debus had conducted the company's enormously successful production of War and Peace in the fall of 2008. Maestro Debus begins his tenure at the COC in November 2009 as conductor for the company's Diamond Anniversary concert featuring tenor Ben Heppner and the COC Orchestra. He also conducts the company's production of The Flying Dutchman in April 2010.

In 2008/09, the COC's successful Free Concert Series in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre celebrated its third year with 75 free events ranging from classical, jazz, world music, and contemporary dance. The Free Concert Series attracted approximately 18,000 audience members of all backgrounds and ages who experienced the artistic excellence and cultural diversity of the city.

In the 2008/09, the Canadian Opera Company saw an overall decrease of 11.6% in its annual fundraising programs, with the most affected campaigns being Corporate Performance Sponsorship and Individual Major Gift fundraising. Individual giving campaigns accounted for 67% of overall fundraising in 2008/09, and approximately $9 million was received from over 5,000 subscribers and donors, corporations and foundations. Commitments to mainstage productions and artist sponsorships, in addition to annual support through the President's Council, Golden Circle and Friends of the COC patron programs – including two lead gifts from Anonymous donors for the Year-End Matching Appeal – totaled over $5.5 million.

COC fundraising efforts through special projects and events raised over $325,000 from generous individual donors and supporters.

Notwithstanding the overall decline, corporate sponsorship in 2008/09 continued to receive support from several loyal sponsors. The company maintained significant relationships with Jaguar Land Rover Canada, Sun Life Financial, Andrew Peller Limited, Delvinia, CTVglobemedia, Hilton Toronto, and St. Joseph Print. Production sponsors for the season were CIBC and CIBC Mellon, National Bank Financial Group, and RBC Financial Group. Other returning sponsors were Xstrata Nickel, TD Bank Financial Group, BMO Financial Group, and Scotiabank Group.

Recently, the 2009/10 season at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts opened with outstanding reviews and sold out houses for Madama Butterfly (which has, to date, sold 30,000 tickets for 15 performances) and the world premiere of The Nightingale and Other Short Fables by Robert Lepage, set to the music of Stravinsky. Demand for The Nightingale and Other Short Fables was so high that the COC added a performance to its original run of eight, and the run has almost sold out.

In January, the COC presents a revival of its production of Bizet's Carmen, and a new production of Verdi's Otello. The spring run opens with Wagner's The Flying Dutchman, followed by Donizetti's bel canto classic and the COC premiere of Maria Stuarda, and Mozart's exquisite Idomeneo. The Ensemble Studio performance of Idomeneo on the mainstage takes place on May 19, 2010.

About the Canadian Opera Company

Based in Toronto, the Canadian Opera Company is the largest producer of opera in Canada and fifth largest in North America, and celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2009/10. Under the new leadership of General Director Alexander Neef and Music Director Johannes Debus, the COC continues its international reputation for artistic excellence and creative innovation. The COC currently enjoys a remarkable 99% attendance rate and one of the highest subscription rates in North America. The COC performs in its new opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, designed by Diamond and Schmitt Architects Inc. From its inauguration in 2006, the Four Seasons Centre has been internationally hailed as one of the finest opera houses in the world. The Four Seasons Centre is also the performance venue for The National Ballet of Canada.  