Browsing: City

Toronto, ON (December 2, 2024) — Montreal-based lighting designer Sonoyo Nishikawa, acclaimed for her transformative and evocative lighting designs, is this year’s winner of Canada’s most valuable theatre award. Since 2001, the Siminovitch Prize has celebrated groundbreaking theatre artists whose work has strengthened the Canadian theatre landscape and advanced the art form. With a career spanning continents and collaborations with leading theatre artists, Nishikawa has established herself as a pioneering force in Canadian theatre. Sonoyo Nishikawa, the 2024 Siminovitch Prize Laureate, has selected Mayumi Ide-Bergeron as the Siminovitch Prize Protégé. “Sonoyo Nishikawa’s designs push the boundaries of what we expect lighting…

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Canadian soprano and 20/21st-century specialist extraordinaire, Barbara Hannigan, appeared at Toronto’s Koerner Hall on Nov. 28 with French pianist Bertrand Chamayou in a program they are currently touring across North America. This uncompromising, tightly-constructed 70 minute recital demonstrated why Hannigan is the current queen of ‘non-traditional’ vocal repertoire.   The evening opened with French composer Olivier Messiaen’s song cycle, Chants de terre et de ciel (1938). The text is the composer’s own and is his customary mix of fervent Catholicism combined with love for family. The opening song, “Bail avec Mi (pour ma femme),” celebrates the contract between husband and wife.…

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Esprit Orchestra, conducted by Alex Pauk, presented three works at Toronto’s Koerner Hall on Nov. 24th. The first was Gabriella Smith’s f(x)=sin^2x-i/x. This follows the shape of the function dynamically for x=0 to x=2;  so there’s a smallish crescendo, a quieter passage and then a big finish. The first part, using extended strings, winds and percussion, sounds rather like a train accelerating (to its doom?). The piece then goes much quieter and more melodic before the final build up with an almost Brahmsian quality in the brass leading to a very loud, cacophonic finish. Then silence! Bent Sørensen’s It is…

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Vancouver, BC – On November 27, 2024, renowned Canadian soprano Suzie LeBlanc has been awarded France’s prestigious Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalière de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres) by the Ambassador of France to Canada, Michel Miraillet, during a private ceremony in Vancouver. Ms LeBlanc is being recognized for her outstanding contributions to the world of music her deep ties with France and dedication to fostering cultural and linguistic connections between the two countries. Born in Acadia, Suzie LeBlanc’s roots are deeply embedded in the French-speaking world, and her connection to France is part of…

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November 19, 2024 -The Royal Conservatory of Music is thrilled to produce Into the Woods, its third Sondheim musical in concert, after the success of Follies in 2021 and A Little Night Music in 2023. This special 2024 holiday season production, suitable for the whole family, will run on December 28, 29, and 30 at 7pm, and 31 at 3pm. Richard Ouzounian, who has directed both Follies and A Little Night Music at The Royal Conservatory, said: “I am happy to be returning for the third time to Koerner Hall – my favourite venue – with a third work by Stephen Sondheim – my favourite composer. Into the Woods will provide a marvelous way for the whole family to round…

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Montreal, November 19, 2024 — Today, LES PRIX DE LA DANSE DE MONTRÉAL (PDM) announced the award winners of the 2023-2024 artistic season. Under the honorary presidency of exceptional choreographer, dancer, and educator, Lucie Boissinot, the ceremony was held in the Baryshnikov Studio at Espace Marie Chouinard and was attended by artists and numerous personalities from the dance community. The event was hosted by Anik Bissonnette, artistic director of l’École supérieure de ballet du Québec. At this 14th edition of the PRIX, a total of 11 awards were presented. FAYE DRISCOLL GRAND PRIX de la danse de Montréal 2024, presented by…

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The magic of The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint Exupéry’s classic children’s story, can be largely ascribed to the synesthetic nature of the work itself. The interrelationship of visual and narrative art is at the heart of this story; when a pilot stranded in the Sahara Desert encounters a tiny prince, the prince asks him to draw a sheep to eat the baobabs on his planet.  On Nov. 17, Orchestre Métropolitain’s adaptation of The Little Prince for live actors and orchestra sought to add yet another artistic element to this synesthetic work: music. This was a very ambitious project. On the…

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On Nov. 12, Les Idées heureuses presented their second concert of the season at Bourgie Hall. Jamais je ne t’oublierai : échos du Moyen Âge dans nos chants du terroir consisted of a program of French and French-Canadian folk music and Medieval works. As the title suggests, the program was conceived to illustrate the echoes of Medieval music in our local folk tradition.  The concert was divided into five thematic sections—May, The Mother, Flowers, Cries, Goodbyes, and Dances—each featuring one folk song, arranged by Jean-François Daignault, and various Medieval works.  What you missed:  From its conception through to its execution,…

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In March 2025, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) led by Maestro Otto Tausk will embark on a bold national tour, celebrating the creativity of British Columbia musicians and composers alongside world-renowned soloists. This will mark the orchestra’s first visit to Eastern Canada since 2018, and over 100 musicians will be making the journey. “Touring is essential for any world class orchestra,” says VSO Music Director Otto Tausk. “Vancouver can be very proud of presenting one of Canada’s finest orchestras and we can’t wait to share our music outside of our hometown. Besides bringing some of the absolute highlights of the…

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Tuesday, November 12, 2024 21C MUSIC FESTIVAL  The twelfth edition of the 21C Music Festival, which spans from January to May of 2025, will consist of 8 concerts, including a production of The Journal of Hélène Berr, Measha Brueggergosman-Lee in Aaron Davis’s and Margaret Atwood’s Zombie Blizzard, Bruce Hornsby and yMusic presenting BrhyM, Michelle Cann and the Imani Winds, and a partnership with Continuum Contemporary Music. In total, the Festival will include more than 14 premieres: 2 world (Kalaisan Kalaichelvan’s C’est Pas Beau? and Kotoka Suzuki’s yet unnamed piece), 1 North American (Bernard Foccroulle’s The Journal of Hélène Berr), and…

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