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Pentaèdre (Photo by Martin Girard)

Pentaèdre: The Oboe in all its Forms

By Justin Bernard on 6 October 2023 Montreal, Winds

Since woodwind quintet Pentaèdre created its Carte blanche series for each musician in 2017, the oboe has not yet been put in the spotlight. But that’s about to change. Oboist Élise Poulin, who joined Pentaèdre in 2019, will finally have the opportunity to present a complete concert. “I’m delighted that Pentaèdre has given me the opportunity to explore chamber music repertoire for oboe in such depth for this Carte blanche concert. It’s quite rare to present concerts featuring the oboe and English horn! I’m very happy to introduce these more obscure instruments to the public.” She has invited some Orchestre…

Jaap Nico Hamburger

Jaap Nico Hamburger: Ariella – Worth the Wait

By Bridget Esler on 6 October 2023 Montreal, Opera, Toronto

When Montreal-based composer Jaap Nico Hamburger first read Dutch author Ariëlla Kornmehl’s debut novel De Familie Goldwasser (The Goldwasser Family) in the early aughts, he thought to himself, “this is opera.” Now, many years after that initial inspiration and over a decade since he began composing, he is finally seeing his vision come to life. On Oct. 22 (Koerner Hall), Oct. 28 (Maison symphonique), and Oct. 29 (Salle Raoul-Jobin), GFN Productions will present excerpts from Hamburger’s first opera Ariella, paired with Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2. The tour will be conducted by Francis Choinière and features the Ensemble Classico-Moderne and…

Espace Kendergi

CMC Quebec at 50: A New Chapter Begins

By Arnaud G. Veydarier on 6 October 2023 Classical Music, Education, Montreal

Now at the cusp of its 50th anniversary, the Quebec chapter of the Canadian Music Centre (CMCQ) is in no way befallen by the pangs of nostalgia that creep up at that age. But this does mean that its current artistic and managing director, Claire Marchand, is aloof to any celebrations for the institution she heads—one that houses tens of thousands of scores and archival recordings. Looking into the rearview mirror is all good and fine, but more important to her is what lies ahead. Between the recent inauguration of its new downtown facility and the mammoth undertaking of digitalizing…

Starting Strong: Esprit Orchestra Launches 2023-24 Season

By Eva Stone-Barney on 6 October 2023 Classical, Classical Music, Contemporary, Orchestral, Toronto

Author : (Eva Stone-Barney)

Esprit Orchestra has a big season ahead of it—in every sense of the word. Conducted by Maestro Alex Pauk, the orchestra will perform five concerts featuring challenging repertoire, composed for large orchestral configurations. It will honour the legacies of some of the 20th and 21st centuries’ most influential compositional voices, including the late R. Murray Schafer, György Ligeti, and Kaija Saariaho, and will also spotlight the work of new and emerging composers. This ambitious season starts on Oct. 15 with a concert titled X Marks the Spot, featuring works by Anna Meredith, Iannis Xenakis, Ligeti, and Schafer. Following this first…

Concert Previews

By Eva Stone-Barney on 6 October 2023 Chamber Music, Classical, Classical Music, Contemporary, Orchestral, Toronto

Author : (Eva Stone-Barney)

Your Brain on Music: Montreal Neurological Institute The Neuro, as it is commonly called, is hosting Your Brain on Music as part of their Amazing Brain Week (Oct. 13-19). Leading neuroscientists Robert Zatorre and Simone Dalla Bella will join musicians from the Montreal Symphony Orchestra for an event that combines performance and conversation, exploring music’s impact on the brain. Michel Rochon, scientific journalist and author, will host a conversation on topics ranging from our emotional responses to music, the impact of musical activities on brain plasticity, and the human perception of rhythm (Oct. 16). www.amazingbrainweek.ca Les jours heureux After…

Sinfonia Toronto: Ushering in the Next 25

By Eva Stone-Barney on 6 October 2023 Chamber Music, Classical, Classical Music, Contemporary, Orchestral, Toronto

Author : (Eva Stone-Barney)

Nurhan Arman came to Toronto at just the right time. The Chamber Players of Toronto had just ceased operations, and the city was in want of a chamber orchestra. Fortunately, Arman, who was conductor of Symphony New Brunswick at the time, felt up to the task of starting a new organization, and so Sinfonia Toronto was born. Now entering their 25th season, the organization touts an impressive history that includes local performances, concert tours, and six recording projects. The orchestra’s international appearances stand out as highlights for Arman. “Repeating the same repertoire night after night on tour, you have the…

Aline Homzy et l`étoile magique

Toronto Tones: The Rights of Strings

By Marc Chénard on 6 October 2023 Scena Jazz, Toronto, Violin

Dominated by brass, reeds and drum kits, string instruments have never figured prominently in the world of jazz music. With the exception of the double bass, other bowed instruments are not heard that much in more conventional forms of jazz, free improvised music being somewhat more accommodating to them. If cellists and violists are seen or heard rarely, violinists have had the most exposure in jazz settings. Pioneering figures like Eddie South and Joe Venuti held their ground in the era of classic jazz, as did Europeans Stéphane Grappelli and Svend Asmussen and, more recently, consummate fiddlers such as Jean-Luc…

Ensemble Infini

Montrealities

By Marc Chénard on 6 October 2023 Experimental Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Montreal, Scena Jazz

When looking back at his life in the music business, Jim West can rightfully claim to have had one great ride. When he created his imprint, Justin Time Records, in 1983, he had already worked in the retail trade for a decade, and had started his parent company, Distributions Fusion III, a year prior. Justin Time Records — Still Riding High at 40 By now, the story of Jim West’s first catch, pianist Oliver Jones, has been told countless times. Jones’s signing to the label marked the beginning of an enduring business relationship that ended with the artist’s retirement a…

Jeremy Denk (Photo from the Jeremy Denk website)

Newswire | Jeremy Denk Announced as the Ihnatowycz Chair in Piano at The Royal Conservatory’s Glenn Gould School

By Newswire on 4 October 2023 Newswire, Piano, Toronto

Toronto, October 4, 2023 – Internationally acclaimed pianist Jeremy Denk has joined The Royal Conservatory’s Glenn Gould School as the School’s new Ihnatowycz Chair in Piano. A frequent performer at Carnegie Hall, he has appeared in recent seasons with the Chicago Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, and Cleveland Orchestra, as well as on tour with Academy St. Martin in the Fields, and at Royal Albert Hall as part of the BBC Proms. The Ihnatowycz Chair in Piano at The Glenn Gould School nurtures the artistic development of students in the Ihnatowycz Piano Program which was…

Newswire | Metcalf Foundation announces 15 finalists for the 2023 Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prizes

By Newswire on 3 October 2023 Arts Industry, Dance, Multimedia, Newswire, Theatre, Toronto

Toronto, October 3, 2023 – The Metcalf Foundation is pleased to announce the 15 finalists for the 2023 Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prizes/Les Prix Johanna-Metcalf des Arts de la scène (Johannas) with a total value of $195,000 in prizes. The five winners will each receive a prize of $25,000 and will be announced on November 29, 2023 at a ceremony at the Gardiner Museum. The Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prizes/Les Prix Johanna-Metcalf des Arts de la scène (Johannas) is one of the largest unrestricted prizes for artists in Ontario, celebrating mid-career artists across the disciplines of dance, theatre, and music/opera.…

Browsing: City

Pentaèdre: The Oboe in all its Forms

Jaap Nico Hamburger: Ariella – Worth the Wait

CMC Quebec at 50: A New Chapter Begins

Starting Strong: Esprit Orchestra Launches 2023-24 Season

Concert Previews

Sinfonia Toronto: Ushering in the Next 25

Toronto Tones: The Rights of Strings

Montrealities

Newswire | Jeremy Denk Announced as the Ihnatowycz Chair in Piano at The Royal Conservatory’s Glenn Gould School

Newswire | Metcalf Foundation announces 15 finalists for the 2023 Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prizes

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