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The Chamber Music Institute @ Menlo

By Viktor Lazarov on 6 August 2026 Chamber Music, Classical Music, Interviews, Piano, Strings

Sitting in the shade in front of the round, hut-like Martin Family Hall where July 17’s Encounter I took place, I spoke with two Canadian participants of the International Program (IP) about their experience at Music@Menlo. “[Menlo] is very intense, because they train us for the professional world”, says cellist Amanda Chi. “Other festivals I’ve been to were longer and more laid back. [Here] they tell us what their lives are like, traveling around, flying to a place and immediately performing”. Typically, IPs start their day with 7:30 or 8 AM rehearsals followed by chamber music coaching at 9 AM.…

Élisabeth Pion at Toronto Summer Music. Photo: Lucky Tang

Review | Miró Quartet & Festival Orchestra at Toronto Summer Music

By Andrea Rush on 31 July 2026 Chamber Music, Classical Music, Concert Reviews, Orchestral, Strings, Toronto

Toronto Summer Music (TSM) has once again infused the Toronto musical scene with an electric buzz. The festival has run for two decades over three weeks on three pillars: a mainstage concert series at venues including Koerner and Walter Hall, an emerging artist fellowship academy encompassing its Chamber Music Institute and Art of Song program, and a community program oriented toward advanced adult amateur musicians. TSM Academy Fellows attend tuition-free thanks to the generosity of the festival’s fellowship donors, while community program serious amateurs also spend a week being coached at a high level under the guidance of world class…

Emily Rocha. Photo Sam Gaetz; Nikan Ingabire Kanate. Photo: Michael Cooper; Gabrielle Turgeon. Photo: Leah Minium

Discover Emerging Classical Stars in CBC’s 30 Under 30

By Kaitlyn Chan on 20 July 2026 Classical Music, Music Competition, Piano, Strings, Vocal, Winds

July 20, 2026 — Today, CBC Music released their annual “30 under 30” list, which recognizes emerging Canadian classical musicians and their achievements. The news source has published a list every year since 2013 to celebrate young Canadian talent. La Scena Musicale has recently spotted some of this young talent in our own coverage including sopranos Emily Rocha, Nikan Ingabire Kanate and Gabrielle Turgeon, and pianist Grégoire Abadie. Read CBC’s “30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30” for 2026 here.

Max Richter at Festival International de Jazz de Montréal. Photo: Victor Diaz Lamich

Review | Max Richter at Festival International de Jazz de Montréal

By Amanda Wong on 29 June 2026 Concert Reviews, Contemporary, Montreal, Piano, Strings

There’s a certain depth in minimalistic compositions that makes you keen to appreciate more. Max Richter, the British-German composer behind a host of emotional movie scores, opened the annual Festival International de Jazz de Montréal (FIJM) with a well-met performance in Salle Wilfred-Pelletier on June 25. Richter is a true artist, capable of stirring up great depth from the most deceptively simple of notes. This concert focused on two of his albums played by American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME) and Richter himself: In A Landscape (2024), his most recent album, and the widely regarded The Blue Notebooks (2004). Richter played…

Jens Lindemann

Review | Jens Lindemann – Brass On Fire!

By Amanda Wong on 24 June 2026 Concert Reviews, Jazz, Montreal, Piano, Strings

While Montreal anticipates its annual summer jazz festival, there are plenty of other fascinating, if lesser-known music festivals throughout the city. The Montreal Chamber Music Festival held its own lively jazz night on June 19, inviting distinguished trumpeter Jens Lindemann to Salle Bourgie for Brass on Fire!, a delicious and energetic performance of around 15 pieces celebrating not only jazz, but musical joy as a whole. Lindemann, hailing from Alberta, was as charismatic as he was virtuosic. In addition to his mastery of the seven brass instruments he brought onstage (mostly trumpets), his brilliant comedic timing tied all the pieces…

Laurel Gagnon, Koshiro Takeuchi and Sara Watanabe. Photo: Tam Photography

Newswire | Koshiro Takeuchi is the Grand Laureate of the Concours 2026

By Newswire on 5 June 2026 Classical Music, Montreal, Music Competition, Newswire, Strings, Violin

Montréal, Friday, June 5, 2026 – Japanese violinist Koshiro Takeuchi has been crowned the much-coveted Grand Laureate of the Concours musical international de Montréal 2026. Following a Grand Final filled with high emotions, Koshiro was awarded the top prize thanks to his refined musicality, his assured technique and his captivating stage presence. This thrilling Grand Final took place at the Maison symphonique, where the three Grand Finalists each performed a major concerto from the repertoire, accompanied by the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal – the Concours’ official orchestra – led by Guest Conductor Sascha Goetzel. The decision was made by the…

Joe Hisaishi conducting Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Photo: Allan Cabral/Courtesy of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra

Review | Hisaishi Returns to Toronto Symphony Orchestra

By Andrea Rush on 2 June 2026 Classical Music, Concert Reviews, Orchestral, Strings, Toronto, Violin

French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal famously apologized for writing a long letter, explaining that he did not have enough time to write a short one. The multi-talented composer and maestro Joe Hisaishi would not need to make such an apology. The May 28 TSO program that he curated, and the scores he composes, exude beauty through simplicity. The evening featured three composers, three works, one governing idea: to demonstrate the beauty of simplicity. It is an attractive force that cuts across cultures and centuries. Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall was well sold out in advance. From the main floor to…

Sara Watanabe, Bade Dastan, Koshiro Takeuchi, Laurel Gagnon, Aozhe Zhang, Photo: Tam Photography

Newswire | CMIM announces five finalists for Violin 2026

By Newswire on 1 June 2026 Arts Industry, Montreal, Newswire, Violin

Montréal, Sunday May 31, 2026 – Following a Semifinal that captivated the audience, the International Jury presided by Lucie Robert selected the five Finalists of the Concours 2026. The announcement was made following the jury’s deliberations after the last session of the Semifinal, during which the competitors dazzled the audience with a program comprising at least one full sonata, a Canadian work and another piece of their choice. HERE ARE THE FIVE FINALISTS WHO ARE ADVANCING TO THE FINAL – MOZART ROUND (by order of performance) Koshiro Takeuchi, Japan Laurel Gagnon, United States Sara Watanabe, Japan Aozhe Zhang, China Bade…

Leland Ko, third-prize winner of the 2026 Queen Elisabeth Cello Competition, Photo courtesy of the Queen Elisabeth Competition.

Newswire | Canadian Leland Ko wins third at Queen Elisabeth

By Newswire on 1 June 2026 Arts Industry, Classical, Classical Music, Strings

Belgium – The First Prize – Queen Mathilde Prize includes a cash award of €25.000 and numerous concert engagements in Belgium and abroad. Thanks to the Pau Casals Foundation, Ettore Pagano will also receive the Goffriller “Casals” cello on loan for a period of four years. Prize List QUEEN ELISABETH INTERNATIONAL GRAND PRIZE First Prize – Queen Mathilde Prize €25,000 Ettore Pagano PRIZE OF THE BELGIAN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT Second Prize, awarded by the Belgian Science Policy €20,000 Tae-Yeon Kim COUNT DE LAUNOIT PRIZE Third Prize €17,000 Leland Ko PRIZE OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE BELGIAN COMMUNITIES Fourth Prize,…

Photo: Bo Huang

Mark Fewer: New Bach Recording Showcases Canadian Luthiers

By Heather Weinreb on 1 June 2026 Classical, Classical Music, Violin

Canadian violinist Mark Fewer not only plays the violin—he plays a lot of them. His album—J.S. Bach: Violin Sonatas and Partitas, to be released by Leaf Music in August—is recorded on six different violins, each made by a leading Canadian luthier. The album is an “homage to Canadian makers. …I thought, what better way to pay tribute to these great makers than to challenge yourself to record the greatest challenge of the repertoire to begin with—which is this repertoire of unaccompanied Bach,” says Fewer. A passion for lutherie has marked the performer’s career. When he founded the Sweetwater Music Festival…

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