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Video of the Day – Joshua Bell & the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

By Paul E. Robinson on 5 August 2013 Romantic, Video of the day, Violin

The legendary chamber orchestra the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields made a surprising choice recently when it chose Joshua Bell to be its next music director. Bell had little or no experience as a conductor so how could he be the right man for the job that Sir Neville Marriner long held with such distinction?But the ASMF is a very special kind of chamber orchestra and Joshua Bell is a very special sort of musician. Like Bell Marriner was a violinist although he did not have an important career as a soloist. And for a time Marriner led…

Video of the Day – Geoff Nuttall at the Spoleto Festival

By Paul E. Robinson on 9 June 2013 Chamber Music, Video of the day, Violin

The St. Lawrence String Quartet is probably the finest quartet ever produced in Canada. It was founded in 1989, it is currently in residence at Stanford University and tours internationally. But the first violinist of the SLSQ, Geoff Nuttall, is also the director of chamber music at the Spoleto Festival USA. In just a few years he has made a great impact on the festival both for his programming and for his quirky and entertaining introductory comments (see this recent NY Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/arts/music/geoff-nuttall-the-jon-stewart-of-chamber-music.html?pagewanted=allGeoff’s colleagues in the SLSQ are also in residence in Spoleto and they are joined by some of…

This week in Montreal: May 20 – 26

By La Scena Musicale Team on 20 May 2013 Chamber Music, Orchestral, Romantic, Scena Jazz, This Week in Montreal, Violin

Montreal Chamber Music Festival (MCMF/FMCM)The musical festival season opens with the MCMF. The 18th edition takes place from May 9 to June 1 at St. George’s Anglican Church. True to tradition, artistic director Denis Brott spares us no surprises. Performers include the Emerson and Fine Arts Quartets, the Swingle Singers, and pianists Jean-Philippe Collard and Oliver Jones, to name a few. This year’s four-hour marathon is dedicated to Tchaikovsky. www.festivalmontreal.org- Renée Banville Jules Massenet’s Manon at the Opéra de MontréalFor the final production of the 2012-13 season, the Opéra de Montréal presents Jules Massenet’s Manon. After an acclaimed performance of the…

Video of the Day – Janos Starker (1924-2013): In Memoriam

By Paul E. Robinson on 29 April 2013 Chamber Music, Strings, Video of the day

This past weekend the world lost one of its greatest cellists. Hungarian-born Janos Starker died at the age of 88 after a long and distinguished career as an orchestral player, soloist and teacher. He was a child prodigy who gave his first performance of the Dvorak Cello Concerto at age 14. His older brothers were murdered by the Nazis and Starker himself spent time in an internment camp.Starker came to the United States in 1948 to take up the position of principal cellist of the Dallas Symphony. In 1952 he took up the same position with the Chicago Symphony under…

This week in Montréal: April 8 – 14

By La Scena Musicale Team on 8 April 2013 Chamber Music, Choral, Orchestral, This Week in Montreal, Violin

Virtuosos at the Chapelle Bon-PasteurOn April 8, Jonathan Crow and Andrew Wan, first violins at the OSM and TSO, recount the 20th- and 21st-century history of the violin duo. On April 12, the Ensemble Transmission invite percussionist François Rivalland for an evening of Aperghis, in which three young upcoming musicians will participate. www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/chapellebonpasteur – Renée BanvilleOpera de Montreal’s Atelier Lyric Performs a Menotti Double BillFor its annual production, the Atelier Lyric at the Opera de Montreal presents two one-act operas by Gian Carlo Menotti: The Old Maid and the Thief and Amahl and the Night Visitors. Musical direction is provided…

Video of the Day – The Art of Andres Segovia

By Paul E. Robinson on 12 March 2013 Strings, Video of the day

One of the greatest musical experiences of my life was seeing Andres Segovia (1893-1987) sitting alone on the stage of Massey Hall in Toronto, playing to a packed house. The sound of an unamplified classical guitar is very small but it filled the hall that night, and every note was a miracle of musicianship and artistry. No one before or since made the guitar sound so expressive. But more than that Segovia conveyed to his listeners the very soul of music. It was unforgettable.In this video you can see Segovia in his prime and marvel at the artistry. How did he…

James Ehnes Plays Bach

By Paul E. Robinson on 10 December 2012 Baroque and Early, Video of the day, Violin

Canadian violinist James Ehnes is no longer “an exciting young talent” but an international star. He plays regularly with the world’s leading orchestras and conductors and his recordings invariably receive the highest praise. One of his most recent recordings in which he plays both Bartok Violin Concertos and the Viola Concerto (Chandos 10690) has had rave reviews.In this video Ehnes plays Bach’s Preludio and Gigue from Bach’s Partita No. 3 for Unaccompanied Violin. The performance was recorded in the studios of radio station WQXR in New York.Paul E. Robinson

MISQA: Spells Tradition

By La Scena Musicale Team on 15 August 2012 Chamber Music, Interviews, Strings

By John DelvaIn its third year, the Montreal International String Quartet Academy (MISQA) unites some of the foremost young string quartets from around the world to hone their skills through the guidance of experienced chamber musicians and concert performances. For its director, André J. Roy, the oral tradition—the sharing of knowledge between teacher and student—is one of the academy’s main focuses. This is not surprising seeing how many who have met the viola teacher highlight his affability. With prestigious faculty that includes Gerard Schultz and Günter Pichler of the Alban Berg Quartet, Michael Tree of the Guarneri Quartet, Paul Katz…

Spring Highlights: Quebec City

By Michèle-Andrée Lanoue on 1 February 2012 Chamber Music, Opera, Orchestral, Violin

By Michèle-Andrée Lanoue Erreur de type 27The ensemble Erreur de type 27, the “presence of contemporary music” in Quebec City incarnate, is collaborating with Oktoécho for a reading where theatre and music collide for the presentation of Chants du prophète. Part improvised and part written, the performance draws on the philosophical/poetic anthology Le Prophète by Khalil Gibran. This premiere from composer Katia Makdissi-Warren and playwright-director Hanna Abd El Nour will be performed at the Palais Montcalm on March 31 at 8 p.m. www.erreurdetype27.comOrchestre symphonique de QuébecTwo orchestras, from the Conservatoire de musique de Québec and the music faculty of Université…

Nagano & OSM Show off New Hall with Towering Turangalîla

By Paul E. Robinson on 20 September 2011 Concert Reviews, Orchestral, Piano, Violin

by Paul E. RobinsonTchaikovsky (orch.Glazunov): Méditation in D minor Op.42 No.1Glazunov: Violin Concerto in A minor Op. 82Messiaen: Turangalîla-SymphonieJoshua Bell: violinAngela Hewitt: pianoJean Laurendeau: ondes martenotOrchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM): Kent Nagano, conductorLa Maison symphoniquePlace des ArtsMontréal, QuebecSeptember 13, 2011Ever since its premiere in 1949, audiences have been moved and thrilled by Olivier Messiaen’s massive Turangalîla Symphony. More than 60 years later, it remains an extraordinarily original and peculiar piece. Montreal has heard it before – Charles Dutoit championed the piece in 2000 at Place des Arts. Kent Nagano has a special relationship with the composer and his music, and…

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