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Welcome to Cityscapes

From sea to sea, Canada boasts beautiful natural landscapes and culturally-diverse cities. In the second instalment of our new column, Cityscapes, we spotlight the inspiring spots, music and arts scenes, and unique neighbourhoods of Toronto. We invited three local artists to tell us what they love most about Canada’s largest city.

Jesse Blumberg

Photo: Sam Gaetz

Baritone Jesse Blumberg recently moved to Toronto. The 2025–26 season finds him collaborating with American Bach Soloists, Indianapolis Baroque, Elgin Symphony, Chorus Niagara, Victoria Baroque and Canadian Art Song Project in recital. He will debut with Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra in Handel’s Messiah, and the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra in Haydn’s Creation. Later this season, he joins Opera Baltimore for the titular role of Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande.

Tom Diamond

For more than 30 years Tom Diamond has directed operas across Canada and the U.S. He moved to Toronto in 1977 after his time at the National Theatre School in Montreal. There, he was welcomed into the growing theatre scene of the late 1970s as a young director. After a stint with the COC Ensemble a decade later, Diamond moved into the world of opera directing where his productions have included works from the traditional repertoire as well as new pieces. He was resident dramaturg/director at Tapestry Opera for over a decade and has worked on projects off-Broadway, on Broadway and with Toronto’s Luminato Festival.

Caitlin Wood

Photo: Elizabeth Bowman

Soprano Caitlin Wood’s work spans a wide swath of concert, chamber and opera repertoire from classical through contemporary. She recently sang The Controller in Jonathan Dove’s Flight at Vancouver Opera; the title role in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea with Washington, D.C.’s IN Series; and Bach’s Wedding Cantata with the Regina Symphony. This past summer she appeared in the Eastern Canadian premiere of Clements/Current’s Missing at Toronto’s Koerner Hall and most recently, in Kent Monkman’s, Dustin Peters‘s and Gisèle Gordon’s The Miss Chief Song Cycle at Montreal’s Salle Bourgie. Wood also works in development with Toronto Summer Music.

Toronto Connections

Humber River in autumn

“I first performed here in my 20s on a tour with Glimmerglass Opera, and then later would spend longer stretches here during productions with Opera Atelier. Around that time my wife, violinist Johanna Novom, was beginning to audition for Tafelmusik and join them for certain projects. When, coming out of the pandemic, Johanna was offered a core position with Tafelmusik, we felt it was still a good fit for us both, as well as our then one-year-old daughter. We relocated more officially in 2023, and were honoured (I’m updating my spelling now, too) to become permanent residents just weeks ago. We live near the Humber River and it’s now our fourth year in a row exploring it in autumn, which is particularly magical.” —Jesse Blumberg

Homes in the Annex

“My partner and I have always lived in the Annex [neighbourhood surrounding University of Toronto]. Firstly in an apartment for 18 years and then, after I worked on Broadway, we bought a house which we gutted and renovated. The Annex is a real neighbourhood where people actually say hello on the street. The pandemic made us realize that the fast-paced life (I would often be on the road for eight months of the year) was not as much fun as it once was. My husband is a psychotherapist and began working from home. So we bought a puppy, something we had talked about for years, and now truly enjoy Toronto life like never before.” —Tom Diamond

Millwood trailhead at Crothers Woods

“Toronto has been home for a decade. Originally from St. Albert, Alta., I came to Toronto for my master’s at the University of Toronto Opera School, toured for work, and kept getting pulled back by the city’s music scene and generous community. My husband and I have deep roots here now, and are happily planted here. I lived beside Crothers Woods for several years and seized every chance to slip into the little patch of paradise. Even as a lifelong city-dweller, I’m a lover of open, green spaces; when stress runs high, or I just need room to think, a walk there drops my shoulders, deepens my breath and shifts my perspective.” —Caitlin Wood

Neighbourhoods

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport

Blumberg makes an unorthodox choice for a favourite neighbourhood: “I have to say one spot I really appreciate in Toronto (and this is not exactly a neighbourhood) is Billy Bishop Airport. Simply being able to walk from a city centre into, or take a tiny ferry ride over to, an airport feels like such an old-fashioned pleasure, not to mention the views flying in and out. No airport is perfect, but I try to take advantage of this one whenever I can.”

The Annex

Diamond draws attention to the storied past of the Annex: “The Annex has an amazing history. We credit the brilliance of Jane Jacobs, one of the greatest observers of urban life, who lived in this neighbourhood until her death in 2006, for saving it! She was at the forefront of stopping the building of the Spadina Expressway which would have put a highway in the midst of our serene tree-filled enclave. Because of her, we live in a maze of calm one-way streets. …It’s wonderfully hard to navigate a car through this ‘hood.’ The only caveat is that an Uber has trouble finding you!”

The Danforth

Wood says she may be a little biased as she lives there, but enthuses about the Danforth, where “the pace is slightly slower than the downtown rat race. The open green space of the Don Valley Parkway, wide streets with their canopy of trees, eclectic shops (Re: Reading Used Books is my personal favourite), and friendly passers-by, make this an all-time favourite neighbourhood.”

A Font of Inspiration

Toronto’s Humber River

“I’ve always loved getting to the water whenever possible. So the flow of the Humber River, or the tranquillity of the lakeshore, the Islands, are all places I like to be,” says Blumberg. “The first time we visited the Humber was during peak leaf-changing and salmon-jumping season, and it was one of the places that made us appreciate how expansive the parks system is here. As a parent, I spend so much more time in city parks than ever before—and I’m so grateful for the opportunity to learn a new city through a child’s eyes.”

Diamond draws inspiration “more from the people of Toronto than spaces in particular. We have such a wonderful diverse population and every neighbourhood has a unique aspect to it. It has been interesting to see how the city has changed since I moved here permanently in the ’70s. …I find my inspiration in the cumulation of my 69 years of life experience. My relationships have had the most profound influence on me; brilliant colleagues and loving friends have inspired me the most!”

Riverdale Park
Photo: Michael Herrera

Wood loves to visit “Riverdale Park at sunset. This park gives a stunning view of Toronto’s downtown, including the CN Tower, and offers picturesque sunsets. The hill is always filled with an eclectic collection of Torontonians, having a picnic, playing Frisbee—or when we get a snowstorm, it is speckled with kids in bright snowsuits tobogganing.”

Where to Listen

Blumberg recommends:

Tafelmusik
Soulpepper
Against the Grain Theatre

Tafelmusik:

Rachel Podger with Tafelmusik
Photo: Dahlia Katz

“I’m of course biased, by marriage, toward the Tafelmusik family but they truly are a Toronto and Canadian treasure. [My wife] Johanna is one of about five new core players in the last five years, which is significant for a chamber orchestra, and their new models of artistic leadership and programming are really exciting collaborative approaches that bring amazing guest artists from Europe and beyond.”

Jesse Blumberg

Diamond recommends:

Canadian Stage
Crow’s Theatre
Opera Revue
Berkeley Street Theatre

Canadian Stage’s The Inheritance
Photo: Dahlia Katz

Canadian Stage:

“Their production of Matthew López’s The Inheritance was pretty much near perfect, and recently Slave Play proved to be an exciting piece of theatre.”

Tom Diamond

Wood recommends:

Tapestry Opera
The Happenstancers
Opera 5
Soundstreams

Tapestry Opera:

Tapestry Opera’s The Overcoat
Photo: Dahlia Katz

“Of course there are the heavy hitters like the Canadian Opera Company and Toronto Symphony Orchestra. However, in Toronto there are also smaller organizations that are doing incredibly impactful and inspiring work. Tapestry Opera, to my knowledge, is one of Canada’s longest running contemporary opera companies, and produces some of the most exciting contemporary works I have seen: The Overcoat, Jacqueline, and their hilarious Briefs: Under Where?”

Caitlin Wood