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Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra: Innovating the Community Orchestra

By Eva Stone-Barney on 31 January 2025 Classical Music, Education, Interviews, Orchestral

When the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1980, its members could hardly have imagined what the organization would evolve into 45 years later. Under the leadership of Ronald Royer, who took over as music director in 2009, the SPO has embraced change and challenge alike, transforming itself into a truly modern organization. Royer’s attachment to the orchestra is personal: prior to his appointment as music director, he was the group’s composer-in-residence. His wife, clarinetist Kaye Royer, has played with the SPO for more than 30 years. It therefore comes as no surprise that Ronald Royer’s decision to assume a…

Tafelmusik’s Baroque Brew: Triple Espresso With Alfredo Bernardini

By Heather Weinreb on 31 January 2025 Baroque and Early, Classical Music, Interviews, Orchestral, Strings, Toronto, Winds

When baroque oboist Alfredo Bernardini first performed with Tafelmusik in 1982, the baroque oboe was a much rarer specimen than it is today. “At the time,” he says, “there were only a handful of baroque oboists in the world.” Bernardini was fortunate, then, to be performing alongside his teacher Bruce Haynes, an early pioneer who uncovered a lot of the history, repertoire and technique of the instrument. Bernardini also considers himself fortunate, now, to be returning to play with Tafelmusik, a group he holds in high esteem. Tafelmusik “is a very special group,” he says. “It is one of the…

Les Petits Violons: 60 Years of Collaborative Music-Making

By Heather Weinreb on 31 January 2025 Classical Music, Education, Interviews, Montreal, Violin

For their 60th anniversary, Les Petits Violons will be doing what they do best: putting on concerts. This February, the student orchestra of Les Petits Violons will perform a diverse repertoire of folk music, opera excerpts and orchestral classics alongside the Juno-nominated musicians of Collectif9. In March, students of Les Petits Violons will present a concert of chamber music, which includes the illustrious Mendelssohn Octet. “As this is an anniversary year, I wanted the programs to be explosive,” says Artistic Director Marie-Claire Cousineau. As Les Petits Violons is a strings school mainly for youth, Cousineau was careful to select repertoire…

Les Boréades: Early Music Academy in the Eastern Townships

By Heather Weinreb on 31 January 2025 Baroque and Early, Classical Music, Education, Interviews

This summer, Montreal-based baroque ensemble Les Boréades will be returning to Saint-Camille, QC, to host the ninth edition of their annual summer music academy. While the repertoire changes from year to year—the 2025 edition will focus on the music of the French Baroque—the basic premise of the academy remains unchanged: L’académie de musique ancienne de Saint-Camille is a vibrant weekend of socializing, music-making and concertizing in the heart of the Eastern Townships A Brief History As the musicians of Les Boréades are often invited to teach and perform at summer festivals, they have always mulled over the idea of starting…

Jordan de Souza: A Canadian in Europe

By Catherine Kustanczy on 31 January 2025 Arts Industry, Classical Music, Interviews, Orchestral

Jordan de Souza has stood on the podium of some of the world’s most famous stages, but has no doubts about the classical music scene in his home and native land. “There’s so much great music-making happening in Canada,” says the busy conductor. “I think that’s clear from one end of the country to the other.” Much of de Souza’s life has been based in and around the European classical world for the better part of two decades. Yet, appreciation for his Canadian training has stayed with him. “I think we musicians are built, in a way, on all the…

Jeunesses Musicales Canada: 75 Years at the Helm of Canada’s Musical Youth

By Heather Weinreb on 31 January 2025 Classical Music, Education, Interviews, Montreal

Although Jeunesses Musicales Canada serves youth, the organization itself is no youngster; JMC celebrates its 75th anniversary throughout the 2024-25 season. To honour this milestone, JMC is hosting a variety of special events, from performances by acclaimed trumpeter and one-man-band Fred Solo to potted “bon-bon” versions of operas for children. With their various theatrical and participatory elements, these performances testify to JMC’s evolution throughout the years. “Initially, our concerts for young audiences were shorter versions of our concerts for the general public—so a shorter recital,” says Artistic Director Danièle Leblanc. “In the early 2000s there was a shift; we saw…

Clemens Schuldt. Courtesy of the Orchestre symphonique de Québec.

Clemens Schuldt: A Breath of Fresh Air in Quebec City

By Justin Bernard on 31 January 2025 Interviews, Orchestral, Quebec City

Since Clemens Schuldt joined Orchestre symphonique de Québec (OSQ) as music director in 2023, its spirit has changed. A certain pride has settled on the musicians, the organization, even the audiences of the provincial capital. Several factors underlie this, but the personality of the German conductor and his local commitment have certainly contributed. La Scena Musicale met him in Montreal last fall, the day after conducting the closing concert of the International Bach Festival. In a country like Germany, a young conductor is bound to be influenced by the musical geniuses of the past. Schuldt’s father is from Hamburg, the…

Julian Armour & Guylaine Lemaire: Finding Balance

By Kaitlyn Chan on 31 January 2025 Arts Industry, Classical Music, Interviews, Multimedia, Orchestral, Ottawa, Strings

This February, renowned musicians and artistic leaders Julian Armour and Guylaine Lemaire celebrate 20 years of marriage. The Ottawa-based couple have contributed significantly to the Canadian music scene for decades now as both performers and arts administrators. Amidst all this busyness, Armour and Lemaire are also the proud parents of four boys. Armour and Lemaire wear several hats in their professional lives. Armour is the artistic and executive director of Music and Beyond, artistic director of the Chamber Players of Canada, principal cellist of the chamber orchestra Thirteen Strings, and teaches at the University of Ottawa and Carleton University. Retired…

Montreal New Musics Festival: A fascinating Tower of Babel

By Justin Bernard on 31 January 2025 Canadian Music, Contemporary, Interviews

The theme of this 12th edition of the Montreal International New Musics Festival is “Music and Images.” Its program of 18 concerts will reopen a debate which has occupied the minds of composers even before the invention of cinema and which, in an increasingly digitized age, is becoming more and more relevant. Today, there seems to be no limit to the potential for interaction between sound and image. This ranges from cinema and video animation, to digital music, as well as all that music itself contributes to visual mediums. We met with SMCQ Artistic Director Simon Bertrand to discuss this…

Mathieu Lussier: Arion Baroque Orchestra: The French Connection

By Viktor Lazarov on 11 November 2024 Baroque and Early, Classical Music, Interviews, Montreal

The Life of an Orchestra: From Embryo to Adulthood Comprising some 20 musicians playing on 18th-century instruments, more than 30 critically acclaimed recordings, adorned with numerous awards and international tours, the Arion Baroque Orchestra is a major figure in Quebec’s Early Music scene. Artistic director since 2019, bassoonist Mathieu Lussier recounts the evolution of the ensemble founded in 1981. “Arion was born at a time when many Quebec musicians were going to study Early Music in The Hague, Netherlands, to acquire experience and knowledge not existent in Quebec. Returning with precious new expertise, they founded their own ensembles to promote…

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