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Montreal, Wednesday, September 4, 2024 – Bourgie Hall of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) kicks off its 2024-2025 season on Wednesday, September 25, at 7:30 p.m. This concert also inaugurates Schubert’s complete lieder project: the Orchestre de l’Agora with mezzo-soprano Ema Nikolovska and narrator Émile Proulx-Cloutier, led by conductor Nicolas Ellis, will transport listeners into Schubert’s imaginary world, with orchestrations by Berlioz, Webern, Reger and Canadian composer Ian Cusson, a member of the Georgian Bay Métis community, as well as excerpts from his symphonies.
The 2024-2025 season brings us spectacular musical encounters. Developed by Artistic Director Olivier Godin and Executive Director Caroline Louis, the season is a celebration of excellence, beauty and discovery, and features over 90 exciting concerts in a wide variety of styles and musical traditions. Audiences will be able to hear some of the finest musicians from Quebec and Canada, as well as discover exceptional artists who are currently shining on the international scene.
An ambitious initiative, Schubert’s complete lieder project will span several seasons and, in 2028, will coincide with the 200th anniversary of his death. This season, seven concerts will feature 98 lieder by the famous Viennese composer, performed by renowned opera singers, pianists and ensembles (Ema Nikolovska and the Orchestre de l’Agora, Rachel Fenlon, Magali Simard-Galdès, Benjamin Appl and Eric Lu, the Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal, Ian Bostridge and Julius Drake). Vocal music lovers will enjoy additional vocal recitals featuring great voices in a vast repertoire (Barbara Hannigan, Christian Gerhaher).
Audiences will be able to appreciate the remarkable sound of the Hamburg Steinway piano acquired by Bourgie Hall last October, with eagerly awaited performances by outstanding pianists (Benedetto Lupo, Herbert Schuch, Tomás Alegre, Kirill Gerstein, Charles Richard-Hamelin, Jean-Baptiste Fonlupt). Internationally acclaimed Québec pianist Louis Lortie is Artist-in-Residence to celebrate his 40-year career as a soloist, chamber musician and educator: he makes a stopover for 4 concerts, notably performing Ravel’s complete works for solo piano. Furthermore, starting on November 29, the MMFA will present the Canadian premiere of the immersive video installation Ravel Ravel Interval by Albanian artist Anri Sala: this striking work, generously promised to the Museum by Pierre Bourgie, juxtaposes two interpretations of Ravel’s Concerto for the Left Hand, by Louis Lortie and French pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet.
Renowned Québec ensembles such as Les Violons du Roy, as well as musicians from the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) and the Orchestre Métropolitain (OM) will delight listeners with concerts exploring multiple facets of classical music. The OM will also present three family concerts alongside beloved actors and actresses (in French).
Bourgie Hall was designed to offer listeners an optimal chamber music experience. Highlights this season include appearances by remarkable string quartets (Castalian String Quartet, Molinari Quartet, Modigliani Quartet, Cuarteto Quiroga, Van Kuijk Quartet, Quartetto Noûs) and the Trio Élégiaque. Virtuoso guitarists will also offer exceptional recitals (Raphaël Feuillâtre, Manuel Barrueco), while contemporary music lovers will be thrilled by the many discoveries to be made, including Steve Reich’s complete string quartets by the Mivos Quartet.
Early Music shines thanks to the presence of renowned ensembles (Les Violons du Roy, Stile Antico, The Tallis Scholars, Les Talens Lyriques conducted by Christophe Rousset), two viola da gamba concerts and others featuring Bourgie Hall’s newly restored Flemish harpsichord. Bourgie Hall is delighted to begin a new collaboration with Canimex, a major sponsor of the Spotlight on Strings series, which features performances by renowned violinists, violists and cellists (Leonidas Kavakos, Kerson Leong, Antoine Tamestit, Steven Isserlis).
In October, the Italian Days propose three exciting concerts, ranging from the medieval works of Zacara da Teramo to the music of Nino Rota, offering a memorable journey through this country’s rich musical history. Also on the programme are the ever-popular Jazz 5 à 7 series (Kellylee Evans, Harrison Kennedy) and the Musics from here and abroad series (Oktoecho, Oktopus, The McDades).
In conjunction with four exhibitions and collections on display at the MMFA as well as the redeployment of the Inuit art collection, five concerts will feature masterpieces ranging from Flemish Baroque to Belle Époque French music, Canadian folklore and Inuit throat singing. In addition, several concerts will echo various art forms, such as cinema and the visual arts. The season will also be punctuated by several tributes to great artists from the 16th century to today, whose milestone anniversaries will be celebrated: Shostakovich, Ives, Palestrina, Molinari, Ravel and Schoenberg, among others.
Bourgie Hall pursues its educational initiatives to support and encourage the next generation of musicians. International artists such as La Fonte Musica (medieval music), Bertrand Chamayou (piano), Barbara Hannigan (voice), Steven Isserlis (cello) and Louis Lortie (piano) share their expertise with advanced students during five master classes open to the public.
Three Musical Canvases combining a talk, a guided visit to the current exhibition at the MMFA and an evening concert, as well as three lectures linked to the concerts presented, allow those who wish to deepen their musical and artistic knowledge.
About
Inaugurated in September 2011, Bourgie Hall is a 462-seat concert hall at the heart of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Possessing exceptional acoustics, it has quickly made a name for itself as one of Canada’s most beloved venues for concert music. Located in the nave of the former Erskine and American Church, its spectacular architecture includes a collection of twenty Tiffany stained glass windows unique in the country. Bourgie Hall presents over a hundred concerts yearly in various musical styles, ranging from jazz to classical works, from Baroque music to contemporary creations. Its high-calibre programming features some of the most prominent Canadian and international musicians of their generation, whether they are at the beginning of their careers or already well-established.
bourgiehall.ca
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