This page is also available in / Cette page est également disponible en:
Francais (French)
Welcome to La Scena Musicale’s weekly Highlights, a roundup of classical music news from Canada and beyond. The 2024-2025 season announcements continue with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Conservatory of Music, and the Canadian Opera Company. Apple may be fined over $700 million CAD for disincentivizing alternative subscription models for Spotify, Concordia and McGill University are suing the Quebec government over post-secondary tuition increases, and two Canadian singers are semifinalists in the 2024 Lotte Lenya Competition.
More 2024-2025 Season Announcements
In its “Symphony With Us” 2024-2025 season programming, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra promises a Masterworks series with works by Beethoven, Mahler, Dvořák, Mozart, Strauss, John Adams, and Thomas Adès; a journey through time with the Pope series; and special holiday, blockbuster film, and young people’s concerts.
The Royal Conservatory of Music has announced that it’s including at least 28 classical music concerts and 5 jazz concerts in its 2024-2025 season, featuring stars like Yuja Wang and Víkingur Ólafsson. Its full 80 concert lineup will be announced in June.
Yuja Wang (right) and Monty Alexander (left) (Photos by Kirk Edwards and Joe Martinez, respectively)
The Canadian Opera Company will stage “Verdi’s Nabucco, the world premiere of a new production of Gounod’s Faust, and the Toronto premiere of La Reine-garçon, a new creation from Canadians Julien Bilodeau and Michel Marc Bouchard.”
The Metropolitan Opera has announced its 2024-2025 lineup, including four Met premieres: Grounded by Jeanine Tesori, Ainadamar by Osvaldo Golijov, Moby-Dick by Jake Heggie, and Antony and Cleopatra by John Adams.
Recent and Upcoming Shows
Tonight (Feb. 23), using the “four-dimensional” environment created in Lobe Studio, cellist Marina Hasselberg will unveil a unique sonic experience as part of the Mother Cloud Spatial Sound Festival (Stir).
Tonight and tomorrow (Feb. 23, 24), the Toronto Symphony Orchestra will perform and record Stravinsky’s Pulcinella, live at Roy Thomson Hall. Conductor Gustavo Gimeno will lead soloists Isabel Leonard, Paul Appleby, and Derek Welton.
Barbara Hannigan will perform the solo soprano part of Zosha Di Castri in In the half-light in Montreal on Feb. 28 and 29.
On March 2, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is presenting a mix of Piazzolla tango, Radiohead songs, and original compositions alongside Australian cabaret performer Meow Meow (Stir). The ensemble will then invite conductor Leonard Slatkin to lead them in a performance of Richard Strauss’ Spanish Adventures: Don Quixote (Stir).
Elektra Women’s Choir (Stir) is celebrating International Women’s Day on March 10 by bringing together works by female Canadian and international composers for a choral concert.
Recordings and Debuts
Schulich School of Music graduate and violist Noémie Chemali has released her debut album: Opus 961. It “features works for solo viola and chamber music by Lebanese composers Layale Chaker, Saad Haddad, Wajdi Abou Diab, Sami Seif, Mary Kouyoumdjian, and herself,” according to The Violin Channel. All the proceeds from album sales are going to Doctors without Borders.
On March 1, ATMA Classique will release Sibelius 2 & 5, the last album in the label’s Sibelius cycle, which began in 2019. It features Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducting the Metropolitan Orchestra.
Vancouver pianist Rachel Kiyo Iwaasa is publishing a recording of composer Rodney Sharman’s Known and Unknown on March 22. Iwaasa will be performing the program at a Toronto concert on March 3.
Orchestra and Ensemble News
British conductor Sir Simon Rattle has been named principal guest conductor by the Czech Philharmonic.
Opera and Choral News
Joyce DiDonato (Photo by Simon Pauly)
The 32 semifinalists for the 2024 Lotte Lenya Competition (Opera Wire), open to singers and actors aged 24 to 32, have been announced, including Ottawa’s Nayeli Abrego and Toronto’s Kendra Dyck. The semifinalists will compete to move onto the May 4 finalist competition, where the first to third place winners will receive cash prizes ranging from $15,000 to $25,000.
Mezzo Joyce DiDonato, who recently won the Concertgebouw Prize 2024 (Opera Wire), will perform with the Concertgebouw in March.
Instrument News
KD SCHMID has signed 12-year-old award-winning violinist Himari (The Violin Channel) onto its roster.
Business and Politics in the Arts
Concordia and McGill University are launching a legal challenge to combat Quebec’s recent tuition policies.
McCall MacBain Arts Building (Photo provided by McGill University)
Verbier Festival has appointed a new co-CEO (The Violin Channel): Hervé Boissière, founder of classical music streaming site medici.tv. He will assume the role on April 15, 2024.
The European Union may fine Apple €500 million (over $700 million CAD) for “allegedly stifling competition in the music streaming market,” according to Music Business Worldwide. Among other things, Apple is being accused of imposing its 30 per cent commission on Spotify subscriptions while restricting how Spotify could market its alternative subscription options.
An anonymous benefactor has given the San Francisco Ballet the largest donation in its 91-year history (The Violin Channel) at $60 million.
On February 15th, the English National Opera served a number of their musicians with redundancy notices, during their final performance of The Handmaid’s Tale. Emails began to circulate before the performance, and continued into the interval. This comes after extensive labor negotiations, and a nearly avoided strike at the ENO.
Obituary
Pianist Rudolf Jansen, a highly esteemed Lieder accompanist who recorded more than 120 CDs throughout his career, and a well-respected music teacher, has died at 84.
Sally Thomas (The Violin Channel), a violinist, Juilliard faculty member, and frequent Canadian and U.S. symphony orchestra performer, has died at 92
Alexandru Moisiuc (Opera Wire), a Romanian bass who sang over 60 roles across 600 performances, has died at 62.
Have a story you would like to see in our next Highlights article?
Please email a link to [email protected].
This page is also available in / Cette page est également disponible en:
Francais (French)
