Views
8 years ago

Volume 14 - Issue 4 - December 2008

mholenoteThe Toronto

mholenoteThe Toronto Concert-Goer's GuideVolume 14 #4, Dec 1, 2008 - Feb 7, 2009Copyright© 2008/2009 Whole Note Media, Inc.720 Bathurst Street, Suite 503, Toronto ON M5S 2R4Main Tel: 416-323-2232 Fax 416-603-4791Switchboard and General Inquiries: Extension 21FOR OPENERS •••Make it a double!Double volleyThere is, sure as anything, a double volley of questions I'm going tohave to deal with over the phone before I write my next editorial.6Publisher: Allan Pulker- publisher@thewholenote.comEditor: David Perlman - editorial@thewholenote.comEditorial assistant: Nick Torti-wmieditor@thewholenote.comCD Editor: David Olds - discoveries@thewholenote.comEvent advertising/membership:Karen Ages- members@thewholenote.comProduction liaison/retail & educational advertising:Jack Buell -adart@thewholenote.comClassified Advertising; Announcements, Etc:Simone Desilets - classad@thewholenote.comListings department:Colin Eatock- listings@thewholenote.comJazz Listings :Ori Dagan- jazz@thewholenote.comWebsite:Luca Perlman-systems@thewholenote.comCirculation, Display Stands & Subscriptions:Chris Malcolm - circulation@thewholenote .cornProduction Management:Peter Hobbs, production@thewholenote .cornThanks to this month's contributorsBeat by Beat: Early (Frank Nakashima); QuodLibet (Allan Pulker); World(Karen Ages); Jazz (Jim Galloway, Ori Dagan); Orchestra and Band (JackMacQuarrie); Opera and Music Theatre (Christopher Hoile, Terry Robbins);Choral (mJ buel l); Musical Life (mJ buell); Books (Pamela Margles, PhilEhrensaft)Features: Heidi McKenzie, Pamela MarglesCD Reviewers: Don Brown, Ori Dagan, Seth Estrin, Daniel Foley, Janos Gardonyi,John S. Gray, Richard Haskell, Tiina Kiik, Richard Marsella, Alison Melville, FrankNakashima, Cathy Riches, Terry Robbins, Bruce Surtees, Robert Tomas, KenWaxman, Dianne WellsPhoto and Editorial research: Nick TortiProofreading: Simone Desilets, Nick TortiListings: Colin Eatock, Richard Haskell, Felix Deak, Ori DaganLayout and design: Verity Graphics, Rocket Design (cover)UPCOMING DATES AND DEADLINESNext issue is Volume 14 #5 covering February 1 • March 7, 2009Free Event Listings Deadline: 6pm Thursday January 15Display Ad Reservations Deadline: 6pm Thursday January 15Advertising Materials Due: 6pm Monday January 19Publication Date: Friday January 30WholeNote Media Inc. accepts noresponsibility or liability for claims madefor any product or service reported onor advertised in this issue.Circulation Statement,November 2008:30,000 printed and distributedPrinted in Canada byCouto Printing and Publishing ServicesCanadian Publication Product SalesAgreement 1263846ISSN 14888-8785 WHOLENOTEPublications Mail Agreement #4002668Return undeliverable Canadianaddresses to:WholeNote Media Inc.503-720 Bathurst StreetToronto ON M5S 2R4www.thewholenote.comThe first volley will start about a week and a half from now (I'mwriting this on November 25th): "But when did you stop publishing aJanuary WholeNote?" The questioners will be concert presenters,and their tone will range from outraged to disbelieving. "Um, wenever have published a separate January issue" I will reply."But we have a January concert that didn't make it into the listings!"they will say. (I have to confess it's secretly gratifying to think howdisappointed some of them will be.) "We were counting on it!""Well, the good news is you should send the listing anyway, " I willsoothingly say. "Because we announced to our readers in myDecember editorial (and everyone reads my editorial) that this yearwe will be updating the January listings on our website before the endof December." (Because, even after fourteen years, there are somepresenters who still haven't figured out that we always do a doubleissue in December/January.)The second volley will be a variation on the same theme, but willstart in the last days of December and continue for a week or so intoJanuary. The questioners this time will be faithful concert goers andtheir tone will range from grumpy to grumpy. "Where's my JanuaryWholeNote?" they will ask. "I've checked all the usual places!""You mean you didn't read my December editorial?" I will say(making no effort to hide my disappointment).On behalf of all of us here at WholeNote, to all of you , much joy inthe music you give and receive over the next two months. (Andremember, check our website at the end of December -www. thewholenote. corn.)A dram too much?We've had some greatcomments on November' sTalisker cover (including thesharp suggestion that ourdesigner must have had adram too much of the featuredensemble's namesake brew).There are sharp eyes outthere, too, along with thetongues! One person pointedout that the person framed bythe harp in the top left(unnamed in our caption) issoprano Teri Dunn, and thatthe violinist's arm, mid-left,should have been credited asbelonging to none other thanTalisker Chamber Players'co-founder Valerie Sylvester!David Perlman, editorWWW, THEWHOLENOTE.COM D ECE MBER 1 2008 - F EB RUA RY 7 2009

FEATUREANDREW BURASHKO'SART OF TIMEBy Heidi McKenzieAndrew Burashko is the Artistic Director of Toronto's Art ofTime Ensemble. This year marks the organization's I Othanniversary season. Art of Time is known for its unconventionalpairing of classical music with unwitting artistic bedfellows:rock'n roll, jazz, pop, poetry, experimental.film,modern dance ... . Virtually any contemporary art form thatthe human spirit has thus far conceived can.find its way ontoan Art of Time concert program. The result? Audience alchemythat sets Toronto 's "all-the-usual-suspects" classicalmusic scene on its ear.Not surprisingly, Burashko has always placed the listener'sexperience at the centre of his vision. "This whole ideais born in the ardent belief that all music is music, and thatas such it all comes from the same creative place, and connectswith the same place in the listener. Whether it's classical or whatever, if it's performedcompellingly, it will connect, period. "Art of Time attracts an eclectic blend of followers, concert by concert, then holds on tothose who came to a given concert for the "other art" on that particular program. Quite anaccomplishment in this day and age where the Toronto cultural scene is brimming and thearts are vying for people's "disposable time" as much as for their disposable income.Burashko started out with a desire to build awider audience for classical music. It's nowturned into a mandate to put classical musicinto the non-classical world. The first everArt of Time Ensemble was originally a oneoffperformance of contemporary and classicalRussian composers, staged ten years ago,at the Glenn Gould studio. Burashko describeshimself as a performer, who wastrying to be an arts administrator, who neverhad the head space or time to think beyond aplan for the next rehearsal. "Basically Icalled everyone I knew - and eighty peopleshowed up."Fast forward four years, and Art of Timewas gaining much needed support and momentum.A grant from the Metcalf Foundationprovided the resources for the beginningof an organizational infrastructure. At thattime, the group made what Burashko callstheir "major leap of faith" - moving fromtwo one-off concerts a season at the GlennGould Studio to a three concert season, twoperformances each at Harbourfront Centre.So what is it that's so different, so special,or compelling about Art of Time? Accordingto Ted Dykstra, performance artist, actor andmusician, long-time friend and collaboratorofBurashko, Art of Time is "one of the mostunrecognized treasures in Toronto. We'relucky that he hasn't gone elsewhere. If hewas in New York doing what he's doing, youwouldn't be able to get a ticket." Accordingto Peggy Baker, a founding catalyst, inspirationand collaborator with Art of Time, it'sabout Burashko's unique and complete senseof musicianship. "It's intellectual, physical,emotional, there's a huge sense of structureand form, a sense of urgency and spontaneity,as well as necessity, and he's interested inD EC EMBER 1 2008 - F EBRUARY 7 2009pushing himself to the brink."According to Burashko, it comes down totwo c's: contrast and calibre. Contrast is notjust quirky pairing, it's about the particularsynergies that emerge when two works of artcome up against each other. Burashko's ownprogramming journey has led him to what hedescribes as "crazy stews of styles".Burashko uses the example of an all­Beethoven concert, "for someone who knowsBeethoven and can appreciate the evolution inthe different periods, they might be able toappreciate the contrasts, but to everybodyelse it all sounds the same." On the otherhand, if you play a Beethoven sonata aftersay, rock and roll, "everything aboutBeethoven is kind of revealed. You hear whatis unique and special and amazing aboutBeethoven. You free the listener to experiencesomething much deeper." Transposinganecdote into axiom - "the greater the contrastbetween two works, the more theirnature reveals itself - the more you seesomething for what it is. "The second "c" stands for calibre. "It'sone thing to have an idea, it's another thing tocommunicate it." Burashko pulls together acore team of international calibre artistsincluding (but definitely not limited to - thereare nearly eighty artists listed on the website)violinists Erika Raum, Steven Sitarski andHugh Marsh, cellists David Hetherington andYegor Dyachkov, violist Steven Dann, pianist/composer,Jonathan Goldsmith, and bassistGeorge Koller. Burashko has never invitedanyone to participate whose music he didn'tknow, but he constantly seeks new collaborators.He gives them free rein when it comesto arranging, editing or adding to the creativemix - a rare opportunity for many, and inWWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COMANALEKTAYou DESERVETHE VERY BESTOriginal, sophisticated, playful...the Gryphon touchSpecially priced70 Yorkville Ave, TorontoTown Square, 210 Lakeshore Road E., OakvllleRichmond Place, 620 Richmond St., LondonGA I Go A I An Grigorian.comC ,nad'.i sog,~;« :::: analekta.com7

Volumes 21-25 (2015-2020)

Volumes 16-20 (2010-2015)

Volumes 11-15 (2004-2010)

Volumes 6 - 10 (2000 - 2006)

Volumes 1-5 (1994-2000)