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Volume 14 - Issue 5 - February 2009

EARLY Musicby Frank

EARLY Musicby Frank NakashimaLove letters, stars,and chocolate roadsLast month, Tafelmusik co-produced a marvellous concert program,"The Galileo Project," with The Banff Centre - an immersion inthe stories, people, and times of the 16th century, through a fusionof arts, science, and culture. It was in 1609, you see, that GalileoGalilei's first demonstration of the telescope took place, and Monteverdi's Otfeo was published. So, 400 years later, it was a naturalto jointly celebrate Galileo's work and the music from that period.The collaboration included the Orchestra, astronomers, a stage director,a filmmaker, a set and lighting designer, astronomical photographers,and a recording engineer. It was the kind of sensoryexperience that gives us a context for our musical relationship withthe world, and a reminder that "the music of the spheres" is not aphrase to take lightly.This month, celebrating their 30th anniversary, and just returnedfrom their Carnegie Hall debut, Tafelmusik features a suite fromRameau's Dardanus and Handel 's Water Music (February 18 - 22).Website: www.tafelmusik.org I www.myspace.com/mytafelmusikMeanwhile, the Academy Concert Series also presents Handel(February 7) - his charming Trio Sonatas performed by NicolaiTarasov (baroque oboe), Rona Goldensher (violin), Laura Jones(viola da gamba), Paul Jenkins (organ). website:www. academyconcertseries. cornA couple of days later, and a short way down the road, the ensembleknown as Folia (Linda Melsted, baroque violin; Terry McKenna,lute and baroque guitar; Justin Haynes, viola da gamba; BorysMedicky, harpsichord) explores The Chocolate Road, featuring themusic of chocolate-loving l 7th century composers from Mexico,Spain, Italy, France and England, accompanied by tasty readingsabout chocolate from period diaries, letters and recipes (February9). In this historical exploration, the fusion is not music and astronomy, but love, passion, chocolate addiction, and music. Chocolatehas been blamed for many things, but was it the cause of Baroquemusic? Perhaps members of the Florentine camerata were "under theinfluence" when they invented opera!Speaking of love, Scaramella's "Lettera Amorosa" (Love Letter)program brings the sweet harmony of Monteverdi and his Venetiancontemporaries (February 14) with special guests, the Toronto ContinuoCollective and their plucked and bowed instruments. KatherineHill (soprano) , Lucas Harris (lute, theorbo), Julia Seager-Scott (tripleharp), Joelle Morton (violas da gamba), Valerie Sylvester (baroqueviolin), Sheila Smyth (baroque violin), and Linda Deshman(viola da gamba) all perform. www.scaramella.caSine Nomine explores another perfect relationship their programof Medieval musical on February 20). The relationship of earthlyand heavenly time was a subject of great fascination to cosmologistsof the Middle Ages. See the Sine Nomine Ensemble for MedievalMusic website: www.pims.ca/amici/sinenomine.htmlNymphs and shepherds cavort in song when The Musicians InOrdinary perform a concert entitled "Fair, Cruell Nymph: Songsand Dialogues from l 7th Century England" (February 28) with tenorDarryl Edwards joining soprano Hallie Fishel and lutenist John Edwards.These songs are a strong reminder of the importance of communicationin a good relationship. Settings by Ferrabosco (of textsby Ben Jonson), and Henry Lawes (of John Milton), are exemplaryof this period's refined marriage of music and words. Visitwww .musiciansinordinary. eaMaking a Canadian stop on their North American tour, The FlandersRecorder Quartet presents "Banchetto Musical " (February 27,28). The Toronto Consort (www.torontoconsort.org) proudlypresents the world' s foremost recorder quartet in a program whichincludes virtuoso recorder music from many centuries, includingworks by Johannes Ciconia, J.H. Schein, and J.S. Bach. The FRQThe Flanders Quartetwas presented not too long ago by the Women's Musical Club ofToronto (www.wmct.on.ca). If you missed their previous appearance,be sure to catch this one. By the way, the WMCT is presentingthe inimitable and phenomenal Red Priest which is, sadly, soldout.Capella Intima, the newest member of Toronto's early musiccommunity, is an ensemble of singers and musicians specializing inthe sacred music of the l 7th century. Their de but program, "Musicfrom the Collegium Germani cum," will include motets for threevoices by Cavalli, Sances, Valentini, as well as a Mass by GiocomoCarissimi (February 21, 22, 25). Bud Roach (tenor), Joseph Levesque(tenor), and Neil Aronoff (baritone) are accompanied by Sara­Anne Churchill (organ) and Lucas Harris (theorbo).Frank T. Nakashima (franknak@interlog.com) is the President of theToronto Early Music Centre, a non-profit charitable organizationwhich promotes the appreciation of historically-informed petformancesof early music.DAME EMMA KIRKBYDANIEL TAYLORTHEATRE OF EARLY MUSICHANDEL DUETSBENEFIT CONCERTFebruary 17, 2009 at 7:30PMTrinity College Chapel6 Hoskin Avenue, U of TorontoToronto, OntarioTickets - 0 (ONLY 100 AVAILABLE)514-982-2535www.theatreofearlymusic.comBIB Conseil des Arts Can.da Council~ duCanada fortheArts18 WWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COM

Choral Scenebym]buellWake up and SING!FROM Harmony, from heavenly HarmonyThis universal frame began:When Nature underneath a heapOf jarring atoms layAnd could not heave her head,The tuneful voice was heard from high,Arise, ye more than dead!(John Dryden, Song for St. Cecilia's Day, 1687)A FREEZING FEBRUARY MORNING makes a person want to play dead -especially if you have to get up while it 's still dark outside. Thebirds are NOT singing. A rooster with even half a brain in its headwould be snuggled up in the warmest corner of the henhouse, muttering"cock-a-doodle-don't".No accident that we choose to wake to music, or try to , anyway.We use clock-radios tuned to favourite or most annoying stations.We programme computers and cell-phones with our favourite upbeattunes, and use them like alarm clocks. This February is a shortdark month: we brood about the economy, essential arts funding,and RRSPs. It' s the month of Valentine's Day - somehow we'remeant to feel romantic about expensive chocolates and bouquets ofroses. We have a brand-new holiday called "Family Day" - familyin February represented by either the mixed blessing of too manyfilthy shoes, boots and mitts in the hall , or the barely disguisedgloating of relatives who have skipped the country to warm up.Interestingly this is also a month when our choirs close ranks withother choirs and other kinds of artists to co-present. Preparing andperforming these kinds of concerts and events involves extraordinaryfeats of scheduling and communication. The results are invigoratingand heartening: true labours of love, all.It's well worth venturing out for these: and it really is a "somethingfor everyone" kind of month.On the first of the month: The Toronto Mendelssohn Choircloses ranks with some of their favourite singers: you! Raised inSong is their sing-along programme of hymns and choral favourites :a fine opportunity to be part of one great and powerful voice. On thesame day, same time, Hart House will be hosting The Inter-VarsityChoral Festival Gala Concert with a massed choir of The HartHouse Chorus , Simply Sweetly (McGill University), Trent ConcertChoir (Trent University), and The University of WesternOntario Choir.And there's more. The TorontoMass Choir, the York UniversityGospel Choir and As theSpirit Moves Dance Troupeoffer us some potent rechargingenergy in The Evolution of GospelMusic (Feb. 6&7). TheAmadeus Choir's Celtic Celebration(Feb 7) shares the stagewith the Celtic band Kettle'sOn, fiddler Chris MacDonald,and some highland dancers. Onthe same day, the North YorkConcert Orchestra and theNYCO Symphony Chorus offerus Faure's Requiem; and theMississauga Festival Choirhosts a Festival of Friends concertwhich includes the CawthraPark Chamber Choir, the MississaugaFestival Youth Choir,and the Queensmen of Toronto.CONTINUESBOSLEYREAL ESTATEBOSLEY l:EAL EST.\T[ LTD., !,:[ALTOP.PETER MAHONSales Representative416-322-8000pmahon@trebnet.comwww.petermahon.com~acriCONSORtJCHORUS & ORCH~STRAThe St.JohnPassionby J.S. BachCONDUCTDRVannick Nezet-SeguinSunday, March 29, 3 pmEglinton St. George's United Church35 Lytton Boulevard, TorontoTICKETS: .00 per personTo reserve tickets, call 416-481-1141, ext. 250Visa and MasterCardProceeds shared byToronto Symphony Adopt-a-Player programmeand Eva's lntiativesRobert Cooper,artistic directorEdward Moroney,accompanistChoralCountdownYour Choices - Our VoicesCount yourself in!Be a part of the final concert of our2008-2009 season. Nominate yourfavourite choral piece(s) and then attendour concert on May 9, 2009 to seewhether your choice made the 'top ten.'Details on our website atwww.orpheuschoirtoronto.comor call 416-530-4428F EB RU ARY 1 - M ARCH 7 2009 WWW. THEWHOLENOTE,COM 19

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