10o9A Music Festival unlike any otherORGANIX CONCERTSwww.organixconcerts.ca416-241-9785May 1 - May 30, 2009William O'Meara and Gordon D. Mansell -Artistic DirectorsORGAN IX 09 is Toronto's fourth annual festival featuring thethrilling sound of the pipe organ, "The King of Instru ments. "Visit www.organixconcerts.ca for all the details!OPENING NIGHT and theINAUGURAL CONCERT OF CASAVANTOPUS 3095 in its new home.GILLIAN WEIR - organTickets: / (students, seniors,RCCO)Friday, May 1, 7:30 p.m.Church of the Holy Trinity10 Trinity Square NW side of Eaton Centre. Directions & Map at website.Dame Gillian Weir is one of the world's outstanding recitalists. Shewill inaugurate the "new" organ, moved from Deer Park UnitedChurch and sounding magnificently in the superb acoustic of thishistoric church. Her varied program will showcase this instrumentand launch ORGANIX 09.Pops FavouritesMonday, May 4, 8:00 p.m. (Doors open at 7:15 p.m.)David Peckham - theatre organTickets: in advance, at the door (cash only)Casa LomaOne Austin TerraceThe castle's Wurlitzer theatre organ will sing in David's entertainingprogram of pops and classical favourites.The Student MondayLunch-time SeriesMay 4, 11 , 18 and 25,12:15 - 1 :00 p.m.Church of the Holy Trinity10 Trinity SquareAdmission: FREEMay4John Paul Farahatorgan (U of T, Faculty of Music)IChLirchoflheHolyTrinityhtlp :f/holytrinitytoronto.org/Gllooo, M,osell Cotpot,tloo ·,www.glionnamansell.com The ChurchwWN.casavant.caof The Redeemer,,M.arnott.TO . ONTODOWNTOWNiThe WednesdaySeriesMay 6, 13, 20, and 276:00 - 6:45 p.m.Church of the RedeemerBloor and Avenue RoadAdmission:$ 10.00HAPPY BIRTHDAYFELIX MENDELSSOHN!May6Peter Bishop, ElisaMangina, Mark Toewsorgan. lcl - ~{g/;;h;,,i 1 http://wYffl.classicorgan.com mbg1aphics@rogers.com", ·..:· t torontdartsbounci lfTJff~~:~·~..,.,..,...,,• ··~ -~,-~ • www.rcco.caAn ·~~1;:;~[~Yr~c~Cn~i{o;~fornntuClifton Forbis as Siegmund and Adrianne Pieczanka as Sieglinde bithe Canadian Opera Company's production of Die Waiki.ire, 2004In fact Edita is having a big premiere tonight in Lucrezia Borgia inMunich. I am a friend of hers, and she sets an example for me - tobe singing with that technique at her age. We are going to Tokyoto do Ariadne auf Naxos again. It's a real thrill for me to workwith her. They adore her in Europe, and she's a huge star in Japan.But if she came to Roy Thomson Hall .... She never had successat the Met, and she didn't like New York. She's a very down toearth woman who likes her quiet time. But she is determined -when she wasn't getting recordings, she started her own company,Nightingale. I'm full of admiration. I know at Lucrezia tonight inMunich they will clap for her for probably half an hour.I've never experienced anything like the clapping and foot-stomping -and the extended curtain calls - in Munich, especially for Gruberova.We never do anything like that here. In fact, at the performance ofFidelio I saw last week the curtain started coming down while youwere all still bowing.That's the one thing about the Canadian Opera Company. Aftera perf01mance the audience claps, we bow twice and they then bringthe curtain down. In Europe tl1ey really show their appreciation. Andif they don't like something they will boo. I like that, because it'sdemonstrative, and that's exciting fo r a performer. I really felt thatexcitement here in the Ring. People cheered and bravoed - that wasgreat.Fidelio is a new role for you - do you enjoy singing it?Yes, but it' s a taxing sing. Beethoven is not one of my favouritecomposers. For me, Beethoven was not an opera composer. Hetreats the voice like a clarinet or French horn or something, and it'suncomfortable. Even Beethoven's Ninth Symphony - I do it, but it'snot a pleasant sing.At least in the Ninth the vocal part is short.It's short, but I'm thinking technically a lot of the time. I've grownto like it more than I ever thought I would, because for me it has alot of Mozart moments, which I love. So I approach it as a beefyDonna Anna with extra dramatic stuff. A lot of singers try to musclethrough this role, but then you're lost. It has to be done like a laseror a trumpet,Have you done many pants role? No, I've never played a pants rolebefore. Laura, as a mezzo, has played them her whole career. Butthis is the only pants role I will ever get to play . It's very compellingdramatically because the character I play has a double life, and thatCONTINUED ON PAGE 62WWW.THEWHO LENOTE.COM APRIL 1 - M AY 7 2009"' UJ8u-'UJ:i:u ""~~:i:c..
FOCUS On Opera:April is Opera Monthby Chris HoileOnce again the stars have aligned to makeApril the most opera-intensive month inSouthern Ontario. At time of starting to writethis article there were no fewer than fourteenexamples of music theatre on offer spanningthe l 7th to the 20th century. (There havebeen a couple of hiccups, as you will see,but opera lovers will still have quite a taskdeciding how to fit them all in.)Here they are in chronological order.1642: The Coronation of Poppea.Renowned mezzo-soprano Kimberly Barbermakes her Opera Atelier debut as Ottavia inthe company's revival of its highly successful2002 production of Claudio Monteverdi' sfinal opera. American male soprano MichaelManiaci returns as Nero with Peggy KrihaDye in the title role of the unscrupulouscourtesan who schemes her way to thetop. The cast also includes Carla Huhtanen asDrusilla, Joao Fernandes as Seneca, OlivierLaquerre as Ottone and Laura Pudwellas Arnalta. David Fallis conducts theTafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and MarshallPynkoski directs. The opera runs April25-May 2 at the Elgin Theatre. See www.operaatelier.com for more.1691: King Arthur. This, the culmination ofToronto Masque Theatre's five-year PurcellCycle, tells John Dryden's fanciful tale aboutArthur's attempts to rescue his fiancee, theblind Cornish princess Emmeline, fromthe clutches of his arch-enemy the SaxonKing Oswald of Kent. This work likelymarks the first appearance of Valkyries inopera. In true masque tradition this "semiopera"integrates singing, dance and acting.Directed by Derek Boyes with choreographyby Marie-Nathalie Lacoursiere, it featuresDaniel Auchincloss, Benjamin Butterfield,Daniel Taylor and Giles Tomkins. LarryBeckwith leads a period instrument bandfrom the violin. Performances run April 23and 24 at the MacMillan Theatre. See www.torontomasquetheatre.ca.Angelina's annoying sisters. Under the aegisof Opera Kitchener, the opera was to playon April 5 at Centre in the Square. But thisperformance has been postponed (date TBA).Under the aegis of Brampton Lyric Opera,the opera plays May 14 at the Rose Theatre,Brampton. Consult www. bramptonlyricopera.ea or www .operakitchener.com for furtherdetails .1879: Eugene Onegin. From April 4-11Opera Lyra Ottawa presents its first everproduction of Tchaikovsky's operaticmasterpiece with Russell Braun singing thetitle role for the first time in Canada. Thosewho saw Brett Polegato in the role just lastyear with the COC may be interested tocompare and contrast the interpretations oftwo of Canada's finest baritones. JoiningBraun are Inna Dukach as Tatyana, RichardTroxell as Lenski, Elizabeth Turnbull as Olgaand Peter Volpe as Prince Gremin. TyronePatterson conducts the National Arts CentreOrchestra and Joe Bascetta directs. Visithttp:// opera! yra. ea.;. ;'_,:~·.,._, ·.,~~( ~,, ·.. · .· · . ·.··~/.. l'""~,..· .... ~· '\' ~ . · ~'f .. I . • •5 • , ..• .'1(,·,. , ·W•:,._· · I . ._..:·: ". . ::i' ...... .. -..,· &r, ,"··. ·~,_.,,, · c1·. ii~: 1!i\Matthew White and Peggy Kriha Dye inOpera Ateliers 2002 Poppea.1881: Simon Boccanegra. (COC, Apr 11-May 7 at the Four Seasons Centre). This,the COC 's first production of Verdi's darkmasterpiece since 1979, tells the story of thefirst Doge of Genoa, elected to unite warringfactions who, nevertheless, plot his downfall.The work premiered and failed in 1857.Twenty-five years later Verdi with the help ofArrigo Boito (Verdi's librettist for "Falstaff"CoNilNUESfflason & ~amlinDiscover whyMason & Hamlin pianosare referred to as"The World's Finest""'06N"' u::,Cl'.l "'5:cCl.,1790: Cosi fan tutte. Part of the RCM's"Rising Star" series, Mozart's acerbic operaabout the supposedly innate unfaithfulness ofwomen is performed by the by Glenn GouldSchool Opera and the Royal ConservatoryOpera April 2-7 at Mazzoleni Hall . TheGGS Opera Ensemble is conducted by MarioBernardi and directed by Jennifer Parr.Admission is free.1817: Cinderella. Kitchener used to sharean opera company with Hamilton. Now itdoes so with Brampton. "Cinderella" isnone other than Gioacchino Rossini's "LaCenerentola" sung in English. The castfeatures Jennifer Fina as Angelina (a.k.a."Cinderella'), Emilio Fina as Don Ramiro,and Anna Bateman and Louisa Cowie asAPRIL 1 - M AY 7 2009,v·11R,uRESTRICTED TOLimited Production built by handusing only the finest materialsFor an appointment to see and play Canada's largest selection(all models !) of new Mason & Hamlin grand pianos you are invitedto call 1-866-631-6696 or email willem@masonhamlin.cawww.masonhamlin.caWWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COM 11
