pianos. Pleyel pianos were the choice of musicians such as Saint-Saëns, Debussy and Ravel. - fordsa rare opportunity to spend an evening enjoying the delicatelyIntrigue, secrets and wonderful music are the subjects of The To-16. An exploration of the world of 16th-century diplomats (“bearersof lavish gifts, writers of secret dispatches, keen observers of courtlylife”) and the musical riches they encountered, this pair of concertsTHE ROM’S EXHIBITIONFRYDERYK CHOPIN& THE ROMANTIC PIANOOPENS OCTOBER 9Leonard GilbertEVENTS:JANINA FIALKOWSKA:WORDS & MUSIC ON THE THEME OF CHOPINTues, Oct pm (exhibition preview included) LEONARD GILBERT: CHOPIN PIANO RECITALSun, Nov pm Free with admissionCHOPIN FILM SHORTSSun, Oct , Nov & Dec pmFree with admissionCHOPIN: THE VOICE OF THE PIANOWith Alan Walker Tues, Nov pm CHOPIN: PRINCE OF THE ROMANTICSWith Adam Zamoyski Thurs, Nov , pm Janina FialkowskaFor information & tickets: www.rom.on.ca/whatsonand click the event date,or call 416.586.5797The is an agency of the Government of Ontario.Photo of Leonard Gilbert: Carlin Ma. Photo of Janina Fialkowska: Peter Schaaf.was designed by the ever-inventiveAlison Mackay. Trillio celebrates both the musicof the Baroque and the richesfest.”With a real sense of occasion,this energetic group delightsin presentations that com-and I can attest to the fact thatyou’ll not be disappointed oneither count if you go. Musicby Telemann, Bach, Pepusch,Schickhardt and others for harpsichord,baroque oboe, recorders,baroque bassoon and vio-Soprano Hallie Fishel and lutenistand German-style sausages, apfelstreuseland other mouth-John Edwardsof Musicians in Ordinary. gramme,“The Grand Tour,” presenting music that a young 17th-cationby soaking up the cultural climate of the continent. Featuredin this concert is a sonata from “Il Giardino Armonico” by the 17thcenturyDutch composer and viol virtuoso Johann Schenck – a workthat was considered lost in World War II, but in reality was part of ato Germany. The sonata, scored for two violins, gamba and bassocontinuo, probably hasn’t been heard in Canada in recent memory – Four Seasons with a recent violin concerto by Philip Glass, TheAmerican Four Seasons.ist,and also Glass’s inspiration when he composed this 21st-centurycompanion piece to the Vivaldi. ber30 with Her Leaves Be Green, a charming mix of songs and lutequeens to hear the intimate music provided for their majesties by the“musicians in ordinary for the lutes and voices.”Simone Desilets is a long-time contributor to The WholeNoteSince 1959, Remenyi House of Music has been a proud supporter ofToronto’s musical community. Providing musicians at every level qualityinstruments and expert service to help them perform their personal best.Celebrating51 YearsIn Canadaand120Worldwidewww.remenyi.com24 thewholenote.comOctober 1 - November 7, 2010
Many MassesBENJAMIN STEINthe Mass” (composing music for the Kyrie, Gloria,Credo, Sanctus/Benedictus and Agnus Dei) has for centuries“Settingbeen a central task for Western composers. The result is generallyconsidered to be a window into heart of the composer in question,and a signal example of their piety and devotion. A public performanceof a Mass is a way for people engaged in worship to pray,mourn, celebrate and in general to commune with others in praiseof an elliptical, elusive, but deeply felt presence that is commonlyknown as God. These days, when a Mass-setting by a famous composer is aslikely to be heard in a concert setting as in a church, how does a--we celebrate the familiarity of the experience – another night outin the company of the Verdi Requiem, or the yearly pilgrimage to aperformance of Mozart’s famous D minor setting.To what degree are concert-goers especially concerned with theostensible object of all the musico-devotional fuss – the Christianhall might well do – do you simply ignore the devotional texts andgagedin some kind of blasphemous process that’s likely to get youIt’s probably safe to say that a concert performance of a Mass isneither a religious rite nor an exercise in group conversion. But thereis unquestionably a qualitative difference between the above eventand a symphonic concert or evening of chamber music: a sense ofneither concert-goer nor composer is especially devout – Rachmaninoffwas not known for his piety, though a performance of his AllNight Vigil might convince you otherwise – both the texts and themusic continue to draw our fascination. ward,and there are several examples of this kind of setting in theweeks ahead.Fauré’s beloved Requiem setting had its premiere in the Pariscontinued to live in the concert hall, and it’s a very inviting piecefor people of all backgrounds. Its delicate transparency and serenityhave always seemed to me to evoke a dreamlike, pre-Christian worldof classical balance and reserve. The Pax Christi Chorale perform it(2010 marks the 200th anniversary of Wesley’s birth). music by Schubert and Schumann. The choral part of the eveningis Schubert’s Mass No.2 in G. Schubert wrote six masses, andthis setting was written in 1815, when the composer was 18 yearsold. Structurally, the Mass in G is clearly indebted to Mozart andthe Austro-German Mass tradition of the 18th century. But this settingalso has the Schubertian quality of deceptive simplicity, a sweetphony,an unfortunate name for a work that conveys a complete mas-does, for instance, Mozart’s renowned but (it has to be said) sketchyD Minor Requiem.Murray Shafer is most likely Canada’s pre-eminent composer, October 1 - November 7, 2010 thewholenote.com 25
