My next challenge is to bring thisawareness to all Torontoniansand have them participate in thisexciting cultural event.George KollerProducer and artistic director,International Divasworld. After we received all applications, we had to choose the top25 pianists, based on their auditions, to come to Toronto in October.We’ve found host families for them. Now, we are promoting thecompetition locally to bring audiences to listen to these elite pianistssharing their art.How long have you been involved in this line of work? How didyou get started? I started in early 2009 by organizing the CCC TorontoPiano Competition, which is a local competition we run annually foryoung pianists from the GTA. The idea of a larger competition originatedafter I gave a concert at the P.C. Ho Theatre in the CCC; the acousticsand the charm of the theatre instantly touched a chord in me. Ifelt that more people must come to this place to perform.What’s the most challenging part of the job? Almost every singlestep involved in organizing this international event required not onlya good deal of effort, but a great deal of thought as well. Our goal forthis competition is not to have pianists compete with each other inToronto, but rather to bring the world’s elite pianists to Toronto toshare their lifelong passion and dedication with Toronto audiences.What does opening night ofInternational Divas mean foryour series? Opening night isat Trinity-St Paul’s Centre, onSunday, October 5 at 8pm. Thisopening night for the 2014 threeconcertseries is very importantfor so many reasons...the firstDiva to perform (Saina Singer) isfrom Yakutsk, Russia...she willbring her special ancestral songsto launch the evening and theseries. She’s followed by LuandaJones, Laila Biali, Patricia Cano,and Cindy Church, closing withthe legendary Jackie Richardson.All the artists will be accompaniedby myself and a fewother musicians...it will be veryminimal and intimate.What gave you the idea for a concert series like this one? It is manythings coming together at once. I tour and work with all of theseartists and many of them have recordings that I have produced. I’vewanted to do something a little outside of the “music biz box” in aSUBSCRIBE NOW AND SAVE!PA|iS CºNFIDENTIALNovember 7 & 8, 2014~E LI#LE BA|l EY-CºRNEYuletide Revels from the RenaissanceDecember 12, 13 & 14GREATSEATS STILLAVAILABLESPLENDºURS oƒ~E EMPE|o R’S CHAPELFebruary 6 & 7, 2015DºW¬ND IN DUBLINwith Michael Slattery and La NefMarch 27 & 28~E P¬Y oƒ DANIELMay 22, 23 & 24Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre, Jeanne Lamon Hall427 Bloor St. West5 concerts from • Call 416-964-6337 • TorontoConsort.org12 | October 1 - November 7, 2014 thewholenote.com
igger way, and one day I stood on the Trinity-St. Paul’s stageand sang a song with my bass...and realized that my love ofnatural sound, combined with my love of world music andthe special voices I’ve known for so long, could come togetherin one setting if I was able to put the right team together.How long in advance did you begin the work of organizingand preparing? In this case it was eight months in advance –which is usually comfortable, but pushing the envelope for aseries that grew to this magnitude.How long have you been involved in this line of work?I’ve been involved in promoting and producing concerts allmy life. Throughout my professional performance careerI’ve always made the time and effort to see my dreams andvisions through.And the biggest challenges of the job? Always the mostchallenging part of the job is to create the magic leverage andenergy to bring concertgoers to the point of knowing thatthey must try something new, or support that which theyalready love. Other challenges are simply in the area of quicklearning. One must find the best way to do certain tasksand not be afraid to ask a million questions in the multiplelearning curves of concert production. But it is a thrill tocommit to something wholeheartedly and to watch theprocess of growth and accomplishment. The knowledge andexperience one gains – through “just doing it” – is priceless.For more details on what 150 of Ontario’s live musicpresenters have up their sleeves for the upcoming season, besure to check out our Blue Pages directory in this issue of the magazine.As for these three, I, for one, am looking forward to witnessingtheir thoughtful planning come to fruition.We invite you to celebratethe 16 th anniverSary oF theKen Page Memorial trustannual Jazz FundraiserSaluting theOld Mill TorontoThursdayOctober 30, 20145:30-11:00 p.m.Presented by JAZZ.FM91Jazz and The Artsand supported by theFaculty of Music at theUniversity of TorontoUnder the musical direction of Jim Galloway andhosted by Ted O’Reilly, don’t miss your once a yearchance to spend an evening with a truly all starinternational group of musicians:Howard Alden, guitar, Dan Barrett, trombone,Terry Clarke, drums, Jim Galloway, saxophone,Alastair Kay, trombone, Jon-Erik Kellso, trumpet,John MacMurchy, clarinet, John Sherwood, piano,Neil Swainson, bass, Warren Vaché, cornet.5.30 p.m.6.00 p.m.6.45 p.m.Old Mill Toronto21 old Mill roadtorontoSpecial overnightrate available to ourGala patrons.Free on-site parking.Steps from the old MillSubway Station.enjoy a sparkling start tothe evening with a performanceby the Josh Smiley trio from the Faculty of Music at theuniversity of toronto and a complimentary cocktail generouslydonated by the old Mill toronto and Peller estatesthe Main event… and the music goes round and roundcash barGala Dinner serviceKen Page Lifetime Achievement Award presentation to2014 recipient Bob Ross, owner of the Rex Hotel for hisdedication to live jazzraffle Prize Drawsthe Grand FinaleTickets 0 each (substantially tax deductible)reserve by calling anne Page at 416-515-0200or email anne@kenpagememorialtrust.comwww.kenpagememorialtrust.comMake cheques payable to:the Ken Page Memorial trust55 charles Street West, Suite 3104toronto, on M5S 2W9a service charge will apply for credit card payments... supporting Jazz & Jazz artists across canada ...Charitable Registration No. 87276 8106 RR0001thewholenote.com October 1 - November 7, 2014 | 13
