CANARY PAGES theWholeNote 2016/17 CANARY PAGES DIRECTORY and premiere commissioned works by Canadian composers. Singers from the Junior Choir and up may choose to perform with VIVA! in the National Ballet of Canada’s Nutcracker. VIVA!’s 2016/17 season will feature the rhythms and music of Spain in support of the July 2017 tour to Barcelona. VIVA!’s fine musicians and mentors deliver authentic musicmaking in a supportive, singer-centred community. SUSAN SUCHARD, general manager 416-788-8482 susan@vivayouthsingers.com www.vivayouthsingers.com ● Vivace Vox Established in September 2007 within The Toronto Singing Studio, Vivace Vox is an exciting and energetic chamber choir. Led by music director Linda Eyman, the group is known for its joy of performance and wide audience appeal. Their far-ranging repertoire – madrigals, jazz standards, spirituals, world and folk music, pop classics, masterworks and music theatre – sweeps away all musical boundaries. Vivace Vox rehearses Thursday evenings 7pm to 9:30pm at Bloor Street United Church, 300 Bloor St. W., Toronto. Membership is by audition. A full-season membership is paid. LINDA EYMAN, music director 416-455-9238 linda@thetorontosingingstudio.ca www.thetorontosingingstudio.ca ● VOCA Chorus of Toronto The VOCA Chorus of Toronto is an auditioned ensemble which performs an eclectic mix of repertoire (including premieres of arrangements by our artistic director), in collaboration with some of Canada’s finest artists. Each season consists of two concerts, two retreats (one in town with guest clinician; one out of town), a cabaret, and performances at community events. Rehearsals are held on Monday nights at Eastminster United Church, 310 Danforth Ave., Toronto. On Saturday, May 7, 7:30pm at Eastminster, we will present “Vast Eternal Sky,” featuring Fauré’s stunning Requiem, along with a variety of selections by Lauridsen, Gjeilo, Daley, Dawson, Arlen and others. Director: Jenny Crober. Accompanist: Elizabeth Acker. Soloists: Elizabeth Polese, soprano; Lawrence Shirkie, baritone. Talisker Players Orchestra. JENNY CROBER 416-463-8225 crober.best@gmail.com www.vocachorus.ca ● Vocal Mosaic Founded in 2007, this 65-voice non-auditioned adult choir is characterized by a vibrant mosaic of vocal styles and repertoire. Choristers enjoy singing madrigals, spirituals, popular standards, music theatre, classical pieces and folk songs. Two formal concerts are presented each season along with community outreach concerts when possible. Vocal Mosaic is part of The Toronto Singing Studio and rehearses Monday evenings from 7pm to 9pm from September to May at Bloor Street United Church, 300 Bloor St. W., Toronto. Rehearsals are lively and sociable (camaraderie and laughter create good singing)! Vocal Mosaic is directed by Linda Eyman. A season membership is paid. LINDA EYMAN, music director 416-455-9238 linda@thetorontosingingstudio.ca www.thetorontosingingstudio.ca ● Voices Chamber Choir Entering into the choir’s 21st season, Voices has firmly established itself as one of Toronto’s finest chamber choirs, having received awards and recognition from across Canada. As part of next season, the choir will perform Charpentier’s Messe de Minuit at our Christmas concert and Mozart’s Requiem as part of our Lenten presentation. The choir will close out our next season with an all-unaccompanied program. Auditions are available throughout the year. If you are interested in joining the choir, please email voiceschamberchoir@yahoo.ca or call 416-519-0528 for more information. RON CHEUNG 416-519-0528 rkmcheung@yahoo.ca www.voiceschoir.com ●The Wayne Gilpin Singers Beautiful melodies, rocking sax solos, edgy new jazz arrangements of Handel’s Messiah – if any of this appeals to you, read on. The Waterloo-based Wayne Gilpin Singers is an auditioned (a singer-friendly audition, we promise!) chamber choir that sings a wide variety of music, including contemporary Christian, gospel, show tunes, spirituals and more. Resident composer/accompanist Andrew Gilpin pens unique arrangements for an ever-expanding Jazz Messiah, an annual event that twins Handel’s beautiful melodies with modern rhythms and musical styles. Also featured in concert are talented guest artists on bass, drums and saxophone, providing an unforgettable musical experience for both audience and choir. WAYNE GILPIN 1-800-867-3281 wayne@gilpin.ca ● Windsor Classic Chorale The Windsor Classic Chorale, founded in 1977 by conductor emeritus Richard Householder, is the premier auditioned chamber choir in Windsor and Essex County. The Chorale performs three selfpresented concerts per season. Throughout its history, the WCC has enjoyed collaborating with various arts organizations and solo artists who have travelled from near and far to sing with our organization. The Chorale also frequently partners with composers, commissioning and performing new works. Each year, the Chorale hosts the Windsor Choral Festival to provide music education outreach opportunities for choral singers, to encourage the performance of Canadian choral works and to promote community through choral singing. DR. BRUCE J.G. KOTOWICH, artistic director MONIQUE SIMONE, accompanist Dr. Danielle Sirek 519-984-6510 dsirek@uwindsor.ca www.windsorclassicchorale.org ●Yorkminstrels Show Choir Love musical theatre? No time to commit to a show? Join the Yorkminstrels Show Choir. Our Broadwayfocused group needs you! We perform off-book with costumes and simple choreography, at senior’s residences and at private, corporate and community events in the GTA. We rehearse on Wednesday nights from 7:30pm to 10:30pm at Cummer Lodge in North York, September through June. We always welcome new members – please join us! SANDI HORWITZ 416-229-9313 horwitz@rogers.com www.yorkminstrels.com/show_choir ●Young Singers Experience the magic of music and release your child’s musical artistry through choral music! A unique musical education is offered to youth in the Durham Region in a supportive and challenging environment. Four distinct choirs include two nonauditioned ensembles for ages 6 to 14, an auditioned treble choir for ages 10 to 15, and an auditioned SATB choir for ages 14 and older. Repertoire which develops musical skills and vocal technique embraces all styles and genres and often includes choreography. In addition to annual winter and spring concerts and regular community appearances, these proud choral ambassadors have enjoyed recent tours to Ireland and China, with plans to travel in 2017 as they celebrate their 25th anniversary season! ANNA LYNN MURPHY 905-686-9821 administrator@youngsingers.ca www.youngsingers.ca ●Young Voices Toronto Children’s Choir For nearly 30 years, Young Voices Toronto (YVT) (previously known as High Park Choirs of Toronto) has been developing children’s choral and musical ability, promoting inclusiveness, fun, teamwork, cultural diversity and choral excellence. The result is children who have confidence in themselves, in each other, and who produce a beautiful and unique sound. Our artistic director, Zimfira Poloz, is a worldrenowned choral music educator and adjudicator specializing in children’s voices. YVT has the distinction of being the Children’s Choir-in-Residence at the University of Toronto since 2002. SHANNON CHARNOCK 416-762-0657 manager@youngvoicestoronto.com www.youngvoicestoronto.com C16
The WholeNote listings are arranged in four sections: A. GTA (GREATER TORONTO AREA) covers all of Toronto plus Halton, Peel, York and Durham regions. B. BEYOND THE GTA covers many areas of Southern Ontario outside Toronto and the GTA. Starts on page 51. C. MUSIC THEATRE covers a wide range of music types: from opera, operetta and musicals, to non-traditional performance types where words and music are in some fashion equal partners in the drama. Starts on page 53 D. IN THE CLUBS (MOSTLY JAZZ) is organized alphabetically by club. Starts on page 54. E. THE ETCETERAS is for galas, fundraisers, competitions, screenings, lectures, symposia, masterclasses, workshops, singalongs and other music-related events (except performances) which may be of interest to our readers. Starts on page 57. A GENERAL WORD OF CAUTION. A phone number is provided with every listing in The WholeNote — in fact, we won’t publish a listing without one. Concerts are sometimes cancelled or postponed; artists or venues may change after listings are published. Please check before you go out to a concert. HOW TO LIST. Listings in The WholeNote in the four sections above are a free service available, at our discretion, to eligible presenters. If you have an event, send us your information no later than the 8th of the month prior to the issue or issues in which your listing is eligible to appear. LISTINGS DEADLINE. The next issue covers the period from June 1 to September 7, 2015. All listings must be received by Midnight Sunday May 8. LISTINGS can be sent by e-mail to listings@thewholenote.com or by fax to 416-603-4791 or by regular mail to the address on page 6. We do not receive listings by phone, but you can call 416-323-2232 x27 for further information. LISTINGS ZONE MAP. Visit our website to see a detailed version of this map: thewholenote.com. Lake Huron 6 Georgian Bay 7 2 1 5 Lake Erie 3 4 8 City of Toronto LISTINGS Lake Ontario A. Concerts in the GTA IN THIS ISSUE: Aurora, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon East, Etobicoke, Georgetown, King City, Leaskdale, Markham, Milton, Mississauga, Newmarket, North York, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough, Sharon, Toronto Island, Whitby. MUSICAL THEATRE The following musicals do not appear ●●National Ballet of Canada. Le Petit Prince. in the concert listings. Details for ●●Scarborough Music Theatre. Damn these performances can be found in Yankees. C. Musical Theatre on page 53. ●●Shaw Festival. Alice in Wonderland. ●●Civic Light Opera Company. You’re a Good ●●Starvox Entertainment. Forever Plaid. Man, Charlie Brown. ●●Stratford Festival. A Chorus Line, A Little ●●Lower Ossington Theatre. Anne of Green Night Music. Gables. ●●Toronto Catholic District School Board. ●●Mirvish Productions. If/Then, Kinky Boots, Mary Poppins. Riverdance 20 Years. ●●Young People’s Theatre. The Wizard of Oz. Sunday May 1 ●●2:00: Canadian Opera Company. Maometto II. Rossini. Luca Pisaroni, bass-baritone (Maometto); Bruce Sledge, tenor (Governor Erisso); Leah Crocetto, soprano (Anna); Elizabeth DeShong, mezzo (Calbo); and others; David Alden, director; Harry Bicket, conductor. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, 145 Queen St. W. 416-363-8231. –5. In Italian with English Surtitles. Also May 3, 5, 7, 11 and 14. Start times vary. ●●2:00: Louis De Nil. Art Song Recital. Handel: Bajazet’s Arias from Tamerlano; Britten: Canticle II (from Abraham and Isaac); Vuillemin: Rondels mélancoliques; Rachmaninoff: Op. 29 (selections); Schubert: Lieder (selections). Louis De Nil, tenor; César Aguilar, countertenor; Helen Becqué, piano. Gallery 345, 345 Sorauren Ave. 514-261-4988. PWYC. ●●2:00: Metropolitan United Church. Second Marg and Jim Norquay Celebration Concert. Charlotte Burrage, mezzo; Clarence Frazer, baritone. Metropolitan United Church (Toronto), 56 Queen St. E. 416-363-0331 x26. ; (18 and under). ●●2:00: Royal Conservatory. Academy Chamber Orchestra. Works by Bach, Beethoven, Britten and Paganini. String students from The Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy for Young Artists. Koerner Hall, Telus Centre, 273 Bloor St. W. 416-408-0208. Free (ticket required). ●●2:00: Royal Conservatory. The Hungarian- Finnish Connection. Saariaho: Changing Light for soprano and violin; works by Liszt, Bartók, Sibelius, and others. Leslie Ann Bradley, soprano; Stephen Hegedus, bass-baritone; Rachel Andrist, piano; Robert Kortgaard, piano. Guest: Erika Raum, violin. Mazzoleni Concert Hall, Royal Conservatory, 273 Bloor St. W. 416-408-0208. . ●●2:00: Visual and Performing Arts Newmarket (VPAN). Fung-Chiu Piano Duo. Newmarket Theatre, 505 Pickering Cres., Newmarket. 905-953-5122. ; (sr); (st). ●●2:30: Spectrum Music. La Suite du Petit Prince. Bilingual storytelling and music with projected images. String quartet; jazz quintet. Alliance Française de Toronto, 24 Spadina Rd. 416-937-6180. ; free(child). 2:00: Preconcert chat. ●●3:00: Community Baroque Orchestra of Toronto. Capriccio Stravagante. Vivaldi: Autumn from The Four Seasons; and works by Muffat, Buonamente and Farina. Guest: Elyssa Lefurgey-Smith, conductor and violin. Ballroom, 519 Community Centre, 519 Church St. 416-604-3440. Free. ●●3:00: Durdy Bayramov Art Foundation. Day Two: Classical Turkmen Music Days in Canada. Works by Nury Halmamedov and other Turkmen composers. Mamed Guseynov, piano/composer; Daria Rubanova, soprano. 2647 Bayview Ave., North York. 647- 344-6898. . Also May 4(Columbus Centre), May 7(Ismaili Centre). ●●3:00: Echo Women’s Choir. Songs of Hope and Resistance: Celebrating May Day and International Workers’ Day. Jara: Plegaria a un Labrador (Worker’s Prayer); Barnwell: Would you Harbor Me?; Maruxiña (mine workers’ song); Le Temps des cerises; Kucho; and other songs. Jennifer Foster, guitar; Becca Whitla and Alan Gasser, conductors; special guests: Ewlina Ferenc, vocals; Yura Rafalui, hammered dulcimer. Church of the Holy Trinity, 10 Trinity Sq. 416-779-5554. /(adv); (sr/child/un/under-waged). Wheelchair accessible. ●●3:00: Etobicoke Suzuki Music. Strings: The Next Generation. Large ensembles of violin, viola and cello performers age 3 to 18. Works from Bach to Michael Jackson. Plast Concert Hall, 516 The Kingsway, Etobicoke. 416-239- 4637. Food bank donation. ●●3:00: Flute Flight. Spring Fling! Works for flute ensemble with piano and string quartet. Cosmopolitan Hall, Cosmo Music, 10 Via Renzo Dr. Richmond Hill. 416-908-9924. ; (sr/st); (under 12). ●●3:00: Menno Singers/Pax Christi Chorale of Toronto. A Cappella Masterworks. Works by Rheinberger, Brahms, Mendelssohn, Willan, Schafer and others. Grace Church onthe-Hill, 300 Lonsdale Rd. 416-488-7884. ; (sr); (st). ●●3:00: Oakville Chamber Orchestra. Concerto Competition Grand Prize Winners. Catherine Ma, piano; Michaela Johns, cello. St. Simon’s Anglican Church, 1450 Litchfield Rd., Oakville. 905-483-6787. ; (sr); (st). ●●3:00: Syrinx. In Concert. Works by Brahms and Dvořák; new Canadian work by David Myska. String quintets with Scott St. John, violin; Solomiya Ivakhiv, violin; Douglas McNabney, viola; Sharon Wei, viola; Tom Wiebe, cello. Heliconian Hall, 35 Hazelton Ave. 416-654-0877. ; (st). Post-concert reception. ●●3:00: Toronto Operetta Theatre. Los Gavilanes (The Sparrow Hawks). By Jacinto Guerrero. Miriam Khalil (Adriana); Sarah Forestieri (Rosaura); Ernesto Ramirez (Gustavo); Guillermo Silva-Marin (Juan); and others; Larry Beckwith, conductor; Guillermo Silva- Marin, stage director. Jane Mallett Theatre, St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, 27 Front St. E. 416-366-2773. -. thewholenote.com May 1, 2016 - June 7, 2016 | 35
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Choral Scene: Uncharted territory: three choirs finding paths forward; Music Theatre: Loose Tea on the boil with Alaina Viau’s Dead Reckoning; In with the New: what happens to soundart when climate change meets COVID-19; Call to action: diversity, accountability, and reform in post-secondary jazz studies; 9th Annual TIFF Tips: a filmfest like no other; Remembering: Leon Fleisher; DISCoveries: a NY state of mind; 25th anniversary stroll-through; and more. Online in flip through here, and on stands commencing Tues SEP 1.
Following the Goldberg trail from Gould to Lang Lang; Measha Brueggergosman and Edwin Huizinga on face to face collaboration in strange times; diggings into dance as FFDN keeps live alive; "Classical unicorn?" - Luke Welch reflects on life as a Black classical pianist; Debashis Sinha's adventures in sound art; choral lessons from Skagit Valley; and the 21st annual WholeNote Blue Pages (part 1 of 3) in print and online. Here now. And, yes, still in print, with distribution starting Thursday October 1.
Alanis Obomsawin's art of life; fifteen Exquisite Departures; UnCovered re(dis)covered; jazz in the kitchen; three takes on managing record releases in times of plague; baroque for babies; presenter directory (blue pages) part two; and, here at the WholeNote, work in progress on four brick walls (or is it five?). All this and more available in flipthrough HERE, and in print Tuesday Nov 3.
In this issue: Beautiful Exceptions, Sing-Alone Messiahs, Livingston’s Vocal Pleasures, Chamber Beethoven, Online Opera (Plexiglass & All), Playlist for the Winter of our Discontent, The Oud & the Fuzz, Who is Alex Trebek? All this and more available in flipthrough HERE, and in print Friday December 4.
July/August issue is now available in flipthrough HERE, bringing to a close 25 seasons of doing what we do (and plan to continue doing), and on stands early in the week of July 5. Not the usual bucolic parade of music in the summer sun, but lots, we hope, to pass the time: links to online and virtual music; a full slate of record reviews; plenty new in the Listening Room; and a full slate of stories – the future of opera, the plight of small venues, the challenge facing orchestras, the barriers to resumption of choral life, the challenges of isolation for real-time music; the steps some festivals are taking to keep the spirit and substance of what they do alive. And intersecting with all of it, responses to the urgent call for anti-racist action and systemic change.
"COVID's Metamorphoses"? "There's Always Time (Until Suddenly There Isn't)"? "The Writing on the Wall"? It's hard to know WHAT to call this latest chapter in the extraordinary story we are all of a sudden characters in. By whatever name we call it, the MAY/JUNE combined issue of The WholeNote is now available, HERE in flip through format, in print commencing Wednesday May 6, and, in fully interactive form, online at thewholenote.com. Our 18th Annual Choral Canary Pages, scheduled for publication in print and flip through in September is already well underway with the first 50 choirs home to roost and more being added every week online. Community Voices, our cover story, brings to you the thoughts of 30 musical community members, all going through what we are going through (and with many more to come as the feature gets amplified online over the course of the coming months). And our regular writers bring their personal thoughts to the mix. Finally, a full-fledged DISCoveries review section offers cues and clues to recorded music for your solitary solace!
After some doubt that we would be allowed to go to press, in respect to wide-ranging Ontario business closures relating to COVID-19, The WholeNote magazine for April 2020 is now on press, and print distribution – modified to respect community-wide closures and the need for appropriate distancing – starts Monday March 30. Meanwhile the full magazine is right here, digitally, so if you value us PLEASE SHARE THIS LINK AS WIDELY AS YOU CAN. It's the safest way for us to reach the widest possible audience at this time!
FEATURED: Music & Health writer Vivien Fellegi explores music, blindness & the plasticity of perception; David Jaeger digs into Gustavo Gimeno's plans for new music in his upcoming first season as music director at TSO; pianist James Rhodes, here for an early March recital, speaks his mind in a Q&A with Paul Ennis; and Lydia Perovic talks music and more with rising Turkish-Canadian mezzo Beste Kalender. Also, among our columns, Peggy Baker Dance Projects headlines Wende Bartley's In with the New; Steve Wallace's Jazz Notes rushes in definitionally where many fear to tread; ... and more.
Visions of 2020! Sampling from back to front for a change: in Rearview Mirror, Robert Harris on the Beethoven he loves (and loves to hate!); Errol Gay, a most musical life remembered; Luna Pearl Woolf in focus in recordings editor David Olds' "Editor's Corner" and in Jenny Parr's preview of "Jacqueline"; Speranza Scappucci explains how not to reinvent Rossini; The Indigo Project, where "each piece of cloth tells a story"; and, leading it all off, Jully Black makes a giant leap in "Caroline, or Change." And as always, much more. Now online in flip-through format here and on stands starting Thurs Jan 30.
Welcome to our December/January issue as we turn the annual calendar page, halfway through our season for the 25th time, juggling as always, secular stuff, the spirit of the season, new year resolve and winter journeys! Why is Mozart's Handel's Messiah's trumpet a trombone? Why when Laurie Anderson offers to fly you to the moon you should take her up on the invitation. Why messing with Winterreisse can (sometimes) be a very good thing! And a bumper crop of record reviews for your reading (and sometimes listening) pleasure. Available in flipthrough here right now, and on stands commencing Thursday Nov 28. See you on the other side!
On the slim chance you might not have already heard the news, Estonian Canadian composing giant Udo Kasemets was born the same year that Leo Thermin invented the theremin --1919. Which means this is the centenary year for both of them, and both are being celebrated in style, as Andrew Timar and MJ Buell respectively explain. And that's just a taste of a bustling November, with enough coverage of music of both the delectably substantial and delightfully silly on hand to satisfy one and all.
Long promised, Vivian Fellegi takes a look at Relaxed Performance practice and how it is bringing concert-going barriers down across the spectrum; Andrew Timar looks at curatorial changes afoot at the Music Gallery; David Jaeger investigates the trumpets of October; the 30th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution (and the 20th Anniversary of our October Blue Pages Presenter profiles) in our Editor's Opener; the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir at 125; Tapestry at 40 and Against the Grain at 10; ringing in the changing season across our features and columns; all this and more, now available in Flip Through format here, and on the stands commencing this coming Friday September 27, 2019. Enjoy.
Vol 1 of our 25th season is now here! And speaking of 25, that's how many films in the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival editor Paul Ennis, in our Eighth Annual TIFF TIPS, has chosen to highlight for their particular musical interest. Also inside: Rob Harris looks through the Rear View Mirror at past and present prognostications about the imminent death of classical music; Mysterious Barricades and Systemic Barriers are Lydia Perović's preoccupations in Art of Song; Andrew Timar reflects on the evolving priorities of the Polaris Prize; and elsewhere, it's chocks away as yet another season creaks or roars (depending on the beat) into motion. Welcome back.
What a range of stuff! A profile of Liz Upchurch, the COC ensemble studio's vocal mentor extraordinaire; a backgrounder on win-win faith/arts centre partnerships and ways of exploring the possibilities; an interview with St. Petersburg-based Eifman Ballet's Boris Eifman; Ana Sokolovic's violin concert Evta finally coming to town; a Love Letter to YouTube, and much more. Plus our 17th annual Canary Pages Choral directory if all you want to do is sing! sing! sing!
Arraymusic, the Music Gallery and Native Women in the Arts join for a mini-festival celebrating the work of composer, performer and installation artist Raven Chacon; Music and Health looks at the role of Healing Arts Ontario in supporting concerts in care facilities; Kingston-based composer Marjan Mozetich's life and work are celebrated in film; "Forest Bathing" recontextualizes Schumann, Shostakovich and Hindemith; in Judy Loman's hands, the harp can sing; Mahler's Resurrection bursts the bounds of symphonic form; Ed Bickert, guitar master remembered. All this and more in our April issue, now online in flip-through here, and on stands commencing Friday March 29.
Something Old, Something New! The Ide(a)s of March are Upon Us! Rob Harris's Rear View Mirror looks forward to a tonal revival; Tafelmusik expands their chronological envelope in two directions, Esprit makes wave after wave; Pax Christi's new oratorio by Barbara Croall catches the attention of our choral and new music columnists; and summer music education is our special focus, right when warm days are once again possible to imagine. All this and more in our March 2019 edition, available in flipthrough here, and on the stands starting Thursday Feb 28.
In this issue: A prize that brings lustre to its laureates (and a laureate who brings lustre to the prize); Edwin Huizinga on the journey of Opera Atelier's "The Angel Speaks" from Versailles to the ROM; Danny Driver on playing piano in the moment; Remembering Neil Crory (a different kind of genius)' Year of the Boar, Indigeneity and Opera; all this and more in Volume 24 #5. Online in flip through, HERE and on the stands commencing Thursday Jan 31.
When is a trumpet like a motorcycle in a dressage event? How many Brunhilde's does it take to change an Elektra? Just two of the many questions you've been dying to ask, to which you will find answers in a 24th annual combined December/January issue – in which our 11 beat columnists sift through what's on offer in the upcoming holiday month, and what they're already circling in their calendars for 2019. Oh, and features too: a klezmer violinist breathing new life into a very old film; two New Music festivals in January, 200 metres apart; a Music & Health story on the restorative powers of a grassroots exercise in collective music-making; even a good reason to go to Winnipeg in the dead of winter. All this and more in Vol 24 No 4, now available in flipthrough format here.
Reluctant arranger! National Ballet Orchestra percussionist Kris Maddigan on creating the JUNO and BAFTA award-winning smash hit Cuphead video game soundtrack; Evergreen by name and by nature, quintessentially Canadian gamelan (Andrew Timar explains); violinist Angèle Dubeau on 20 years and 60 million streams; two children’s choirs where this month remembrance and living history must intersect. And much more, online in our kiosk now, and on the street commencing Thursday November 1.
Presenters, start your engines! With TIFF and "back-to-work" out of the way, the regular concert season rumbles to life, and, if our Editor's Opener can be trusted, "Seeking Synergies" seems to be the name of the game. Denise Williams' constantly evolving "Walk Together Children" touching down at the Toronto Centre for the Arts; the second annual Festival of Arabic Music and Arts expanding its range; a lesson in Jazz Survival with Steve Wallace; the 150 presenter and performer profiles in our 19th annual Blue Pages directory... this is an issue that is definitely more than the sum of its parts.
In this issue: The WholeNote's 7th Annual TIFF TIPS guide to festival films with musical clout; soprano Erin Wall in conversation with Art of Song columnist Lydia Perovic, about more than the art of song; a summer's worth of recordings reviewed; Toronto Chamber Choir at 50 (is a few close friends all it takes?); and much more, as the 2018/19 season gets under way.
PLANTING NOT PAVING! In this JUNE / JULY /AUGUST combined issue: Farewell interviews with TSO's Peter Oundjian and Stratford Summer Music's John Miller, along with "going places" chats with Luminato's Josephine Ridge, TD Jazz's Josh Grossman and Charm of Finches' Terry Lim. ) Plus a summer's worth of fruitful festival inquiry, in the city and on the road, in a feast of stories and our annual GREEN PAGES summer Directory.
In this issue: our sixteenth annual Choral Canary Pages; coverage of 21C, Estonian Music Week and the 3rd Toronto Bach Festival (three festivals that aren’t waiting for summer!); and features galore: “Final Finales” for Larry Beckwith’s Toronto Masque Theatre and for David Fallis as artistic director of Toronto Consort; four conductors on the challenges of choral conducting; operatic Hockey Noir; violinist Stephen Sitarski’s perspective on addressing depression; remembering bandleader, composer and saxophonist Paul Cram. These and other stories, in our May 2018 edition of the magazine.
In this issue: we talk with jazz pianist Thompson Egbo-Egbo about growing up in Toronto, building a musical career, and being adaptive to change; pianist Eve Egoyan prepares for her upcoming Luminato project and for the next stage in her long-term collaborative relationship with Spanish-German composer Maria de Alvear; jazz violinist Aline Homzy, halfway through preparing for a concert featuring standout women bandleaders, talks about social equity in the world of improvised music; and the local choral community celebrates the life and work of choral conductor Elmer Iseler, 20 years after his passing.
In this issue: Canadian Stage, Tapestry Opera and Vancouver Opera collaborate to take Gogol’s short story The Overcoat to the operatic stage; Montreal-based Sam Shalabi brings his ensemble Land of Kush, and his newest composition, to Toronto; Five Canadian composers, each with a different CBC connection, are nominated for JUNOs; and The WholeNote team presents its annual Summer Music Education Directory, a directory of summer music camps, programs and courses across the province and beyond.
In this issue: composer Nicole Lizée talks about her love for analogue equipment, and the music that “glitching” evokes; Richard Rose, artistic director at the Tarragon Theatre, gives us insights into their a rock-and-roll Hamlet, now entering production; Toronto prepares for a mini-revival of Schoenberg’s music, with three upcoming shows at New Music Concerts; and the local music theatre community remembers and celebrates the life and work of Mi’kmaq playwright and performer Cathy Elliott . These and other stories, in our double-issue December/January edition of the magazine.
In this issue: conversations (of one kind or another) galore! Daniela Nardi on taking the reins at "best-kept secret" venue, 918 Bathurst; composer Jeff Ryan on his "Afghanistan" Requiem for a Generation" partnership with war poet, Susan Steele; lutenist Ben Stein on seventeenth century jazz; collaborative pianist Philip Chiu on going solo; Barbara Hannigan on her upcoming Viennese "Second School" recital at Koerner; Tina Pearson on Pauline Oliveros; and as always a whole lot more!
In this issue: several local artists reflect on the memory of composer Claude Vivier, as they prepare to perform his music; Vancouver gets ready to host international festival ISCM World New Music Days, which is coming to Canada for the second time since its inception in 1923; one of the founders of Artword Artbar, one of Hamilton’s staple music venues, on the eve of the 5th annual Steel City Jazz Festival, muses on keeping urban music venues alive; and a conversation with pianist Benjamin Grosvenor, as he prepares for an ambitious recital in Toronto. These and other stories, in our October 2017 issue of the magazine.
In this issue: a look at why musicians experience stage fright, and how to combat it; an inside look at the second Kensington Market Jazz Festival, which zeros in on one of Toronto’s true ‘music villages’; an in-depth interview with Elisa Citterio, new music director of Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra; and The WholeNote’s guide to TIFF, with suggestions for the 20 most musical films at this year’s festival. These and other stories, in our September 2017 issue of the magazine!
CBC Radio's Lost Horizon; Pinocchio as Po-Mo Operatic Poster Boy; Meet the Curators (Crow, Bernstein, Ridge); a Global Music Orchestra is born; and festivals, festivals, festivals in our 13th annual summer music Green Pages. All this and more in our three-month June-through August summer special issue, now available in flipthrough HERE and on the stands commencing Thursday June 1.
From science fact in "Integral Man: Music and the Movies," to science fiction in the editor's opener; from World Fiddle Day at the Aga Khan Museum to three Canadians at the Cliburn; from wanting to sashay across the 401 to Chamberfest in Montreal to exploring the Continuum of Jumblies Theatre's 20-year commitment to the Community Play (there's a pun in there somewhere!).
In this issue: Our podcast ramps up with interviews in March with fight director Jenny Parr, countertenor Daniel Taylor, and baritone Russell Braun; two views of composer John Beckwith at 90; how music’s connection to memory can assist with the care of patients with Alzheimer’s; musical celebrations in film and jazz, at National Canadian Film Day and Jazz Day; and a preview of Louis Riel, which opens this month at the COC. These and other stories, in our April 2017 issue of the magazine!
On our cover: Owen Pallett's musical palette on display at New Creations. Spring brings thoughts of summer music education! (It's never too late.). For Marc-Andre Hamelin the score is king. Ella at 100 has the tributes happening. All; this and more.
In this issue: an interview with composer/vocalist Jeremy Dutcher, on his upcoming debut album and unique compositional voice; a conversation with Boston Symphony hornist James Sommerville, as as the BSO gets ready to come to his hometown; Stuart Hamilton, fondly remembered; and an inside look at Hugh’s Room, as it enters a complicated chapter in the story of its life in the complex fabric of our musical city. These and other stories, as we celebrate the past and look forward to the rest of 2016/17, the first glimpses of 2017/18, and beyond!
In this issue: a conversation with pianist Stewart Goodyear, in advance of his upcoming show at Koerner Hall; a preview of the annual New Year’s phenomenon that is Bravissimo!/Salute to Vienna; an inside look at music performance in Toronto’s health-care centres; and a reflection on the incredible life and lasting influence of the late Pauline Oliveros. These and more, in a special December/January combined issue!
In this issue: David Jaeger and Alex Pauk’s most memorable R. Murray Schafer collabs, in this month’s installment of Jaeger’s CBC Radio Two: The Living Legacy; an interview with flutist Claire Chase, who brings new music and mindset to Toronto this month; an investigation into the strange coincidence of three simultaneous Mendelssohn Elijahs this Nov 5; and of course, our annual Blue Pages, a who’s who of southern Ontario’s live music scene- a community as prolific and multifaceted as ever. These and more, as we move full-force into the 2016/17 concert season- all aboard!
Music lover's TIFF (our fifth annual guide to the Toronto International Film Festival); Aix Marks the Spot (how Brexit could impact on operatic co-production); The Unstoppable Howard Cable (an affectionate memoir of a late chapter in the life of of a great Canadian arranger; Kensington Jazz Story (the newest kid on the festival block flexes its muscles). These stories and much more as we say a lingering goodbye to summer and turn to the task, for the 22nd season, of covering the live and recorded music that make Southern Ontario tick.
It's combined June/July/August summer issue time with, we hope, enough between the covers to keep you dipping into it all through the coming lazy, hazy days. From Jazz Vans racing round "The Island" delivering pop-up brass breakouts at the roadside, to Bach flute ambushes strolling "The Grove, " to dozens of reasons to stay in the city. May yours be a summer where you find undiscovered musical treasures, and, better still, when, unexpectedly, the music finds you.
INSIDE: The Canaries Are Here! 116 choirs to choose from, so take the plunge! The Nylons hit the road after one last SING! Fling. Jazz writer Steve Wallace wonders "Watts Goode" rather than "what's new?" Paul Ennis has the musical picks of the HotDocs crop. David Jaeger's CBC Radio continues golden for a little while yet. Douglas McNabney is Music's Child. Leipzig meets Damascus in Alison Mackay's fertile imagination. And "C" is for KRONOS in Wende Bartley's koverage of the third annual 21C Festival. All this and as usual much much more. Enjoy.
From 30 camp profiles to spark thoughts of being your summer musical best, to testing LUDWIG as you while away the rest of so-called winter; from Scottish Opera and the Danish Midtvest, to a first Toronto recital appearance by violin superstar Maxim Vengerov; from musings on New Creations and new creation, to the boy who made a habit of crying Beowulf; it's a month of merry meetings and rousing recordings reviewed, all here to discover in The WholeNote.
2016 is off to a flying start! We chronicle the Artful Times of Andrew Burashko, the violistic versatility of Teng Li, the ageless ebullience of jazz pianist Gene DiNovi and the ninetieth birthday of trumpeter Johnny Cowell. Jaeger remembers Boulez; Waxman recalls Bley's influence, and Olds finds Bowie haunting Editor's Corner. Oh, and did we mention there's all that music? Hello (and goodbye) to the February blues, and here's to swinging through the musical vines of the Year of the Monkey.
What's a vinyl renaissance? What happens when Handel's Messiah runs afoul of the rumba rhythm setting on a (gasp!) Hammond organ? What work does Marc-Andre Hamelin say he would be content to have on every recital program he plays? What are Steve Wallace's favourite fifty Christmas recordings? Why is violinist Daniel Hope celebrating Yehudi Menuhin's 100th birthday at Koerner Hall January 28? Answers to all these questions (and a whole lot more) in the Dec/Jan issue of The WholeNote.
"Come" seems to be the verb that knits this month's issue together. Sondra Radvanovsky comes to Koerner, William Norris comes to Tafel as their new GM, opera comes to Canadian Stage; and (a long time coming!) Jane Bunnett's musicianship and mentorship are honoured with the Premier's award for excellence; plus David Jaeger's ongoing series on the golden years of CBC Radio Two, Andrew Timar on hybridity, a bumper crop of record reviews and much much more. Come on in!
Vol 21 No 2 is now available for your viewing pleasure, and it's a bumper crop, right at the harvest moon. First ever Canadian opera on the Four Seasons Centre main stage gets double coverage with Wende Bartley interviewing Pyramus and Thisbe composer Barbara Monk Feldman and Chris Hoile connecting with director Christopher Alden; Paul Ennis digs into the musical mind of pianist Benjamin Grosvenor, and pianist Eve Egoyan is "On the Record" in conversation with publisher David Perlman ahead of the Oct release concert for her tenth recording. And at the heart of it all the 16th edition of our annual BLUE PAGES directory of presenters profile the season now well and truly under way.
Paul Ennis's annual TIFF TIPS (27 festival films of potential particular musical interest); Wu Man, Yo-Yo Ma and Jeffrey Beecher on the Silk Road; David Jaeger on CBC Radio Music in the days it was committed to commissioning; the LISTENING ROOM continues to grow on line; DISCoveries is back, bigger than ever; and Mary Lou Fallis says Trinity-St. Paul's is Just the Spot (especially this coming Sept 25!).