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.
GREEN PAGES Indian River
GREEN PAGES Indian River Festival Indian River, PE GUELPH JAZZ FESTIVAL ➤ September 13 to 17 Guelph, ON Join us for five days of world-class creative music in one of Ontario’s loveliest cities. Heralded as a visionary musical event, our intimate communitypowered festival celebrates the best in contemporary improvised music, offers ticketed concerts plus a free outdoor series on Friday and Saturday in Market Square, and hosts a free educational colloquium with panel talks, keynotes, and artist interviews. Some of the artists featured include: BassDrumBone with Ray Anderson, Mark Helias and Gerry Hemingway; John Butcher, Thomas Lehn and Matthew Shipp; Peter Brötzmann solo; Peggy Lee’s Film in Music; René Lussier’s MEUH; Ray Anderson’s Pocket Brass Band; Matthew Shipp solo; Cluttertones with Lee Pui Ming; Barnyard Drama with Christine Duncan and Jean Martin; plus many more. 519-763-4952 www.guelphjazzfestival.com HUNTSVILLE FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS ➤ July 5 to August 26 Huntsville, ON Celebrating 25 years of presenting top quality international, national and local performing arts concerts, the Huntsville Festival has planned a special celebration season for this July and August. The opening night gala features The Canadian Brass, who opened the inaugural season in 1993. Conductor Kerry Stratton and the fully professional Festival Orchestra, a mainstay in the festival’s earlier years, will return with two concerts. The eclectic lineup features Colin James, Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy, Jesse Cook, country star Corb Lund and ageless rockers Lighthouse, along with numerous other great artists. Daytime concerts, children’s shows and the return of Nuit Blanche North are highlights. Box Office: 705-789-4975 www.huntsvillefestival.on.ca HIGHLANDS OPERA STUDIO ➤ August 3 to 31 Haliburton and Minden, ON Join us for our 11th season celebrating Canada’s sesquicentennial, and hear the best young professional voices Canada has to offer in the beauty of the Haliburton Highlands, only two and a half hours northeast of the GTA. Established in 2007 by internationally-acclaimed Canadian tenor Richard Margison and Canadian stage director/violist Valerie Kuinka, the Highlands Opera Studio is an advanced intensive training and professional networking program for emerging opera professionals. Chosen from 150+ applicants from across Canada through competitive auditions, the 2017 vocal participants can be heard throughout the month of August, in masterclasses with Richard Margison, four concerts and two staged operas. Experience the first public workshop performance of our new opera commission, Wiikondiwin (Feast), written and composed by Odawa First Nation composer Barbara Croall, along with four performances of Mozart’s “battle of the sexes,” Così fan tutte. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit our website. 1-855-457-9933 www.highlandsoperastudio.com INDIAN RIVER FESTIVAL ➤ June 9 to September 17 Indian River, PE Presented by the Confederation Bridge, the Indian River Festival offers a summer-long series of concerts in a magnificent heritage church set within sight of beautiful Malpeque Bay. Discover excellence in folk, blues, roots, jazz, classical, choral, Maritime, world and contemporary music by the finest artists from Prince Edward Island and across Canada, all in the worldclass acoustical setting of Historic St. Mary’s, Indian River. 1-866-856-3733 or 902-836-3733 www.indianriverfestival.com KENSINGTON MARKET JAZZ FESTIVAL ➤ September 15 to 17 Toronto, ON Described as “wildly successful” by The Globe and Mail, the inaugural Kensington Market Jazz Festival debuted in style the second weekend of September 2016, when over 200 Toronto musicians performed over 100 shows at nine venues in Kensington Market. Founder Molly Johnson and her team developed this festival to celebrate the neighbourhood’s cultural history, as well as Toronto’s world-class musical fabric of professional musicians. The festival is a not-for-profit organization committed to presenting live musical excellence, and to date has supported The Stephen Lewis Foundation, The Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada, St. Stephen’s Community Centre and the Archie Alleyne Scholarship Fund charities. The 2017 edition will take place September 15 to 17. See website for updates. 416-509-3137 www.kensingtonjazz.com KINCARDINE SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL ➤ June to August, 2017 Kincardine, ON Celebrating its 26th anniversary, KSMF is known for excellent programming. In 2017, the festival continues to present fabulous live concerts starring G4 | Summer2017 thewholenote.com
illiant vocalists and wonderful instrumentalists. Looking forward to Rick Fines and Roly Platt, June 16; Sultans of String Duo, August 8; and Stuart Laughton’s “Radio Dial,” August 10; plus many others. Don’t miss the popular free 4 O’Clock in the Park concerts August 6 to 11 and daily music classes August 7 to 11 for everyone from beginners to experienced players, aged 7 to adult. Guitar, Strings and Bands – a fun time and great for families! Kincardine Summer Music Festival – creating fabulous musical experiences for 26 years! 519-396-9716 www.ksmf.ca LEITH SUMMER FESTIVAL ➤ July 1 to August 26 Leith, ON Leith Summer Festival and artistic director Robert Kortgaard present five concerts in July and August in the Historic Leith Church, 12km from Owen Sound on Georgian Bay. Leith Church is a wonderfully intimate venue with excellent acoustics enjoyed by musicians and audiences alike. The festival begins on Saturday, July 1 with “And So it Goes...”: songs by baritone Brett Polegato with Robert Kortgaard, piano. Saturday July 15, Duo Concertante performs Bach, Crawley and Franck. July 29 features pianist Mauro Bertoli playing Bach, Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Grieg. The Gryphon Trio appears on August 5, while the Rolston String Quartet closes the season on August 26. All concerts are on Saturday evenings, starting at 7:30pm. Tickets at the Roxy Theatre in Owen Sound. 519-371-2833 www.leithfestival.ca LULAWORLD 2017 ➤ June 1 to 11 Toronto, ON Celebrating the 15th anniversary of Lula Lounge, the 2017 Lulaworld festival will bring together artists with roots in Cuba, Chile, Tibet, Colombia, Mexico, Brazil, Portugal and beyond for 11 days of original collaborations and new projects that cross borders, genres and generations. This year’s edition of Lulaworld features more than 20 performances including two CD releases, a street mural project, lessons in Brazilian forró, Cuban salsa, and Tibetan dance, a panel on music in the media and a community street brass band performance that you can take part in. Visit www.lulaworld.ca and www.lula.ca for full details. 416-797-4890 www.lula.ca MARKHAM VILLAGE MUSIC FESTIVAL ➤ June 16 and 17 Markham, ON The Markham Village Music Festival is celebrating Canada’s 150th birthday and 40 years of music and fun. Please visit the Markham Village Music Festival website for more information, vendor registration or to volunteer. June 16, 6pm to 11pm: Great entertainment on five stages! Children’s Village in Morgan Park 5pm to 9pm. New this year, we are hosting a Town Crier competition featuring Criers from across Canada. Enjoy culinary delights at Taste of Markham. June 17, 10am to 9pm: The music and the fun continue! Morgan Park features a petting zoo, fun inflatables and an entertainment Music at Port Milford Milford, ON stage. Listen to Practically Hip – a tribute band. Don’t miss the finale of the Town Crier competition. In the morning, visit the award-winning farmers’ market on Robinson street. 647-983-9054 www.markhamfestival.com MONTREAL CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL ➤ May 26 to June 18 Montreal, QC The Montreal Chamber Music Festival dedicates its 22nd season to the spirit of Beethoven with “Beethoven: Passion romantique.” Founder and artistic director Denis Brott, C.M. has featured the music of Beethoven on almost all festival concerts, anchored by the performance of the complete Beethoven string quartets over six concerts by the extraordinary Dover Quartet, who have “enjoyed a rise to the top [that] looks practically meteoric” (Strings Magazine). Additional artists featured this season include superstar Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki, a world premiere by Yoav Talmi, the Israeli Chamber Project, the Rolston String Quartet, the always-popular jazz series with Rémi Bolduc, Robi Botos and Natalie MacMaster, and much more. A total of 43 events, at all times of day, fill out the festival schedule for more concerts, more free events, and more Beethoven than ever before. 514-489-7444 www.festivalmontreal.org MUSIC AND BEYOND ➤ July 4 to 17 Ottawa, ON Music and Beyond is a classical music and multidisciplinary arts festival that takes place July 4 to 17 in Ottawa. It presents classical music in all formations and pursues links between other art forms, cultural disciplines and music, including visual art, drama, poetry, dance, architecture, circus, magic, science, comedy, law, food and wine and even yoga. Music and Beyond is virtually unique in the international field of music festivals by making this a core part of its mandate. By tying together a wide range of cultural disciplines, the festival creates a more “festive” atmosphere, helping thewholenote.com Summer2017 | G5
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!).
