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Volume 23 Issue 7 - April 2018

  • Text
  • April
  • Toronto
  • Jazz
  • Musical
  • Symphony
  • Arts
  • Performing
  • Choir
  • Theatre
  • Orchestra
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.

were attuned to jazz and

were attuned to jazz and who appreciated a casual or bohemian atmosphere, as a reaction against the social and cultural mores of Toronto the Good,” he adds. Toronto’s original so-called music room was the House of Hambourg which operated from 1948 to 1963 in four locations near Bloor and Bay. Some clubs specialized in Dixieland, others in modern jazz. But the ones which lasted the longest, such as George’s, Bourbon Street/Basin Street, the Colonial and the Town Tavern offered all sorts of fare. “Many of the owners were music fans and they became even more so if the place made money,” notes Coram. “Some even booked hard-core jazz bands as a prestige or loss-leader venture.” Still, in some cases the lowering of the drinking age to 18 in 1971 led some to start featuring rock music. One show sidelight also traces the activities of several jazz entrepreneurs active at the time, such as Dave Caplan. A tailor, not a club owner, during a career that lasted from the late 1950s to the mid-1980s, he booked jazz at locations that included Club Norman, East 85th, St. Regis Hotel and Meyer’s Deli. One photo shows a snappily dressed Caplan greeting patrons at the St. Regis. “The pure music places tended to be … a reaction against the social and cultural mores of Toronto the Good.” — Ralph Coram The exhibit was the result of four years of research which involved combing though voluminous paper and photographic files in university, library, government and private archives. Coram explains that “I’m old enough to have been to some of these places like the Colonial, and Bourbon Street. The experiences there always stuck with me and I wanted to bring them back to public consciousness through visual history. “While this exhibition shows that jazz heritage is a large part of Toronto’s reputation as Music City, the debate in this city around the continuing demise of live music venues is something the jazz community has been dealing with for decades. There’s never been a shortage of local jazz musicians, just a shortage of places for them to play. The jazz community was also right at the centre of some of the social issues of the day, including the struggle to overcome racism, to include Canadian musical content in shows and to participate in urban revitalization.” Notes in the Night continues until June 23. Located on the second floor of the St. Lawrence Market, 95 Front St. E., the gallery is open Tuesday to Thursday: 10am to 4pm; Friday: 10am to 6pm; Saturday: 9am to 4pm. Closed Sundays, Mondays. toronto.ca/marketgallery Ken Waxman, a regular contributor to DISCoveries, also writes the Something in the Air column. This Thirsty Land April 29, 2018 3:30pm St Anne’s Anglican Church, 270 Gladstone Ave, Toronto Water’s life-giving force! Celebrate the Toronto premiere of Ontario composer Leonard Enns’ This Thirsty Land - a reflective tribute to our intense relationship with water and its precious life-giving force with Orpheus and the award-winning DaCapo Chamber Choir. Robert Cooper, C.M. Artistic Director, Edward Moroney, Accompanist Guest Artists DaCapo Chamber Choir Orpheus Chamber Ensemble www.orpheuschoirtoronto.com 416-530-4428 The Jackman Foundation April 2018 thewholenote.com

May 24 29, 2018 in Toronto Estonia’s best musical talent to be showcased along with leading Canadian artists, taking place in Toronto’s finest venues. featuring: AVARUS ENSEMBLE (EST) DIANA (CAN) ERKI PÄRNOJA (EST) ESTONIAN VOICES (EST) ELIZABETH SHEPHERD (CAN) JUSTIN GRAY & SYNTHESIS (CAN) KAILI KINNON (CAN) KADRI VOORAND QUARTET (EST) The leslie spits (CAN) KARA-LIS COVERDALE (CAN) KRISTJAN RANDALU TRIO (EST) MAARJA NUUT & HH (EST) MARTIN KUUSKMANN (US) PIA FRAUS (EST) QUARTETTO GELATO (CAN) ROSIE LINDAU & TIINA KIIK (CAN) SANDER MÖLDER (EST) VOX CLAMANTIS (EST) Estonian Music Week is part of the official Canadian EV100 celebrations of Estonia’s 100th year of independence estonianmusicweek.ca

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