In this issue: The Toronto Brazilian bateria beat goes on; TD Jazz in Yorkville is three years young; Murray Schafer's earliest Wilderness forays revisited; cellist/composer Cris Derksen's Maada'ookkii Songlines to close Luminato (and it's free!); our 15th annual Green Pages summer music guide; all this and more in our combined June/July/August issue now available in flipthrough format here and on stands starting Thursday May 30.
www.pecmusicfestival.com
www.pecmusicfestival.com Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. Prince Edward County Jazz Festival Aug 13 to 18 Picton, Prince Edward County, ON 1-877-411-4761 www.pecjazz.org Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. Something Else! Festival Jun 20 to 23 Various venues 289-993-1993 www.zulapresents.org Performances take place at various venues in Hamilton. Visit our website for further information. ●●Jun 20 7:00: Earth Wind & Choir (Sarah Good, conductress); Yves Charuest, alto sax; Indigenous Mind (Hamid Drake, drums/percussion; Joshua Abrams, double bass/guimbri; Jason Adasiewicz, vibraphone); William Hooker, drums/percussion/poetry. ●●Jun 21 12:00 noon: The Archives of Eternity (Mike Hundevad, vibes/comp; Mike Gennaro, drums; Patrick Smith, tenor sax; Andrew Furlong, double bass); Jason Adasiewcz, vibraphone; Brodie West, alto sax; Hamid Drake, drums/percussion; Iva Bittová, violin/vocals; 7:00: Picastro (Liz Hysen, guitar/piano/vocals); Gilliam/Milmine/Pottie (Bill Gilliam, piano; Kayla Milmine, soprano sax; Ambrose Pottie, drums); Hooker/Charuest/Newsome/Eguiluz (William Hooker, drums/percussion; Yves Charuest, alto sax; Sam Newsome, soprano sax; Géraldine Eguiluz, voice, various instruments); Iva Bittová, violin/vocals; Hamid Drake, drums/percussion. ●●Jun 22 1:00: Sara Schoenbeck, bassoon; Harris Eisenstadt’s Poschiavo 50 Ensembles (Harris Eisenstaedt, drums/ conductor/composition; Sara Schoenbeck, bassoon; Yves Charues, alto sax; Sam Newsome, soprano sax; Don Byron, reeds, Géraldine Eguiluz, voice/guitar/trumpet; David Lee, double bass; Connor Bennett, sax; Chris Palmer, guitar; Nick Fraser, drums); Joshua Abrams, double bass/guimbri; No Silenz (Susanna Hood, voice; Jason Sharp, bass sax; Fredéric B Briet, double bass; Christophe Rocher, clarinets); 7:00: Tidal Pool (Connor Bennett, sax/electronics); Eguiluz Trio (Géraldine Eguiluz, voice/ guitar/pocket trumpet/Bulgarian flute/ kalimba; Jean René, viola/voice; Stéphane Diamantakiou, double bass/voice); Iva Bittová, violin/vocals; Indigenous Mind (Hamid Drake, drums/percussion; Joshua Abrams, double bass/guimbri; Jason Adasiewicz, vibraphone; Don Byron, reeds). ●●Jun 23 1:00: Joanna Duda, piano/electronics; Eucalyptus (Brodie West, alto sax; Ryan Driver, clavinet; Rebecca Hennessy, trumpet; Kurt Newman, guitar; Mike Smith, bass; Blake Howard, percussion; Nick Fraser, drums; Evan Cartwright, drums); Sam Newsome, soprano sax; 5:00: Sourpussy (Victoria Alstein, Becky Katz, Jessica Summer Festivals Somers, Heather South, various instruments/vocals); Ear-Cam (Christine Duncan, voice; John Oswald, alto sax; Tomasz Krakowiak, percussion; Glen Hall, woodwinds/percussion/electronics); Don Byron, clarinets. South Coast Jazz Aug 17 to 18 Port Dover Community Centre 801 St. George St., Port Dover ON 519-774-2787 (ARTS) www.southcoastjazz.com Performances take place at various venues in Port Dover. Visit our website for further information. ●●Aug 17 5:00: Powder Blues Band, Dave Restivo, Alison Young, Eric St Laurent, Juliann Kuchocki and others. ●●Aug 18 5:30: Dinner Show and River Cruise. Stonebridge Wasaga Beach Blues Sep 13 to 15 Wasaga Beach, ON 705-607-7744 www.wasagabeachblues.com Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. Stratford Summer Music Jul 15 to Aug 25 Stratford, ON 1-866-288-4313 www.stratfordsummermusic.ca Performances take place at various venues in Stratford. Visit our website for further information. ●●Jul 17 7:00: Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. Guest: Simone Dinnerstein; Anne Manson, music director. ●●Jul 18 7:00: Leslie Ting Speculation. ●●Jul 19 9:00: Stephen Prutsman. ●●Jul 21 3:00: Chamber Music Concert. Stephen Prutsman, piano; Stéphane Tétreault, cello; Mark Fewer, violin. ●●Jul 24 7:00: The Brothers Creeggan. Guests: Tom Allen, Robert Carli, Mark Fewer. ●●Jul 25 7:00: Amir Amiri. ●●Jul 26 9:00: Duane Andrews and Friends. ●●Jul 27 11:00am: Musical Brunches with Graham Hargrove; 3:00: Oh Happy Day! Ben Heppner with the Toronto Mass Choir. ●●Jul 28 4:00: National Youth Orchestra of Canada. Michael Francis, conductor. ●●Jul 29 7:00: Payadora. ●●Jul 31 3:00: Joe Trio; 7:00: Laila Biali. ●●Aug 01 11:00am: Guy Few, trumpet & Stephen Mara, piano & Mark Fewer, interviewer; 7:00: The Cannabis Cantata. Mireille Asselin, soprano; Matthew Dalen, tenor; Adam Harris, baritone. Restricted to 19+. Photo ID required. ●●Aug 02 3:00: Hatch – Continuum; 9:00: Phil Dwyer Trio. ●●Aug 03 11:00am: Musical Brunches with Joseph Phillips; 7:00: Janina Fialkowska. ●●Aug 05 7:00: Nat Cole: A King’s Centennial. Paul Marinaro, vocals; Ben Paterson, piano; Jim Doxas, drums; Mike Downess, bass. ●●Aug 07 7:00: Harmen Fraanje & Lucas Dann; 7:00: Bernice. Robin Dann, Felicity Williams, vocals; Philippe Melanson, e-drums; Thom Gill, synths; Dan Fortin, bass. A WORLD OF MUSIC FOR EVERYONE ●●Aug 08 3:00: Steven Dann & Friends. Steven Dann, viola; Clark Schaufele, piano; Drew Comstock, cello; Mark Fewer, violin; 7:00: Nico Dann Trio. ●●Aug 09 3:00: Isabel Bayrakdarian. Robert Kortgaard, piano; Mark Fewer, violin; 9:00: Jodi Proznick Trio. Heather Bambrick, vocals. ●●Aug 10 11:00am: Musical Brunches with Clark Schaufele; 11:00am: Sing For Health! Rachel Shubert. ●●Aug 15 3:00: Nevermore, Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe. Tom Allen; Lori Gemmell; The Rosebud Quartet. ●●Aug 16 9:00: Tom Allen & Co.: Bohemians in Brooklyn. Tom Allen, voice/trombone; Lori Gemmell, harp/guitar/voice; Bryce Kulak, piano/voice; Patricia O’Callaghan, voice/ percussion. ●●Aug 17 11:00am: Musical Brunches with Andrew Downing. ●●Aug 18 7:00: John MacLeod’s Rex Hotel Orchestra. ●●Aug 19 1:00: Vocal Academy Performance. ●●Aug 21 3:00: Vocal Academy Finale Concert; 7:00: Art of Time Ensemble. ●●Aug 22 3:00: Party Like It’s 1689! Suzie LeBlanc, soprano; Mark Fewer, violin; Matthias Maute, recorder; 7:00: John Novacek. James Campbell, clarinet; Mark Fewer, violin. ●●Aug 23 9:00: Rhapsody in Blue. The Campbells; Mark Fewer; INNERchamber. ●●Aug 24 11:00am: Musical Brunches with Thomas Wiebe; 7:00: Two Bass Hit with Dave Young and Joel Quarrington. Dave Young, Joel Quarrington, bass; John Novacek, piano. ●●Aug 25 3:00: Rémi Bolduc Jazz Ensemble: Tribute to Dave Brubeck. Summer Music in the Garden Jun 27 to Sep 15 Toronto Music Garden 470 Queens Quay W., Toronto, ON 416-793-4000 www.harbourfrontcentre.com/ summermusic All concerts are free. ●●Jun 27 7:00: War and Peace. Madawaska Quartet. ●●Jun 30 4:00: Four Seasons, Four Viols: Vivaldi’s Quattro Stagioni Revisited. Les Voix Humaines, viol quartet. ●●Jul 04 7:00: Tastes of Home: New Music for Traditional Chinese & Korean Instruments. Amely Zhou, erhu; Lipeng Wu, dizi; Roa Lee, gayageum, Evan Lamberton, cello. ●●Jul 07 4:00: Tea for Three. Cénacle. ●●Jul 11 7:00: Mistrāl: Songs from around the Mediterranean. Tamar Ilana; Ventanas Ensemble. ●●Jul 18 7:00: Passion and Solace: Early 20th Century Duos for Violin and Cello. Andréa Tyniec, violin; Stéphane Tétreault, cello. ●●Jul 21 4:00: Global Inspirations. TorQ Percussion Quartet. ●●Jul 25 7:00: Inner Journey V. Rumi Canada. ●●Jul 28 4:00: Choro! Trio Chorinho; Guest: Flavia Nascimento. ●●Aug 01 7:00: New and Special Ways. New Zealand String Quartet. ●●Aug 08 7:00: From Greece to Granados. Maria Soulis, mezzo; William Eauvais, guitar; Tanya Charles Iveniuk, violin. ●●Aug 11 4:00: Raags of Love and Devotion. Ramneek Singh, voice; Ravi Naimpally, tabla; Hardeep Chana, harmonium. 58 | June | July | August2019 thewholenote.com
●●Aug 15 7:00: Voices from Eastern Europe. BLISK Quartet. ●●Aug 18 4:00: Laüsa: Spark of Gascony. ●●Aug 22 7:00: Something Old, Something New. VC2 Cello Duo. ●●Aug 25 4:00: Duetto Violoncello. Elinor Frey and Phoebe Carrai, baroque cellos. Summer Opera Lyric Theatre Jul 26 to Aug 4 Robert Gill Theatre, Toronto, ON 214 College St. 416-363-7723 www.solt.ca All tickets are . ●●Jul 26 8:00: La traviata. Also Jul 28(2pm); 31(2pm); Aug 3(8pm). ●●Jul 27 2:00: Earnest, The Importance of Being. Also Jul 30(8pm); Aug 1(8pm); 4(2pm). ●●Jul 27 8:00: Riders to the Sea and Gianni Schicchi. Also Jul 31(8pm); Aug 2(8pm); 3(2pm). Sun Life Financial Uptown Waterloo Jazz Festival Jul 19 to 21 Waterloo City Center, 100 Regina St. S., Waterloo, ON 519-394-0093 www.waterloojazzfest.com Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. Sweetwater Music Festival Sep 20 to 22 Owsen Sound and Meaford, ON 519-371-2833 www.sweetwatermusicfestival.ca Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Festival Jun 3 to 15 Toronto, ON 416-964-6337 www.tafelmusik.org/TBSF Performances take place at various venues in Toronto. Visit our website for further information. Jun 03 8:00: Opening Night. Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir; Ivars Taurins, choir director; Elisa Citterio; director. ●●Jun 08 12:30: Baroque Portraits. Members of the Faculty of Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute. ●●Jun 09 12:30: Many Strings Attached. Participants of the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute Viola d’Amore Workshop; Thomas Georgi, leader. ●●Jun 12 1:00: Afternoon Concert. Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute Orchestras and Choirs; Elisa Citterio, Jeanne Lamon and Ivars Taurins, directors. ●●Jun 15 7:30: The Grand Finale. Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute Orchestra and Choir; Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir; Jeanne Lamon and Ivars Taurins, directors. TD Markham Jazz Festival Aug 14, 16, 18 Markham, ON 905-471-5299 www.markhamjazzfestival.com Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. TD Niagara Jazz Festival Jul 19 to 21 – St. Catharines, ON Jul 26 to 28 – Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON 1-844-LIV-JAZZ (548-5289) Detailed listings available on festival website. For general description, see Green Pages. TD Sunfest: Canada’s Premier Celebration of World Cultures Jul 4 to 7 Victoria Park, London, ON 519-672-1522 www.sunfest.on.ca Detailed listings not available at time of publication. For general description, see Green Pages. Toronto Summer Music Jul 11 to Aug 3 Toronto, ON 647-430-5699 www.torontosummermusic.com Performances take place at various venues in Toronto. Visit our website for further information. ●●Jul 11 7:30: Opening Night: Beyond Borders. Adrianne Pieczonka, soprano; Jon Kimura Parker, piano; Kerson Leong, violin; Steven Philcox, piano; New Orford String Quartet; Tom Allen, host. ●●Jul 12 7:30: Celebrating 10 Years. New Orford String Quartet. ●●Jul 13 1:00: reGENERATION: Art Song & Chamber Music. Singers, pianists and chamber musicians from the Toronto Summer Music Academy’s Art of Song program and Chamber Music Institute; New Orford String Quartet. Also Jul 13(4pm, 7:30pm), 20(1pm, 4pm, 7:30pm). ●●Jul 15 7:30: Crossings: In the Footsteps of the Griot. Ablaye Cissoko, griot storyteller; Constantinople. ●●Jul 16 7:30: Griffey & Jones in Recital. Anthony Dean Griffey, tenor; Warren Jones, piano. ●●Jul 17 7:30: Dover Quartet. ●●Jul 18 7:30: Voices Across the Atlantic. Toronto Summer Music Academy Vocal Fellows; Steven Philcox, harpsichord; Daniel Taylor, countertenor/conductor. Post-concert reception. ●●Jul 19 7:30: Charles Richard-Hamelin. Charles Richard-Hamelin, piano; Members of the Dover Quartet. ●●Jul 20 1:00: reGENERATION: Art Song & Chamber Music. Singers, pianists and chamber musicians from the Toronto Summer Music Academy’s Art of Song program and Chamber Music Institute; Dover Quartet; Charles Richard-Hamelin, piano. Also Jul 13(4pm, 7:30pm), 20(1pm, 4pm, 7:30pm). ●●Jul 22 7:30: Kleztory. ●●Jul 23 7:30: Rolston String Quartet. ●●Jul 24 7:30: Collectìf. ●●Jul 25 7:30: From Franz Schubert to Freddie Mercury. Sarah Slean, vocalist; John Southworth, singer/songwriter; Art of Time Ensemble; 10:30: TSM Late Night. Jonathan Crow, violin; Toronto Summer Music Academy Fellows. ●●Jul 26 7:30: Souvenir de Florence. Jonathan Crow, violin; Jennifer Koh, violin; Beth Guterman, viola; Julie Albers, cello; Yegor Dyachkov, cello, Philip Chiu, piano. ●●Jul 27 1:00: reGENERATION: Source and Inspiration. Rolston String Quartet; Sarah Slean and John Southworth, singers/ songwriters; Art of Time Ensemble; 4:00: reGENERATION: Chamber Music. Chamber musicians from the Toronto Summer Music Academy’s Chamber Music Institute; Jennifer Koh, Beth Guterman Chu, FREE ADMISSION Julie Albers, Yegor Dyachkov, Philip Chiu. Also 7:30pm. ●●Jul 29 7:30: Europe and the New World. Jonathan Crow, violin; Philip Chiu, piano. ●●Jul 30 7:30: Angela Hewitt Plays the Bach Goldberg Variations. Angela Hewitt, piano. Pre-concert chat with author and storyteller Madeleine Thien. ●●Jul 31 7:30: Ensemble Made in Canada. ●●Aug 01 7:30: Song of the Earth. Mario Bahg, tenor; Rihab Chaleb, mezzo; Jonathan Crow, violin; Gemma New, conductor. ●●Aug 02 7:30: Mendelssohn Octet. Jennifer Frautschi, violin; Elissa Lee, violin; Aaron Schwebel, violin; Barry Shiffman, violin; Hsin- Yu Huang, viola; and others. ●●Aug 03 4:00: reGENERATION: Chamber Music. Chamber musicians from the Toronto Summer Music Academy’s Chamber Music Institute; Barry Shiffman, Desmond Hoebig, Jennifer Frautschi, Hsin-Yun Huang, and others. ●●Aug 03 7:30: Toronto Summer Music Finale. Westben Concerts at The Barn Jun 2 to Aug 4 6698 County Road 30, Campbellford, ON 877-883-5777 www.westben.ca All concerts at The Barn, 6698 County Road 30, Campbellford, except where noted. ●●Jun 01 2:00: From the Top! Donna Bennett, soprano; Virginia Hatfield, soprano; Kim Dafoe, mezzo; Gabrielle Prata, mezzo; Mark DuBois, tenor; and others; Westben Choruses & Alumni. Also Jun 2. ●●Jun 09 2:00: Sounds of a Better World. Westben Youth, Teen, B Natural, Cookie Choruses; (Donna Bennett & Brian Finley, directors); Westben Community Bands (Nancy Elmhirst, director). ●●Jun 30 2:00: Viva Vivaldi! The Four Seasons & Gloria. Amy Hillis, violin; Westben Festival Orchestra & Chorus. 1:15: Pre-Concert Chat. ●●Aug 02 9:00: Westben Jazz Fringe. Also Aug 3 & 4. Various venues. July 4- 7, 2019 Victoria Park, London, Ontario Canada’s Premier Celebration of World Cultures 5 Stages ~ 225 Food, Craft & Visual Art Exhibitors 40 International & Canadian World Music & Jazz Groups For a complete list of performers and more information visit sunfest.on.ca thewholenote.com June | July | August2019 | 59
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.
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!).
