presents “Stree Shakti: Celebrating Women in Music,” featuring Arati Ankalikar- Tikekar at the Museum. Ankalikar-Tikekar, an award-winning Hindustani music vocalist, accompanied by harmonium and tabla, performs raags associated with female deities and her own compositions. !! SEP 28: Aga Khan Museum presents Madagascar’s supergroup Toko Telo in its auditorium. Toko Telo features the soulful vocals of Malagasy diva Monika Njava and guitarists D’Gary (the fingerpicking master) and Joël Rabesolo, inspired by the rich inter-cultural music traditions of the island’s southwest. !! SEP 19 TO 29: Small World Music Society (SMWMS) presents its 18th Annual Small World Music Festival in Toronto. Here are just three of the concerts to look forward to: !! SEP 19: Hanggai from China and Mongolia takes the stage at the Revival Bar. Beijing-based Hanggai convincingly mashes up rock and Mongolian music; the resulting mix can be heard on some of the world’s biggest festival stages; !! SEP 26: Lula Music & Arts Centre in association with SMWMS present “Women in Percussion Festival” opening night at Lula Lounge, headlining Adriana Portela. A leading figure in the samba-reggae movement, Portela was the first woman to lead a samba-reggae ensemble, and has played percussion with many leading Brazilian groups. Also on the bill is Brazilian-Canadian percussionist and vocalist Aline Morales with her new horn and drum project, Aline Morales & Vulvas. !! SEP 28: MRG Concerts in association with SMWMS present Tinariwen at the Danforth Music Hall. Formed 40 years ago, this Malian band is closely associated with the electric-guitar-driven desert blues sound and with their powerful songs about issues facing their Tuareg people. Andrew Timar is a Toronto musician and music writer. He can be contacted at worldmusic@thewholenote.com. Beat by Beat | Choral Scene It’s Almost Time For September’s Song MENAKA SWAMINATHAN If you, like me, are a once-active vocalist who took a break for an extended period of time, looking to rejoin a choir, or looking for a new choir to join, is daunting. A friend recently suggested that I could still audition for the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir (TMC) at the end of August for their upcoming season. My mind went into panic mode. I let out a quick “No!” – I mean, how could I possibly be ready for an audition with mere weeks to get my voice back into shape? And isn’t September too late to join a choir like that? Surely their plans for the coming season are firmly in place? But it got me thinking, so I spoke to some choristers and reached out by email to the artistic teams of three different choirs in Toronto to ask about their audition requirements, and how far along they are in the behind-the-scenes preparation it takes to get a new choral seasons rolling in the fall. Looking through WholeNote’s Canary pages to decide who to contact was a great reminder of the variety of choirs present in Toronto. Whether you prefer bigger groups, like the 65-voice ensemble of The Annex Singers, or the intimate setting of a smaller chamber ensemble, like 15 to 20-voice Cantabile Chamber Singers, or a community choir, like the 30 to 35-member Jubilate Singers, there truly is a choir out there for everyone. Many ensembles are open to people of diverse backgrounds, both musical and occupational. Singing can be solely a hobby; using music as a release. It can also be a gateway to a professional career in music. In any case, no one should feel discouraged from joining a choir if an interest in singing is present. After the summer break, would September be too late to get in touch with any of these three choirs? The response to my inquiries was encouraging: although holding auditions in different months in the year – May and September for the Cantabile Chamber Singers; June, August and January for The Annex Singers; June and September for the Jubilate Singers – all three ensembles welcome inquiries throughout the season. So, the fact that it’s nearly September is no excuse! Now is as good a time as any. As for my question as to what new and existing choristers should keep in mind prior to making a commitment to a choir, the responses were unanimous: understanding the extent of the commitment so you can figure out how you will balance your own schedule is essential. As mentioned, choir members come from different backgrounds, and choirs themselves are different: the ability to balance work with rehearsals sufficiently to maintain a dedication to the choir Join us for our first concert with Kathleen Allan Oct 19, 7pm | St. John’s York Mills www.amadeuschoir.com 32 | September 2019 thewholenote.com
A 1 25 T H ANNIVERSARY GALA CONCERT Singing through Centuries Celebrate with us. The Choir will be joined by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, all under the baton of David Fallis, for a program that spans the three centuries in which the Choir has sung: Fauré’s Requiem; Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms; and Andrew Balfour’s Mamihcimowin, a TMC commission. Sunday, October 20 at 3:30 pm Koerner Hall The TMC 2019 | 20 season continues with four engaging concerts under amazing guest conductors from Canada, the US and the UK. TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW! FESTIVAL OF CAROLS DAVID FALLIS / CONDUCTOR December 3 & 4 at 7:30 pm Yorkminster Park Baptist Church TMC’s annual celebration of joyous music for the season —this year with the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra. ROMANTICS AND NEW ROMANTICS – A FREE TMC concert JOHN WILLIAM TROTTER / GUEST CONDUCTOR February 22 at 3:00 pm Yorkminster Park Baptist Church Enjoy lush choral music by the great Romantics— Mendelssohn and Brahms—and by the generation of new Romantics, including Lauridsen and Ešenvalds. SACRED MUSIC FOR A SACRED SPACE GREGORY BATSLEER / GUEST CONDUCTOR April 8 & Good Friday, April 10 at 7:30 pm St. Anne’s Church Experience some of the glorious music of the British cathedral tradition—from motets by Thomas Tallis and William Byrd up to contemporary works by John Tavener, James MacMillan and Eric Whitacre. tmchoir.org | @TMChoir GREAT POETS IN MUSIC JEAN-SÉBASTIEN VALLÉE / GUEST CONDUCTOR May 30 at 7:30 pm St. Andrew’s Church The power of words set to music. From the poetry of Shakespeare set to music by Vaughan Williams and Rutter, up to the words of Robert Frost set by Randall Thompson and Eric Whitacre. A SEASON OF CELEBRATION, AWE, AND DISCOVERY 19|20 DAVID FALLIS INTERIM CONDUCTOR / ARTISTIC ADVISOR Tickets start at with VoxTix for patrons 30 and under. Purchase TMC concert tickets through RCM TICKETS at 416-408-0208 or online through www.tmchoir.org. thewholenote.com September 2019 | 33
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