"Le secret de la liberté, c'est la librairie"

L'ÉCHANGE ST-DENIS
accueillera sa clientèle pour une dernière fois
le 31 janvier 2009


L'ÉCHANGE St-DENIS s'apprête à fermer ces portes. L'équipe s'est efforcée au cours des années d'offrir à sa clientèle un service de livres et disques usagés qui tenaient compte de la réalité du milieu.

Notre magasin a permis à nos clients intéressés par la culture, de se procurer livres et musiques à la moitié du coût habituelle. Une aubaine pour étudiant, professeur, chômeur et quiconque intéressé par des livres ou disques de collections.

Nous tenons à remercier les personnes qui ont alimentées nos étagères en venant vendre des produits de qualité. Nous disons surtout au revoir et merci beaucoup à nos clients pour ces nombreuses années de bonheur à les servir.

Dès maintenant et jusqu'à la fermeture soit le 31 janvier 2009, une vente extraordinaire de 30 à 50% sur le prix usagé est offerte. Tous nos entrepôts seront vidés. Tout doit être vendu, y compris les bibliothèques et les systèmes informatiques.

En terminant, nous reprenons la phrase de Bernard Weber écrite dans notre dernière vitrine
« Le secret de la liberté, c'est la librairie ».

Nous souhaitons que notre petite librairie ait pu vous donner un peu de liberté.

Celebrate the spirit of Christmas with Soweto Gospel Choir - Dec. 17 & 18 at Massey Hall

Celebrate the spirit of Christmas with

Soweto Gospel Choir!

Returning to Toronto for two performances only

December 17 & 18 – Massey Hall

Toronto, Ontario – The exciting and dynamic Soweto Gospel Choir returns to Toronto for two performances only on December 17 and 18, 2008 at Massey Hall. The performances are presented by The Sony Centre for the Performing Arts.

Two-time Grammy® Award-winning Soweto Gospel Choir thrilled sold-out audiences on each of their previous visits in 2005 and 2007. Their first North American Christmas tour is not to be missed – these return performances will include their newest holiday offerings as well as traditional favourites!

Expect earthy rhythms, rich harmonies, a cappella numbers as well as accompaniment by an exciting four-piece band and percussion section. Add energetic dancing and vibrant, colourful costumes, and the mix is awesome. The Choir performs in six of South Africa’s 11 official languages.

The popular Choir has made its mark on the international stage performing with such luminaries as Bono, The Eurythmics, Jimmy Cliff and many others. They have also performed for Nelson Mandela. Often referred to as the “Voices from Heaven”, the Choir reaches across cultural boundaries and each performance is uplifting, exhilarating and thrilling.

DETAILS

Dates: Dec. 17 & 18, 2008 at 8 p.m.

Location: Massey Hall

South side of Shuter Street, between Yonge & Victoria Streets

Tickets: STILL AVAILABLE! $18-$78 plus applicable service charges

Tickets can be purchased through the Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall Box Office by telephone 416-872-4255, in person at 60 Simcoe St., Toronto, online at www.masseyhall.com or through Ticketmaster by phone at 416-870-8000, online at www.ticketmaster.ca or in person at any Ticketmaster retail location.

GROUPS of 10 or more call Massey Hall Group Sales at 416-593-4822 ext. 225

Visit www.masseyhall.com for more details.

St. Michael's Choir School - 69th Annual Christmas Concert, 'A Christmas Overture'

A Toronto Christmas Tradition:

St. Michael's Choir School presents its 69th Annual Christmas Concert, 'A Christmas Overture'

On Friday, December 12 and Saturday, December 13, the boys' choirs of St. Michael's Choir School continue a six-decade Toronto tradition by performing their 69th annual Christmas concert at Massey Hall featuring sacred and secular choral favourites from Christmases past and present.

The boys of the Elementary Choir conducted by Teri Dunn will perform Canadian carols by Andrew Ager and David Elliot and two other works. The Junior Choir conducted by Caron Daley will begin their portion of the concert with John Rutter's arrangement of the German traditional carol In dulci jubilo along with Gounod's Ave Maria and Carols of French Canada arranged by Louis Applebaum. Of particular note, the Junior Choir will premiere First gifts, a piece commissioned in memory of Kathleen Mann (1919-2007). From 1939 until her retirement in 1984, Miss Mann taught every choir boy at the school as the Grade 6 teacher. First gifts was composed by alumnus Kola Owolabi with lyrics by award-winning author Darlene Madott.

The Senior Choir boys, ages 12 to 18, will perform works by Healey Willan, Peter Mathews, Heinrich Schütz and others. The Gentlemen of the Senior Choir, consisting of the Senior Choir's tenors and basses, will sing four selections including a traditional Polish carol entitled Wśród nocnej ciszy (In midnight's stillness), arranged by Jerzy Cichocki, Artistic Director of the Choir School and conductor of the Senior Choirs. These young men will also perform a holiday musical gem by Martin and Blane entitled Have yourself a merry little Christmas. The concert culminates with the Massed Choir (over 200 voices) inviting audiences to join in carols such as The First Nowell and Joy to the World. The choirs will be accompanied on piano and organ by Edward Moroney, Christopher Ku, and Yuri and Nelly Krechkovsky.

For boys and men who attended St. Michael's Choir School and audience members who have shared the Massey Hall concert experience, the piece Christmas Overture remains an enjoyable tradition. This year, the Massed Choir will premiere a new arrangement of the work originally written in 1940 by Choir School founder Monsignor John Edward Ronan. This version features brass accompaniment composed by Howard Cable and performed by one of Canada's leading quintets, True North Brass. Conductor and alumnus Brian Rae returns to the Massey Hall stage to launch this bright new version of Christmas Overture.

Founded in 1937 with the purpose of providing sacred music for services at St. Michael's Cathedral in downtown Toronto, St. Michael's Choir School is a centre for musical and academic excellence. It is one of only six choir schools in the world affiliated with the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music in Rome. Each student admitted to the Choir School is trained in vocal, technical, and instrumental music, and sings in one of the school's choirs. Prominent in music education in Toronto, the Choir School maintains high academic standards, as recognized most recently by the perfect score awarded its academic program by the Fraser Institute. For seventy years, graduates of the Choir School have pursued studies in science, education, medicine, law, business and, of course, music. In the last group are the Crew Cuts and Four Lads of the 1950s and present-day musical artists Michael Schade, John McDermott, Stewart Goodyear, Kevin Hearn (of The Barenaked Ladies), Robert Pomakov, Matt Dusk, Michael Colvin, Claude Morrison (of The Nylons), and Michael Burgess.

Massey Hall, Friday, December 12, 2008, 8 PM and Saturday, December 13, 2008, 3 PM.
Tickets: $36.50—$22.50 - Call 416-872-4255 or visit the Roy Thomson Hall Box Office
www.masseyhall.com

For more information regarding St. Michael's Choir School, visit www.smcs.on.ca

Bugs Bunny on Broadway is coming

What’s Up, Doc?!

Bugs Bunny is coming to town next month!

Vancouver BC – The Wascally Wabbit is back! The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and Global ComedyFest are proud to present Bugs Bunny on Broadway – a unique and extraordinary concert experience that celebrates the world’s favourite classic Looney Tunes cartoons and their real classical scores. A great holiday gift, Bugs Bunny on Broadway is a fun family experience and a hilarious trip down nostalgia lane!

The large video screen show cartoon jewels like What’s Opera, Doc?, The Rabbit of Seville, Long Haired Hare and a Corny Concerto while the Orchestra plays the classical soundtracks on stage. This roller coaster ride of a concert has sold-out the world’s greatest concert halls from The Hollywood Bowl to the Sydney Opera House (and in the past, the Orpheum and Queen Elizabeth Theatre!) and created an enthusiastically-devoted international audience of animation fans and classical music lovers alike.

Bugs conductor and co-creator George Daugherty takes the podium with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra for this extra-special concert event. During the show, Daugherty explains how the genius of Chuck Jones and Warner Bros. took real classical and operatic scores, such as Rossini’s Barber of Seville and Wagner’s Ring Cycle, and set not only Bugs Bunny cartoons to this great classical music, but many others as well. It’s an eye-opening experience for audiences to learn that as they were growing up watching the hilarious antics of Bugs and friends, they were also listening to classical music!

Bugs Bunny on Broadway is a uniquely spirited, fun, and sophisticated combination of classic animation and spectacular symphonic music. George Daugherty and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra will perform three concerts from December 28^th to December 29^th at the Orpheum Theatre.

Tickets for Bugs Bunny on Broadway are going fast – the matinee performance is nearly sold out, but good seats remain for the two evening performances. Tickets are available exclusively through the VSO website at www.vancouversymphony.ca, and VSO Customer Service at 604.876.3434.

TM & ã Warner Bros. Entertainment

(s08)

CONCERT INFO

Specials

Bugs Bunny on Broadway

Sunday, December 28, 2pm & 7:30pm, Orpheum Theatre

Monday, December 29, 7:30pm, Orpheum Theatre

George Daugherty, conductor

Tickets: $32 to $38 (Senior, Student and Subscriber Discounts Available)

Please note: Tickets for Bugs Bunny on Broadway go on-sale Wednesday, October 1 at 10:00am

Presentation Partner:

Destination Funny Entertainment Inc.

BIOGRAPHIES

George Daugherty

Conductor George Daugherty is one of the classical music world's most diverse artists. In addition to his 30-year conducting career which has included appearances with the world's leading orchestras, ballet companies, opera houses, and concert artists, Daugherty is also an Emmy Award winning / five-time Emmy nominated creator whose professional profile includes major credits as a director, writer, and producer for television, film, innovative and unique concerts, and the live theater.

Daugherty's 2006-07-08 conducting schedule includes return performance with The Cleveland Orchestra (at both Severance Hall and The Blossom Festival), The Los Angeles Philharmonic at The Hollywood Bowl, The Philadelphia Orchestra, The San Francisco Symphony, The National Symphony at Wolf Trap and The Fort Worth Philharmonic.

Daugherty debuted with The Cleveland Orchestra in 2004 and has since conducted the orchestra in numerous concerts at The Blossom Festival, and made his Severance Hall debut with the orchestra in 2007. His Cleveland Orchestra repertoire has included Tchaikovsky Suite No. 3, numerous major works by Wagner, compositions by Rossini, Mozart, and Strauss, as well as his signature concert "Bugs Bunny On Broadway." He has also conducted The Blossom Festival Orchestra, where he returns again in 2008. He created the film-and-orchestra concert "Rodgers & Hammerstein On Stage and Screen" for The Blossom Festival in 2007 (which broke attendance records in its two performances) and in 2008, he premieres another new concert, Blossom Night At The Movies Celebrating The 85th Anniversary of Warner Bros.

He is Music Director and Conductor of London's Sinfonia Britannia, which made its world premiere at Easter 2005 during a one week engagement at the newly-opened Wales Millennium Centre. The orchestra made its U.S. tour debut in San Francisco in February 2006, and made its London West End debut in September 2006.

Mr. Daugherty has also been a frequent conductor of London's Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra with whom he conducted "A Royal Christmas," a 15 city U.S. and Canadian concert tour with the orchestra and guest artists Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Charlotte Church, The Westminster Choir and Bell Ringers, and ballet dancers from The Royal Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, Kyev Ballet, Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and other major international companies. The tour played sold-out performances in such major North American cities as Boston, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Ottawa, and the New York City area.

Daugherty made his debut with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra in London's Royal Festival Hall in 1999, and has also since conducted the orchestra on tour throughout The United Kingdom. His performances with the RPCO have received rave reviews from such diverse international publications as The Times of London, The Boston Globe, and The Ottawa Citizen.

As a frequent guest conductor of The Los Angeles Philharmonic, Daugherty has conducted eleven engagements with the Philharmonic at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, and returns for a 12th in 2008. He also made his Dorothy Chandler Pavilion debut with the orchestra in December, 1994. He has also conducted four performances with The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra.

Daugherty, a San Francisco resident, has also been a popular guest conductor with The San Francisco Symphony since his debut with the orchestra in 1998, performing with the SFS frequently in Davies Symphony Hall, as well as numerous performances around the Bay Area. He also returns to the SFS in summer 2008.

In 2000, Daugherty also made a highly successful conducting debut with The Philadelphia Orchestra, and returned again to conduct the orchestra in 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2006, conducting such repertoire as Mendelssohn's "Midsummer Night's Dream" with Shakespeare's text, as well as major works by Wagner, Rossini, Elgar, Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Mascagni, Humperdinck, and other composers.

He has been a frequent quest conductor at The Sydney Opera House since 1996, and in 2002 and 2005, he returned to guest conduct The Sydney Symphony for one week engagements at the Sydney Opera House. He also made his debut with The Melbourne Symphony in Melbourne's Victoria Arts Centre in 2002, and returned for a one week engagement in 2005, followed by debuts with The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and The Auckland Philharmonic. His international conducting appearances have ranged from Moscow's Kremlin Palace to Shanghai's Grand Theatre.

Daugherty has appeared with numerous other major American and international symphony orchestras, ballet companies, and opera houses, including American Ballet Theatre, The Sydney Opera House Orchestra, The Munich State Opera Orchestra, The Munich State Opera Ballet, The Pittsburgh Symphony, The Atlanta Symphony, The Cincinnati Symphony, The Houston Symphony, The Fort Worth Symphony, The Vancouver Symphony, The Buffalo Philharmonic, The Louisville Orchestra, The Indianapolis Symphony, The Phoenix Symphony, The Moscow Symphony, Seiji Ozawa's New Japan Philharmonic, The Shanghai Radio Orchestra, The Seoul Philharmonic, The Kremlin Palace Orchestra of The Russian Federation, The Kiev Ballet, The Nashville Symphony, The Grant Park Symphony Orchestra, The Columbus Symphony, The RCA Symphony Orchestra, The Saddlers Wells Royal Ballet, Mexico City's Bellas Artes Opera House, The Montreal Symphony, The Winnipeg Symphony, The Rochester Philharmonic, The New Orleans Symphony, The Venezuela Symphony, Mexico's Xalapa Symphony, The Oklahoma City Philharmonic, The National Arts Centre Orchestra, and major Italian opera houses in Rome, Florence, Turin, and Regio Emilia.

Mr. Daugherty made the professional guest conducting debut of his entire career in November 1979, at the age of 22, with The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in The Eastman Theatre.

In addition to his appearances with American Ballet Theatre and other major ballet companies, he has also served as Music Director of The Louisville Ballet, The Chicago City Ballet, and Ballet Chicago, where he conducted the world premiere of Daniel Duell's "Glazunov Violin Concerto" ballet, performed by violinist Cho Liang Lin. Daugherty has also conducted for some of the ballet world's greatest stars, including Mikhail Baryshnikov, Gelsey Kirkland, Suzanne Farrell, Natalia Makarova, and virtually every top ballet dancer of the past two decades.

As a director, writer, and producer of music-based television programs, Daugherty has created several major productions for the ABC Television Network project, including a primetime animation-and-live action production of Sergei Prokofiev's "Peter and The Wolf", which he created, co-wrote, and directed (and for which he conducted the score with The Utah Symphony.) "Peter and The Wolf" starred Lloyd Bridges, Kirstie Alley, and Sleepless in Seattle's Ross Malinger (as Peter), along with new characters created by legendary Warner Bros. animation director Chuck Jones. The production -- and Daugherty -- earned a coveted Emmy Award when "Peter and The Wolf" was named Outstanding Primetime Children's Television Program. He also received a second Emmy nomination for Outstanding Music Direction for the production, as well as a Writers Guild of America / WGA Award nomination.

He collaborated with The Joy Luck Club author Amy Tan on a television adaptation of her celebrated children's book The Chinese Siamese Cat. The Emmy Award-winning series debuted on PBS in the fall of 2001 as a daily-animated children's television series, propelled by PBS' unprecedented advance order for 80 segments. Daugherty executive produced, and wrote a large number of the animated tales.

Daugherty also received an Emmy nomination for Rhythm & Jam, his ABC television network of specials which taught the basics of music to a teenage audience. He has now received five Emmy nominations to date, and his productions have won three additional Emmys and been nominated for 11 others.

Daugherty also directed the 1991 Warner Bros. documentary The Magical World of Chuck Jones, celebrating the career of the legendary animation director on his 80th birthday, and featuring interviews from a stellar group of artists whose work had been influenced by Jones' legendary comedic creations, including Whoopi Goldberg, Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, George Lucas, Matt Groening, Danny Elfman, Joe Dante, and many others.

In 1990, Daugherty created, directed, and conducted the hit Broadway musical "Bugs Bunny On Broadway", a live-orchestra-and-film stage production which sold-out its extended run at New York's Gershwin Theatre on Broadway, and has since played to critical acclaim and sold-out houses in thirteen different Los Angeles engagements, as well as at Washington D.C.'s Wolf Trap, Philadelphia Orchestra's Mann Music Center, Detroit's Meadowbrook, Cleveland Orchestra's Blossom Festival, The New York Philharmonic's Saratoga Center for The Performing Arts, Pittsburgh Symphony's Heinz Hall, and in Vancouver, Denver, Detroit, Chicago, San Diego, Orange County, and elsewhere. "Bugs Bunny On Broadway" embarked on a worldwide concert tour in 1996 with an international (and sold-out) one week engagement at the famed Sydney Opera House in Australia, and subsequent international performances in London, Wales, Central and South America, Russia, Japan, China, and Korea.

Daugherty recently received the biannual Indiana Governor's Arts Award from the state of his birth, in recognition for his artistic contributions not only in Indiana, but also throughout the rest of the country. In receiving the award, Daugherty joined an exclusive list of previous Hoosier honorees, including composers Cole Porter and Hoagy Carmichael, conductors Raymond Lepard and John Nelson, cellist Janos Starker, violinists Joshua Bell and Josef Gingold, architect Michael Graves, designer Bill Blass, and novelist Kurt Vonnegut Jr. In 2005, he was also named a Sagamore of The Wabash by the late Indiana Governor Frank O'Bannon, the highest award which can be bestowed upon a performing artist from the state governor.

In 2005, Daugherty was also named a Library Laureate of The San Francisco Public Library for his contributions to children's books, reading, and literature, joining a distinguished list of authors who have been awarded the title.

An Indigo Christmas

NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE PRESENTS

AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS

Raise the Roof with Great Joy!

It's Toronto's blue-tinged Christmas tradition! NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE brings its annual holiday concert, AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS, to the Glenn Gould Studio for two performances only: Wednesday, December 17 and Saturday, December 20 at 8 pm.

AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS is an evening of Christmas music, gospel style! Toronto's renowned NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE, recently returned from a successful US tour, will be joined by acclaimed pianist/composer Joseph Joubert, a live band, and members of the York University Gospel Choir. Included in the program will be Great Joy-a collection of traditional Christmas music co-arranged by Joubert.

Joseph Joubert is a world-renowned composer, arranger, and musician. His many credits include pianist for the current Broadway production of Billy Elliot, pianist/associate conductor for Oprah Winfrey's The Color Purple on Broadway, and orchestrator, musical director, and pianist for the world premiere of 3 Mo' Divas. He has been nominated for Grammy Awards and Drama Desk Awards, collaborated with renowned concert artists such as Kathleen Battle and Florence Quivar, and worked as producer/arranger/keyboardist for popular artists such as Whitney Houston, Patti Labelle, Diana Ross, Judy Collins, Jennifer Holliday, and Ashford and Simpson.

Founded in 1998, the NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE is Canada's first professional choral group dedicated to Afrocentric music of all styles. BRAINERD BLYDEN-TAYLOR, founder and artistic director, is an internationally respected conductor, clinician, and adjudicator.

AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS will be performed in the Nathaniel Dett Chorale's new home at the Glenn Gould Studio, 50 Front St. West in Toronto.

Nathaniel Dett Chorale presents

AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS

Wednesday, December 17, 2008 at 8:00pm

Saturday, December 20, 2008 at 8:00pm

Glenn Gould Studio, 250 Front Street West, Toronto

Subscribe to all 3 NDC concerts for $99; individual tickets $39.50, students/seniors $35

Tickets available in person at the Roy Thomson Hall box office, 60 Simcoe St.,

by calling 416.872.4255 or online at www.roythomson.com

www.nathanieldettchorale.org

Laudate Singers: MYSTERIUM, A Winter Concert By Candlelight

Laudate Singers proudly present

MYSTERIUM

A Winter Concert By Candlelight

Saturday December 13, 2008 at 8 pm

St. Andrew's United Church, North Vancouver

and

Friday December 19, 2008 at 8 pm

St. David's United Church, West Vancouver

Tickets $25 (general)/$20 (students/seniors)/free (age 17 & under)

Call 604-222-3158 or buy online at www.laudatesingers.com

In their annual winter concert, Laudate Singers and artistic director Lars Kaario will explore the beauty and mystery of the season through different settings of O Magnum Mysterium, an ancient liturgical text traditionally sung during Matins on Christmas Day. By shimmering candlelight, the North Shore’s premier chamber choir will perform interpretations of this medieval chant by composers from all over the world, spanning several centuries. Audiences will hear O Magnum Mysterium as put to music by the Spaniard Tomas Luis de Victoria (c.1548-1611), the Venetian Giovanni Gabrieli (1557-1612), the Englishman William Byrd (1539-1623), the Frenchman Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) and the American Morten Lauridsen (b.1943), as well as the world premiere of a brand new setting by award-winning Vancouver composer Bruce Sled, offering a contemporary Canadian perspective on the text.

The evening will also include Today the Virgin and a setting of William Blake’s The Lamb by John Tavener (b. 1944), Hodie Christus natus est by Miklós Csemiczky (b.1954), motets by Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (1839-1901), and such beloved seasonal classics such as Anton Bruckner’s Ave Maria, the classic Es ist ein Ros entsprungen by Praetorius, Joseph lieber, Joseph mein by Johann Walther and Puer natus in Bethlehem by Samuel Scheidt. With Mysterium, Laudate Singers once again create a warm, luminous oasis amid the grey days of winter, spiriting audiences away on a transcendent musical journey.

Also, don’t miss Laudate Singers’ annual Free Family Christmas Concert at St. Andrew’s United Church on December 14^th at 3 pm – a rollicking community event that has also become a North Shore holiday tradition.

Les Violons du Roy - La Messe de minuit de Charpentier les 19 et 20 décembre au Palais Montcalm

La Messe de minuit de Charpentier

Bernard Labadie, chef d’orchestre
Shannon Mercer, soprano
Tracy Smith Bessette, soprano
Jeremy Budd, ténor
Antonio Figueroa, ténor
Alexandre Sylvestre, baryton-basse
et
La Chapelle de Québec

Série Grands Rendez-vous
Vendredi 19 décembre, 20 h
Samedi 20 décembre, 20 h
Salle Raoul-Jobin, Palais Montcalm

M.R. Delalande - « Simphonies des noëls »
M.-A. Charpentier - In nativitatem Domini canticum, H. 416
B.-A. Dupuy - Noël « Au milieu de la nuit »
M.-A. Charpentier - Messe de minuit pour Noël, H. 9


Québec, le 26 novembre –Bernard Labadie offre un cadeau de Noël exceptionnel le vendredi 19 décembre et, en supplémentaire le samedi 20 décembre en présentant la célèbre œuvre chorale de Marc-Antoine Charpentier, Messe de minuit pour Noël. Cette œuvre qui met en valeur de vieux noëls français fait appel aux voix de La Chapelle de Québec et à de remarquables solistes tels les sopranos Shannon Mercer et Tracy Smith Bessette, les ténors Jeremy Budd et Antonio Figueroa et le baryton-basse Alexandre Sylvestre. Le programme comprend également les charmantes Simphonies des noëls, bien connues des mélomanes et ayant fait l’objet du tout premier disque des Violons du Roy. Intimité et chaleur sont au cœur de cette soirée qui imprégnera la salle Raoul-Jobin de l’esprit de Noël.

Ce concert nous transportera en France au XVIIe siècle sous le règne de Louis XIV, alors que chaque Noël était célébré avec faste au moyen de quatre messes dont la plus courue était celle de minuit. Admiré de la famille royale mais écrasé par le redoutable Lully, Marc-Antoine Charpentier était un compositeur prolifique : son catalogue comprend pas moins de six cents œuvres, la plupart vocales et sacrées! Avec sa Messe de minuit pour cinq solistes, chœur, flûtes, cordes et basse continue, le compositeur convie les mélomanes à un véritable festin de Noël. En effet, tel que le voulait la tradition de l’époque, la messe repose sur onze chants facilement reconnaissables dont Joseph est bien marié, Vous désirez sans fin et À la venue de Noël.

En début de concert, le public se retrouvera à la chapelle du Roy de France alors que les musiciens et musiciennes interpréteront les Simphonies des noëls de Michel Richard Delalande qui renferment de nombreux airs traditionnels. Suivra In nativitatem Domini canticum de Marc-Antoine Charpentier, un oratorio miniature extrêmement intéressant pour solistes, chœur et instruments. Également au programme, Noël « Au milieu de la nuit », un motet pour deux chœurs et petit ensemble instrumental de Bernard-Aymable Dupuis dans lequel la voix des anges dialoguent avec celle des bergers dans un échange harmonieux et limpide.

Le concert du 19 décembre est une présentation de MacDougall, MacDougall et MacTier Inc. La saison 2008-2009 à Québec est présentée par Hydro-Québec.

Abonnement

Nouveauté : la formule Trio Découverte permet de créer une série de 3 concerts parmi 14 grands concerts du soir et de découvrir ainsi la gamme variée du répertoire des Violons du Roy.

Le tarif 29 ans et moins de retour !
Un concert de haut niveau au même prix qu’un film, soit seulement 12,50 $.

Information et réservation

Billetterie du Palais Montcalm
(418) 641-6040
1 877 641 6040

Concerts à venir au Palais Montcalm :

Vendredi 16 janvier, 14 h et 20 h
Un violon endiablé
Elizabeth Wallfisch, chef invitée et violon
Séries Baroque avant tout et Plaisirs d’après-midi

www.violonsduroy.com

Les notes ... enneigées

VALÉRIE MILOT, KATERINE CARON ET LE CHŒUR DE LA RADIO DE RADIO-CANADA (CRRC) CÉLÈBRENT L'HIVER!

Conjuguez harpe et poésie : vous avez une promesse de bonheur.

Ajoutez-y la grâce d'un chœur a cappella… le temps est suspendu!

Valérie Milot, harpiste, prix d'Europe 2008 et prix Jeune soliste 2009 des radios francophones publiques, accompagnera le Chœur dans le Ceremony of Carols de Britten et interprétera entre autres, la Sarabande de la suite BWV 997 de Bach ainsi que des extraits de la Sonate pour harpe de Hindemith. De courts poèmes sur l'hiver de Katerine Caron donneront le ton aux tableaux d'atmosphère que propose le concert.

COC Premiers Rusalka

coc premieres Dvořák’s HEARTBREAKING fairy tale, RUSALKA

Toronto, Ontario – The Canadian Opera Company’s winter season continues with the COC premiere of Antonín Dvořák’s tragic love story, Rusalka. Helikon Opera’s artistic director, Dmitri Bertman, who staged last season’s critically-acclaimed From the House of the Dead, directs this luminous production from Theater Erfurt in Germany. The opera features rising star American soprano Julie Makerov in the title role and renowned Canadian tenor Michael Schade as the Prince. Eminent American conductor John Keenan, who has conducted major works with the Metropolitan Opera, Kirov Opera and the Santa Fe Opera, makes his COC debut leading the COC Orchestra and Chorus. Rusalka was programmed for this season by the late Richard Bradshaw to commemorate the COC’s co-founder Nicholas Goldschmidt’s 100th birthday. Rusalka runs January 31, February 5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, and 23, 2009 and is sung in Czech with English SURTITLES™.

Julie Makerov, who appeared in this season’s Don Giovanni, and in the COC’s 2006 production of the Ring Cycle, returns to the COC stage to sing the role of the water nymph Rusalka who falls in love with a mortal prince. Michael Schade, singing the part of the Prince, makes his first appearance with the COC in five years and his Four Seasons Centre stage debut. Moldavian powerhouse Irina Mishura, last seen as Azucena in Il Trovatore, sings Ježibaba, the malevolent witch who, in exchange for Rusalka’s immortality and voice, gives Rusalka a chance to win the heart of the Prince. Acclaimed baritone Richard Paul Fink, Alberich in the COC’s Ring Cycle, is Rusalka’s devoted old friend, the Water Gnome. Former Ensemble Studio soprano Joni Henson, who sang Elisabeth de Valois in two performances of Don Carlos and Gutrune in the COC’s Ring Cycle, is the Foreign Princess vying for the Prince’s heart. Set designer Hartmut Schörghofer and costume designer Corinna Crome, recreate Rusalka’s mystical worlds, both in water and on land. Thomas C. Hase lights this production.

Dvořák’s Rusalka is derived from Hans Christian Andersen’s popular fairy tale The Little Mermaid, Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué’s story Undine and Karel Jaromír Erben’s A Garland of National Tales. The opera premiered at the National Theatre in Prague in 1901. Although Dvořák was known more for his symphonic and chamber works than his operas, Rusalka achieved great success. Blending rich melodic phrasing with harmonic depth, the opera became – along with Bedřich Smetana’s The Bartered Bride – one of the most popular Czech operas. Rusalka also features the beautiful aria “Song to the Moon,” which brings to aching life this timeless story.

Single tickets for Rusalka are available Monday, December 1, 2008 online at www.coc.ca, or by calling 416-363-8231, or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office (145 Queen St. W., Toronto). Ticket prices for all performances range from $60 to $290. Special young people’s tickets for all performances throughout the season are priced from $30 to $98. These ticket prices apply to those who are 15 years of age or under, accompanied by and sitting next to an adult.

Starting Saturday, January 17, 2009 at 10 a.m., $20 tickets are available for patrons between the ages of 16 and 29 through the Opera for a New Age program presented by TD Bank Financial Group

and may be purchased online at www.coc.ca or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office (145 Queen St. W., Toronto). Student group tickets are $20 per student and may be purchased by calling 416-306-2356. Remaining Opera for a New Age tickets will be released as $20 rush seats at 11 a.m. the morning of the performance, subject to availability.

Presenting Sponsor of SURTITLESä: Sun Life Financial

Official Automotive Sponsor of the COC at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts:

Jaguar Land Rover Canada

Official Media Sponsors: CTV and The Globe and Mail

The COC Ensemble Studio is Canada’s premier training program for young opera professionals and provides advanced instruction, hands-on experience, and career development opportunities. The Ensemble Studio is supported by the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage, RBC Financial Group, and other generous donors.

COC ANCILLARY EVENTS AND INFORMATION:

BMO Financial Group Pre-Performance Opera Chats

The COC offers free 20-minute introductions to the opera and its theme in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, 45 minutes prior to every performance.

Appetite for Opera: Rusalka

Appetite for Opera returns to Hilton Toronto’s Tundra Restaurant on Thursday, January 22, 2009 for Appetite for Opera: Rusalka, an evening that combines the cultural and culinary arts in an innovative gourmet event designed to delight and intrigue opera novices and seasoned fans. The evening begins with a cocktail reception at 6:15 p.m. followed by a multi-course dinner at 7 p.m. and costs $89 per person. Each course is accompanied by a specially chosen wine, while COC Volunteer Speakers Bureau representative Robert Morassutti and the Hilton chef Kreg Graham provide fascinating links and insights between food, wine, and opera. Ticket and dinner packages can be purchased online at www.coc.ca.

Canadian Opera Company Podcast Series

The Canadian Opera Company and Universal Music present a FREE podcast series that explores the depths of music in opera. Podcasts are available on www.coc.ca or through Universal Music at www.getmusic.ca/classical. Rusalka-themed podcasts will be online starting in December 2008. These are entertaining programs designed to give listeners a chance to learn about opera, COC productions, and hear interviews from the artists and creative team. Throughout the year, listeners can tune in to hear music from the COC’s 2008/09 season, roundtable discussions with special artists, as well as preview operas in the COC’s 2009/10 season. Each podcast is created and hosted by COC personnel.

About the Canadian Opera Company

Based in Toronto, the Canadian Opera Company is the largest producer of opera in Canada and one of the largest in North America, and has an international reputation for artistic excellence and creative innovation. The COC currently enjoys a remarkable 99% attendance rate for its mainstage season. The company’s new home, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, was designed by Diamond and Schmitt Architects Inc. and is Canada’s first purpose-built opera house. The contemporary expression of a traditional five-tiered, European horseshoe-shaped auditorium was specifically designed for opera with the highest level of acoustics and provides unparalleled intimacy between the audience and the stage. Acclaimed as one of the best opera houses in the world, the Four Seasons Centre is also the performance venue for The National Ballet of Canada.

Canadian Opera Company Website

The Canadian Opera Company website, at www.coc.ca, contains information on all productions including synopses, historical background, and production photographs.

Beethoven's Triumphant Opera, Fidelio, Kicks off the COC's Winter Season

Toronto, Ontario – The Canadian Opera Company’s winter season opens with a new production of Ludwig van Beethoven’s only opera, Fidelio. Leading the cast in this opera of triumph and courage in the face of oppression are Adrianne Pieczonka as Leonore and American tenor Jon Villars as her great love, Florestan. German director Andreas Baesler restages this production, while conductor Gregor Bühl leads the COC Orchestra and Chorus. Both make their COC debuts with this captivating production. Fidelio is a co-production with Opéra national du Rhin (ONR) and Staatstheater Nürnberg. Fidelio runs January 24 at 7:30 p.m., 27 at 7:30 p.m., 30 at 7:30 p.m., February 4 at 7:30 p.m., 7 at 4:30 p.m., 12 at 7:30 p.m., 15 at 2 p.m., 18 at 7:30 p.m., 21 at 7:30 p.m., and 24 at 7:30 p.m., 2009 and is sung in German with English SURTITLES™.

Canadian soprano Adrianne Pieczonka, no stranger to the world’s great opera houses, makes her role debut as Leonore, a young wife who disguises herself as a man named Fidelio so she may work at the prison where her husband is unjustly incarcerated and save him from certain execution. Ms Pieczonka returns to the COC after her portrayal of Elisabeth de Valois in last season’s Don Carlos. American Jon Villars, one of the world’s most renowned tenors, sings Florestan, Leonore’s husband. Mr. Villars returns to the COC stage after a 12-year absence, having last sung with the company as Calaf in Turandot in 1997. Also included in this extraordinary cast is bass-baritone and former Ensemble Studio member Gidon Saks, who sang the title role in the COC’s Boris Godunov in 2002. Mr. Saks sings the villainous Don Pizarro who has imprisoned Florestan. Mats Almgren, Hagen in the COC’s Ring Cycle, is the jailer, Rocco, and recent Ensemble graduate, Virginia Hatfield, who sang Zerlina in this season’s Don Giovanni, is Marzelline, Rocco’s daughter. Current Ensemble tenor Adam Luther sings Jaquino. The original creative team from Germany, set designer Andreas Wilkens, costume designer Gabriele Heimann, and lighting designer Max Keller make their company debuts.

Beethoven’s original three-act version of Fidelio, then known as Leonore, premiered in Vienna in 1805. It was not an immediate success due partially to Napoleon’s occupation of Vienna. A revised two-act version premiered in 1806, however, it was only after Beethoven altered it again in 1814 that the renamed final version, seen on international opera stages today, was completed.

Single tickets for Fidelio are available December 1, 2008 online at www.coc.ca, by calling 416-363-8231, or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office (145 Queen St. W., Toronto). Ticket prices for all performances range from $60 to $290. Special young people’s tickets for all performances throughout the season are priced from $30 to $98. These ticket prices apply to those who are 15 years of age or under, accompanied by and sitting next to an adult.

Starting Saturday, January 17, 2009 at 10 a.m., $20 tickets are available for patrons between the ages of 16 and 29 through the Opera for a New Age program presented by TD Bank Financial Group and may be purchased online at www.coc.ca or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office (145 Queen St. W., Toronto). Student group tickets are $20 per student and may be purchased by calling 416-306-2356. Remaining Opera for a New Age tickets will be released as $20 rush seats at 11 a.m. the morning of the performance, subject to availability.

Production Sponsor of Fidelio: National Bank Financial Group

Presenting Sponsor of SURTITLESä: Sun Life Financial

Official Automotive Sponsor of the COC at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts: Jaguar Land Rover Canada

Official Media Sponsors: CTV and The Globe and Mail

The COC Ensemble Studio is Canada’s premier training program for young opera professionals and provides advanced instruction, hands-on experience, and career development opportunities. The Ensemble Studio is supported by the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage, RBC Financial Group, and other generous donors.

COC ANCILLARY EVENTS AND INFORMATION:

BMO Financial Group Pre-Performance Opera Chats

The COC offers free 20-minute introductions to the opera and its theme in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, 45 minutes prior to every performance.

Opera 101: Fidelio

The Canadian Opera Company’s popular FREE series, Opera 101, takes an enthusiastic look at the COC’s production of Beethoven’s Fidelio on Tuesday, January 13, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. Held at the culturally eclectic Drake Hotel (1150 Queen St. W.), the event is designed to demystify opera by illuminating and illustrating different aspects of the art form. The session, including a question-and-answer period, features special guests, sopranos Adrianne Pieczonka and Virginia Hatfield, as well as host Brent Bambury from CBC Radio’s GO!. Opera 101 is a friendly, interactive, and informal event where opera neophytes can enjoy a drink and snacks and get the scoop on what opera is all about. New this season, audience members are invited to stick around following the discussion to enjoy FREE, live entertainment provided by the COC.

The Opera Exchange

The Canadian Opera Company, in collaboration with the Jackman Humanities Institute, the Munk Centre for International Studies, and the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto, presents the second instalment of the Opera Exchange series: Love and Liberation: Beethoven’s Fidelio held on Saturday, January 31, 2009 from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Topics include: the revolutionary and philosophical roots of the opera and its relevance today; the music and politics, and themes of triumph of light over darkness; and, the themes of love and tenderness in an otherwise bleak story highlighted by musical excerpts performed by members of the COC Ensemble Studio. The Opera Exchange series: Love and Liberation: Beethoven’s Fidelio takes place at Walter Hall, Edward Johnson Building, The Faculty of Music, 80 Queen’s Park (at Museum subway station). Tickets are available by calling 416-363-8231, online at www.coc.ca, or in person at the Four Seasons Centre Box Office (145 Queen St. W., Toronto). Tickets are $25, or $10 for students (with ID).

Canadian Opera Company Podcast Series

The Canadian Opera Company and Universal Music present a FREE podcast series that explores the depths of music in opera. Podcasts are available on www.coc.ca or through Universal Music at www.getmusic.ca/classical. Fidelio-themed podcasts will be online starting in December 2008. These are entertaining programs designed to give listeners a chance to learn about opera, COC productions, and hear interviews from the artists and creative team. Throughout the year, listeners can tune in to hear music from the COC’s 2008/09 season, roundtable discussions with special artists, as well as preview operas in the COC’s 2009/10 season. Each podcast is created and hosted by COC personnel.

About the Canadian Opera Company

Based in Toronto, the Canadian Opera Company is the largest producer of opera in Canada and one of the largest in North America, and has an international reputation for artistic excellence and creative innovation. The COC currently enjoys a remarkable 99% attendance rate for its mainstage season. The company’s new home, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, was designed by Diamond and Schmitt Architects Inc. and is Canada’s first purpose-built opera house. The contemporary expression of a traditional five-tiered, European horseshoe-shaped auditorium was specifically designed for opera with the highest level of acoustics and provides unparalleled intimacy between the audience and the stage. Acclaimed as one of the best opera houses in the world, the

Four Seasons Centre is also the performance venue for The National Ballet of Canada.

Canadian Opera Company Website

The Canadian Opera Company website, at www.coc.ca, contains information on all productions including synopses, historical background, and production photographs.

M.A.L.

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Les engagements du Parti libéral du Québec en matière de culture : ENTRE JOIE ET TRISTESSE, LE COEUR BALANCE

(Montréal, le 19 novembre 2008) - Dans un premier temps, le Mouvement pour les arts et les lettres a été très heureux des annonces faites hier en matière de soutien à la culture par le chef du Parti libéral du Québec et Premier Ministre, M. Jean Charest.

On ne peut qu'être favorable à toute initiative ayant pour effet de réduire le fardeau fiscal des contribuables québécois. De plus, la disparition de la TVQ sur les biens culturels incitera sans doute de nombreux Québécois et Québécoises à fréquenter les salles de spectacles ou à acquérir des oeuvres d'art, une initiative louable dans une période de resserrement économique que le Premier Ministre lui-même nous annonce comme devant être fort difficile.

« En seconde analyse de l'annonce faite hier par le Parti libéral du Québec, nous nous devons cependant d'exprimer certaines réserves. D'abord, la mesure ne s'appliquera qu'après l'adoption du prochain Budget, donc vraisemblablement pas avant avril prochain, alors qu'il y a dès maintenant urgence puisque nous entrons de plain-pied dans la crise économique. Ensuite, la mise en oeuvre de la mesure sera probablement fort difficile. Il faut se souvenir que le Gouvernement du Québec, qui avait jadis annoncé son intention d'abolir la taxe de vente sur le livre québécois, avait finalement dû se résoudre à généraliser sa mesure à l'ensemble de l'édition locale et étrangère. En sera-t-il de même de l'annonce d'hier ? Si oui, ne passera-t-on pas à côté de l'objectif ? », a demandé Bastien Gilbert, porte-parole du M.A.L. et directeur général du Regroupement des centres d'artistes autogérés du Québec.

« Notre crainte est que la mesure annoncée profite principalement aux intermédiaires, aux grandes industries culturelles et, dans le cas de ces dernières, à celles qui offriront les produits les plus populaires. Somme toute, il en reviendra fort peu aux artistes eux-mêmes, aux travailleurs de la culture qui sont pourtant, selon M. Charest, ceux visés par l'annonce d'hier », a ajouté le porte-parole du M.A.L.

« Le Premier Ministre a affirmé que cet engagement représentait quelque 50 M$ en soutien à la culture. Toutefois, cette somme, très substantielle, nous le reconnaissons, n'aura aucun effet structurel sur le milieu des arts et des lettres qui en aura terriblement besoin pour affronter la crise économique actuelle. Si M. Charest estime que le gouvernement du Québec peut se priver de revenus de l'ordre de 50 M$ annuellement, il aurait probablement été mieux inspiré de diriger cette somme vers le Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec dont le mandat est justement de soutenir et consolider les secteurs québécois des arts et de la culture », a poursuivi Bastien Gilbert.

Rappelons les résultats préliminaires d'un sondage réalisé par la Conférence internationale des arts de la scène et qui révélaient hier qu'au-delà de 600 représentations à l'étranger, concernant 45 compagnies québécoises et canadiennes de théâtre, de danse, de musique et de cirque, menaçaient d'être annulées au cours de l'année qui vient en raison de l'abolition par le gouvernement fédéral de ses programmes de soutien à la diffusion internationale et au développement des marchés. Ces annulations les priveront de revenus évalués à cinq millions de dollars, pour l'an prochain seulement. « Cette dure réalité menace la survie même de plusieurs entreprises culturelles et non des moindres. Il nous semble qu'il y a là, parmi d'autres, une avenue d'intervention nécessaire - et urgente - de la part du gouvernement du Québec », a conclu M. Gilbert.

Le M.A.L. espère que l'engagement annoncé hier par le Parti libéral du Québec ne constitue que les engagements annoncés hier ne sont que les premiers d'une série de mesures de soutien aux milieux des arts et de la culture à annoncer d'ici la fin de la campagne électorale.

Le M.A.L. et ses 14 000 membres attendent également avec grande impatience les engagements des autres partis politiques en matière de soutien aux arts et à la culture.

Le Mouvement pour les arts et les lettres regroupe huit organisations nationales et treize conseils régionaux de la culture du secteur des arts et des lettres, qui représentent près de 14 000 artistes professionnels, écrivains et travailleurs culturels. Le Mouvement est constitué du Conseil québécois du théâtre, du Conseil québécois de la musique, du Conseil des métiers d'art du Québec, du Conseil québécois des arts médiatiques, du Regroupement québécois de la danse, de l'Union des écrivaines et écrivains québécois, du Regroupement des centres d'artistes autogérés du Québec, de En piste - le regroupement national des arts du cirque - ainsi que des conseils régionaux de la culture de l'Estrie, de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue, de la Montérégie, du Saguenay, de la Mauricie, du Centre du Québec, de l'Outaouais, des Laurentides, de Lanaudière, du Bas-Saint-Laurent, de la Côte-Nord, de la Gaspésie et de la région de Québec-Chaudières-Appalaches. La mission des conseils régionaux de la culture est d'appuyer le développement des arts et de la culture dans leur région.

OSM / Standard Life Competition

Launch of the 69th edition of the OSM Standard Life Competition

A record number of entries, and candidates from all across Canada

Standard Life renews its commitment for 5 years

Montreal, Tuesday, November 25, 2008 – The launch of the 69th edition of the OSM Standard Life Competition took place today. The event is being held from November 26 to 29 at Tanna Schulich Hall in the Schulich School of Music at McGill University. This Canada-wide competition is the only one to offer more than $100,000 in prizes and grants and the chance to perform with the OSM. It is dedicated this year to woodwinds, brass and voice. For this 69th edition, a record number of 121 candidates from all regions of Canada entered the Competition.

After blind auditions, 24 semi-finalists between the ages of 19 and 30 were selected. The president of the Competition, Mr. Jean Élie, revealed the names of the chosen candidates: “Over the next few days these 24 promising young musicians will be experiencing great emotions. As in every competition, there will not be only winners. But what matters is the richness of the moments the candidates enjoy in our company. In a healthy spirit of competitiveness and self-transcendence, these young artists will be giving their very best and will benefit from the recommendations of a national and international jury of the highest calibre. We are especially proud, this year, to be welcoming a record number of candidates, who hail from all over Canada.”

The jury, of great prestige, is under the chairmanship of Welz Kauffman, president and CEO of Ravinia Festival outside Chicago. It brings together performers, veteran teachers and players on the musical scene like Maestro Kent Nagano, Renata Scotto, Françoise Pollet and Jean-Pierre Brossmann.

Standard Life, title sponsor for the next 5 years

The grants awarded to first-prize winners in each of the categories are offered by Standard Life, sponsor of the event. At the launch of the 69th edition of the OSM Standard Life Competition, the Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada announced the renewal of its sponsorship of the acclaimed Canadian musical competition. Standard Life has supported this event since 1992 and will continue to serve as the title sponsor for at least five more years.

“Standard Life’s community investments are highly focused on expanding the potential of young Canadians, and I’m convinced that our commitment to the Competition will continue to respond to our objectives in the years ahead,” stated Joseph Iannicelli, president and chief executive officer of Standard Life. “It is gratifying for us at Standard Life to have been able to help young Canadian musicians succeed by opening up possibilities for them that they might not otherwise have even imagined.”

The chief executive officer of the OSM, Madeleine Careau, stressed the significance of the renewal of this partnership with Standard Life: “The commitment for the next five years of a company as important as Standard Life is proof that the Competition is on people’s minds all over Canada and that it has become an essential step for all young musicians who aspire to a performing career. The names of winners down through the years are proof of this. Moreover, over the years the Competition has attracted judges of great reputation and loyal partners. I wish to thank those invaluable collaborators most sincerely for their generosity and their constant support, especially Standard Life, our title sponsor since 1992; our principal partner, Espace musique; our major partner, the Schulich School of Music at McGill University; as well as Yamaha Canada.”

November 30: free chamber-music concert

The semi-finals, the finals and the master classes are open to the public and free of charge. They take place from November 26 to 29 at Tanna Schulich Hall in the Schulich School of Music at McGill University. Moreover, in light of the great success enjoyed last year, the OSM Standard Life Competition will once more be presenting a chamber-music concert, on Sunday, November 30 at 7 p.m. in Redpath Hall at McGill University. This free concert closes the Competition and is a wonderful opportunity to hear the winner of the 2008 edition OSM Standard Life Grand Prize winner. Other musicians featured are soprano Aline Kutan, trombonist Alain Trudel, trumpeter Jens Lindemann, clarinettist James Campbell and violinist Andrew Wan, winner of the 68th edition of the Competition and recently appointed concertmaster at the OSM. The detailed program can be found in an appendix.

Espace musique: principal partner

Espace musique, the music radio service of Radio-Canada, is joining forces with the OSM for the second year in a row in the capacity of principal partner of the Competition. Espace Musique will be offering the winner of the OSM Standard Life Grand Prize the chance to record a demo CD or DVD in one of its studios. In addition, the music service will broadcast this recording and promote the winner over Radio-Canada. Also, the concert on January 11 featuring the winner of this 69th edition will be recorded by Espace musique.

Over $100,000 in prizes

The total value of the prizes awarded to the winners is $100,000. In addition to the one-of-a-kind opportunity of performing in a concert with the OSM under the direction of English conductor Mark Wigglesworth on January 11, 2009, the grand-prize winner will also have the privilege of appearing in 2009-2010 with the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra directed by Marc David, of presenting a recital at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre in Yellowknife in 2009-2010, as well as a recital at the Orford Arts Centre in 2009.

Background

Since its creation in 1940, the OSM Standard Life Competition – organized jointly by the OSM Volunteer Committee and the OSM – has launched the careers of nearly 300 prize-winners on the national and international scene: André Laplante, Angela Cheng, Louis Lortie, Angèle Dubeau, Lyne Fortin, Jean-François Rivest, James Ehnes, and more recently Andrew Wan, to give some examples. Intimately connected with the history of the Orchestra, and attracting prestige partners and judges of great reputation, the Competition continues to carry out the educational mission fostered by Wilfrid Pelletier, conductor and the first music director of the OSM.

The OSM Standard Life Competition is open to all the instruments of the orchestra and is intended for all young Canadian performers. It is one of the few competitions to offer contestants three prize categories: cash grants totalling more than $55,000, training grants enabling artists to learn in greater depth; the chance to be offered professional engagements, and finally the enormous privilege of performing before an audience with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and being broadcast on the radio by Radio-Canada.

Attending the launch of the 69th edition today were Maestro Kent Nagano; the president of the OSM Standard Life Competition, Mr. Jean Élie; the chief executive officer of the OSM, Ms. Madeleine Careau; the Vice-president, External Communications and Public Affairs, at Standard Life, Mr. Vincenzo Ciampi; the deputy advisor for culture and for the downtown area of the City of Montreal, Ms. Catherine Sévigny; the head of programming at Espace Musique, the music radio service of Radio-Canada, Ms. Anne Sérode; the Dean of McGill University’s Schulich School of Music, Mr. Don McLean; and several members of the jury.

About Standard Life

The first life insurance company to transact business in Canada, in 2008 Standard Life marks its 175th year of operations. With 10,000 employees globally, Standard Life plc is a major international financial services group headquartered in Scotland. The firm provides asset-managing services for retirement, investment and protection to some seven million customers around the world. It has offices in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, Germany, Austria, India and China, including Hong Kong. The Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada is Standard Life plc's largest operation outside the U.K., with 2,000 employees based in Montreal and across Canada, serving more than 1.3 million Canadians, including group insurance and pension plan participants. (www.standardlife.ca)

The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal is presented by Hydro-Québec

The Music of Mozart is Celebrated with MOZART DECODED and THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES, Dec. 20

The Music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is Celebrated this Holiday Season in MOZART DECODED and
THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES, December 20 on 'A'

– Holiday specials spotlighting the legendary composer produced by

Emmy and Gemini Award-winning Kevin Sullivan –

- Toronto's internationally-renowned Opera Atelier Baroque Opera Company featured in THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES –

– Award-winning THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES shot in Toronto and key locations
around the world –

Toronto, ON (November 25, 2008) – He's known for composing some of the most beautiful music ever. This holiday season, 'A' celebrates the enduring magic of musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with two Canadian-produced specials from the Sullivan Entertainment library – MOZART DECODED and THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES. Premiering Saturday, December 20 at 7 p.m. ET on 'A' (check Atv.ca to confirm local broadcast times), MOZART DECODED is a one-hour documentary revealing the little-known details about the legendary composer and the inspiration behind his most famous masterpieces. THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES follows at 8 p.m. ET on 'A', a two-hour original Canadian film that gives a contemporary makeover to Mozart's final composition – and one of his most beloved – "The Magic Flute," and features performances by Toronto's renowned Opera Atelier Baroque Opera Company.

"MOZART DECODED and THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES offer viewers a comprehensive look at the music of one of the world's most legendary composers," said Susanne Boyce, President, Creative, Content and Channels, CTV Inc. "This holiday season, viewers can relive some of his most famous pieces of music and be entertained as they discover the inspiration behind them."

"My goal in creating THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES was to take that antiquated, reserved world that people think of as high art and to remove it from the opera stage into a contemporary film," said Kevin Sullivan, President, Sullivan Entertainment. "The final production is not really an opera, it's more like a musical... with all of the most memorable songs and dance sequences set against the background of a contemporary love story done with style and panache."

The music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has inspired and entertained people for over 250 years, but who was the man behind the music?

MOZART DECODED (Saturday, December 20 at 7 p.m. ET) takes an in-depth look at Mozart's tumultuous and often difficult life, from his beginnings as a musical prodigy through his rise to stardom and membership with the secretive Freemasons, to his mysterious and untimely death at the age of 35. What inspired him to compose the musical masterpieces that immortalized him as one of the greatest composers the world has ever known?

Following the one-hour documentary, the two-hour original Canadian film THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES (Saturday, December 20 at 8 p.m. ET) explores love, betrayal, reward and retribution against the backdrop of one of Mozart's most famous musical scores. Set in modern-day Saltzburg, Austria, young virtuoso singer Tom (Warren Christie, OCTOBER ROAD) is cast as the lead in a staging of the "The Magic Flute" opera for Mozart's 250th birthday. Overwhelmed by the genius of the score, Tom fantasizes the opera in his mind, and quickly becomes obsessed with his mysterious co-star, Masha, (opera singer Mireille Asselin) an unknown Russian soprano of extraordinary talent who is constantly isolated from the rest of the company by her manager, Dr. Nagel (Rutger Hauer, Blade Runner). Tom's interest in Masha becomes backstage intrigue as fantasy crosses into reality.

Winner of Best Family Film at the 2008 New York, Staten Island Film Festival, THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES was shot on location in Salzburg, Vienna, Munich and Toronto, and showcases Toronto's internationally-renowned Opera Atelier Baroque Opera Company.

MOZART DECODED and THE MAGIC FLUTE DIARIES were written, directed and produced by multiple Emmy and Gemini Award-winning filmmaker Kevin Sullivan (ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: A NEW BEGINNING, ANNE OF GREEN GABLES, ROAD TO AVONLEA).

About Sullivan Entertainment:

Now in its 29th year, Sullivan Entertainment continues to be an internationally-recognized and award-winning producer of television series, feature films and mini-series. Established in 1979 by Kevin Sullivan and Trudy Grant, Sullivan Entertainment quickly became the producer of Canada's most watched television, with the GREEN GABLES-AVONLEA franchise. Great successes for Sullivan Entertainment have included the critically-acclaimed television series WIND AT MY BACK, BUTTERBOX BABIES – the highest-rated Canadian television movie of all time – and THE PIANO MAN'S DAUGHTER, starring Stockard Channing and Christian Campbell based on the novel by Timothy Findley. Sullivan Entertainment productions have been praised for their visual beauty, their strong storytelling and the fine acting through which they weave their unique spell. Sullivan Entertainment has expanded into several additional successful business ventures, including the Sullivan Boutique, Sullivan Entertainment International, Sullivan Home Entertainment and Sullivan Animation.

About 'A'

Fresh and dynamic, 'A' is the new home of established primetime hits, critical favourites and big-buzz new series. 'A' delivers Canadian television's most exciting new schedule in Atlantic Canada, Ontario and British Columbia as well as in Alberta on ACCESS in certain primetime hours. 'A' spotlights day-to-day life in local communities in Victoria/Vancouver, Barrie/Toronto, Ottawa, London, Windsor and Wingham through its award-winning 'A' News programming. 'A' is owned by CTV Limited, a division of CTVglobemedia, Canada's premier multi-media company. More information about 'A' may be found at www.atv.ca.

Musique latine m étissée pour un temps des fêtes muy caliente dans le cadre de l'événement Joyeux Déce mbre sur le Plateau

Pour son édition 2008, qui se déroulera du 6 au 24 décembre sur l’avenue du Mont-Royal, l’événement, Joyeux Décembre! s’ouvre aux traditions latines du temps des fêtes. C’est Roberto López, multi-instrumentiste d’origine colombienne et récipiendaire, entre autres, en 2006, du Prix de la Fondation du Maire de Montréal aux Francofolies et du Coup de c¦ur de l’année de Chantal Jolis (Espace Musique, Radio-Canada), qui sera le porteur de traditions et porte-parole de l’événement. Il offrira au public deux spectacles musicaux et un atelier de percussions.

« Que les rythmes del mundo nous secouent les hanches! Qu'ils guident joyeusement nos pas vers une année rassembleuse et engagée! Viva Diciembre! » - Roberto López

Nominé pour le « Meilleur CD, 2006 » dans la catégorie musique latine par l’Indie Acoustic Project (États-Unis.) et pour le « Meilleur CD de musique du monde, 2006 » par Rhythms International – Mix 96 pour son album Qué pasa?, Roberto López est réputé pour mixer avec brio musiques traditionnelles et sonorités urbaines, dans un grand souffle de nouveauté latine

Prestation musicale lors de la Marche aux Flambeaux
Les chansons de Roberto López viendront réchauffer l’atmosphère du Parc Lafontaine à l’arrivée de la Marche de Noël aux flambeaux. Il offrira au public une prestation musicale inspirée des traditions colombiennes de Noël.
Date et heure : samedi 6 décembre à 19 h 30 (à l’arrivée de la Marche qui débutait à 18 h 30)
Lieu : Parc Lafontaine (rue de LaRoche)

Le spectacle de clôture
Puissant, mélodique et contemporain, le style Nu Afro Latin (Nouveau Afro Latin) de Roberto López se définit par un mélange osé et réussi entre musique afro-colombienne, afro-cubaine, hip hop urbain, jazz et musique électronique. Le tout s’harmonise en un cocktail pétillant de nueva-cumbia, porro-soul et salsa-funk! Entouré de six musiciens, l’auteur-compositeur-interprète investira la scène de la Taverne Normand le 19 décembre prochain. Il interprétera des chansons extraites de son album Qué Pasa? ainsi que des pièces de son prochain CD. Avis de canicule en perspective… La deuxième partie de soirée sera assurée par Dj Mc Chello qui enchaînera sur un mix latino de son cru, destiné à nous faire danser jusqu’au bout de la nuit.

« Une des plus belles découvertes latino-montréalaises de la décennie actuelle... Jamais le triangle Bogotá – Santiago de Cuba – Montréal n’avait été abordé avec autant d’imagination! » Yves Bernard / LE DEVOIR

« Awesome is the word... RL is the real deal. »
Angus Mackay / RHYTHMS INTERNATIONAL : MIX 96

Date et heure : Vendredi 19 décembre à 20 h 30
Lieu : Taverne Normand (angle Mont-Royal / Fabre)
Tarif : 10 $

Un atelier de percussions colombiennes – dimanche 14 décembre
Percussionniste de talent, Roberto López offrira un atelier d’initiation aux rythmes sud-américains. Cumbia, salsa, etc…, les participants apprendront à rythmer leurs soirées de fin d’année.
Date et heure : dimanche 14 décembre, de 15 h à 16 h 30
Lieu : Salsa Etc … (936, av. du Mont-Royal Est)
Tarif : 10 $. Réservation : (514) 522-3797 poste 26

Toute la programmation de Joyeux Décembre! sur www.joyeuxdecembre.com

Opera Atelier rides a wave of success

Riding a wave of success, Opera Atelier anticipates

high demand for tickets when Poppea goes on sale December 1^st

When the curtain came down on the sold-out final performance of Opera Atelier’s The Abduction from the Seraglio earlier this month, there was much to cheer about. A lively new production enjoyed by critics and audiences alike, Abduction drew an average attendance of 90 per cent over the run and claimed its place as Opera Atelier’s third most successful production, behind this spring’s mega-hit Idomeneo and The Magic Flute (2001).

With subscriptions up 30 per cent over last year’s total, Opera Atelier’s general manager Jane Hargraft anticipates sales will be brisk when single tickets to Monteverdi’s The Coronation of Poppea go on sale Monday, December 1.

“Subscriptions are at an all-time high so there are fewer single tickets available for last minute buyers. Given the fact that Poppea was completely sold-out when OA presented it in 2002, I think we can expect to see a sharp and early demand for tickets,” said Hargraft.

The Coronation of Poppea runs for six performances April 25 to May 2, 2009 at the Elgin Theatre. Male soprano Michael Maniaci returns to sing Nero, the role which garnered him a Dora Award nomination for best operatic performance in 2002. Toronto audiences were treated to Maniaci’s tremendous vocal technique last season when he appeared as Idamante, the object of Measha Brueggergosman’s obsession in Idomeneo. Maniaci will be joined by Canadian mezzo-soprano Kimberly Barber making her OA debut in the role of Ottavia.

Tickets for The Coronation of Poppea are $30 to $135 and go on sale December 1, 2007 at TicketMaster 416-872-5555, on-line at www.ticketmaster.ca or at the Elgin Theatre box office. Operatix are $20 and may be purchased by people under the age of 30 with valid I.D. in person at the Elgin Theatre Box Office (subject to availability). Group discounts (15 people +) are available by calling 416.703.3767 ext. 22.

Opera Atelier is Canada’s premier baroque theatre company, producing opera, ballet and drama from the 17th and 18th centuries. While drawing upon the aesthetics and ideals of the period, Opera Atelier goes beyond “reconstruction” and infuses each production with an inventive theatricality that resonates with modern audiences. Over the past two decades, under the direction of founders Marshall Pynkoski and Jeannette Lajeunesse-Zingg, Opera Atelier has garnered acclaim for its performances at home as well as in the United States, Europe and Asia.

2008/09 Season Sponsor: Sun Life Financial

Production Sponsor: BMO Financial Group

2008/09 Major Sponsors: Scotiabank, TD Canada Trust Music, The Dominion of Canada General Assurance Company

The ESO Brings Together the Best in Wine, Food and Music- January 30, 2009

The ESO brings the best of wine, food and music together in perfect harmony!

Flavours of BC’s Naramata Bench Wine Fundraiser

January 30, 2009- Tickets On-Sale Now!

Edmonton, AB … The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) is pleased to invite you to their inaugural wine-tasting fundraiser- Flavours of BC’s Naramata Bench. On January 30, 2009- the ESO is hosting a celebration of fine wines featuring the best of Canada’s most in-demand wine region- BC’s Naramata Bench.

Representatives from 10 different wineries will be on hand to showcase their award-winning wines. Guests will be treated to an evening of fine food, wine, music, auctions and prizes with all proceeds going to support our Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.

Registration begins at 6:30pm on January 30^th. The Wine Tasting/Auction runs from 7:00-10:00pm.

Only 400 tickets are available for this fundraiser. Events tickets can be purchased through the Winspear Centre Box Office for $130 (agency fees apply). Tickets are on-sale now! A tax deductible receipt will be issued for a portion of the ticket cost.

All tickets purchased before December 25^th will be automatically entered into a draw for a pair of 6-pack Sampler Passes for the ESO’s 2009/10 concert season.

This ESO special event is made possible by the sponsorships of Naramata Bench, California Closets, Magic 99, Winspear Centre, Vines-Riverbend, Parcom Marketing, Corporate Copy, Avenue Magazine, and The Artworks.

For more information, please contact: Melayne Shankel, ESO Media Relations Manager.

Phone: (780)401-2532 or Melayne.Shankel@winspearcentre.com

For ticket purchases- please contact the Winspear Centre Box Office. Phone: (780)428-1414 or in-person at #4 Winston Churchill Square.

Pinchas Zukerman adds Royal Philharmonic Orchestra appointment to NAC Orchestra Music Directorship

Pinchas Zukerman to become Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra while continuing as Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra

Ottawa, Canada – Pinchas Zukerman, Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra, will join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) as Principal Guest Conductor from January 2009. The world-famous violinist, violist, conductor, pedagogue, chamber musician and mentor adds this prestigious new appointment in London, England, to his international soloist career and to his 16-week commitment to the NAC Orchestra in Ottawa, Canada, where he continues to live.

In March 2006, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra invited Pinchas Zukerman to play/conduct a concert at Cadogan Hall, London; the event was a huge success and led to a critically acclaimed RPO tour of the USA in January 2008 with Pinchas Zukerman conducting the Orchestra and performing the Beethoven or Bruch Violin Concerto in 22 concerts across the country.

Pinchas Zukerman will take his place alongside a plethora of esteemed conductors by joining the RPO’s roster: Daniele Gatti, Music Director, Charles Dutoit, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Elect from 2009, Leonard Slatkin, Principal Guest Conductor, and Grzegorz Nowak, Principal Associate Conductor.

Ian Maclay, Managing Director of the RPO, says:

“The decision to offer Pinchas Zukerman the post was a unanimous one from the musicians of the RPO after a hugely successful tour of the USA in January of this year. Everyone was impressed by his musicianship, his commitment to the Orchestra and his constant striving for the highest possible results. We are thrilled to have him on board with his work with the Orchestra involving London and UK dates with emphasis on community work and international tours”.

Pinchas Zukerman says:

“It is an honour to become a part of the Royal Philharmonic’s storied history, joining such past luminaries as Sir Thomas Beecham, Rudolf Kempe and Antal Doráti. Our January tour gave me the opportunity to play 22 concerts in 11 states and was a joyous experience both personally and professionally. I look forward to working with these outstanding musicians as Principal Guest Conductor.”

Recognised as a phenomenon for nearly four decades, Pinchas Zukerman recently turned 60 years of age; he is marking the milestone with an extensive schedule of concerts, events and educational activities across the globe during the current season, travelling to 17 countries, and performing in over 30 major cities.

Pinchas Zukerman was named Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in 1998. In addition to a busy performance schedule at the NAC, he has just returned from a Western Canada Tour with the NAC Orchestra, which received multiple standing ovations and rave reviews at every concert. The Performance and Education Tour, which was his eighth tour since becoming Music Director, included over 130 education events. Maestro Zukerman is the driving force behind the national role the NAC plays in education. He founded the NAC Summer Music Institute (SMI) in 1999 which now includes the Young Artists Programme, Conductors Programme and Composers Programme. Over ten years the SMI has provided training with an international faculty headed by Zukerman to 581 participants from 34 countries. In 2007, Pinchas Zukerman launched the Institute of Orchestral Studies, a season-long institute charged with developing highly talented musicians for orchestral careers. A pioneer of distance learning, he champions the NAC’s broadband videoconferencing programme known as Hexagon.

Prior to joining the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Pinchas Zukerman was Music Director of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra from 1980 to 1987, Music Director of the South Bank Festival in England from 1979 to 1981, Principal Guest Conductor of the Dallas Symphony’s International Summer Music Festival from 1991-1995 and the Dallas Symphony from 1993 to 1995, and Artistic Director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Summer MusicFest, from 1996 to 1999.

Doing Leonard Cohen

DOING LEONARD COHEN

RETURNS TO CALGARY AFTER EIGHT YEARS

Calgary, AB – By popular demand, One Yellow Rabbit is pleased to bring back one of its most highly acclaimed creations: Doing Leonard Cohen.

Running from November 25 to 29 2008, in the Big Secret Theatre, the One Yellow Rabbit Ensemble reprises this multi-layered homage to Leonard Cohen, which features some 50 poems from early works like Death of a Lady's Man and The Spice Box of Earth, as well as an extended treatment of the novel Beautiful Losers.

Following the Calgary performances, One Yellow Rabbit travels to Toronto, where Doing Leonard Cohen and Sylvia Plath Must Not Die will be performed in repertory at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts from December 2 to 13, 2008.

Along with its sultry yet aggressive movement, the hallucinatory stream of consciousness captures the erotic and sensual qualities of Cohen's finest poetic voice. Put on your bell-bottoms and Greek sandals, then get set to revel in the sexy 60s as only Leonard can—and did. Don't miss the show the Globe & Mail called "poetry in motion".

One Yellow Rabbit is also thrilled to present a special one-performance-only edition of Sylva Plath Must Not Die – Unplugged Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton, two of the 20^th century's most prolific and complex literary figures, are inexorably linked, as much by their mutual zeal for life as by their infamous deaths.

Originally premiering at the 2008 High Performance Rodeo, the One Yellow Rabbit Ensemble invites audiences to revisit its voyeuristic journey to another era in a special pay-what-you-can performance on Saturday, November 29, at 2:00 pm in the Big Secret Theatre.

Doing Leonard Cohen

Adapted and Directed by Blake Brooker

Staged by Denise Clarke

Performed by the OYR Ensemble

November 25^th to 29^th, 2008

Big Secret Theatre

Tuesday-Wednesday $20, Thursday $23, Friday $29 and Saturday $31

Tickets available at Ticketmaster 403-299-8888 or ticketmaster.ca or oyr.org

For more information 403-264-3224 or oyr.org / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njRVGSfeyfY

Canada's Julian Kuerti Saves the Day with Boston Symphony Orchestra

Toronto’s Julian Kuerti has just scored another triumph! Kuerti is in his second season as assistant conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

At very short notice, the young maestro (in his early 30s) has filled in for famed Russian conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky, in a lengthy and demanding program. Lynn Harrell, one of the world’s leading cellists, was soloist.

The Boston Globe was truly impressed! See www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2008/11/21/conductor_switch_handled_elegantly_by_bso/

More info on the concert is at www.bso.org/bso/mods/perf_detail.jsp?pid=prod2220034

TORONTO NOTE: Julian Kuerti conducts his father, internationally acclaimed pianist Anton Kuerti, in their first joint Toronto performance, at Mooredale Concerts, Sunday, January 11, 2009, 3 p.m. The concert takes place at the MacMillan Theatre, 80 Queen’s Park Crescent, and features the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Kuerti father and son join forces with the HPO in two works by Felix Mendelssohn for piano and orchestra – the Piano Concerto No. 1 in G minor and the Capriccio Brillante. Also on the program are Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 in F and Hungarian Sketches by Bela Bartok.

Tickets, $35; $30 for seniors and students; and information may be obtained by phoning 416-922-3714, ext. 103, or visiting www.mooredaleconcerts.com.

Anton Kuerti is artistic director of Mooredale Concerts. The series, celebrating its 20^th season, was founded by Kristine Bogyo, late wife of Anton Kuerti and mother of Julian and his brother, cellist Rafael Kuerti.

Canadian Brass/Dec 23, 8 PM/RTH

THE CANADIAN BRASS

Tuesday, December 23, 2008 at 8 PM / Roy Thomson Hall

$59.50 - $29.50 - Call 416-872-4255 or online at www.roythomson.com

or visit the Roy Thomson Hall Box Office

The Canadian Brass is back, in what’s become an annual holiday favourite. This concert promises festive favourites, fine new repertoire, and mischievous hijinks, so characteristic of the Brass, with special guest Eric Robertson, Juno Award-winning organist.

You’d expect any artist with a career approaching its fourth decade to spend more time looking back than forward. Not so for the members of Canadian Brass. This pioneering quintet certainly has no shortage of past glories upon which to reflect, but they are far, far too busy for that. Now in its 38^th year, the group has always followed its heart, performing and recording the music it loves, regardless of its genre of origin. Whether rooted in classical, opera, jazz, or pop, they tackle their chosen compositions with a potent combination of enthusiasm and technical virtuosity. The current lineup of Canadian Brass comprises Chuck Daellenbach, Gene Watts, French horn player Jeff Nelsen, and trumpeters Joe Burgstaller and Brandon Ridenour.

Their rare ability to both entertain and educate with their music dates right back to their earliest days. Chuck and Gene had met in Toronto, and took their newly formed Canadian Brass to the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra where they became artists-in-residence in 1971, and the players remained members of the orchestra until 1977. Their early performances were primarily for schoolchildren, and it was in front of this tough audience that the group honed their skills as entertainers. From there, their career took off at a rapid rate.

As well as entertaining millions of music lovers around the globe with their recordings and concerts, Canadian Brass has performed an invaluable educational service. Their work has radically redefined the place of brass within classical music, and their example has inspired literally millions of young players. By the end of that decade, Canadian Brass had toured China, the first Western ensemble to tour China after the “smashing of the Gang of Four”, headlined Carnegie Hall in triumphant fashion, and toured Europe extensively, proving both the commercial and artistic viability of the Canadian Brass concept.

There has been no stopping Canadian Brass ever since, and a full list of career highlights, accolades and awards is simply too lengthy to repeat. Any single year out of the career of the Brass would read like the entire career of most performers. Canadian Brass’ continued open-mindedness in both a musical and business sense will stand them in good stead. They’re as passionate about making music and entertaining audiences as ever, and their future looks bright. Look for the sound of Canadian Brass to ring clear, loud and proud for many years to come.

Sponsored by LEXUS.

THE CANADIAN BRASS

Tuesday, December 23, 2008 at 8 pm

Roy Thomson Hall , 60 Simcoe Street, Toronto

Tickets $59.50 $29.50- Call 416-872-4255 or visit the Roy Thomson Hall Box Office

www.roythomson.com

Nielsen's "The Inextinguishable" and Elgar's Cello Concerto both performed in one incredible Victoria Symphony concert

Raging timpani battle highlights Nielsen Symphony No. 4, “The Inextinguishable”

Victoria, BC – On December 7 and 8, Maestra Tania Miller conducts the Victoria Symphony’s premiere performance of Carl Nielsen’s Symphony no.4, “The Inextinguishable”. Solo performances on timpani create a dramatic and grand finale to this acclaimed work. Canadian cellist John Friesen is the featured guest soloist performing Elgar’s beautifulCello Concerto.

Nielsen Symphony no. 4 begins with a violent and expansive principal theme that links the entire work together. The title “The Inextinguishable” reflects Nielsen’s personal motto: ‘Music is life, and, like life, inextinguishable.’ The second movement opens passionately with a long line in the violins and climaxes to an oboe solo by Principal Oboe Mike Byrne. The highlight of the final movement is the timpani solos that pit mentor against student; Principal Timpani Bill Linwood and his student Corey Rae. View the finale movement as performed by the BBC Orchestra: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VFn2Pt3m8Q

Canadian cellist John Friesen known for his exciting and passionate playing ability performs Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor. His four solo recordings, and his latest disc, Ascendance have been met with critical acclaim for their beauty of tone and depth of expression. Music from his recordings appears in Oscar winning actor, Sir Ben Kingsley’s, latest movie Fifty Dead Men Walking scheduled for release in 2009.

Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor is a cornerstone of the cello repertoire and is also said to be Elgar’s last great success. The cello opens the work with a darkly dramatic theme, recurrent as the emotional force, binding the concerto together. Opposing minor and major key signatures creates a tonal instability in sharp contrast with the lyrical melodies heard both in the orchestra and the solo cello. Yo-Yo Ma can be viewed on youtube playing the concerto: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RM9DPfp7-Ck

The 2008-2009 season marks Tania Miller’s sixth as music director of the Victoria Symphony, an appointment that made her the first woman to hold such a significant position in Canada. Her vibrancy and dynamic approach to music making have inspired many innovations with the Victoria Symphony and a new era of artistic growth for
the orchestra.

The Victoria Symphony is Vancouver Island’s largest and most active arts organization offering its audiences 68 years of tradition, a commitment to fostering new music and a dedication to community involvement through music education. Showcasing the outstanding talents of its musicians and guest artists the Victoria Symphony’s 2008-2009 season offers a diverse and exciting line-up of over 50 concerts led by its vibrant Music Director
Tania Miller.

The Victoria Symphony led by Maestra Tania Miller performs “The Inextinguishable” and Elgar’s Cello Concerto featuring soloist John Friesen on Sunday, December 7 at 2:30pm and Monday, December 8 at 8:00pm at the Royal Theatre. Tickets from $28.50 for adults, $16.00 for students can be purchased by calling 250.385.6515 or 250.386.6121 or online at www.victoriasymphony.ca.

The Victoria Symphony wishes to thank and acknowledge concert sponsor
The Wedgewood Hotel based in Vancouver, BC.

For complete programming details of the 2008-2009 season please visit www.victoriasymphony.ca.

David Briskin leads UTSO in Bernstein, Brahms, Dvorak

DAVID BRISKIN LEADS THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA IN MUSIC BY BERNSTEIN, BRAHMS, AND DVOŘÁK

TORONTO – On Friday, November 28, conductor David Briskin will lead the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra in its second concert of the season. The program begins with Leonard Bernstein’s Overture to Candide in commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the composer’s birth, followed by Brahms’ Violin Concerto in D featuring student soloist Luri Lee. Rounding out the program is Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 (From the New World). The concert takes place at 7:30 pm in MacMillan Theatre in the Edward Johnson Building, 80 Queen’s Park. Tickets ($18 adults and $10 seniors/students) can be purchased at the box office in person or by calling 416-978-3744.

Internationally recognized as a conductor of extraordinary versatility and discernment, DAVID BRISKIN currently serves as Music Director and Principal Conductor of The National Ballet of Canada. For seven years he served as Conductor with American and is now a frequent guest conductor with some of the world’s leading Ballet companies including New York City Ballet and San Francisco Ballet, among others. He also served as Music Director of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre for three years and Conductor for the The Juilliard School’s Dance Division for 12. On the concert stage, Mr. Briskin has appeared with the Pittsburgh, Detroit, Baltimore, Cincinnati Pops and Singapore Symphony Orchestras, as well as the Hong Kong Philharmonic and the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica. He has also served for six years as the Music Director of the Masterwork Chorus and Orchestra in New York City, performing annually at Carnegie Hall. Mr. Briskin was appointed Director of Orchestral Studies and Conductor of the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra on July 1, 2008.

LURI LEE is a fourth year student at the University of Toronto, completing her Bachelor of Music degree in Performance. She began studying the violin at the age of 6 in Korea, and completed music studies at the Claude Watson Arts Program and the Young Artist Performance Academy Program at the Royal Conservatory of Music. She currently studies with Erika Raum and appears as a soloist at this concert as a winner of the student concerto competition. She has been the top prize winners of the Korean National Youth Musician Competition and the Canadian Music Competition. Luri has performed in master classes for David Stewart, Annalee Patipatanakoon, and Mayumi Seiler. She has also performed chamber music with Steve Dann and Jean-Michel Fonteneau at the Domain Forget Chamber Music Festival. She has received the Maime May scholarship from the University of Toronto (2005-7) and the Lorand Fenyves String scholarship in 2007.

Part of Canada’s top university, the University of Toronto FACULTY OF MUSIC has an illustrious history as one of North America’s leading centres for the scholarly and professional study of music, offering a rich array of degree and diploma programs from the undergraduate to post-graduate levels. Many of this country’s greatest musicians such as John Weinzweig, Lois Marshall, Elmer Iseler, Adrienne Pieczonka, Russell Braun, and the St. Lawrence String Quartet have studied or taught at the Faculty. With over 100 events featuring students, faculty and distinguished guests, the Faculty’s performance season embodies its commitment to an education that champions diversity, depth and explorations. Highlights of the 2008-09 season include cellists Steven Isserlis and Shauna Rolston, baritone Sherrill Milnes, composer Maria Schneider, conductors David Briskin and Miah Im, jazz great Phil Nimmons, the Miró, and St. Lawrence String Quartets, the Gryphon Trio and Nexus.

For more information on this or other Faculty of Music concert series, please visit our website at www.music.utoronto.ca or contact the Box Office at 416-978-3744.

###

Ticket sales and general inquiries:
Faculty of Music Box Office
Hours: 1 – 7 pm, Monday to Friday, with extended hours on performance nights.
Phone: 416-978-3744
Address: Lobby level, Edward Johnson Building, 80 Queen’s Park, Toronto ON M5S 2C5

Sarah McLachlan wins 2009 Allan Waters Humanitarian Award

"ANGEL" SONGSTRESS SARAH MCLACHLAN
RECEIVES THE 2009 ALLAN WATERS HUMANITARIAN AWARD

Vancouver, BC (November 20, 2008) - The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) and CTV today announced that Sarah McLachlan, one of Canada's most celebrated artists, will receive the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award during the JUNO Gala Dinner & Awards on Saturday, March 28. The Award, named after CHUM Ltd. founder Allan Waters and made possible by funding from the CTV/CHUM benefits package, recognizes an outstanding Canadian artist whose humanitarian contributions have positively enhanced the social fabric of Canada.

"CARAS is honoured to present Sarah McLachlan with the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award. She is an inspirational example of how music can touch lives and positively affect change in communities," said Melanie Berry, President of CARAS.

"I am honoured and humbled to receive the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award. I feel so lucky and blessed in my life and giving back feels right and good -- it's the best way I know to thank the universe," said Sarah McLachlan.

This past October, Sarah McLachlan celebrated the 20-year anniversary of a triumphant career marked with multi-platinum selling albums, numerous awards and sold-out tours. Alongside her musical successes, McLachlan is well known for her humanitarian contributions to charities and organizations at home and internationally, often using music as a platform for social change.

In 1997, Sarah McLachlan founded Lilith Fair, a touring concert festival organized to showcase and promote women in music. The tour exclusively headlined female artists and bands -- an ambitious and ground-breaking idea that had never been achieved in such a large capacity -- and garnered the support and participation of many of music's top artists including Bonnie Raitt, Christina Aguilera, Erykah Badu, Fiona Apple, Indigo Girls, Lisa Loeb, Nelly Furtado, Sheryl Crow and Tracy Chapman to name a few.

Over the next three years, Lilith Fair continued to tour across Canada and the U.S. bringing together over 2 million music fans and showcasing more than 100 artists. The festival became hugely popular with the media and was lauded by the music industry for its positive impact. By the end of its three-year run in 1999, Lilith Fair had raised more than $7 million for charities and women's shelters across North America.

It was also during this time that Sarah McLachlan received the Elizabeth Cady Stanton Visionary Award for advancing the careers of women in music. New York Governor George Pataki presented McLachlan with the Award in 1998, fittingly on the 150th anniversary of the first women's rights convention in Seneca Falls, NY.

Another proud moment came in 2000, when McLachlan was bestowed Canada's highest civilian honor, the Order of Canada, for her outstanding achievements, dedication to the community and service to the nation.

In 2004, McLachlan teamed with director Sophie Muller to create the video for the single "World on Fire," again using music as a platform for social awareness. The song's charged lyrics and the simple yet impactful images compared dollar amounts spent on show business splurges against the impact of global aid to developing countries. New York Times' music writer Jon Pareles hailed the video as a "brilliantly modest gesture."

By design, the video cost only $15 to produce, with the remainder of the $150,000 production budget donated to 11 wide-ranging charitable organizations including CARE, Engineers Without Borders, Help The Aged, Warchild and Heifer International. "World On Fire" received a 2004 Grammy Award nomination for Best Short Form Music Video and the album, AFTERGLOW, became certified double platinum in the U.S. and 5X platinum in Canada.

Sarah McLachlan also dedicates much of her time to support music education and the betterment of youth. In 1999, she founded the Sarah McLachlan Foundation to help bring music into the lives of young Canadians, especially in underserved communities, and in 2003 established the first Sarah McLachlan Music Outreach – Arts Umbrella Project in Vancouver's inner city. The program offers students free high-quality music lessons, educational workshops, mentorship and support networks to encourage students to explore the joys of music and learning.

A proponent of music education, she also finds time to help national music programs outside of her Foundation, including CARAS' music education charity, MusiCounts. In January 2008, McLachlan participated in the first Vancouver-area MusiCounts presentation, performing for more than 300 students from seven recipient schools who received much-needed Band Aid instrument grants.

McLachlan continues to be an inspirational role model for young Canadians, and recently helped to kick off the first-ever National Me To We Day on October 17, 2008, in Toronto. She joined an outstanding line-up of community leaders, motivational speakers and artists at a stadium event packed with thousands of young people in support of Free The Children, a global network of children helping children.

A well-known animal lover, McLachlan passionately advocates for animal rights. Since 2006, she has been the spokesperson for the BC Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, speaking out on behalf of innocent animals that have suffered abuse and neglect. McLachlan sang a stirring rendition of her multiplatinum hit song "Angel" for a series of television spots to promote the BC SPCA's animal adoption campaign. Her sincere, soulful voice and socially conscious lyrics have touched millions of fans and helped raise awareness for numerous charitable causes close to her heart.

Since signing with Nettwerk Records in 1988, every one of Sarah McLachlan's studio and live albums and videos have been certified gold, platinum, multi-platinum or diamond by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). She has sold over 26 million records worldwide since her debut album, TOUCH, followed by a string of monumental albums including FUMBLING TOWARDS ECSTASY (1994, 3X platinum), SURFACING (1997, diamond), MIRRORBALL (1999, 4X platinum) and AFTERGLOW (2003, 5X platinum).

McLachlan is an eight-time JUNO Award winner including a clean sweep in 1998 for Album of the Year, Single of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year. She has also received Grammy Awards for her stellar hits, "Building a Mystery" (Best Female Pop Vocal, 1998), "Last Dance" (Best Pop Instrumental, 1998) and "I Will Remember You" which won for Best Female Pop Vocal in 1999.

The milestone release of CLOSER: THE BEST OF SARAH MCLACHLAN (October 2008) marks her first-ever career anthology featuring 13 classic tracks personally selected by the artist from her award-winning catalogue. The new collection arrives exactly two decades after her professional debut and celebrates her timeless hits while signalling a new beginning with two newly recorded and previously unreleased songs, "U Want Me 2" and "Don't Give Up On Us."

Sarah McLachlan follows country superstar Paul Brandt (2008), Tom Jackson (2007) and Bruce Cockburn (2006) who have received the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award.

CARAS gratefully acknowledges CTV for its outstanding support of Canadian talent and for its support of this award.

For more information about the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award, information on The 2009 JUNO Awards, or to download photos of Sarah McLachlan, go to www.junoawards.ca.

Sponsors of The 2009 JUNO Awards include FACTOR, Canada's Private Radio Broadcasters and the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage's "Canada Music Fund," The Province of British Columbia, The City of Vancouver, Music BC and Radio Starmaker Fund.

About Allan Waters
The late Allan Waters, founder of CHUM Limited, started off with Toronto's legendary 1050 CHUM in 1954. The broadcasting pioneer fostered a deep commitment in all CHUM radio and television stations to community involvement and public service. In 1967, he founded the CHUM Charitable Foundation to provide financial assistance to charitable organizations and social service agencies, which has had a positive impact on the lives of thousands of people. Allan Waters will always be remembered as a great leader with a commitment to community support.

About CARAS:
The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences/L'academie canadienne des arts et des sciences de l'enregistrement (CARAS) is a not-for-profit organization created to preserve and enhance the Canadian music and recording industries and to contribute toward higher artistic and industry standards. The main focus of CARAS is the exploration and development of opportunities to showcase and promote Canadian artists and music through vehicles such as The JUNO Awards. For more information on the 38th Annual JUNO Awards or The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences' (CARAS) please visit our websites at www.carasonline.ca and www.junoawards.ca.

About CTV:
CTV, Canada's largest private broadcaster, offers a wide range of quality news, sports, information, and entertainment programming. It has the number-one national newscast, CTV NATIONAL NEWS WITH LLOYD ROBERTSON, and is the number-one choice for prime-time viewing. CTVglobemedia Inc. is Canada's premier multi-media company which owns CTV Inc. and The Globe and Mail. CTV Inc. also owns radio stations across the country, and leading national specialty channels. Other CTVglobemedia investments include an interest in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, and in Dome Productions, a North American leader in the provision of mobile high definition production facilities. More information about CTV may be found on the company website at www.ctv.ca.

4th Line Theatre is holding auditions for 2009 summer season!

4th Line Theatre is holding auditions for 2009 summer season!

Millbrook, ON…4th Line Theatre announces that it will be holding auditions for its 2009 summer season and is inviting professional actors to submit their resume and headshots for consideration. The company is looking for the following types of actors for the following shows:

The Right Road to Pontypool Written by Alex Poch-Goldin and Directed by Kim Blackwell

June 30 – August 1

A loving chronicle of one man’s sun kissed dream for Toronto’s working class Jews in the early 1900’s. With a way of life now vanished, Pontypool boasted five resorts in its heyday as a summer haven for thousands of Eastern European immigrants in the heart of Protestant southern Ontario.

2 women ages 18-25

2 men ages 25-30

Welcome Death Written and Directed by Robert Winslow

August 10 - 29

“Whodunit” fans will love this Victorian murder-mystery set right here in Millbrook! In 1873, the discovery of a young woman’s body in a field spurs a Coroner’s inquest that pushes past the restraints of science and enters the realm of the spirit to find unknowable answers.

2 woman – 1- age 50+, 1 – age 18-30

3 men – 1 – age 25-30, 1 – age 30-45, 1 – age 40-50

Please send headshot and resume no later than December 15, 2008 to:

Robert Winslow, Artistic Director

4th Line Theatre

1 Dufferin Street

Old Millbrook School

Millbrook, ON

L0A 1G0

admin@4thlinetheatre.on.ca

Both Equity and non-equity artists are invited to apply. We’re sorry, due to limited staff resources, only actors who are invited to audition will be contacted. Please do not call or e-mail the theatre to confirm receipt of your package.

Le Blogue du DG

LE BLOGUE DU DG AU SALON DU LIVRE

Le Blogue du DG vous connaissez? Les familiers du site Web de Radio Ville-Marie connaissent ces petits billets que réalisent Jean-Guy Roy, directeur général de la station. L'aventure du blogue a débuté en août 2007 et a demandé de la part de l'auteur, vous en conviendrez, perspicacité, ténacité et créativité. Plus de 130 articles publiés au fil des jours et qui ont accueilli sur le Web près de 13 500 lecteurs depuis le début.

Voilà qu'une première sélection de ces articles vient d'être publiée aux Éditions Fides sous le titre Le Blogue du DG dans un format pratique et joliment illustré par Stéphane Bourrelle. Le Blogue du DG, c'est un regard sur l'actualité de notre monde, une sorte de commentaire dans un style dynamique, imagé, humoristique et parfois décapant. Ce qui est intéressant est que ce commentaire est tout pénétré des valeurs que l'on souhaiterait toujours présentes dans la société et la culture. Toucher à des sujets tels que les changements sociaux, la langue, la guerre, la pauvreté, les questions religieuses, signale tout de suite combien fascinant peut se révéler un commentaire qui nous les rend très proches, très concrets. Cela vaut le détour!

Au sein des activités du Salon du livre de Montréal, il y aura séances de dédicaces de ce beau livre. Les amis et collaborateurs de Radio Ville-Marie, en particulier, sont chaleureusement invités lors de l'une des deux séances de dédicaces au stand 232 des Éditions Fides :

• Jeudi, 20 novembre de 18h à 19h
• Vendredi, 21 novembre entre 16h et 17h.
  

Radio Ville-Marie (CIRA-FM) sera un des diffuseurs de la 31^e édition du Salon du livre de Montréal qui se tiendra place Bonaventure du 19 au 24 novembre 2008. Plus d'une quarantaine d'auteurs seront interviewés sur les ondes de la station. Vous trouverez la programmation sur le site de RVM au www.radiovm.com Le Blogue du DG est en vente dans toute bonne librairie à travers le Québec au prix de 19.95$ et les droits d'auteur générés par la vente de l'ouvrage seront versés à la station pour soutenir son développement.

Informations: 514-382-3913

Une nuit de Noël sans frontières

Après le Madison Square Garden et l'Apollo Theatre, le Stevie Wonder du Québec s'offre l'Olympia de Montréal POUR NOËL!

Montréal, le 19 novembre 2008. L'UFO Project (Unified Field Orchestra) fera vibrer les planches de l'Olympia le 21 décembre prochain grâce à son maître d'œuvre, Denis Harting. Pour l'occasion, il réunira sur une même scène trois générations de chanteurs de diverses origines culturelles qui vous feront voyager dans un univers musical festif célébrant l'amour, la magie et la paix.

Vous l'avez peut-être entendue dans les couloirs du métro ou encore sur la place Jacques-Cartier mais chose certaine, la voix puissante, pure, et androgyne de Denis Harting ne laisse personne indifférent. Non-voyant depuis sa naissance, il est néanmoins investi d'une grande vision, qu'il porte à travers les grands classiques Rythm & Blues, soul, pop et world beat.

Denis Harting débute sa carrière musicale en 1993 dans des concours amateurs. Par la suite, il se joint à la chorale de l'Accueil Bonneau avec laquelle il fait plusieurs apparitions à la télévision en 1997. La même année, il se distingue par ses performances à L'Heure JMP, puis plus tard à l'émission La belle et MacLeod sur les ondes de Radio Énergie. Denis voyage jusqu'à Athènes, en 2004, où il éblouit les athlètes para-olympiques canadiens. À la fin de l'année 2007, il participe au réputé téléthon The Unity Telethon à Santa Barbara, en Californie.

Le spectacle Noël Unifié de l'UFO Project ne pourrait exister sans ses invités. Vous pourrez donc découvrir les merveilleux talents de sa fille Lauviah, 14 ans, du Chœur Interculturel de Montréal (sous la direction du Dr Leonard Wosu), de Martin Martin ainsi que d'un groupe de jeunes étudiants de son école de musique. Tous ensembles, ils viendront vous présenter des pièces originales de même que des airs plus connus.

Le dimanche 21 décembre, à 19 h 30, vivez une expérience magique, prélude à un grand mouvement planétaire. Joignez-vous au Noël Unifié et soyez témoins qu'avec la persévérance, on peut dépasser ses limites et grimper sur les plus hauts sommets en se connectant à son pouvoir de création!

Les billets sont présentement en vente à la billetterie de l'Olympia et sur le réseau Admission au 514 790-1245.

The TSO Messiah Day

CELEBRATE MESSIAH DAY WITH

THE TORONTO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra gears up for the holiday season with TORONTO'S FAVOURITE MESSIAH, Tuesday, December 16 - Sunday, December 21. To add to the festive spirit, the TSO is offering a special incentive for everyone who buys a ticket to the TORONTO'S FAVOURITE MESSIAH on MESSIAH DAY - Thursday, November 20 - in the form of a limited edition TSO ornament!

"MESSIAH is a grand, majestic spectacle that should be seen and heard by every Torontonian."
Toronto Life

As always, the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir will participate in the MESSIAH, this year led by their very own Conductor and Artistic Director Noel Edison. The stellar cast of Canadian vocalists are all making their TSO debuts! They are: soprano Gillian Keith, mezzo-soprano Allyson McHardy, tenor Frédéric Antoun, and bass Robert Gleadow.

The TSO will also include their other Christmas concerts in this special offer; purchase a ticket on MESSIAH DAY to A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS (December 9 and 10) and receive a keepsake Christmas ornament. THE SNOWMANTM (December 14) is already sold out, so act fast to get your tickets for TORONTO'S FAVOURITE MESSIAH and A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and receive this special gift.

On Thursday, November 20 celebrate MESSIAH DAY with the TSO!

CHRISTMAS AT THE TSO

A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS

Tuesday, December 9 @ 8pm, Wednesday, December 10 @ 2pm and 8pm

THE SNOWMAN SOLD OUT!

Sunday, December 14 @ 3pm

TORONTO'S FAVOURITE MESSIAH

Tuesday, December 16 @ 8pm; Wednesday, December 17 @ 8pm;

Friday, December 19 @ 8pm; Saturday, December 20 @ 8pm; Sunday, December 21 @ 3pm

Tickets range from $15 - $99

Buy your tickets at tso.ca, by phone 416.593.4828

and in person at the Roy Thomson Hall Box Office, 60 Simcoe St

Middlefield Group, a Toronto based investment management company, is a production sponsor for the TSO's Toronto's Favourite Messiah.

* free ornament while quantities last. Offer valid for Toronto's Favourite Messiah, A Very Merry Christmas and SnowmanTM ticket purchases on November 20, 2008 only and does not work in conjunction with any other offer.

La musique de Louis Babin touchera le coeur de Lisbonne

Grâce à la magie de l'Internet, la musique de Louis Babin touchera le cœur le Lisbonne

Montréal, le 19 novembre 2008 – Deux œuvres pour chorale du compositeur bien connu Louis Babin résonneront dans des églises de Lisbonne au Portugal en décembre prochain. Dirigé par le chef Gonçalo Lourenço, le Coro Odyssea interprétera C'est la Noël le 14 décembre à l'Église Igreja dos Martires. Cette pièce sera reprise lors du concert du 21 décembre au German Church lors duquel une autre pièce, Coquerelles à l'hôpital, sera créée en première mondiale. Cette dernière a été composée sur un texte de Pierre-Jean Cano.

La collaboration entre Louis Babin et le Coro Odyssea est le fruit d'un fructueux contact établi par Internet il y a trois ans. En effet, M. Lourenço, chef et fondateur du Coro Odyssea, se spécialise dans l'interprétation d'œuvres de compositeurs contemporains. Sa recherche de compositeurs sur toute la planète l'a mené sur le site Internet de Louis Babin. Comme quoi la musique de concert peut aussi bien profiter des avantages liés à Internet que la musique populaire.

Ayant mené de front une double carrière de compositeur et de trompettiste, Louis Babin a rangé son instrument l'an dernier pour se centrer sur la composition. Il a composé pour le concert, le film, la télévision, le disque et le théâtre. Recherché pour sa polyvalence, il possède une maîtrise en composition musicale de l'Université de Montréal et est réputé pour ses connaissances hors pair de la technologie informatique pour la composition musicale appliquée à l'image. www.louisbabin.com

Fondé en 2004, le Coro Odyssea propose des œuvres chorales du répertoire mondial, se spécialisant dans la création d'œuvres de compositeurs toujours vivants.

http://www.coroodyssea.com

4th Line Theatre Announces Two World Premieres for 2009 Season

4th Line Theatre Announces Two World Premieres for 2009 Season

Millbrook, ON – 4th Line Theatre’s 2009 season offers two world premieres, both fruits of the company’s New Play Development Program which fosters and develops new works with a view to a final staging at the Winslow Farm. “We are especially proud and excited about these two new plays, which touchstone the stories of real places and people in our community,” says Artistic Director, Robert Winslow.

Bringing back the talents of Kim Blackwell as director (Schoolhouse 2007, 2008) and written by Alex Poch-Goldin, who has worked on the play as a candidate in 4th Line’s New Plays Program, The Right Road to Pontypool is a fascinating look at the little-known role of Jewish resorts in Pontypool’s history. From it’s inception as a sun-kissed dream of a Jewish immigrant passing through on the way to Lindsay to a booming getaway for the working class Jew from the city, the story behind this play is already drawing attention from eager audience members around the province – many of whom have fond childhood memories of vacationing in Pontypool. Only a dream of days-gone-by now, this chronicle of a unique piece of the region’s history may come as a surprise to many locals, who know there is little left to show for it on Pontypool’s quiet streets. Production is scheduled for July of 2009, with previews on June 30^th, July 1^st and running Tuesdays through Saturdays until closing night on August 1^st.

A little closer to home, Welcome Death is sure to draw “whodunit” lovers and anyone curious about a Victorian murder mystery right here in Millbrook! The story follows the journey of a Coroner’s inquest into the mysterious and seemingly unsolvable killing of young Elizabeth Deyell, who made the walk from Millbrook to Port Hope in the middle of a wintry February night in 1873. When her body is found in a field outside of Welcome in the spring, the widowed Coroner pushes past the restraints of science and enters the realm of the spirit to find unknowable answers. Written and directed by 4th Line’s Artistic Director, Robert Winslow also stars as the driven Coroner Robert Lawrence Maxwell, whose efforts are historically documented in our region’s archives. Welcome Death will run six days each week on the Meadow Stage with previews starting on August 10^th & 11^th, and continuing Mondays through Saturdays until August 29^th. Please note: the Meadow stage is a ten minute walk from the parking field and is not accessible for wheelchairs.

The Right Road to Pontypool	Welcome Death
By Alex Poch-Goldin	By Robert Winslow
Directed by Kim Blackwell	Directed by Robert Winslow
July 2 – August 1	August 10 - 29
Previews: June 30, July 1	Previews: August 10, 11
Opening Night: Thursday, July 2	Opening Night: Wednesday, August 12
Tuesday to Saturday at 6pm (5 shows per week)	MONDAY to Saturday at 6pm (6 shows per week)
With an added performance on Monday, July 27th

BIOGRAPHIES

Robert Winslow - Artistic Director, Playwright, Director

As one of Canada’s leading theatre artists, Robert Winslow has written or co-written 13 of the original plays that have been presented environmentally at the 4th Line Theatre since 1992 and has directed the majority of the productions and performed in several of them. Mr. Winslow has performed in theatres across Canada, the U.S. and Britain since 1982, including the Blyth Festival, Theatre Network in Edmonton, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the Cincinnati Playhouse. In 1988, he founded an improvisational theatre company, East City Productions, in Peterborough, Ontario and began directing and writing for the stage. His first full-length play, The Cavan Blazers, was staged as 4th Line Theatre’s first production and later published by Ordinary Press. Additional writing credits include Gimme That Prime Time Religion, Cavan Casanova, Two Rounds and a Square, Fair Play, The Bell of Batoche, The Orchard, Crow Hill: The Telephone Play, The Winslows of Derryvore and Doctor Barnardo’s Children, all for 4th Line. Mr. Winslow has received numerous awards in recognition of his achievements in the performing arts, heritage and tourism sectors. In 2002, he was honoured with the Queen’s Jubilee Medal and in 2006 he was inducted into the Peterborough and District Pathway of Fame. He also teaches a theatre workshop course in the Cultural Studies Department at Trent University.

Alex Poch-Goldin - Playwright

Mr. Poch-Goldin is an award-winning playwright and actor, whose work has been produced on international stages, for CBC TV and Bravo Television. He is also Artistic Director of the Toronto based Planet 88 Theatre Company. His theatre writing includes the recently produced, Dora nominated, Cringeworthy at Theatre Passe Muraille, Dora Award-winning This Hotel and Yahrzeit. This Hotel was Toronto’s top selling show of 2000. He has worked for Canstage, Tapestry New Opera, Theatre Passe Muraille, Winnipeg Jewish Theatre, and the Tarragon Theatre. Alex has been Playwright in Residence at Canstage and Theatre Passse Muraille with the assistance of the Canada Council and the Ontario Arts Council. He has written an opera libretto for Tapestry New Opera entitled The Shadow, slated for production in 2009 and is currently Playwright in Residence at 4^th Line Theatre. Alex has also developed work with Buddies in Bad Times (Jim and Shorty) Winnipeg Jewish Theatre (Louie’s Dilemma) and the Tarragon Theatre (The Life of Jude). An acclaimed actor, Alex has worked extensively in film and television with the likes of Ron Howard, Russell Crowe, Glenn Close, Judy Davis and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. He lives and works in Toronto with his partner Kelly Thornton and their scrumptious daughter, Chloe Babette.

Kim Blackwell, Director & Artistic Associate (Since 2001)

Kim Blackwell is a veteran 4th Line director – 2009 marks her 15^th year with the theatre company. Selected credits include: artistic associate directing Schoolhouse (2007, 2008), The Art of Silent Killing, That Summer, Crow Hill, The Cavan Blazers, Attrition, Gimme That Primetime Religion and many development workshops; stage managing The Cavan Blazers, Crow Hill, 1837: The Farmer’s Revolt, Moodie Traill, The Farm Show, Stone Angel, Winslows of Derryvore, The Orchard. Recently directed Once A Flame; Fire in the Stable; The Shadow of Genius (Heritage Pavilion), Getting Lucky (Rhubarb!, 2005), Unlucky (Summerworks, 2003). Selected directing credits: The Ugly Man; Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet); Poor Super Man; Unidentified Human Remains… She also directed a sold-out run of Freedom 85 in the 2008 Fringe Festival, and has been accepted into the New York Frigid festival in February, 2008. Kim runs her own communications company – Blackwell Communications -- based in Toronto; her clients include Tapestry New Opera Works, Nightwood Theatre, Dancemakers, Stage Centre Productions and Birdland Theatre.

A history or theatre buff on your holiday gift list may also appreciate receiving a published script. Doctor Barnardo’s Children, Crow Hill: The Telephone Play and Cavan Blazers scripts are available for $15 each. Copies of Leanna Brodie’s Schoolhouse and For Home and Country are also available at the 4th Line office for $17 each. For tickets, gift certificates or scripts call 705-932-4445.

TICKETS can also be purchased online by visiting www.4thlinetheatre.on.ca or by phone at (705) 932-4445 or in person through associated ticket outlets: Bethany Hills Interiors at 17 King St. E. in Millbrook (705)-932-1600 or Peterborough Museum and Archives on Armour Hill, at Museum Drive off Hunter St. E. in Peterborough (705)-743-5180, as well as Kent Books at 55 Kent St. West in Lindsay (705) 328-1600.

4th Line Theatre, Canada’s premiere outdoor theatre company brings history to life on the barnyard stages of the picturesque 5th generation Winslow farm in Millbrook, Ontario. The theatre company is committed to preserving and promoting our Canadian cultural heritage through the development and presentation of regionally based, environmentally staged historical drama.

Critic Raves About Laitman's "Scarlet Letter" World Premiere

November 18, 2008

Critic Raves About Laitman's "Scarlet Letter" World Premiere

Ellis Widner of The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette was ecstatic in his praise of last week's world premiere of Lori Laitman's opera The Scarlet Letter: "Composer Lori Laitman has written gorgeous music that works hand-in-glove with the words of librettist David Mason and underpins the very essence of this psychological-social drama."

"Based on its world premiere Thursday at the Reynolds Performance Hall at the University of Central Arkansas, this great story seems be on its way to becoming great opera..... It is mostly sung dialog, but the few arias are at key moments are stunningly effective...Laitman's music can turn on an emotional dime, from the tense and emotionally complex confrontation between convicted adulteress Hester Prynne (soprano Christine Donahue) and Roger Chillingworth (baritone Robert Holden), the resurfaced husband determined to learn the identity of the child's father, to the achingly tender lullaby she sings to her daughter after Chillingworth departs. Laitman also shows great skill in the combination and repetition of motifs to heighten tension and revive a social-emotional subtext. At times, her music suggests the lushness of Stephen Sondheim."

The opera, based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's 19th century American masterpiece, was commissioned by The University of Central Arkansas. The composer was thrilled with the performance: "As a composer you are always dependent upon others to make your music come to life. For an opera, one is dependent on a whole community of talent. I was very fortunate to have found a fantastic community at The University of Central Arkansas. The amount of talent and dedication each person gave to "The Scarlet Letter" was staggering. It was my true pleasure to work closely with all involved, and a thrilling sensation to watch everyone give their all to "birth" this opera."

Lori Laitman is represented by Jona Rapoport Artist Management.

Contact: jona@jonarapoport.com

Source:
Jona Rapoport
Jona Rapoport Artist Management

David Marin - lancement de la tournée À Côté d'la track

Lancement officiel de la tournée À Coté d'la track pour David Marin

Les 18 et 20 mars au Lion d'Or
Le 12 mars au Théâtre Petit Champlain

Billets en vente dès aujourd'hui !

Vendredi dernier, lors de son spectacle présenté dans le cadre de Coup de cœur Francophone, David Marin a joué devant une salle tellement pleine que l'organisation a dû ajouter des chaises en cours de spectacle ! Entouré de ses invités spéciaux et muni d'une énergie contagieuse, l'auteur-compositeur et multi-instrumentiste a encore une fois conquis le public avec ce spectacle spécialement conçu pour l'occasion. Suite à ce succès, c'est avec fierté que Groupe Phaneuf annonce la mise en vente des rentrées montréalaise et québécoise de David Marin. En effet, celui-ci sera au Théâtre Petit Champlain à Québec, le 12 mars 2009, et au Lion d'Or à Montréal les 18 et 20 mars 2009.

Une équipe solide pour la tournée qui débute

Une série de spectacle de rodage s'amorce pour David Marin, en vue de sa rentrée montréalaise. David et le metteur en scène Philippe Laperrière (Kevin Parent, Urbain Desbois, Monica Freire) travaillent à peaufiner le spectacle en version trio, qui mettra en valeur les différentes qualités du projet: des textes fins, des arrangements musicaux créatifs passant du rock indie à une atmosphère plus intime, sans oublier les interventions spontanées et parfois très drôles de l'artiste ! Les musiciens Denis Ferland aux guitares (Jérôme Minière, Michel Faubert) et Francis Roberge aux percussions (Alfa Rococo, Louise Forestier, Catherine Major) complètent le trio en apportant une nouvelle saveur aux chansons de l'album.

Des passages remarqués aux FrancoFolies de Montréal,
au FME et au congrès du ROSEQ

Sacré «une des deux meilleures minutes des FrancoFolies» par La Presse,
et récompensé du prix Télé-Québec au dernier Festival de Musique Émergente, les passages de David Marin récoltent les honneurs partout où il donne un spectacle.

Plus récemment, lors du congrès des diffuseurs de l'est du Québec (ROSEQ),
sa performance vitrine lui a valu le prix de La Bourse Rideau, soulignant par le
fait même l'appui des diffuseurs de spectacles à son projet.

Rappelons également que La Presse, Le Nouvelliste, La Tribune, Le Soleil,
Le Journal de Québec et le Voir ont tous décerné 4 ÉTOILES à son premier album sorti en mars dernier, À Côté d'la Track.

Billets en vente maintenant !

Montréal : 18 et 20 mars 2009 au Lion d'Or

Réservations : Billetterie Articulée 514 844‑2172 et 1 866 844-2172 ou admission.com

Québec : 12 mars 2009 au Théâtre Petit Champlain

Réservations : 418 692-2631 ou theatrepetitchamplain.com ou billetech.com

Portland's CAS Holds Sing-Along and Food Drive to Benefit Project FEED, Dec. 15

PORTLAND'S CHORAL ART SOCIETY HOLDS ANNUAL MESSIAH SING-ALONG AND FOOD DRIVE TO BENEFIT PROJECT FEED, DECEMBER 15

PORTLAND, Maine – The Choral Art Society (CAS) of Portland continues its tradition of holiday celebration and giving back to their community by holding their Messiah Sing-Along and Handel-on-Hunger Food Drive to benefit Project FEED, Portland's emergency food pantry. The event will be held this year on Monday, December 15 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Patrick's Catholic Church, 1342 Congress Street in Portland.

Handel's Messiah Sing-Along will be led by CAS Music Director Robert Russell, with the Southern Maine Symphony Orchestra accompanying. Admission to the Sing-Along is $5.00, students are admitted free. Attendees are asked to bring Messiah music scores, but CAS will have some to borrow at the event. Sing-Along participants can bring food and/or cash donations to benefit Project FEED's mission.

Other upcoming CAS holiday events include their annual Christmas at the Cathedral concerts, Saturday, December 6 (preview at noon, full concert at 8:00 p.m.) and Sunday, December 7 (2:30 and 7:00 p.m.) at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, 307 Congress Street in Portland. An Epiphany Celebration will be held Saturday, January 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Immanuel Baptist Church in Portland. Visit www.choralart.org for ticketing and further information.

About The Choral Art Society:
The Society has more than 150 members who perform in three distinct ensembles: the symphonic Masterworks Chorus, the mid-sized Choral Art Singers, and the intimate a cappella Camerata. All singers are skilled amateurs, selected by audition. The Society offers an annual concert series and appears regularly as guests of the Portland Symphony Orchestra. Robert Russell, professor of music at the University of Southern Maine, is the conductor and artistic director of The Choral Art Society.

For more information about The Choral Art Society and the 2008-09 performances visit www.choralart.org or call (207) 828-0043.

Prochain La Scena Musicale (Décembre-janvier) et La SCENA (Hiver)

[English version]

La date de tombée pour les annonces dans le numéro d’hiver de La SCENA / le numéro décembre-janvier de La Scena Musicale est le 25 novembre. Dans ce numéro, nous présentons quelques enseignants et programs novateurs en danse, en théâtre, en arts visuels et en cinéma. Également, notre guide de cadeaux des fêtes et une entrevue avec cinéaste Sylvain Guy sur le cinéma et son prochain film Léo Huff.

Pour plus d’information sur les tarifs et la production, voir notre calendrier 2008-2009 à http://ads.scena.org ou communiquer directement avec notre service des ventes au 514-948-0509 ou à sales@scena.org.

Salutations cordiales,

Wah Keung Chan

Éditeur et rédacteur en chef fondateur
La Scena Musicale
La SCENA
The Music Scene

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Hiver 2009 :: La SCENA / Décembre 2008 - janvier 2009 :: La Scena Musicale

Contenu – La SCENA

• En couverture : Sylvain Guy, cinéaste
• Thème : Études artistiques supérieures
• Études artistiques supérieures : quelques enseignants novateurs en danse, en théâtre, en arts visuels et en cinéma
• Calendrier des arts 3-mois. Envoyez vos événements à artscal@scena.org
• L’édition 2008 du célèbre World Press Photo

Contenu – La Scena Musicale

• En couverture : Olivier Messiaen, Saint-François d'Assise
• Puccini
• Das Lied von der Erde de Mahler
  
• Patrick Wedd
  
• Éducation : Denise Lupien
• Elliot Carter

GUIDE

• Études artistiques supérieures

Distribution au Québec de La Scena Musicale (25 000 exemplaires ; 90 % distribuée avant le 10 du mois)

• 2000 exemplaires : envois aux abonnés et membres du milieu artistique
• 4000 exemplaires : écoles de musique et d'arts pour faire un pont entre musiciens et artistes visuels
• 2000 exemplaires : kiosques à journaux à travers la province de Québec (prix au détail : 5,35 $)
• 10 000 exemplaires : dans les zones résidentielles aisées incluant les arrondissements montréalais d'Outremont, Westmount, Mont-Royal, etc.
• 2000 exemplaires : dans la ville de Québec par distribution directe lors de manifestations culturelles
• 5000 exemplaires : en ville (Montréal)

Dates de tombée

• Thèmes : Études artistiques supérieures
• Sortie : 1 décembre
• Date de tombée publicitaire : 25 november à 16 h
  
• Maquettes : 25 november à 17 h
  

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The Music Scene (Ontario) : Printemps 2009

• Thèmes : Camps d’été musical, Festivals internationaux
• Distribution de The Music Scene : Ontario : 25 000
• 11 mars : grandes annonces (info : http://ads.scena.org)
• 12 mars : maquettes
• 19 mars : distribution

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Guides 2008-2009

La Scena Musicale est reconnue comme un chef de file dans l’information sur la musique et les arts. Visiter http://guides.scena.org pour notre liste de guides en 2008-2009

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Nouveau à LSM Online

Nouveau: services RSS. Visitez http://www.scena.org/rss_scena.html

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Annoncez avec nous et joignez les consommateurs canadiens les plus friands de culture.

Vous voulez toucher une population aisée, informée et urbaine de 35 ans et plus, ou encore les musiciens et artistes professionnels ou étudiants ?

La Scena Musicale vous invite chez 100 000 Canadiens parmi les plus instruits, avertis en matière de culture et de consommation. Nos lecteurs sont passionnés de musique, de danse, de théâtre, de cinéma et d’arts visuels, et ils s’intéressent à la nourriture, la mode, la décoration.

Nos revues renommées La Scena Musicale, La SCENA et The Music Scene publient des articles et critiques qui font réfléchir. La Scena Musicale et La SCENA sont les seules publications bilingues à Montréal consacrées à la musique (classique, jazz et musiques du monde) et aux arts (danse, théâtre, cinéma et arts visuels). En plus, notre calendrier culturel est le plus complet au Canada et assure des lectures répétées (plus de 225 000 par mois). Distribuées gratuitement dans certains foyers aisés (100 000 $ +), nos publications tiennent leur promesse. Nous sommes lus, et lus souvent.

À NOTER:

• 50 000 lecteurs par parution
• 675 000 lectures du magazine (3 mois) ou 225 000 lecteurs par mois

Profil des lecteurs

• aisées, haute niveau d'instruction, 35 ans +, mélomanes
• Musiciens, artistes et étudiants

Renseignements :

• Trousse média : http://ads.scena.org
• 514-948-0509
• sales@scena.org

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ÉCONOMISEZ dans vos imprimés et PROFITEZ d’une meilleure visibilité !

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100 Personnes Influentes (La SCENA)

Nommez les grands acteurs des arts et de la culture au Québec !

Vous connaissez un chef, un directeur artistique qui fait une scène dans le monde des arts ? Envoyez vos nominations pour les 100 personnes les plus influentes dans les arts et la culture au Québec. Les catégories sont : l’administration des arts, la philanthropie, les créateurs et interprètes dans les arts visuels, la danse, le théâtre, le cinéma, l’opéra, la musique classique et le jazz. Faites parvenir vos soumissions à redaction@scena.org

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La Scena Musicale/The Music Scene est un organisme de bienfaisance enregistré qui fait la promotion des arts et de la musique en publiant trois magazines et un site Web. Nous rapprochons les musicien(ne)s et les artistes avec la communauté artistique, les mélomanes et les amateurs d’art. Aidez-nous à poursuivre notre travail avec un don (d'argent ou de biens) ou par du travail bénévole.

Communiquer avec nous au 514-948-2520 ou à info@scena.org

Donnez à CanaDon.org

N^o d’organisme de bienfaisance à l’ARC : 14199 6579 RR0001

Next La SCENA (Winter 2009) and La Scena Musicale (December-January)

[Version française]

The deadline has been extended for advertising in La SCENA's Winter 2009 issue, which is combined with La Scena Musicale's December-January issue (appearance: December 1). NEW DEADLINE: November 25 at 4 p.m. We also look at Higher Arts Education with our 2nd annual guide and we feature innovative arts educators in Dance, Theatre, Visual Arts and Film. Our Arts cover is an interview with Quebec filmmaker Sylvain Guy on the art of filmmaking and his new film Léo Huff. Our music cover celebrates Olivier Messiaen's anniversary with an analysis of his opera St. Francois d'Assis. Look also for our Holiday Gift Guide.

Reach over 50,000 readers with 25,000 copies distributed in Montreal and the province of Quebec. La SCENA contains award-winning editorial features, an extensive calendar of events (province of Quebec including radio and TV listings) and product reviews; readers consult each issue 4.5 times a month, generating 225,000 viewings per month or 675,000 for the issue.

Our 2008-2009 publishing schedule is now available: 4 issues of La SCENA and 6 issues of stand-alone La Scena Musicale (2 of these are national issues) plus 2 issues of The Music Scene Ontario. For more info on rates and production please visit http://ads.scena.org for our 2008-2009 schedule or contact our sales department directly at 514-948-0509 or sales@scena.org

Yours sincerely,

Wah Keung Chan
Founding Publisher and Editor
La Scena Musicale
La SCENA
The Music Scene

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Upcoming Issue:

Winter 2009 :: La SCENA / December 2008-January 2009:: La Scena Musicale

Content – La SCENA

• On the Cover: Sylvain Guy
  
• Higher Arts Education: A Look at Educators and Programs in Dance, Theatre, Film and Visual Arts
  
• 3-month calendar and Event picks, send listings to artscal@scena.org
• Report on World Photo Press Exhibit
  

Content – La Scena Musicale

• On the Cover: Olivier Messiaen's St. François d'Assise
• Synesthesia
• Next in our Puccini series
• Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde
  
• Patrick Wedd
  
• Education: Denise Lupien
• Elliot Carter
  
  

GUIDE

• Higher Arts Education Guide

Distribution (25,000 copies; 90% distribution by the first 7 to 10 days):

• 2000 copies: mailed to paying and non-paying subscribers (including the music and arts industry)
• 10,000 copies: home delivery to Montreal affluent neighbourhoods (Outremont, Westmount, Mount-Royal)
• 5000 copies: controlled circulation at cultural venues, record stores, etc. in Montreal
• 4000 copies: Music and Arts Schools targeting students and educators in Montreal and the province of Quebec.
• 2000 copies: Quebec City
• 2000 copies: newsstands in Quebec

Deadlines for La SCENA and La Scena Musicale:

• November 25 (4 PM) : display ads (info : http://ads.scena.org)
  
• November 25 (5 PM) : materials
  
• December 1: distribution

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The Music Scene Ontario: Spring 2009 Issue

[The Winter 2009 issue is now at the printers, and will be distributed on Nov. 20, 2008]

Theme: Summer Camps and International Arts Festival

Circulation: 25,000 copies in Ontario (Toronto, Ottawa) and schools across Canada

• Toronto: 16,000
• Ottawa: 4,000
• Schools across Canada: 3000
• Mailing: 2,000

Appearance: March 15, 2009
Ad Deadline: March 7
Artwork deadline: March 8

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Special Feature in the next La SCENA: Top Movers and Shakers in the Arts

The Spring 2009 issue of La SCENA (April 1, 2009) will include a look at the most influential people in the Arts in Quebec (creators, performers, administrators, philantrophists, etc). Nominate your candidate by emailing editor@scena.org. Deadline: March 1, 2009

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Guides / Directories 2008-2009

La Scena Musicale has proven to be a leader in providing music and arts information. Visit http://guides.scena.org for our list of guides for 2008-2009

_______________________________________________________________________________________

New LSM Online Feature:

NEW: RSS Feeds for our news, blogs and Lebrecht Weekly: http://www.scena.org/RSS_SCENA.html

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Advertise with us and reach Canada’s most cultured consumers:

Want to reach the affluent, sophisticated, urban 35+ demographic or professional and student musicans and artists?

La Scena Musicale invites you into the lives of 100,000 highly educated Canadians with sophisticated taste in culture and lifestyle. Our readers are passionate about music, dance, theatre, film and visual arts, as well as food, fashion and their homes.

Our award-winning magazines La Scena Musicale, La SCENA and The Music Scene contain thought-provoking articles and reviews. La Scena Musicale and La SCENA are the only bilingual Montreal publications dedicated to covering classical music, jazz, world music, dance, theatre, film and visual arts. In addition, we publish Canada’s most in-depth cultural calendar, which ensures repeat viewings: over 225,000 per month. Our new direct distribution to affluent households ($100K+) means our magazines truly deliver. We are read, and read often.

Readership Profile

• 50,000 readers per issue
• 225,000 readings per month, 675,000 readings for three-month issues
• Affluent, educated, 35+, music and arts lovers including the desired Baby Boomers.
• Music and arts professionals and students

For more info on rates and production please visit http://ads.scena.org or contact our sales department directly at 514-948-0509 or sales@scena.org.

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PRINTING: Make Your Budget Work Smarter for You!

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Donations Requested:

La Scena Musicale/The Music Scene is a registered charity promoting music and the arts through three magazines and a website. We connect musicians/artists, the arts community and music/art lovers together through education and information. Help us continue our work with a donation (cash or goods) or by volunteering.

Please contact 514-948-2520 or info@scena.org

Donate at CanadaHelps.org

Charitable tax no. 14199 6579 RR0001

Shaw Festival: Successful 47th Season Closes

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, November 17, 2008 . . . The Shaw Festival’s 47^th season came to a close on November 16 with attendance 6% ahead of last season. After a successful hold-over of Shaw’s popular comedy, Getting Married, Executive Director Colleen Blake released the attendance results of the season, noting: “Despite the many tourism challenges facing us throughout the 2008 season – rising gas prices, a strong Canadian dollar and ongoing border issues – we are thrilled that The Shaw has produced such strong box office results.”

For the 2008 season, box office revenues reached $14.9 million (9% ahead of last season) with attendance reaching 281,000 or 70% of capacity for 792 performances. This represents an attendance increase of 6% over the previous year. The Shaw’s box office revenues represent an overall economic impact of close to $100 million on the Niagara region.

Artistic Director Jackie Maxwell commented on the artistic success of the season: “It is both gratifying and heartening to see our audience respond so strongly and enthusiastically to all areas of our programming. From virtually unknown pieces such as The Stepmother and After the Dance to revisioned Shaw favourites, from Sondheim in the Court House and Bernstein in the Festival to our lunchtime smash hit, audiences embraced them all.”

Tickets for the 2009 season went on sale to Shaw Festival Members on November 8. Sales to the general public begin January 5 by mail, fax and on-line and January 10 by phone or in person. Details are available on the Shaw website www.shawfest.com or by calling 1-800-511-SHAW (7429).

Audited financial reports will be available January 23 at The Shaw’s Annual General Meeting, to be held at the Festival Theatre in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

The 2008 season was proudly presented by HSBC Bank Canada/HSBC Bank USA, N.A.

Nomination Chantal Lambert présidence

Chantal Lambert à la présidence du Conseil québécois de la musique

Montréal, le 17 novembre 2008 - Le Conseil québécois de la musique (CQM) est heureux d'annoncer la nomination de madame Chantal Lambert à titre de présidente du conseil d'administration du Conseil québécois de la musique. La soprano Chantal Lambert mène une carrière active en tant qu'interprète tout en dirigeant l'Atelier lyrique de l'Opéra de Montréal depuis 1990. Elle a participé à seize productions de l'Opéra de Montréal, six tournées avec l'Orchestre Métropolitain, et a été soliste à de nombreuses reprises, aux Festivals de musique de Lanaudière, Orgue et Couleurs et de Lachine, avec orchestre ou en récital. Depuis 2001, elle se consacre surtout au récital. Régulièrement invitée à titre de panéliste et conférencière, elle est aussi coauteure d'une série d'ouvrages linguistiques à l'usage des jeunes chanteurs d'opéra. Depuis 2007, madame Lambert occupait le poste de première vice-présidente du CQM. Le conseil d'administration 2008-2009 du CQM est composé de Chantal Lambert, présidente; Francis Colpron, 1er vice-président, directeur artistique des Boréades de Montréal et flûtiste; Christophe Papadimitriou, 2e vice-président, président de l'OFF Festival de jazz de Montréal et contrebassiste; Thérèse Boutin, trésorière, directrice générale de l'Orchestre symphonique de Trois-Rivières; Marianne Perron, secrétaire, directrice associée programmation musicale, éducation et musique contemporaine de l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal. À ce comité de direction s'ajoutent les administrateurs René Béchard, musicien, compositeur et arrangeur; Denis Dion, compositeur; André Dupras, gestionnaire; Alexandre Éthier, directeur artistique de Forestare et guitariste; François Gélinas, coordonnateur administratif à la Fondation Arte Musica; Nancy Guyon, directrice générale de l'Orchestre symphonique de Drummondville; Louise Labelle, directrice générale des Violons du Roy et de la Chapelle de Québec; Sylvain Lapointe, directeur artistique de Buzz cuivres farfelus; Marie-Chantal Leclair, directrice artistique de Quasar, quatuor de saxophones et saxophoniste soprano; et Luce Moreau, présidente-directrice générale de l'Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal.

Moonchild Productions latest original play

Move Over Santa!

This holiday season the faerie kingdom pairs up the

Burlesque Queen and the Improv King in

LA BELLA LUNA

December 4 - 13

MOONCHILD PRODUCTIONS presents La Bella Luna, an original musical fantasy that will run at Mainline Theatre from December 4th through to the 13^th. Holly Gauthier-Frankel, whose alter ego 'moonlights' as Miss Sugarpuss, plays The Moon with Uncalled For improv master, William Ward, (winner of the 2008 Fringe Festival Just for Laughs Best Comedy for Blastback Babyzap), as Thomas, the unwitting object of her affections.

In keeping with the season of sugarplum fairies, flying reindeer and magical nutcrackers, this quirky new extravaganza by Patrick de Moss (creator of Full Moon Fever and When I was Jesus) is a musical roller coaster ride that on the surface may appear mere whimsy, but on second inspection, sweeping aside the illusory veil of theatricality, is a multi-layered examination of what is 'real' and/or 'normal' in today's diversified society. Therein lies the genius of the production as the playwright lets the audience decide how deeply they want to fall down the rabbit hole to explore these universal concepts.

MOON: Disturbing the universe is always hard…but sometimes, it's worth it.

The Moon has fallen in love with Thomas, a young man already walking a razor sharp edge between reality and illusion, and though some in the Faerie community are pleased with this unorthodox union, darker forces are not. Though Thomas struggles to stay connected to the 'real' world through his waiting job at a local coffee shop, he appears to be following in the footsteps of his disturbed father more and more with each passing day and Ben and Ellen, his only two friends in the world, are at a loss as to what they can do to save him. They're not even sure that he wants to be saved. 1980s pop classics flood the air as Thom's new faerie friends pull him deeper and deeper into their world, where his growing fascination with the moon could destroy not only himself but also the delicate balance of that parallel universe.

THOMAS: I don't think my landlord will let me keep faeries.

With Elisabeth de Grandpré at the helm as director, most of the actors play double roles; one in the 'real' world and another in the faerie realm, again highlighting the dichotomy of co-existing realities. In addition to Gauthier-Frankel and Ward, they include (in alphabetical order) Nathaniel Erik, Dawn Ford, Taylor Hayward, Talar Kalaidjian, Jonathan Marquis, and Vikki Wong. Set and lighting design are by Cara de Grandpré (Saving Celine and 7 Stories), with out-of-this-world costumes by Noemi Poulin (One Night, Lion in the Streets and 7 Stories) and stage management by Emilie Zifkin.

Founded in 1999, MOONCHILD PRODUCTIONS focuses on the development and professional staging of new plays by up-and-coming playwrights. Their goal is to reach out to both traditional and non-traditional theatre-going audiences with annual dynamic productions that tell imaginative stories artfully and seek above all to evoke, engage and entertain.

DATES:

Wed. to Sun. Dec. 4 - 13 8:00 PM

Opening Night: December 4 8:00 PM

Sunday Matinee December 7 2:00 PM

Saturday Matinee December 13 2:00 PM

Mon. & Tues. DARK

VENUE:

Mainline Theatre

3997, boul. St-Laurent

BOX OFFICE:

(514) 481 – 8406

TICKETS PRICES:

Regular Admission: $17

Seniors & Students: $15

Faeries $14

w/Mainline's Fourplay Card $12

WEB SITE:

www.moonchildproductions.ca

Diana Krall to close BC Scene May 2 and 3, 2009

Diana Krall to close BC Scene

May 2 and 3, 2009

Tickets on sale November 26

OTTAWA – Diana Krall, Canada’s internationally acclaimed queen of jazz will perform live at the National Arts Centre’s Southam Hall on Saturday, May 2, 2009, and Sunday, May 3 at 8 p.m. The performances will close out BC Scene, a dazzling, multi-disciplinary arts festival taking place over two weeks next spring in Ottawa-Gatineau to celebrate the culture of British Columbia.

Tickets for the two shows go on sale on November 26 from Ticketmaster at 613-755-1111 or through the Ticketmaster link on the BC Scene web site at www.bcscene.ca, or in person at the NAC Box Office at 53 Elgin Street. (A surcharge is applicable on all Ticketmaster purchases.)

This Ottawa stop on her national tour gives local audiences a chance to enjoy the spectacular songstress live on stage singing songs from her newest album, to be released early in 2009, along with favourites from her extensive repertoire.

Since her breakout album Stepping Out was released in 1993, Diana Krall’s name has been synonymous with musical excellence. The B.C. native’s sultry, imaginative interpretations of jazz standards have made her one of the world’s most admired and recognized musicians, whose collaborations with jazz superstars such as Ray Charles and Tony Bennett, have bridged the gap to create new generations of jazz lovers around the world. With her smooth, sexy style and lush arrangements, Diana Krall has seduced both audiences devoted to jazz, and those with other musical preferences. Along with her luscious delivery and fresh interpretations of traditional jazz favourites such as George Gershwin’s timeless “They Can’t Take That Away from Me, and Cole Porter’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” Krall brings new life to more contemporary classics, such as Joni Mitchell’s “A Case of You.” Whether singing to her own remarkable piano accompaniment, or backed by a full orchestra, Diana Krall’s talent and engaging performance style are undeniable, and audiences lucky enough to spend an evening under her musically hypnotic thrall don’t quickly forget the experience.

Diana Krall at BC Scene is the must-be-there event of the season and the perfect Christmas gift for any music lover. Diana Krall appears at BC Scene thanks in part to the support of The Radcliffe Foundation.

Born into a music-loving family in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Diana Krall began her musical journey during early childhood. While her mother sang in church, her father, a stride pianist with an extensive knowledge of jazz and Tin Pan Alley standards, had a massive record collection that introduced her to many of the jazz and pop greats who would inform her own musical development.

"I was immersed in music growing up," Krall recalls. "My father has a vast collection; he collects 78 records, and that's how I first heard Fats Waller, Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong. I connected with music on such an emotional level that it wasn't 'This is what I want to do,' it was 'This is what I have to do.'"

Krall’s impressive skills on the piano attracted the attention of bass player Ray Brown (Ex-husband of jazz legend Ella Fitzgerald and longtime member of the Oscar Peterson Trio) and others, including producer Tommy LiPuma, who encouraged the young musician to hone her talents in Los Angeles and then in New York. Her career exploded when When I Look in Your Eyes won a GRAMMY^© for best jazz vocal and became the first jazz disc in twenty-five years to be nominated for Album of the Year. In 2002, The Look of Love was a #1 bestseller in the US and a seven-time platinum album in Canada. 2004’s The Girl in the Other Room, was her first to focus on her own songwriting – featuring six tunes co-written with her husband, celebrated songwriter and singer Elvis Costello. Last year’s Christmas Songs proved one of the season’s best-sellers.

BC Scene

BC Scene will take place from April 21 to May 3, 2009. Part of a series of biennial national festivals exploring Canada’s cultural panorama, BC Scene will celebrate a dynamic culture that is a fusion of traditional and contemporary, East and West, and established and emerging artists.

In what will be the largest gathering of British Columbia artists ever presented outside of the province, BC Scene will feature 600 artists from disciplines as varied as music, theatre, dance, visual and media arts, literature and culinary arts in more than 30 venues around the National Capital Region. Among those in attendance for this unique showcase of B.C. artists will be more than 60 Canadian and international presenters – producers, buyers, or talent scouts – to discover B.C. talent and bring it back to their own audiences.

Partners

A multitude of public and private organizations have come together to make BC Scene a reality. BC Scene would like to thank the Government of Canada, the Government of British Columbia and Western Economic Diversification Canada for their generous support of this event.

The National Arts Centre and National Arts Centre Foundation also extend warm thank you to the B.C. Strategy Council, a group of committed individuals whose leadership, support and guidance are key to the success of BC Scene. The B.C. Strategy Council is led by Honorary Chairs Milton and Fei Wong, Chair Donald B. Rix.

The NAC Foundation also gratefully acknowledges the support of Presenting Partner Plasco Energy Group, Special Partners The Audain Foundation for the Visual Arts in British Columbia, Martha Lou Henley, Milton and Fei Wong and Dr. Donald B. Rix. Acknowledgment is also extended to Major Partner Enbridge Inc. and Supporting Partner HSBC Bank Canada, the Holiday Inn and Screen Siren Pictures. For their commitment and support of B.C. arts and artists, we give special thanks to the NAC Friends – B.C. BC Scene Media Partners include CBC/Radio-Canada, The National Post, Vancouver Magazine and Western Living, The Ottawa Citizen, LeDroit, and The Vancouver Sun.

BC Scene would also like to thank the First Peoples’ Heritage, Language and Culture Council for their valuable assistance.

To register to receive programming updates about BC Scene, please subscribe to the BC Scene email list at www.bcscene.ca

European Jazz Sensation Mystéfy Releases ‘spark within’ In Canada

European Jazz Sensation
Mystéfy

Releases 'spark within'

In Canada: August 28^th (digital) October 23^rd (physical)

Distributed in Canada by Fusion3 www.fusion3.com

Toronto/Ottawa – European jazz sensation Mystéfy releases her album 'spark within' to the Canadian market and moves to Ottawa for the love of her life.

"With a rich voice and a piano trio behind her, Mystéfy manages to create a soulful jazz record…that sounds as if Ella Fitzgerald sat in on the sessions and helped her record a few songs" ~ Paul Zimmerman, AP News

Born in Bergisch Land' near Cologne, Germany Stephie created her jazz persona living in Bremen, Germany and singing at clubs and bars from London to Nashville and Germany, performing ad-hoc at jazz sessions and getting a wealth of positive response to her vocal skills. Yet, it was a while before Mystéfy took her talent seriously.

Then, one evening in 2004 in a club in North London, the future revealed itself. Mystéfy visited a club in Highgate with Ray Davies, rock legend of The Kinks. After Mystéfy had the audience worked up to an ecstatic state by a slick performance of some Billie Holiday classics, Ray took her by the hand, looked deep into her eyes and stated dryly: "You're a star!"

Now, after receiving four and five star reviews, major features in both Jazzpodium and Jazzthetik, Germany's top jazz magazines and air play with her videoclip for "Eye Candy" on major Music-TV in Germany Hit24 and Yavido-Clips, Mystéfy is ready to conquer to rest of the globe as well as her new home and love in Ottawa, Canada.

With a voice; mellow, unvarnished and full of warmth Mystéfy exudes sensuality, soul and pure sensibility. Accompanied simply by piano, double bass and drums, the sparse arrangements allow for a wonderful, relaxed yet tantalizing album: 'spark within'

Nine of the twelve songs were self-penned by Mystéfy and pianist Roberto DiGioia (Klaus Doldinger's Passport, Joe Lovano, Albert Mangelsdorff, and his very own project Marsmobil). The trio was completed by world class bassist Dieter Ilg (Rebekka Bakken, Charlie Mariano, Till Brönner) and drummer Matteo Scrimali (Freundeskreis, Max Herre). Christian Prommer (currently highly acclaimed for his 'Drumlessons' project, but also know for Fauna Flash, Trüby Trio, Voom Voom) functioned as a producer.

Jimmy Somerville, the unmistakable, mega star singer of Bronski Beat and The Communards fame, appears as a special guest on 'spark within'. His counter tenor voice is matchless to this day. Somerville duets with Mystéfy on "I will", a classic love song from Dean Martin's repertoire, now revamped in a highly romantic fashion. Jimmy & Mystéfy discovered, much to their surprise, while in the studio (there was no rehearsal prior to recording the tune) that their voices, phrasing and even vibrato harmonised in an exceptional way.

The musical aim was to create modern jazz standards, as Mystéfy wasn't content with merely interpreting the same old compositions. She expected creativity and innovation not just from herself but also from the musicians who performed on this album: "Roberto DiGioia felt precisely what I wanted to express and carefully put my lyrics and melodies into a charming context of harmonies. The band and I had a wonderful chemistry going in the studio – and jazz thrives on spontaneity!"

For further information visit www.myspace.com/mystefy OR http://www.mystefy.com

Indianapolis Symphony Releases New Classical Holiday CD

INDIANAPOLIS SYMPHONY ANNOUNCES RELEASE OF NEWEST HOLIDAY COMPACT DISC, A CHRISTMAS GREETING, BY RAYMOND LEPPARD

ISO’s First Classical Holiday Recording Features Soprano Elizabeth Futral

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Conductor Laureate Raymond Leppard announced the release of the Orchestra’s limited edition recording of holiday classical works, English folksongs and Medieval carols that have been performed in the ISO’s annual Classical Christmas concerts over the past ten years. The disc, which was recorded in June at the Hilbert Circle Theatre, is the tenth recording by the Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Leppard and the 39^th album in the ISO’s rich recording history that dates back to 1941. This recording was made possible through the generous support of Christel DeHaan and The Christel DeHaan Family Foundation and donors to the ISO’s Maestro Society and Conductor Laureate Endowment Fund.

The nine works featured on this compact disc span nearly 400 years of music, from Medieval times to the early 20^th century, were all orchestrated or adapted for chamber orchestral performance by Maestro Leppard, who is internationally renowned as a musician, conductor, composer, arranger, and music scholar and has earned numerous honors for his artistry, including five Grammy Awards and the esteemed Edison Prize, among others. The classical works include Sir Edward Elgar’s A Christmas Greeting, Joachim Raff’s Lullaby from the Octet for Strings featuring lyrics by Leppard and sung by soprano Elizabeth Futral, and Claudio Monteverdi’s Currite populi: In Praise of St. Nicholas sung by tenor Alan Bennett.

Other traditional folksongs and Medieval carols that have been arranged by Leppard include A Child’s Christmas by Peter Cornelius and Past Three O’Clock: A Sequence of Carols, both featuring Miss Futral as soloist, Percy Grainger’s The Sussex Mummer’s Carol that spotlights ISO Principal Horn Robert Danforth, Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day with baritone Kenneth Pereira, the Fantasia on Old Words and Tunes for Christmas with soprano Carolina Castells and mezzo-soprano Julie Grindle, and the Medieval carol Angelus ad Virginem with baritone Adam Ewing. All of the works feature the Apollo’s Voice Chamber Chorus, who have performed in many of the annual Classical Christmas concerts over the past ten years under the direction of Jan Harrington.

Commenting on the disc, Leppard said, “In 1998 I created a new program for the Christmas season that was intended, in conjunction with the ISO, to complement the usual commercial holiday fare by offering perhaps a different way to consider the season. I’ve put together a variety of tunes that we have performed in these concerts over the past 10 years, some known and others not so well known, but all to do with Christmas and as with the gifts we give each other at this time, there may be a few delightful surprises.”

The ISO’s Classical Christmas compact disc is priced at $19 each, and are on sale now by visiting the Orchestra’s Symphony Store at any ISO concert, or by ordering on-line at www.IndianapolisSymphony.org/store. In the future, other local outlets may carry the recording, and those locations will be announced in the future.

The Seed of Dream

Journal of Singing Hails Laitman's THE SEED OF DREAM on Naxos

"Laitman has an uncommon ability to breathe new life into a text with her music without obscuring its original essence, and she demonstrates that sensitivity here to a remarkable degree."

The Journal of Singing, 2008

New critical acclaim for a Naxos recording of American composer Lori Laitman's 'The Seed of Dream' has been published in an article by Gregory Berg in the November/December 2008 issue of The Journal of Singing. The CD, 'For a Look or a Touch,' includes works by Jake Heggie, Gerard Schwarz and Lori Laitman. All three compositions were commissioned by Music of Remembrance to commemorate the extraordinary musical and artistic gifts of musicians who perished or survived the Holocaust.

The Journal writes: "A worthy companion to Heggie's song cycle is Lori Laitman's The Seed of Dream, in which she sets five poems by Abraham Sutzkever, a gifted Yiddish writer who lived for years in the Jewish ghetto of Vilna, Lithuania, but who eventually managed to escape to the outside world to become a courageous member of the resistance movement in his homeland."

Berg continues with a thorough analysis of the songs and the performers: "Laitman has an uncommon ability to breathe new life into a text with her music without obscuring its original essence, and she demonstrates that sensitivity here to a remarkable degree. ...In "To My Child" Sutzkever is a heartbroken father trying to articulate the sorrow of losing his son, who was murdered by the Nazis. The text is a tortured ride through a maze of conflicting emotions and images, and Laitman's music rides the waves of those emotions without dictating their course. As the poet speaks of feeling the corpse of his child for the first time, Laitman spins out the word "cool" with a brief, subtle, yet exquisitely expressive melisma. When the text abruptly turns from sadness to anger with the words, "how can you shut your eyes, leaving me here," the music reflects that same turn, not with histrionics, but rather with quiet assurance. This is exactly what great song writing is all about.

Laitman achieves similar success in "Beneath the Whiteness of Your Stars," in which she weaves her own music with that of Lithuanian composer Abraham Brudno, who also lived in the Vilna Ghetto and, unlike the poet, did not survive. His main melodic theme, which we hear first in an instrumental interlude, comes from his own setting of this same text, and the combination of Laitman's gentle music with the more vigorous music of Brudno, is an intriguing and captivating combination...The work ends radiantly with a poem about the precious power of memory, which Sutzkever wrote after escaping the ghetto and finding refuge in the woods by Lake Narocz in the winter of 1944. "No sad songs, please," the poet requests, and Laitman sets these words with touching restraint and affection."

Baritone Erich Parce sings these songs with understanding and great care, and he has invaluable collaborators in MOR founder Mina Miller at the piano and Amos Yang on cello. These three musicians achieve remarkable magic here and these beautiful and important songs deserve nothing less." Laitman has been in touch with Abraham Sutzkever and he is very pleased with the song cycle.

Lori Laitman is represented by Jona Rapoport Artist Management.

CD Details:

Naxos 559379, 61 minutes

HEGGIE: For a Look or a Touch; SCHWARZ: In Memoriam; LAITMAN: The Seed of Dream

VSO December Concert Listings

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra presents a month to remember in December!

Vancouver BC – The month of December brings great classics and holiday music to Vancouver audiences. Kicking off the month of December is violin virtuoso and Vancouver native, Corey Cerovsek, who will perform Sibelius’s Violin Concerto in D minor with great young conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto.

Next up is the Classical Mystery Tour, which combines the music of the legendary Beatles with the unrivaled sounds of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. In the lead-up to the Holidays is The Magical, Musical World of Vienna featuring guest conductor Jean-Marie Zeitouni, soprano Marianne Fiset and the delightful works of Strauss, Lehar and Brahms. A concert featuring works from the Musical City itself – the perfect way to kick off the Holidays!

How could the holiday season be complete without the VSO’s Traditional Christmas concerts? This year, they feature VSO Assistant Conductor Evan Mitchell and narrator Christopher Gaze. The VSO brings these fourteen performances filled with carols and heart-warming music to venues in Vancouver, Surrey, North Vancouver, West Vancouver and Burnaby. And just before the Traditional Christmas, the VSO sneaks in Tiny Tots: Holiday Hooray! For the little ones, toddlers to age four or five, this is the perfect holiday event, featuring Let Your Music Shine with Lisa and Linda, at the Playhouse Theatre in downtown Vancouver, and Terry Fox Theatre in Port Coquitlam.

Another great music tradition returns to the Chan Centre at UBC, and debuts in Massey Theatre in New Westminster: Concertmaster of the Bournemouth Symphony and chamber music specialist Duncan Riddell leads the orchestra in Vivaldi’s timeless classic Four Seasons.

Rounding out the holiday season is the spectacularly entertaining Bugs Bunny on Broadway! That Wascally Wabbit is back in a concert that features classic Warner Bros. cartoons on a large screen while the orchestra plays the soundtracks on stage. A family favourite sure to sell out!

With Christmas just around the corner, the VSO Flex-Pass is a great gift for your loved ones. It’s the ultimate mix of savings and ticket buying flexibility – the 4-pack is just $139 and the 8-pack is $228 – and the perfect gift for any music lover! There is also the Symphony Sampler – test drive the VSO with four tickets from fifteen specially selected concerts in the spring. Another great Holiday gift idea from the VSO! Please visit the VSO website for more information www.vancouversymphony.ca

CONCERT INFO

Masterworks Diamond Series:

The Genius of Corey Cerovsek

Saturday & Monday, November 29 & December 1, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor

Corey Cerovsek, violin

Verdi I vespri siciliani: Overture

Sibelius Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47

Bartok Concerto for Orchestra

Violin wunderkind Corey Cerovsek returns home to perform the sublime Sibelius. Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra is a rarely performed gem, and will rock the Orpheum.

Tickets $25 to $78.50 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets available by phone at 604.876.3434 or online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Generously Supported By:

Radio Sponsor: CKNW AM980

Beltone Symphony Sundays Series:

The Genius of Corey Cerovsek

Sunday, November 30, 2pm, Orpheum Theatre

Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor

Corey Cerovsek, violin

Verdi I vespri siciliani: Overture

Sibelius Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47

Bartok Concerto for Orchestra

Violin wunderkind Corey Cerovsek returns home to perform the sublime Sibelius. Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra is a rarely performed gem, and will rock the Orpheum.

Tickets $20 to $56 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets available by phone at 604.876.3434 or online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Generously Supported By:

Series Sponsor: Beltone

Specials:

Classical Mystery Tour with the VSO

Wednesday, December 3, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Martin Herman, conductor

Classical Mystery Tour, entertainers

Chris Camilleri

Tony Kishman

Jim Owen

Thomas Teeley

The music of the Beatles like you’ve never heard it before! Classical Mystery Tour brings together the music of one of the greatest bands of all time with the unmatchable sounds of a live symphony orchestra. Classical Mystery Tour’s own Fab Four will transport you to the exciting heyday of rock ‘n’ roll with thirty classic Beatles tunes played just like Paul, John, George and Ringo. Roll up for the Mystery Tour, it’s coming to take you away!

Tickets $25 to $45 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets available by phone at 604.876.3434 or online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Musically Speaking Series:

The Magical, Musical World of Vienna!

Saturday, December 6, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Jean-Marie Zeitouni, conductor

Marianne Fiset, soprano*

J. Strauss Der Ziegeunerbaron: Overture

Lehar Zigeunerliebe (Gypsy Love): Hor’Ich Cymbalklange*

Brahms Hungarian Dance No. 7

Lehar The Merry Widow: Vilja’s Lied*

J. Strauss Eljen a Magyar!, Hail to Hungary

Lehar Giuditta: Meine Lippen, Sie Kussen So Heiss *

J. Strauss Kaiser Waltz

Maxime Goulet Olympic Commission

J. Strauss Die Fledermaus: Klange Der Heimat*

J. Strauss Tritsch-Tratsch Polka

R. Strauss Morgan, Op. 27, No.4*

R. Strauss Zueignung, Op. 10, No.1

Strauss Der Rosenkavalier: Suite, Op. 347

An evening of popular, beloved Viennese music with the magnificent voice of Marianne Fiset. A perfect concert to usher in the Holiday season!

Tickets $20 to $56 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets available by phone at 604.876.3434 or online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Generously Supported By:

Video Screen Sponsor: TELUS

Video screen presentations created and produced by students and staff of digital video productions at Columbia Academy.

North Shore Classics:

The Magical, Musical World of Vienna!

Monday, December 8, 8pm, Centennial Theatre

Jean-Marie Zeitouni, conductor

Marianne Fiset, soprano*

J. Strauss Der Ziegeunerbaron: Overture

Lehar Zigeunerliebe (Gypsy Love): Hor’Ich Cymbalklange*

Brahms Hungarian Dance No. 7

Lehar The Merry Widow: Vilja’s Lied*

J. Strauss Eljen a Magyar!, Hail to Hungary

Lehar Giuditta: Meine Lippen, Sie Kussen So Heiss *

J. Strauss Kaiser Waltz

Maxime Goulet Olympic Commission

J. Strauss Die Fledermaus: Klange Der Heimat*

J. Strauss Tritsch-Tratsch Polka

R. Strauss Morgan, Op. 27, No.4*

R. Strauss Zueignung, Op. 10, No.1

Strauss Der Rosenkavalier: Suite, Op. 347

The wonderful world of Vienna! Hear the beautiful and ever-popular music of Johann Strauss Jr., Franz Lehar, Richard Strauss, and Johannes Brahms in a truly classic concert.

Tickets $20 to $56 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets available by phone at 604.876.3434 or online at www.vancouversymphony.ca