LSM Newswire

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Show One Presents Hvorostovsky and Radvanovsky in Toronto March 20

A Show One Presentation Saturday, March 20 at Roy Thomson Hall

HVOROSTOVSKY& RADVANOVSKY: INTERNATIONAL SUPERSTARS

IN AN ITALIAN OPERA SPECTACULAR

He has been called the supreme singing actor with a virtuoso display of smoky tone and sensual, forthright phrasing. With her rich, tremulous soprano voice and affecting intensity, she is hailed as the top Verdi soprano of our age.

Show One Productions presents the first joint North American concert by two of the worlds operatic superstars, baritone DMITRI HVOROSTOVSKY and soprano SONDRA RADVANOVSKY, Saturday, March 20, 2010, 8 p.m. at Roy Thomson Hall.

An Italian Opera Spectacular features an evening of passionate arias and duets from Un Ballo in maschera (A Masked Ball), Simon Boccanegra, and other great stage works by Verdi, along with such favorites as the Song to the Moon from Dvoraks Rusalka, and the final scene from Tchaikovskys Eugene Onegin.

Hvorostovsky and Radvanovsky will perform with the Orchestre de la Francophonie, under the baton of Constantine Orbelian. Jean-Philippe Tremblay, the orchestras music director, will conduct some of the finest orchestral selections from opera, by Verdi, Puccini and Mascagni.

Tickets, $65-148.75, are available via www.RoyThomson.com or by calling 416-872-4255. Information is also available at www.ShowOneProductions.ca.

This concert is certain to be a highlight of 2010, promises Svetlana Dvoretskaia of Show One Productions. When you get two talents of this magnitude in the finest operatic music ever written, it is both a rare and unforgettable experience!

Hvorostovsky and Radvanovsky first performed together in Russia in 2009. The Toronto concert marks the start of a North American tour that takes the artists to Montreals Place des Arts March 26 (also presented by Show One Productions), Washingtons Kennedy Center March 29, and New Yorks Carnegie Hall April 1.

BOTH STARS FEATURED IN NEW VERDI RECORDINGS: In addition to regular performances at the Metropolitan Opera, both Hvorostovsky and Radvanovsky have toured widely. Their recent joint concerts of Verdi scenes and duets in Russia were recorded and will be released shortly on Delos. As well, Radvanovskys Moscow performances led to her first solo recording of Verdi arias, also on Delos and scheduled for release in April.

HVORSTOVSKYS SIMON BOCCANEGRA: While the versatile Russian baritone is a great interpreter of Russian opera and music of his homeland, he is in demand worldwide as a recitalist and for his Verdi roles. When he first performed the title role in Simon Boccanegra in 2006 with the Houston Grand Opera, the Houston Chronicle praised his magnetic stage presence and lustrous sound, marveling at his ability to convey the emotional point of words. When he reprised the role for the San Francisco Opera in September 2008, the San Francisco Chronicle raved, His vocal production was superb, a virtuoso display of smoky tone and sensual, forthright phrasing. The Bay Area Reporter summed him up at the supreme singing actor. This year (2010) sees Hvorostovsky again at the Met, as well as the Covent Garden and Vienna opera houses, and touring extensively in Russia, North America and Canada. www.hvorostovsky.com

Vanity Fair wrote that Hvorostovsky is sending aficionados the world over into a collective swoon, inviting an adulation that recalls the advent of Baryshnikov in the dance world of the seventies. And he was a rare classical musician to be named one of People Magazines 50 most beautiful people.

RADVANOVSKYS FIRST TOSCA & AIDA: One month after her Toronto performance, Sondra Radvanovsky will sing her first Tosca in the Opera Colorado production of the Puccini melodrama (www.operacolorado.org/operas/tosca-artists). In October 2010, she will make both her Canadian Opera Company and role debuts in the title role of Verdis Aida. On March 20, audiences will enjoy a foretaste when she includes Aidas aria O Patria Mia in the program.

The New York Times has praised her rich, tremulous soprano voice and affecting intensity, while The Times (UK) hailed her as a true Verdian, with a big, juicy, vibrato-rich sound. San Franciscos Chronicle summed up her September 2009 performance in Il Trovatore: Even if nothing else happens during the rest of the San Francisco Operas 2009 fall season, soprano Sondra Radvanovsky has already provided us with at least one extraordinary and indelible musical memory. (Hvorostovsky alternated as Count di Luna in that production.)

This January has seen her as Lina in the Metropolitan Operas remount of Verdis Stiffelio, with Plcido Domingo conducting in what the New York Times described as a richly expressive performance as Lina, Stiffelios guilt-stricken wifeĶ She sang with utter integrity, supple phrasing, nuanced colorings and aching vulnerability. Her bright, strong voice filled Verdis lines and penetrated the orchestra without forcingĶ She won me over, and the cheering audience, with her impassioned performance.

Radvanovsky is also appearing this season as Elisabetta in Don Carlo at the Paris Opera; and in the Verdi Requiem with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. www.imgartists.com/sondraradvanovsky

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Thursday, January 21, 2010

David Shermans The Daily Miracle

While a winter storm threatens to shut down the city and the corporate big wigs meet behind closed doors across the hall to decide the fate of the newspaper, four copy editors hammer out tomorrows edition. It's just another night on the news desk, where the battle-scarred and overworked wrestle with fractured syntax and crushed ideals to get the next edition out. Tempers frayed from layoffs, cutbacks and corroded ambitions; it's a miracle they can get the paper out at all Ķ a miracle that happens every day.

Performance Information
Dates & Times Jan. 26 Feb. 14
Previews Jan. 26 & 27
Opening Night Jan. 28
Tues. through Sat. 20:00
Sunday Matine 14:00 (Jan.31 PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN)
Monday DARK

Tickets
General Admission $20
Seniors & Students $15
Groups (6 or more) $10

Venue
Bain St-Michel
5300, St-Dominique

Box Office
(514) 987 1774
box-office@infinitheatre.com
www.infinitheatre.com

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Wednesday, January 20, 2010

To the Sea in Ships

Songs and stories of sailors, adventurers and fishers the world over
Tuesday, February 9, 2010, at 8 pm
Wednesday, February 10, 2010, at 8 pm

Trinity St. Pauls Centre


For Immediate Release Toronto, January 13, 2010: Torontos Talisker Players return to Trinity St. Pauls Centre on Tuesday & Wednesday, February 9 and 10 with To the Sea in Ships. Offering concert-goers an escape from Toronto in winter to adventure on the high seas, this is an evening of music about sea-faring from across the ages and around the world. Mezzo-soprano Vicki St. Pierre, tenor Keith Klassen and baritone Alexander Dobson are the renowned guest artists joining the instrumentalists of Talisker Players.

The programme starts with British composer John Ireland's setting of the famous John Masefield poem, Sea Fever ("I must down to the sea again / To the lonely sea and the sky") for baritone and piano.  It also features Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe's evocative Island Dreaming, for mezzo soprano and string quartet, and American Lee Hoiby's Bermudas, a gorgeous setting of a poem by Andrew Marvell about the first British sailors to come upon the Caribbean islands, for tenor, baritone and piano quartet.

The Talisker Players have a strong commissioning programme, and always take pride in featuring Canadian composers.  To the Sea in Ships features the premiere of a new work by the promising young Toronto composer Juliet Hess. The Mariner's Albatross is a setting of an excerpt from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, the famous narrative poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, for an unusual combination of tenor, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and double bass.  The evening also includes Sir Ernest MacMillan's rollicking setting of Three French Canadian Sea Songs, for baritone and string quintet. As always, this Talisker Players production includes the spoken word.  Readings will be from the great seafaring classic Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana.

Vicki St. Pierres lush voice is both dark and brilliant, an unusual combination. Still at the beginning of her career, she has distinguished herself in a wide variety of styles and genres. An acclaimed interpreter of early music, she is also at ease on the opera stage, and is in great demand as an oratorio and recital artist.  

Tenor Keith Klassen has emerged as one of Canada's busiest and most versatile tenors. His voice has been described as "pure honey, with its ease of high notes and lyrical grace of phrasing", and his acting as passionate and dramatically convincing. He is a member of the studio company of Tapestry New Opera Works, and has appeared in numerous workshops and premieres. Keith is also a sought-after oratorio singer, and has performed across Canada and abroad.

The British-Canadian baritone Alexander Dobson has been praised for his musicality and dramatic awareness on the opera, concert and recital stage. Recent highlights include his portrayal of Wozzeck conducted by Yannick Nzet-Sguin in Montreal, a performance lauded for his "gripping embodiment of Wozzeck", which he later reprised at the Orford Festival, and debuts at Covent Garden (U.K.) and New Yorks Bard Festival. Alexander is also a noted performer of new music; he has premiered several roles with Queen of Puddings Music Theatre, Tapestry New Opera and Toronto Masque Theatre.

To the Sea in Ships
 Songs and stories of adventure on the high seas
Tuesday & Wednesday, February 9 & 10, 2010, 8 PM
Trinity St. Paul's Centre, 427 Bloor Street West
Vicki St. Pierre, mezzo soprano; Keith Klassen, tenor; Alexander Dobson, baritone; The Talisker Players

TICKETS:  $30 / $20 (seniors) / $10 (students)

Tel: 416-978-8849
Information: 416-466-1800



Talisker Players Chamber Music offers one of the most imaginative and exciting concert series in Toronto. In collaboration with some of Canadas finest young singers, Talisker Players present the rarely-heard repertoire for voice and chamber ensemble. Their unique programming includes readings that illuminate the music and delight audiences with a stimulating, theatrical concert experience. The music, engaging and varied, includes both celebrated works and unknown gems from all styles and periods, with a strong presence of Canadian compositions.

Upcoming: Illuminations
Tuesday, May 11, 2010 & Wednesday, May 12, 2010 8 pm
A window on the world of mystics, visionaries and seers
Featuring Meredith Hall, soprano; Lawrence Wiliford, tenor

Labels:

EMI Classics and Virgin Classics Highlights for January 2010 Include Solo Recordings and a DVD

From Some of Todays Hottest Singers, Including Diana Damrau, Philippe Jaroussky, and Natalie Dessay

Plus, an All-Ravel Album from Fast-rising Conductor Yannick Nzet-Sguin, and a Veritable (and Danceable) Feast of Ballet Music

Virgin Classics Artist Philippe Jaroussky Makes NYC Solo Recital Debut, Performing His Opium Program Live at Carnegies Weill Recital Hall (Jan 14)

COLORaturas
Diana Damrau, soprano
Mnchner Rundfunkorchester / Dan Ettinger
CD and downloads available January 12 from Virgin Classics

Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.  Its impossible to know whether Diana Damrau was born great, but she has without question achieved greatness; Damrau has firm technical command, unaffected mastery of characterization, and beauty of toneĶ . More, please.    Opera News

After two highly-praised Virgin Classics releases of 18th-century repertoire, the superb German soprano Diana Damrau adds a dazzling new title to her Virgin Classics discography: COLORaturas.  With the support of the Mnchner Rundfunkorchester conducted by Dan Ettinger, Damrau is showcased in repertoire that ranges from Rossini (including Una voce poco fa from Barber of Seville) and Verdi to Stravinsky and Bernstein; from comedy to tragedy; and covers four languages: German, Italian, French, and English.  It includes Zerbinettas marathon coloratura aria from Ariadne auf Naxos, one of the operas that spearheaded Damraus international career.

Opera News has named COLORaturas its Critics Choice selection for February 2010.  Under the headline Shattering Expectations, Judith Malafrontes review begins with this observation: Diana Damrau is one of those singers who gobble up the music only to spit it back out with more originality, verve, precision and ease than seems possible.  Listening to such a smart singer is an absolute delight as well as a challenge; expectations are shattered by authoritative readings that leave the listener amazed at this artists imagination and the inevitability of the results.

Diana Damraus operatic engagements in the U.S. for the current season include starring roles in Donizettis La fille du rgiment (Feb) and Rossinis Il barbiere di Siviglia at New Yorks Metropolitan Opera (Feb March), as well as Ambroise Thomass Hamlet in Washington, D.C. (May).  She will also take center stage at New Yorks Carnegie Hall on January 24, performing orchestral songs by Richard Strauss with the MET Orchestra and James Levine.

J.C. Bach: La Dolce Fiamma Forgotten Castrato Arias
Philippe Jaroussky, countertenor
Le Cercle de LHarmonie / Jrmie Rhorer
CD and downloads available January 12 from Virgin Classics

The countertenor Philippe Jaroussky wields his sweet-toned, radiant voice to emotive effect, displaying both a rapid-fire coloratura technique and a poignant, lyrical expressiveness. New York Times

Philippe Jarousskys previous operatic recital for Virgin Classics was a collection of arias written for a castrato singer, Carestini, whose star had been somewhat eclipsed by his contemporaries Farinelli and Senesino.  In this newest release, the young and charismatic French countertenor turns to a composer who despite his famous last name, his celebrity during his lifetime, and his influence on the young Mozart is still not given his full due: Johann Christian Bach (1735-82).  The repertoire comprises arias from six of his operas, written for Milan, Mannheim, and London, the city in which he spent the last 20 years of his life and where, in 1764, he met Mozart, then a touring child prodigy. 

La Dolce Fiamma Forgotten Castrato Arias is Jarousskys seventh solo disc for Virgin Classics.  Reviewing the new album, a critic for the Toronto Star observed, Frances Jaroussky, 31, is probably the finest of the younger generation of countertenors.  Here, he tackles 13 airs and arias originally written for castrati by Johann Christian BachĶ . J.C. wrote a lot of operas, all of them forgotten which may change, given the impressive performances by Jaroussky and Le Cercle de lHarmonie under conductor Jrmie Rhorer.  This beautiful music spans the full emotional spectrum.

In the Philadelphia Inquirer, David Patrick Stearns praised Jarousskys electrifying treble voice and pinpoint brilliance in a recent review of this and other important new vocal albums.  He calls La Dolce Fiamma a must, noting, On Jarousskys disc, Johann Christian Bach sounds so good that one can only assume his music simply got lost in the historic shuffle.  The Jaroussky disc is necessary for anyone interested in pre-Mozartean opera.

Jarousskys star is already high in the firmament in Europe, especially in France, where his albums have been extraordinary bestsellers.  Audiences in two American cities will have the opportunity to hear his work in a broad range of repertoire early in the New Year.  On January 14, Jaroussky will give a recital of sensuous and seductive French melodies from the late 19th and early 20th centuries the so-called Belle poque at Carnegies Weill Recital Hall; it will mark his New York City solo recital debut.  Jaroussky recorded many of these songs on his Virgin Classics album Opium, which was released this past spring.

Much of the Opium repertoire will also appear on a program Jaroussky will give at the Cleveland Institute of Music on January 16 with the dynamic young ensemble Apollos Fire.  Writing about Opium, a critic for All Music Guide observed, Jaroussky rose as a star of Baroque opera not only because of his flawless technique and the exceptional clarity and purity of his voice, but for his ability to bring life, through the depth and emotional honesty of his characterizations, to cardboard roles that had primarily served as vehicles for coloratura fireworks.  Its not surprising, then, that he excels in this intensely personal and emotionally transparent repertoire.

Additional information about the album is available on-line at www.jarousskyopium.com. 

Debussy: Pellas et Mlisande 
Natalie Dessay, Laurent Naouri, Stphane Degout
Arnold Schoenberg Choir
Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien / Bertrand de Billy 
DVD available January 12 from Virgin Classics

Natalie Dessay admitted that Mlisande poses few vocal challenges, noting that the role lies comfortably enough for both sopranos and lightweight mezzos.  Indeed, the role is vocally a good fit for her splendid, in fact.  Opera News 

Theres more to life than top notes, Natalie Dessay has said.  She has, of course, made her reputation with the florid, stratospheric heroines of Romantic French and Italian opera, but in this new DVD from Vienna she portrays a heroine who presents few opportunities for vocal display, but many for subtle characterization Debussys Mlisande.  Dessay had sung the role just once before, in concert in Edinburgh in 2005.  Pellas et Mlisande is full of ambiguity and its vocal lines closely reflect Maurice Maeterlincks hauntingly enigmatic text.  A few unaccompanied, ballad-like phrases are the closest Mlisande comes to an aria.

For this production, premiered in January 2009 at the Theater an der Wien, Dessays French and French-Canadian colleagues included stage director Laurent Pelly celebrated for riotous comedy (notably La fille du rgiment with Dessay, also a Virgin Classics DVD) and his preferred designer, Chantal Thomas; Dessays real-life husband, bass-baritone Laurent Naouri, as her jealous stage husband, Golaud; the lyric baritone Stphane Degout as her Pellas; and the contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux as his and Golauds mother, Genevive.  Conductor Bertrand de Billy completes the high-caliber Gallic line-up.

A preview segment from the DVD is available at this link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANSOGaoJOFs.

Natalie Dessays ever-rising profile in the U.S. has been fueled by a series of critically-acclaimed performances with the countrys leading opera companies, particularly New Yorks Metropolitan Opera.  She returns there in March to star as Ophelia in the companys production of Ambroise Thomass Hamlet (eight performances, March 16 through April 9).  Listeners can preview that performance on Virgin Classics recently released Mad Scenes, which features Dessay going off the rails emotionally, but with perfect musical precision in works from five 19th-century operas, along with a surprising live performance from Bernsteins Candide.  In his review of the album for the Philadelphia Inquirer, David Patrick Stearns calls Dessay, a modern-day Sills: her sense of theatrical comprehension wins the day.

Ravel: La Valse, Mother Goose, Daphnis et Chlo Suite No. 2, etc.
Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra / Yannick Nzet-Sguin
CD and downloads available January 12 from Virgin Classics

In everything, Nzet-Sguin who is flashy and hyper-expressive in his gestures got a sound I had never quite heard before from the Angelenos.  It was lean, sleek, tart in the French manner, yet also very bold and forward.  It reminded me of the sound of the Montral Symphony during the Charles Dutoit era, but with more punch. Los Angeles Times 

A new album of orchestral works by Ravel marks Yannick Nzet-Sguins debut recording with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra.  The French-Canadian conductor finds Maurice Ravel to be the greatest orchestrator that French music has ever had, which is what he and the orchestra want to showcase on this recording.  Its all about colors, Nzet-Sguin explained, [and] the contrast between intimacy and grandeur, Valse being one of his greatest and most powerful symphonic poems, and yet the Valses nobles et sentimentales being much more in the intimate wayĶ . In Ma mre lOye, we are being so intimate, while Daphnis and Chlo is also one of his most uplifting and triumphant [works].  Theres a lot of contrast.

In the 2008-09 season, Yannick Nzet-Sguin succeeded Valery Gergiev as Music Director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra and also became Principal Guest Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra.  Since 2000, he has been Artistic Director of the Orchestre Mtropolitain in Montreal, gaining many awards for his work there.  He has worked with all the leading Canadian orchestras and returns regularly to the Toronto Symphony.  He made his European debut in late 2004 with Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse and has since been invited back by all the orchestras with which he has worked.

Nzet-Sguin has been busy in New York this winter, making his Metropolitan Opera debut conducting a new production of Bizets Carmen, which opened on December 31 (six performances through Jan 21), and will soon head across the Lincoln Center plaza to lead the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in two orchestral concerts at Avery Fisher Hall (Feb 17 and 19). 

Schubert: String Quintet in C (D.956); String Quartet No. 15 in G (D.887); String Quartet No. 14 in D minor (D.810), Death and the Maiden
Belcea Quartet; Valentin Erben, cello 
Two-CD set and downloads available January 12 from EMI Classics 

The Belcea Quartet adds three late masterpieces by Franz Schubert to their impressive discography on EMI Classics: the String Quartet No. 14 in D minor, Death and the Maiden (D.810), the luminous and transcendent String Quartet No. 15 in G (D.887), and the life-affirming String Quintet in C (D.956) with Valentin Erben of the Alban Berg String Quartet as the second cellist.  The Belcea Quartet has garnered much praise for their take on Schubert, with the New York Times recently stating, In the Belceas account [of Death and the Maiden] the work seemed so formidable and emotionally complex that there was nothing more to say. 

Chopin: Journal Intime
Alexandre Tharaud, piano 
CD and downloads available January 12 from Virgin Classics 

Alexandre Tharaud plays Chopin with superlative techniqueĶ[his] intelligent playing Ķmatches its clarity with perception and sensitivity, and variety of touch with sonic beauty.  Tharaud is unfailingly responsive to melodic nuance and seems to relish every new twist of the texture.  But there is also immense power when the dark energy beneath is unleashed.  His concept plumbs the depths of Chopins musical psyche with humilityĶ a brilliant and original performance.
BBC Music magazine 

Already established as one of todays most individual and thoughtful pianists, Alexandre Tharaud makes his debut on Virgin Classics with a diverse and very personal collection of pieces by Frdric Chopin, just in time for the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the composers birth (he was born on March 1, 1810).

Journal intime (Private diary) features works by Chopin mazurkas, nocturnes, ballades, the famous Fantaisie-impromptu, and a number of other, lesser-known works that have special importance and significance to Tharaud, who cites the pianism of Vlado Perlemuter and Sergei Rachmaninov as a particular influence on his approach to the music of Chopin.  Many of these pieces have been in Tharauds repertoire since his student days.  I let time work for me, he explains.  It is extraordinarily enriching to study a work when you are young and then revisit it in the course of your life.  It becomes part of you.  A preview video for the project is available at the following link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ0835-S67M, and a full track listing follows below.

Tharaud, born in Paris in 1968, takes a discerning approach to repertoire, highlighting and often juxtaposing composers such as Bach, Rameau, Couperin, Chabrier, Satie, Ravel, Poulenc, and Thierry Pcou (b.1965).  His catalogue of recordings for Harmonia Mundi has contributed substantially to his reputation.

This winter and spring, Tharaud will give a number of recitals in America, including performances at the Frick Collection in New York City on March 7 and at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. on March 12 (these and other dates are listed in the artist tour section at the end of this news release). 

Track list
1.    Mazurka, Op. 63, No. 3
2.    Ballade, Op. 23, No. 1
3.    Mazurka, Op. 17, No. 2
4.    Mazurka, Op. 68, No. 2
5.    Fantaisie, Op. 49
6.    Nocturne posthumous
7.    Mazurka, Op 7, No. 2
8.    Ballade, Op. 38, No. 2
9.    Mazurka, Op. 17, No. 4
10.  Largo
11-13.  Trois cossaises, Op. 72, No. 3 (I-III)
14.  Contredanse
15.  Fantaisie-impromptu, Op. 66
16.  Nocturne, Op. 9, No. 2 

Lehr: La veuve joyeuse (The Merry Widow)
Vronique Gens, Ivan Ludlow, Gordon Gietz, Magali Lger
Opra de Lyon / Grard Korsten
DVD available Janaury 12 from Virgin Classics 

The heroine of La veuve joyeuse is called Missia Palmieri, but she had started off in 1905 as Hanna Glawari in Vienna, where this operetta is known as Die lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow); its French premiere followed in 1909.  The story of the merry widow and her rekindled romance with dissipated diplomat Count Danilo takes place in Paris notably Chez Maxims in the final act and in fact has its roots in a French play, Lattach dambassade by Henri Meilhac.  With Ludovic Halvy, Meilhac was the librettist of Carmen, a number of Offenbachs operettas and a play called Le Rveillon, which forms the basis of that other supreme Viennese operetta Die Fledermaus.  Johann Strausss waltzes and polkas were clearly an influence on Lehr, but his sumptuous and often touching score also frequently furnishes reminders that he was a contemporary of both Richard Strauss and Giacomo Puccini.

This production, mounted in December 2007 at the Opra de Lyon (the source of Virgin Classics DVD of Offenbachs La vie Parisienne in a riotous contemporary updating by Laurent Pelly) is by the French director Macha Makeieff.  She treats the work as the masterpiece it is: Macha Makeieffs reading Ķ turns its back on the conventions of operetta frippery, of musical champagne bubbles to keep the crowds happy Ķ . In defining the personalities of the two lovers two wounded birds who have put up barriers to protect themselves from love she brings depth and gravity to the work, giving it new stature (Le Progrs).

In the title role is the leading French lyric soprano, the graceful Vronique Gens, whose two Tragdiennes recitals are on Virgin Classics; her Danilo is the dashing British baritone Ivan Ludlow, while the roles of the secondary pair of errant lovers are played by the Canadian tenor Gordon Gietz and the delightful Magali Lger, with the latters long-suffering husband portrayed by baritone Franois Le Roux.  Conducting is Grard Korsten, born in South Africa but with long experience as both student and performer in Austria, notably Salzburg. 

Special compilations, boxed sets, and reissues 

Aldo Ciccolini: The Complete EMI Recordings 1950-91
Specially-priced 56-CD set available January 12 from EMI Classics 

Beyond Aldo Ciccolinis two bestselling complete Satie recordings and other proofs of his natural affinity with the French repertoire (which put him very much in tune with the artistic policy of French EMI under the leadership of Ren Challan, Eric Macleod, and Grco Casadesus), and his unflashy Liszt the ideal alternative to someone like Georges Cziffra the public knows surprisingly little of the recordings that Ciccolini made for EMI between 1950 and 1991.

In 1950, as winner of the 1949 Marguerite Long Competition, the 25-year-old Ciccolini recorded his first 78; it was devoted to Scarlatti, a composer to whom he later returned.  Following soon afterwards was Tchaikovskys Piano Concerto No. 1, conducted by Andr Cluytens the pianist asked for the tapes of the second concerto to be destroyed, since he did not like the piece and then produced an anthology of Mozart sonatas which has a finesse, balance, and sonic splendor still typical of Ciccolinis concert performances today.

EMIs new 56-CD collection contains numerous items which have become available for the first time (such as Mozart sonatas and Bach inventions previously only released in Japan, or his first Debussy disc, dating from 1969), or which have never before been released, such as the magnificent Pictures at an Exhibition recorded in 1976.  With particular care taken over the transfers, including re-masterings of all the late recordings, this box will convince any remaining skeptics that Aldo Ciccolini, though born in Naples, holds a place at the very summit of French pianism. 

The Complete Chopin Edition 200th anniversary
16-CD set and downloads available January 26 from EMI Classics. 

To celebrate the 200th anniversary of Frdric Chopins birth in suitably grand fashion, EMI Classics is proud to release the Polish composers complete works in an exclusive, specially-priced 16-CD boxed set.  The collection brings together all of the works the piano sonatas, mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, polonaises, tudes, impromptus, preludes, and other works that established Chopin as one of the greatest Romantic composers and virtuosos who ever lived.  Featured artists include Leif Ove Andsnes, Claudio Arrau, Daniel Barenboim, Andrei Gavrilov, Benjamin Grosvenor, Garrick Ohlsson and Ronald Smith. 

American Classics series five new titles
Various artists 
Single and two-CD sets and downloads available January 26 from EMI Classics 

EMI Classics expands its attractively-designed and smartly-programmed American Classics series by five new and diverse titles this month, spanning the characteristically wide spectrum of the American music scene, from music theater and spirituals to minimalism and the avant-garde.

The five programs and their contributing artists are as follows: 

AMERICAN COUNTERPOINT 
John Adams: Harmonielehre; John Cage: Three Dances; Conlon Nancarrow: Three Canons for Ursula 
Michael Tilson Thomas, Ralph Grierson, Thomas Ads
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle 

LEONARD BERNSTEIN: Wonderful Town 
Kim Criswell, Audra McDonald, Thomas Hampson
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group; London Voices / Sir Simon Rattle 

RIDE ON, KING JESUS 
Florence Quivar sings black music of America
Florence Quivar, Larry Woodard, Joseph Joubert, Harlem Boys Choir 

AMERICAN CLARINET 
Elliott Carter: Clarinet Concerto (Gra); Steve Reich: New York Counterpoint; Howard Sandroff: Tephillah; John Adams: Gnarly Buttons 
Alain Damiens, Andr Trouttet
Ensemble InterContemporain / David Robertson 

GEORGE GERSHWIN 
Porgy and Bess A Symphonic Picture; Second Rhapsody for piano and orchestra (Rhapsody in Rivets); Concerto in F
Cristina Ortiz
London Symphony Orchestra / Andr Previn 

Two New Titles in 100 Best series:
Best Violin 100
Best Chopin 100
Various Artists
Two six-CDs-for-the-price-of-one sets available January 26 from EMI Classics 

EMI Classics adds two titles to its enormously popular 100 Best series (now numbering 23 titles with a combined total sales of two million sets worldwide).  Like its predecessors, each of the new titles features a plethora of superb artistry from the catalogues of EMI Classics and Virgin Classics at an unbeatable price: six CDs for the price of one!

The first contains 100 violin masterpieces, performed by some of the worlds greatest artists past and present, including Renaud Capuon, Sarah Chang, Kyung-Wha Chung, Augustin Dumay, Christian Ferras, Leonid Kogan, Fritz Kreisler, and Gidon Kremer.

Each CD is themed by eras and genres, as follows: 

CD 1: Vivaldi and the Italian Baroque
CD 2: Bach and Mozart
CD 3: Beethoven and Brahms
CD 4: The 19th-Century Violin
CD 5: The 20th-Century Violin
CD 6: Encores and Showpieces

The second new title, Best Chopin 100, features a glittering galaxy of keyboard stars performing the most beloved and famous works by the great Polish composer.  Featured artists include exciting new performers, established stars, and legendary artists such as (in alphabetical order): Dmitri Alexeev, Leif Ove Andsnes, Martha Argerich, Claudio Arrau, Daniel Barenboim, Stanislav Bunin, Georges Cziffra, Youri Egorov, Ingrid Fliter, Samson Franois, Andrei Gavrilov, Nelson Goerner, Stephen Kovacevich, Dinu Lipatti, Garrick Ohlsson, Mikhail Pletnev, Maurizio Pollini, Arthur Rubinstein, Maria Tipo, and Alexis Weissenberg. 

Three special ballet titles:
The Ballet Edition (ten two-CD sets)
A Festival of Ballet (50-CD boxed set in luxury packaging)
I Love Ballet (Greatest hits on two mid-price CDs)
Available January 26 from EMI Classics 

Some people love the total experience of the ballet.  Others just love to listen to the glorious music romantic, dramatic, tragic, comic, charming, exhilarating composed for the theater by supreme figures like Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, and Ravel; by lesser masters such as Glazunov, Delibes, and Adam; or by the one-hit wonder specialists, like Lovenskiold and Drigo.  With this winters three complementary ballet strands, EMI Classics draws on its rich catalogue to present releases for the balletomane, the new ballet enthusiast, or simply the lover of enthralling music, all superbly performed. 

The Ballet Edition
This new series, with a special focus on complete ballet scores, is launched with ten two-CD sets.  It includes a number of landmark performances: Tchaikovskys Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and Nutcracker and Prokofievs Romeo & Juliet and Cinderella from the London Symphony Orchestra under Andr Previn interpretations that have long set the standard in these magnificent works; Ravels Daphnis et Chlo and Debussys Jeux from the Orchestre de Paris under Jean Martinon, a master of French style; and Stravinskys Rite of Spring, Petrushka, Firebird, and Apollo the kind of repertoire that first established Sir Simon Rattles international reputation with the British maestro and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.  The collection also includes Delibes Copplia and Sylvia, performed by Parisian forces; Adams Giselle and Lovenskiolds La Sylphide; and extracts from Glazunovs Raymonda, Minkuss La Bayadre, and Drigos Le Corsaire, all in the hands of expert ballet conductors. 

A Festival of Ballet
This sumptuously-packaged 50-CD set provides an epic survey of ballet music as a genre, from its origins in the Baroque era with composers such as Purcell and Rameau, through its establishment in the 18th and 19th centuries in France and Russia, to the great narrative works of the late-19th and early-20th centuries, and the works of modernism, some jazz-inspired.  Many rarely-heard scores are included alongside essential repertoire.

The array of Russian music exemplifies the sets impressive scope: beyond substantial highlights from the great Tchaikovsky ballets and other works by the composer, there is music by Glazunov, Rimsky-Korsakov, Stravinsky (from Firebird of 1910 through to Agon of 1957), Prokofiev, Khachaturian, Shostakovich and a number of lesser-known figures such as Liadov and Glire.  The discs devoted to French, British, German, and American repertoire also yield a plethora of scores, and there are even four CDs of dances from operas, oratorios, and plays.

Among the fascinating rarities in the set are John Antills Corroboree (1950), a spectacular work inspired by the Aborigines of Australia; Charles Koechlins tone poem Les Bandar-Log (based on Rudyard Kiplings Jungle Book), which underpinned Antony Tudors 1967 ballet Shadowplay; and Constant Lamberts Horoscope.  Presented beside much-loved scores by Leonard Bernstein and Aaron Copland is songwriter Cole Porters only classical ballet, Within the Quota.

The recordings feature the worlds great orchestras under leading conductors such as Herbert von Karajan, Riccardo Muti, Andr Previn, Simon Rattle, Carlo Maria Giulini, Thomas Beecham, John Barbirolli, Charles Mackerras, Neville Marriner, Seiji Ozawa, Roger Norrington, John Eliot Gardiner, Leonard Slatkin, Kent Nagano, and Michel Plasson, and also leading ballet specialists such as John Lanchbery, Barry Wordsworth, Terence Kern, and Robert Irving. 

I Love Ballet
These two richly-filled CDs provide a perfect introduction to the joys of ballet music, with many of its greatest hits included: highlights from Swan Lake, Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Copplia, Romeo & Juliet, Giselle, Les Sylphides, Sylvia, Cinderella, La fille mal garde, Gayaneh (the soaring theme from the BBC TV drama The Onedin Line), and the charming Tales of Beatrix Potter; the complete Dance of the Hours from the opera La Gioconda (made famous by Disneys Fantasia), the can-can overture from Gait Parisienne, and the sparkling opening dance from Pineapple Poll (set to the music of Sir Arthur Sullivan); two numbers from Faade, and The Dying Swan, so closely identified with the legendary ballerina Anna Pavlova.  The impressive line-up of conductors includes Herbert von Karajan, Andr Previn, Sir Malcolm Sergent, and Sir Charles Mackerras. 

EMI Classics and Virgin Classics: Artists on tour Winter 2010 

Jan 14
Philippe Jaroussky: Opium program 
Carnegies Weill Recital Hall (New York, NY)

Jan 15 and 16
Ingrid Fliter: Ravels Piano Concerto in G major
St. Louis Symphony (St. Louis, MO)

Jan 16
Philippe Jaroussky: Songs from Opium program and other works
Apollos Fire (Cleveland Baroque Orchestra)
Mixon Hall, Cleveland Institute of Music (Cleveland, OH)

Jan 21
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
Carnegies Zankel Hall (New York, NY)

Jan 22
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
Mandel Hall, University of Chicago (Chicago, IL)

Jan 23
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
First Congregational Church (San Francisco, CA)

Jan 24
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
Beekman Auditorium (Los Angeles, CA)

Jan 24
Diana Damrau: R. Strauss orchestral songs
MET Orchestra / James Levine
Carnegie Hall (New York, NY)

Jan 26
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
Cabell Hall, University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)

Jan 26
Capuon-Angelich Trio
Schwab Auditorium, Pennsylvania State University (University Park, PA)

Jan 27
Capuon-Angelich Trio
Rockefeller University (New York, NY)

Jan 28
Capuon-Angelich Trio
University of Connecticut (Storrs, CT)

Jan 29
Capuon-Angelich Trio
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, NY)

Jan 29
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
Struthers Library Theatre (Warren, PA)

Jan 30
Fabio Biondi: Vivaldis Four Seasons
Southern Theatre (Columbus, OH)

Jan 31 and Feb 1
Capuon-Angelich Trio
Music Room, Dumbarton Oaks (Washington, DC)

Feb 1
Fabio Biondi: recital
Carnegies Zankel Hall (New York, NY)

Feb 2
Capuon-Angelich Trio
La Maison Franaise (Washington, DC)

Feb 5-23
Quatuor Ebne: North American tour
Appleton, WI (Feb 5); Columbia, MD (Feb 6); Toronto, ON (Feb 8); Tucson, AZ (Feb 10); Los Angeles, CA (Feb 12-14); New York, NY (Poisson Rouge, Feb 16); Burlington, VT (Feb 19); Athens, GA (Feb 21); and Washington, DC (Feb 23)

Feb 6 (six performances through Feb 22)
Diana Damrau: title role in Donizettis La fille du rgiment
Metropolitan Opera (New York, NY)

Feb 17
Yannick Nzet-Sguin / Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra
Messiaen, Liszt, Strauss
Avery Fisher Hall (New York, NY)

Feb 19
Yannick Nzet-Sguin / Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra
Brahms, Verbey, Bartk

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La Scena Musicale numro de fvrier 2010 - publicit



[English Version]

LSM Sept 2009


The Music Scene Hiver 2010
Bonjour !

Au nom de toute lquipe demploys et de bnvoles de La Scena Musicale, je vous souhaite une bonne et heureuse anne 2010. Nous amorons lanne avec un nouveau blogue, Vido de musique classique daujourdhui, qui sinscrit dans notre nouvelle stratgie de communications lectroniques et qui propose chaque jour une nouvelle vido.

Malheureusement, lanne musicale compte dj ses mauvaises nouvelles. Le producteur de disques Pierre Dionne (des Disques XXI), un grand ami de LSM et de la musique classique canadienne, a perdu la semaine dernire son combat contre le cancer. Voir plus bas les prcisions sur les obsques.

En fvrier, La Scena Musicale tourne les projecteurs vers les jeunes musiciens prometteurs.
  • En couverture, le pianiste Wonny Song et la violoniste Alexandre da Costa, qui ont tous deux commenc leur carrire musicale au dbut de ladolescence et qui sont aujourdhui des modles pour dautres
  • Notre CD Dcouverte du mois est consacr des interprtations de Wong (lesTableaux d'une exposition de Moussorgski) et da Costa (les Quatre Saisons de Vivaldi).
  • Nous mettons ce mois-ci laccent sur lenseignement de la musique au primaire, au secondaire et priv.
  • Ce numro comprendra notre guide annuel des coles ainsi que leurs calendriers, des conseils et des articles, entre autres des conversations avec de grands professeurs, des musicologues, des adultes professionnels et de jeunes musiciens.
  • Entrevue avec le pianiste de 14 ans Jan Lisiecki
  • Les lecteurs en sauront un peu plus sur la toute premire tourne nord-amricaine de Yannick Nzet-Sguin et de lOrchestre philharmonique de Rotterdam qui commencera en fvrier.
  • Montral, le festival MusiMars approche et lOrchestre de chambre McGill clbre un important anniversaire en 2010.
  • La Scena Musicale rencontre le gagnant du Prix dArts-Affaires Maurice Forget et la gagnante du grand prix dApro lOpra de lOpra de Montral Annie Sanschagrin.
  • Aria du mois : Vissi d'arte de Tosca de Puccini
Tout cela et plus encore en musique classique, en jazz et en musique du monde y compris nos indispensables critiques, concerts venir et calendriers mensuels.

La date de tombe pour les annonces dans le numro de fvrier est le 25 janvier, les maquettes devant nous parvenir au plus tard le 26 janvier.


Promotion Abonnements de janvier Pourquoi pas sabonner ?

Jusquau 31 janvier 2010, les nouveaux abonns obtiendront une rduction de 10 $ sur un abonnement LSM sils sabonnent en ligne. Cette conomie quivaut 4 numros gratuits et labonnement comprend des privilges comme laccs la Discothque Naxos et le tlchargement gratuit de le la collection couverte en format MP3 (10 CD).  noter : partir de 2010, seuls les abonns payants recevront le CD Dcouverte matriel.
Nous recommandons aux lecteurs lextrieur du Canada notre option cologique, la Carte verte La SCENA, vendue seulement 25 $/anne. Voir les dtails ci-dessous.

Collecte de fonds
Enfin, nous commenons lanne 2010 en lanant notre Campagne Fonds de dotation : pour chaque dollar de don, nous recevrons 1,50 $ du programme Placement Culture du gouvernement du Qubec. Notre objectif est de recueillir 100 000 $ afin de crer un fonds de dotation de 250 000 $ qui maintenira l'excellence et assurera la prennit de nos magazines. Veuillez faire un don ou vous joindre notre comit de financement. Voir ci-dessous.

Pour nos lecteurs montralais, nous levons aussi des fonds en vendant des billets pour la prsentation de Tosca de lOpra de Montral du 11 fvrier 2010 (billets de 46 $ 99 $).

Nos meilleurs vux pour 2010.

Salutations amicales,

Wah Keung Chan
diteur et rdacteur en chef fondateur
La Scena Musicale
La SCENA
The Music Scene


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La Scena Musicale fvrier 2010
  • Thme : ducation musicale
  • En couverture : le pianiste Wonny Song et la violoniste Alexander da Costa
  • Sortie : le 29 janvier 2010
  • Tombe (publicit) : le 25 janvier 2010
  • Maquettes : le 25 janvier 2010
  • Tirage : 25 000 exemplaires
  • Qubec : 2 500
  • Montral : 18 500
  • En kiosque : 2 000
  • Abonnements : 2 000
  • Public vis : artistes amateurs et professionnels, passionns de musique et dart
  • Contact : 514-948-0509 ou sales@scena.org
  • Trousse Mdia : http://ads.scena.org/
venir : La Scena Musicale mars 2010 et The Music Scene Printemps 2010
  • Thme : Camps d't

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Funrailles pour Pierre Dionne
Date : le samedi 23 janvier 2010
Lieu : Trois-Rivires
La famille recevra les amis et collgues de Pierre au Centre Funraire Rousseau, 445 rue des Volontaires (juste en face de la cathdrale), le samedi 23 janvier ds 10 h 00. Les funrailles suivront 13 h 30 la cathdrale de Trois-Rivires, 362 rue Bonaventure.
Contact : Olivier Godin, oligodin@yahoo.com

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Promotion Abonnements de janvier Pourquoi pas sabonner ?

Jusquau 31 janvier 2010, les nouveaux abonns obtiendront une rduction de 10 $ sur un abonnement LSM sils sabonnent en ligne. Cette conomie quivaut 4 numros gratuits et labonnement comprend des privilges comme laccs la Discothque Naxos et le tlchargement gratuit de le la collection couverte en format MP3 (10 CD).  noter : partir de 2010, seuls les abonns payants recevront le CD Dcouverte matriel.

Nous recommandons aux lecteurs lextrieur du Canada notre option cologique, la Carte verte La SCENA, vendue seulement 25 $/anne.

http://www.scena.org/LaSCENACard/index_fr.html

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NOUVEAU : la Carte verte La SCENA

Tout disponible en ligne
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Prochaine activit-bnfice LSM

Montral, le jeudi 11 fvrier 2010 20 h
Opra de Montral
Puccini : Tosca
Distribution: voir ce lien
Billets : 99 $, 71 $, 46 $
Rduction de 10 % pour les abonns de La Scena Musicale
noter : autres dates disponibles sur demande.

Rservations* 514-656-3947, sub@scena.org

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Lancement du Fonds de dotation LSM

Notre demande au programme de subventions de contrepartie, Placement Culture, a t officiellement approuve. Par consquent, le gouvernement du Qubec versera 1,50 $ pour chaque dollar de don reu par LSM. Le programme Placement Culture exige que La Scne Musicale cre un fonds de dotation. Notre objectif est de recueillir 100 000 $ au cours des douze prochains mois. Si lon y ajoute la subvention de contrepartie du gouvernement, le montant du fonds slverait 250 000 $. Latteinte de cet objectif est dune extrme importance pour maintenir l'excellence et assurer la survie de nos priodiques, et cest pourquoi nous annonons maintenant le lancement de notre campagne 2010 de contributions au fonds de dotation. Veuillez faire un don ou vous joindre notre comit de financement.

Info : 514-948-2520 ou info@lascena.org

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Dons et bnvoles demands

La Scena Musicale/The Music Scene est un organisme de bienfaisance enregistr 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 communaut artistique, les mlomanes et les amateurs d'art. Aidez-nous poursuivre notre travail avec un don (d'argent ou de biens) ou par du travail bnvole. Communiquez avec nous au 514-948-2520 ou  info@scena.org

Donnez  CanaDon.org

No d'organisme de bienfaisance l'ARC : 14199 6579 RR0001
 
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Labels:

La Scena Musicale February 2010 Issue Details



[Version franaise]



The Music Scene Winter 2010

Hello!

On behalf of La Scena Musicales dedicated staff and volunteers, I want to wish you a Happy 2010. We began the New Year with a new blog Todays Classical Music Video as part of our 2010 digital strategy, which presents a music video pick each day.

Unfortunately, the year has already its share of sad music news. Record producer Pierre Dionne (of XXI Records), a dear friend to LSM and the Canadian classical music community, lost his battle with cancer last week. See below for funeral details.

In February, La Scena Musicale shines the spotlight on the young and budding musician.
  • Gracing our cover are pianist Wonny Song and violinist Alexandre da Costa, who both started their musical careers as young teens and serve as role models for other young musicians.
  • The monthly Discovery CD (in collaboration with XXI Records) will feature a double program by both Song (Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition) and da Costa (Vivaldi's Four Seasons).
  • This months focus on primary, secondary, and private music education includes our annual guide to schools plus related calendars, tips and articles, including conversations with top music educators, musicological scientists, professional adult and young performers.
  • Interview with 14 year old piano prodigy Jan Lisiecki.
  • Readers will also learn more about Yannick Nzet-Sguin and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestras first ever North American tour which begins in February,
  • Montreal news such as the upcoming MusiMars Festival and the McGill Chamber Orchestra, which celebrates an important anniversary in 2010.
  • La Scena Musicale sits down with Prix dArts-Affaires winner Maurice Forget, Apro lOpra of the Opra de Montral winner Annie Sanschagrin and soprano Danielle de Niese.
  • Aria of the Month: The heart wrenching "Vissi d'arte" from Puccini's Tosca
All this and more from the worlds of Classical, Jazz, and World music including our indispensable monthly reviews and concert previews and calendars.

The deadline for advertising in the February 2010 issue is January 25 with artwork due on January 26.


January Sale - Why not consider a subscription?

Until January 31, 2010, new subscribers will get $10 off an LSM subscription if they subscribe online. This savings is equivalent to receiving 4 free issues, and the subscription include benefits such as the Naxos Music Library and free MP3 downloads of the Discovery CD Collection (10 full CDs). Note: New for 2010, only paying subscribers will receive the physical Discovery CD.
For non-Canadian readers, we recommend the new environment-friendly La SCENA Green Card for only $25/year. See below for more details.

Fundraising

Finally, we are launching our Endowment Fund Campaign: For every dollar we raise, the Quebec government Placement Culture program will match it with $1.50. Our goal is to raise $100,000 to create a $250,000 endowment fund that will ensure the continued excellence and longevity of our magazines. Please donate or join our fundraising committee. See below. For Montreal readers, we are also raising funds by selling tickets to the Montreal Operas production of Tosca for February 11, 2010 (Tickets: $46 to $99).

All the best for 2010.

Yours sincerely,

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


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Upcoming Issues:

La Scena Musicale February 2010
  • On the Cover: Wonny Song and Alexander Da Costa
  • Theme: Music Education
  • Distribution: January 29
  • Deadline for ad reservations: January 25
  • Deadline for artwork: January 26
  • Total 25,000 copies, 50,000 readers
  • Montreal: 18,500
  • Quebec City: 2,500
  • Newsstands: 2,000
  • Mailing: 2,000
  • Target Readership: professional and amateur artists, music and art lovers
  • Contact : 514-948-0509 or sales@scena.org
  • Media Kit: http://ads.scena.org/
Upcoming: La Scena Musicale March 2010 Issue

Theme: Summer Camps

The Music Scene: Spring 2010

50,000 readers
Theme: Summer Camps

English Canada

circulation: 25,000 copies
  • Toronto : 15,000 
  • Ottawa : 5000
  • English Canada (Schools): 3,000
  • Mailing: 2,000
Distribution date: March 15
Advertising deadline: March 5
Materials deadline: March 8

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Funeral for Pierre Dionne
Date: Saturday, January 23, 2010
Place: Trois-Rivires
The family will receive friends and colleagues of Peter Rousseau Funeral Center, 445 rue des Volontaires (just opposite the Cathedral), Saturday, January 23 at 10:00. The funeral will follow at 13:30 at the Cathedral of Trois-Rivieres, 362 rue Bonaventure.
Contact: Olivier Godin, oligodin@yahoo.com

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JANUARY Subscription Sale

January Subscription Sale - Why not consider a subscription?
Until January 31, 2010, new subscribers will get $10 off an LSM subscription if they subscribe online. This savings is equivalent to receiving 4 free issues, and the subscription include benefits such as the Naxos Music Library (39,000 CDs streaming) and free MP3 downloads of the Discovery CD Collection (10 full CDs). Note: New for 2010, only paying subscribers will receive the physical Discovery CD.
http://www.scena.org/LaSCENACard/index_en.html

Already receive the magazine? 
We recommend the new environment-friendly La SCENA Green Card for only $25/year. Also ideal for non-Canadian readers.


NEW: The La SCENA Green Card

All available online
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Next LSM Benefit Activity

Montral, Thursday, February 11, 2010 at 8 p.m.
Opra de Montral
Tosca by Puccini
Tickets: $99, $71, $46
10% discount for La Scena Musicale subscribers / La SCENA Card members
Note: other dates available upon request.

Reservations
* 514-656-3947, sub@scena.org

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NEW Endowment Fund: 
Our application for the matching program, Placement Culture, has formally been accepted: for every dollar donated to LSM/TMS, the Qubec government will contribute one dollar and fifty cents. Placement Culture is designed to create endowment funds for charitable arts groups like La Scene Musicale/The Music Scene. Our goal is to raise $100,000 until November 30, 2010, which combined with the government contribution, will create a $250,000 endowment. This will help us continue our magazines's excellence and innovation for years to come. We are therefore launching at this time our 2010 endowment fund campaign. Please join our fundraising committee or make a donation.

Please contact 514-948-2520 or info@lascena.org
_____________________________________________________________________________________


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 or through Paypal
  


Charitable tax no. 14199 6579 RR0001

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Labels:

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Ross Reynolds, former Universal Music Canada President/Chairman, honoured with 2010 Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award

Founding Director of CARAS to receive the prestigious award at
the 39th Annual JUNO Awards in St. John's, NL


St. John's, NL (January 13, 2010) - The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) is very pleased to be honouring one of its own today as it announces Ross Reynolds as the 2010 Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award recipient. For more than four decades, Reynolds has been a major player in the music industry, notably as a founding board member of CARAS and long-time Universal Music Canada President and Chairman.

"On behalf of the CARAS board, we are so proud to see our friend and colleague honoured in this capacity and recognized for his tremendous contributions to the Canadian music industry," said Melanie Berry, President & CEO of CARAS. "Not only has he been instrumental in helping to steer CARAS to where it is today, Ross Reynolds has wholeheartedly dedicated his career toward fostering Canadian talent on a variety of levels."
"Receiving this award is the result of me having the extraordinary good fortune of timing and being supported by wonderful people, particularly my wife, Jane," said Ross Reynolds. "Nevertheless I'm thrilled to be honoured. It's an exciting ride."

Reynolds is a respected music industry veteran who once held the position of President at GRT Records for 10 years (from the label's inception in 1969), where he signed such Canadian artists as Dan Hill, Dr. Music, Ian Thomas, Lighthouse and Moe Koffman. His resume also includes five years as Executive VP in Canada for WEA (now Warner Music Canada).

He is perhaps best known for his long and outstanding tenure as President then Chairman of Universal Music Canada (formerly MCA) for nearly two decades from 1983 to 2001, during which he oversaw the development of a Canadian roster that included soon-to-be global stars such as The Tragically Hip. Under his leadership, Universal Music Canada experienced exponential growth to achieve a market share of approximately one-third. Today it is still considered one of Canada's most influential music companies. In 2001, Reynolds moved to the position of Chairman Emeritus where he was responsible for administering Universal's multi-million dollar commitment to the support of Canadian culture, which came as a result of the Universal/Polygram merger.

Reynolds' involvement with CARAS dates back to 1975, initially as one of the organization's founding directors. Years later in 2001, he was elected by his peers to the full-time position of Chairman, and immediately made an impact by expanding the focus of the JUNO Awards and setting out to create a brand that Canadians from coast to coast could be proud of. He was instrumental in taking Canada's Music Awards show "on the road" for the first time to St. John's, NL, in addition to growing the singular celebration into a full weekend of events that showcases the successes of Canadian music. In 2006, Stephen Stohn succeeded Reynolds as Chairman of CARAS.

His experience and expertise in the music industry has him currently acting as an advisory board member for the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame; MusiCounts, Canada's music education charity associated with CARAS; in addition to serving on the board of St. Lazarus Hospice. Reynolds is also a past Chairman of the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) and has served on the boards of the Starlight Children's Foundation, Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall, The Audio Visual Preservation Trust Fund, and Canada's Walk of Fame.

For more information about the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award, or to download photos of Ross Reynolds, go to www.junoawards.ca.

JUNO Week takes place April 12-18, 2010, in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, culminating in the live broadcast of THE 2010 JUNO AWARDS, Sunday, April 18, on CTV.

Sponsors of the 2010 JUNO Awards include FACTOR, Canada's Private Radio Broadcasters and the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage's "Canada Music Fund," with commitments from The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the City of St. John's and Radio Starmaker Fund.

Sponsors of THE 2010 JUNO AWARDS broadcast on CTV include Chevrolet, Garnier, Pepsi and Rogers.

Web Links:
Official JUNO Awards website: www.junoawards.ca
CTV's JUNO Awards website: www.junos.ctv.ca
St. John's Host Committee: www.ruckusontheedge.com
CARAS website: www.carasonline.ca
CTV website: www.ctv.ca

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The JUNO Awards come full circle making a much anticipated return to St. John's, NL

JUNO Week excitement builds in the city that first hosted the Awards' cross-country road trip in 2002

ST. JOHN'S, Jan. 13 /CNW/ - It's been eight years, eight Canadian cities, and one remarkable journey for the JUNO Awards since the landmark decision was made to take the annual show on the road across Canada. Now the JUNO Awards come full circle! Canada's greatest music celebration returns to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador - site of the unforgettable first leg of the cross-country road trip - for the 39th Annual JUNO Awards.

Today at a media conference held in St. John's, The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) announced the official dates, venues and ticketing details for JUNO Week Events converging on the city April 12 - 18. JUNO Week culminates with THE 2010 JUNO AWARDS broadcast from Mile One Centre, Sunday, April 18 on CTV.

Tickets for THE 2010 JUNO AWARDS broadcast go on sale Saturday, March 6 at 12pm NDT. Tickets are $189 plus HST and surcharges and can be purchased at the Mile One Centre Box Office; by phoning (709) 576-7657, (toll free) at 1-800-361-4595 or online at www.admission.com.

For the full release and more information on JUNO Week and the 2010 JUNO Awards, visit www.junoawards.ca.

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Major Changes Announced by Russian Ministry of Culture for XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2011

MOSCOW, RUSSIAMaestro Valery Gergiev, the recently appointed Chairman of the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition by the Russian Minister of Culture, Alexander Avdeev, accepted the position with a mission to elevate the competition to the level of prestige it enjoyed in past decades. The event, to be held June 14July 2, 2011, will be bound by a new set of rules, regulations and a voting system designed to assure fairness, openness and transparency. To maintain the highest standards of integrity, Maestro Gergiev, the Artistic and General Director of the Mariinsky Theatre and Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, is assembling four juries composed of performers of world-renowned stature.

 From the beginning, the Tchaikovsky Competition inspired me with awe, when, as a child, names soon to become legendaryVan Cliburn, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Grigory Sokolovwere blossoming on the Moscow stage.  The competitions also served as a gathering of a spectacular array of the greatest musicians of their dayDmitri Shostakovitch, Emil Gilels, Sviatoslav Richter, Aram Khachaturian.  Today we are inviting my colleagues, the worlds most celebrated performing artists, to join together in helping us discover a new generation of brilliant young talents.  We will all do our very best to ensure that the XIV Competition serve as a milestone in the illustrious history of this great event, Gergiev said.

The new Organizing Committee under Maestro Gergiev consists of such influential individuals as co-chairpersons Avdeev and Liudmila Shvetsova, the First Deputy of the Mayor of Moscow;  Yuri Laptev, Councilor of the President of Russia; Sergey Khudiakov, Head of the Cultural Department of Moscow; Konstantin Ernst, General Manager of the  First TV Channel; Rodion Schedrin, composer; Denis Matsuev, pianist and member of the Presidents Cultural Council and Alexei Shalashov, Head of the Ministrys Department of Contemporary Art and International Cultural Relations. Also appointed as Senior Advisor to the Organizing Committee and Chairman of the Working Committee is Richard Rodzinski, President Emeritus of the Van Cliburn Foundation.

Many of the recently approved rules and conditions are designed to conform to those adopted by the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.  There is no more important attribute a competition may enjoy than a reputation for being crystal-clean, said Rodzinski. The Tchaikovsky Competition, one of Russias great cultural icons, deserves to be restored to a position of international prominence and recognition.

For the first time in its history, and in keeping with practices encouraged by the World Federation of International Music Competitions, the Tchaikovsky Competition will organize prestigious concert engagements for its laureates both in Russia and abroad. Maestro Gergiev has announced that he plans to engage the winners to perform with the Mariinsky Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra. 

Russians can look forward to Cliburns return to Moscow as an Honorary Chairman, and to a host of other internationally acclaimed musicians selected by Maestro Gergiev for the jury.  Cliburn said of this distinction:

When the Minister of Culture, Alexander Avdeev, graciously invited me to serve as honorary chairman of the piano division of the Fourteenth International Tchaikovsky Competition, I was very touched and I am deeply honoured to accept. The great Valery Gergiev, my friend and chairman of the competition, and his distinguished colleagues of the Organizing Committee are blending their talents, wisdom, inspiration and commitment to one of the crown jewels of Russia's cultural crown: the world famous Tchaikovsky International Competition for Piano, Violin, Cello and Voice. The enormous wealth of Tchaikovskys immortal masterpieces written for each of those instruments will again be heard in their glory by young musicians from all over the world, beginning in June 2011 in the beautiful city of Moscow. This competition is not only a fitting memorial to the world beloved Tchaikovsky but also a tribute to the exalted position in which classical music is held in the hearts and minds of the great Russian people.

The Competition unveiled its preliminary website (www.tchaikovsky-competition.com), which includes the application form, repertoire requirements, rules and general information. The appearance of the International Tchaikovsky Competition, unchanged since 1958, will be newly designed by internationally recognized graphic design firm Chermayeff & Geismar in New York.  They are especially noted for creating symbols and logotypes for hundreds of companies, including Mobil Corp., Chase Manhattan Bank and National Geographic. Also for the first time in its history, the Tchaikovsky Competition is undertaking a major international public relations and advertising campaign to support its new initiatives.

The deadline for all applications and submission of a DVD of a 50-minute recital will be December 1, 2010. An international screening jury will review all materials and propose to select 30 pianists, 25 violinists, 25 cellists, and 20 male and 20 female singers. The names of the selected musicians will be announced in March. The competition will consist of three rounds of live performances, all of which will be open to the public. Among new features of the competition will be a classical concerto to be performed by the instrumentalists during the semifinal round.

Cash prizes will be awarded to the top five competitors in each discipline of piano, violin, cello, and to each of the top four competitors in the mens and womens solo vocal categories. First prize (always to be awarded) is 20,000 Euro; second, 15,000 Euro; third, 10,000 Euro; fourth, 5,000 Euro; and fifth, 3,000 Euro. An additional prize, a Grand Prix of 10,000 Euro, may be awarded to one of the gold medalists deemed outstanding by the juries. Additional awards will be given for best performance of the chamber concertos and the commissioned new work.

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Isaac Albniz's lyric comedy The Magic Opal

The Orquesta Sinfnica de Chamartn conducted by Silvia Sanz will present a concert version with full orchestra, soloists and chorus of Isaac Albniz's lyric comedy The Magic Opal (new critical edition by Borja Mario) on February 27, 2010 at 10:30 PM. The performance will take place at the Symphonic Hall of the Auditorio Nacional, located at Principe Vergara, 146 in Madrid (Spain). Tickets are available via Serviticket + 34 902 33 22 11. For more information go to www.oschamartin.org.

The Magic Opal is the last of the stage works of Albniz to be brought to life since its original premiere 1893. This lyric comedy shows Albeniz's innate talent to compose in the style of Gilbert and Sullivan, causing George Bernard Shaw to say in a review of the work that the composer was well ahead of his competitors. A fantasy tale that takes place in Greece with pirates and magic stones, Albeniz is at home in the lyric comedy theatre, lending the work with his own Spanish aesthetic touch and flourish. The date of the premire on February 27, 2010 marks precisely to the day the 117th anniversary of the London last performance of this work.


The Orquesta Sinfnica Chamartin and Chorus
Silvia Sanz, Director
Javier Franco (Carambollas)
Estefana Perdomo (Lolika)
Jos Ferrero (Alzaga)
Csar San Martn (Trabucos)

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Venez Voir Divines paroles mettant en vedette les finissants 2010 du Conservatoire dart dramatique de Montral, du 22 au 30 janvier

Montral, le 11 janvier 2010 Les lves finissants du Conservatoire dart dramatique de Montral prsentent, du 22 au 30 janvier 2010, Divines paroles de Ramn del Valle Incln, dans une traduction, une adaptation et une mise en scne de Philippe Soldevila, au Thtre Rouge situ au 4750, avenue Henri-Julien Montral.

VENEZ VOIR Divines paroles qui prend vie dans lEspagne profonde du dbut du XXe sicle. Juana la Reina trane son fils, un nain hydrocphale, de foire en foire depuis des annes. Lattraction quil suscite lui permet de gagner son pain et de subsister dans un monde misreux. Mais voil quelle meurt subitement, laissant son nain orphelin. Flairant la bonne affaire, tout le village est intress par la garde du prcieux hritage.

Interprte par les finissants 2009-2010, avec une scnographie signe Katia Talbot, des costumes dessins par rica Schmitz, des clairages de Claude Accolas et une musique compose et interprte par Alexis Raynault, Divines paroles sera joue 19 h 30 (relche les 24 et 25 janvier) et le samedi 30 janvier 15 h et 19 h 30.

Lauteur espagnol Ramn del Valle Incln est n le 28 octobre 1866 en Galicie. Le pays de son enfance laissera une empreinte profonde sur son uvre avec ses traditions, ses superstitions, ses sortilges moyengeux et son dialecte propre. Ses extravagances ne tardent pas lui valoir une certaine clbrit. Il porte une longue barbe, les cheveux longs jusquaux paules et un lorgnon. Son insolence et sa verve font de lui une des figures les plus minentes et les plus pittoresques de la bohme littraire espagnole de la gnration 98 . Il crit, entre autres, sa trilogie Comdias brbaras (Comdies barbares) qui voque les paysages et les passions froces de lme galicienne. Il publie en 1920, Divinas palabras (Divines paroles), sa tragicomdie de village considre demble comme un chef-duvre. Il meurt le 5 janvier 1936.

Les billets au cot de 5 $ sont disponibles la billetterie du Conservatoire (514 873-4283, poste 313), du mardi au vendredi, entre 13 h 30 et 17 h 30, ou une heure avant les reprsentations ainsi que sur le rseau Admission : www.admission.com (514 790-1245).

Vous pouvez voir un court extrait de Divines Paroles en rptition, dans le site web du Conservatoire : www.conservatoire.gouv.qc.ca.

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Music with Bite returns to Harbourfront Centre Feb. 14

FREE family concert features trombone quintet I Tromboni

TORONTO, ON (Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2010) Harbourfront Centre is thrilled to present the next installment of Music with Bite, our interactive and intimate FREE concert series designed especially for kids ages five to 12.

Satisfy your ears and your taste buds! Music with Bite is a refreshing experience where children can pull up a comfy cushion and sit in front of the stage for an enjoyable, interactive music performance tailored to young audience members. This is a fantastic opportunity to sample music of diverse styles in a friendly, accessible format. All of the artists performing bring an element of interactivity, education and entertainment to their programmes. After the concerts, children can enjoy a complimentary Natrel milk beverage and cookie. In partnership with Jeunesses Musicales Ontario.

Upcoming Music with Bite concerts include trombone quintet I Tromboni on Feb. 14, cabaret performer Patricia OCallaghan on April 18, and erhu master George Gao on May 23. Performances take place Sundays at 1 p.m. at Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay West.

For additional information and complete event listings, the public may visit harbourfrontcentre.com or call the Information Hotline at 416-973-4000.

UPCOMING 2010 MUSIC WITH BITE CONCERTS AT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE

I Tromboni
Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010 1 p.m. (Enwave Theatre)

Kids can discover the magic of the trombone on a voyage that strays off the beaten path. I Tromboni is compiled of five young trombonists who are ready to entertain and enlighten you! Since forming in 1999, they have worked to break down the myths & stereotypes that have kept trombones in the back row of the band for too long! Nicknamed Team Canada of Trombones, this dynamic Vancouver-based quintet incorporates music of many genres including jazz, romantic, popular and original compositions. I Tromboni entertains, educates and brings great music-making to kids of all ages. For more information visit itromboni.com.

Patricia OCallaghan
Sunday, April 18 1 p.m.  (Brigantine Room)
The whole family can enjoy a vocal performance by the most promising cabaret performer of her generation, Canadas own Patricia OCallaghan. OCallaghan has performed her European cabaret show around Europe and North America. She has also toured the Juno Award-winning opera Constantinople. OCallaghan is no stranger to the camera; she appeared in CBCs Youkai Hotel and the acclaimed series, Foolish Heart. For more information visit patricia-ocallaghan.com.


George Gao
Sunday, May 23 1 p.m.  (Brigantine Room)
PART OF HARBOURKIDS WEEKEND!
Hailed as one of the most exciting, innovative and respected erhu masters today, the Gemini Award-nominated erhu master George Gao performs at Music with Bite as part of an exciting HarbourKIDS weekend festival. Gao has performed with multiple orchestras around the world including the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Billions of people around the world have watched him on CCTV, China's most watched TV station. Gao fuses traditional Chinese music with jazz, Western Classical music, New Age and other ethnic music from different world cultures. For more information visit  georgegao.com.


HarbourKIDS Club Membership
Sign up to be a HarbourKIDS Club Member and receive your very own Splooshy tattoo! Pick up a copy of our Kids Guide to Harbourfront Centre and explore our site on an interactive discovery walk! If you want, well send you periodic emails to let you know what fun family events are coming up at Harbourfront!
 

ABOUT JEUNESSES MUSICALES ONTARIO
Jeunesses Musicales Ontario is a non-profit arts organization that fosters the careers of outstanding young professional musicians at home and abroad. JMO promotes the development of the arts in Ontario by bringing fine classical music to audiences of all ages. As young artists gain valuable experience and exposure, students, families and the general public enjoy high-quality, affordable, accessible musical entertainment. For more information visit jmontario.ca.

ABOUT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE
Harbourfront Centre is an innovative, non-profit cultural organization which provides internationally renowned programming in the arts, culture, education and recreation, all within a collection of distinctive venues on a 10-acre site in the heart of Toronto's downtown waterfront.

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George F. Walker's And So it Goes World Premiere at Factory Theatre

Toronto, ON Tuesday, January 12, 2010 The World Premiere of AND SO IT GOES, written and directed by George F. Walker, continues Artistic Director Ken Gass Factory Theatre 40th Anniversary Season in 2010. Walker has had 23 shows produced at Factory, including three revivals, but this is his first new play in a decade.  AND SO IT GOES plays January 30 February 28, 2010 in the Mainspace Theatre.

Walker has been a huge part of Factorys history, and his plays have resonated in a big way with audiences, says Gass, So that when George called to say that he had written a new play, I pretty much leapt at the opportunity. AND SO IT GOES is quite different stylistically from the East End plays that Walkers audiences are most familiar with, but the intensely obsessed characters, troubled social landscapes and signature Walker humour are ever present.  This is very much a play for our times.

AND SO IT GOES is about Ned and Gwen, middle-class victims of the recession grappling with the fallout of their daughters schizophrenia and Neds downsizing. Pushed to the edge during their downwardly mobile spiral, perhaps the unorthodox therapy of a quirky literary legend may keep them from going all the way over.  Starring Martha Burns (Stratford, Shaw, NAC, Tarragon) as Gwen; Peter Donaldson (Soulpepper, Stratford) as Ned; Jenny Young (Factory, Shaw, Royal Shakespeare Co.) as Karen, their 25-year old daughter; and Jerry Franken (Factory, Tarragon) as Vonnegut. 


The creative team assembled by Walker includes Set & Costume Designer Shawn Kerwin, Lighting Designer Rebecca Picherack and Sound Designer John Roby. The Stage Manager is Joanna Barrotta and the Apprentice Stage Manager is Heather Thompson. Assistant Director Courtney Walker will be making blog entries throughout the rehearsal process to provide behind-the-scenes comments about the creation of this show at http://factorytheatre-andsoitgoes.blogspot.com/.

George F. Walker is one of Canada's most prolific and widely-produced playwrights. He has received nine Chalmers Awards, five Dora Awards, and three Governor Generals Awards. He is also the recipient of the Order of Canada. His plays have met with critical and popular success in hundreds of productions worldwide and have been translated extensively. In 1997, Suburban Motel--six plays located in the same motel room--premiered in Canada under Walker's direction at Factory Theatre. Since then, individual plays from the series have had numerous productions throughout the USA, the UK and Germany. Walkers last play was Heaven (January 2000 at Canadian Stage Company). In addition to his playwriting, Walker has written extensively for television, co-creating three major series: CBCs This is Wonderland, the Movie Networks The Line, and the recently-filmed Living in Your Car. Other screen work includes the feature film Niagara Motel, based on three of the plays from his Suburban Motel cycle, CBS's Due South and CBCs Newsroom.


AND SO IT GOES is 75 minutes long with no intermission. It previews January 30 - 31 and February 2 - 3, opens February 4 and closes February 28, 2010. Shows run Tuesday Saturday, 8 p.m., and on Sunday at 2 p.m. (with the exception of the Sunday, January 31, preview show at 7 p.m.) in the Factory Mainspace Theatre. 

Single tickets run $15 - $35 (discounts for previews, seniors, students or theatre artists as well as groups of ten or more) and may be purchased online at www.factorytheatre.ca 24 hours a day, or by calling (416) 504-9971 or by visiting the Factory Theatre Box Office in person Tuesday through Saturday, 1 p.m. - 7 p.m., at 125 Bathurst Street (at Adelaide Street), Toronto. In addition, 3play subscriptions, Pay-What-You-Can Sunday and a limited number of $10 RUSH tickets (Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday) are also available.

Factorys 2009/2010 season continues with the World Premiere of ahdri zhina mandielas who knew grannie: a dub aria (March 13 April 4) produced by Obsidian Theatre Company in association with Factory Theatre, and Walkers Featuring Loretta (May 1 June 6).  Where the Blood Mixes, by Kevin Loring, winner of the 2009 Governor Generals Literary Award for Drama, plays April 7 18, headlining Factorys annual Performance Spring/CrossCurrents Festival, April 6 25. See www.factorytheatre.ca.

Listings Information:

SHOW The World Premiere of And So It Goes by playwright/director George F. Walker is about Ned and Gwen, middle-class victims of the recession grappling with the fallout of their daughters schizophrenia and Neds downsizing. Pushed to the edge during their downwardly mobile spiral, perhaps the unorthodox therapy of a quirky literary legend may keep them from going all the way over.  Starring Martha Burns, Peter Donaldson, Jerry Franken and Jenny Young; LENGTH 75 minutes - no intermission; DATES January 30 February 28, 2010; TIMES Tuesday Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 p.m. (exception is Sunday, January 31, 7 p.m.); TICKET PRICES $15 previews (January 30 31 & February 2 3); $25 Tuesday Thursday; $35 Friday Saturday; P-W-Y-C Sunday or $25 in advance; $10 limited RUSH Tickets Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday (7 p.m. lineup and 7:50 p.m. purchase); VENUE Factory Theatre Mainspace, 125 Bathurst Street (Adelaide Street Doors); BOX OFFICE (416) 504 9971; WEB PAGE www.factorytheatre.ca.

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Friday, January 15, 2010

Pierre Boulez leads The Cleveland Orchestra in all-French program featuring music by Debussy, Messiaen, and Ravel at Severance Hall on February 4, 6, and 7






Pierre Boulez 


Concerts are part of international celebrations of Boulezs 85th birthday
   
Pierre-Laurent Aimard is soloist in Ravels Piano Concerto  in G major and Concerto for the Left Hand


CLEVELAND, January 12, 2010 In the first week of Cleveland concerts marking the 85th birthday year and the 45th anniversary year of Pierre Boulezs American professional orchestra debut with The Cleveland Orchestra, the conductor/composer will lead the Orchestra in a program of French music including Debussys Ibria from Images and Messiaens LAscension at Severance Hall on Thursday, February 4, at 8 p.m., Saturday, February 6, at 8:00 p.m., and Sunday, February 7, at 3:00 p.m.  Mr. Boulez will also conduct the Orchestra in concerts on February 11, 12, and 13, featuring music by Mahler.  (A separate concert announcement will follow.) 
The program for February 4, 6, and 7 begins with Olivier Messiaens LAscension (Four Symphonic Meditations). Next is Maurice Ravels Piano Concerto in G major.  After intermission, the program continues with Ravels Piano Concerto in D major for the Left Hand.  The program concludes with Claude Debussys Ibria from Images.
Mr. Boulez, who from 1970-72 served as musical advisor of The Cleveland Orchestra, turns 85 on March 26.   He has been a regular and favorite guest conductor of the Orchestra, leading more than 200 concerts. Among his many recordings with the Orchestra, five have won Grammy Awards, including the 1969 award in the Best Classical Performance, Orchestra category, for their album including Debussys Images.
When Pierre Boulez turned 80, the Chicago Sun-Times wrote, Ķ how many enfants terribles of the music world have lived to see their work, their contributions as composers, conductors and advocates celebrated around the world as they mark their 80th birthdays? The category is unique, and the sole designate is Pierre Boulez.  
  Pierre-Laurent Aimard will be soloist in both of the Ravel piano concertos, which will be recorded live for future release on the Deutsche Gramophone label.  Mr. Boulez and Mr. Aimard have worked together as colleagues over many years, since Pierre Boulez appointed Mr. Aimard (then age 19) as the first solo pianist of the Ensemble InterContemporain the Paris-based contemporary music ensemble Mr. Boulez founded in 1976.


GUEST ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES
            French composer and conductor Pierre Boulez is regarded as one of the worlds most distinguished musicians.  His 2009 Kyoto Prize affirms the importance of his compositions and activities as author, teacher, and advocate of contemporary music. 
Mr. Boulez made his American professional orchestra debut with The Cleveland Orchestra in March 1965.  In 1969, he became the Orchestras first principal guest conductor.  Following the death of Music Director George Szell in July 1970, he served as musical advisor through the 1971-72 season.  Since then, he has been a frequent guest conductor with the Orchestra, most recently in February 2008. 
Pierre Boulez was born in 1925 in Montbrison, France.  After initial training in mathematics, he studied piano, composition, and choral conducting at the Paris Conservatory, where his teachers included Olivier Messiaen and Ren Leibowitz.  In 1953, Mr. Boulez founded a modern music concert series that later became the Domaine Musical.  Throughout the next decade, he taught at Basel University and in Darmstadt, and was a visiting professor at Harvard University.  He later joined the faculty at the Collge de France.
In 1971, Pierre Boulez became music director of both the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic; he held the posts until 1975 and 1977, respectively.  In 1974, French President Georges Pompidou invited Mr. Boulez to establish and direct a music research center the Institut de Recherche et de Coordination Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM).  He also founded the Ensemble InterContemporain, and now holds honorary positions with both organizations.
Pierre Boulez has fostered close relationships with the worlds major orchestras and opera companies.  His conducting highlights include the inaugural concert of the Cit de la musique in Paris; a four-orchestra festival of his compositions in Tokyo; tours with the London Symphony Orchestra celebrating his 70th, 75th, and 80th birthdays; and new productions of Bartks Bluebeards Castle, Schoenbergs Moses and Aron, and Wagners Parsifal.  More recently, Mr. Boulez has led Janeks From the House of the Dead in Aix-en-Provence, Amsterdam, and Vienna; served as composer-in-residence at Salzburgs Mozartwoche; and conducted Mahlers complete symphonies at Carnegie Hall.
            An exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist since 1992, Pierre Boulez has focused his discography on 20th-century works.  His recordings have garnered Gramophone, Echo, and Deutscher Schallplatten awards and more than 25 Grammys.  Mr. Boulez also has received the Glenn Gould Prize and Wolf Prize, numerous honorary doctorates, and many other awards.


            French pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard is acclaimed as a key figure in both the music of our time and the standard piano repertoire.  He made his Cleveland Orchestra debut in February 1996.  Mr. Aimard appeared with the Orchestra at the Lucerne Festival in August 2008, in the world premiere of George Benjamins Duet for piano and orchestra, and in subsequent performances of the work at Severance Hall in September 2008 and at Carnegie Hall in February 2009.  He served as artist-in-residence with the Orchestra for the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons.
          Born in Lyon, France, in 1957, Pierre-Laurent Aimard studied at the Paris Conservatory with Yvonne Loriod, and in London with Maria Curcio.  He received first prize in the 1973 Messiaen Competition and was appointed at age 19 by Pierre Boulez as the Ensemble InterContemporains first solo pianist.  For nearly 20 years, Mr. Aimard collaborated with Gyrgy Ligeti, and he has recorded Ligetis complete works.  Pierre-Laurent Aimard received the Royal Philharmonic Societys Instrumentalist Award in 2005 and 2006, and was named Musical Americas Instrumentalist of the Year in 2007. 
Mr. Aimard performs with the worlds leading orchestras and conductors.  He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2001 and maintains a regular relationship there, as well as with the Berlin Philharmonic, Konzerthaus Vienna, Lucerne Festival, Mozarteum Salzburg, Philharmonie Cologne, and the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels.  His teaching activities include professorships in Paris and Cologne, as well as concert lectures and workshops worldwide.  Mr. Aimard served as inaugural artist-in-residence at the Salle de Concerts Grande-Duchesse Josephine-Charlotte in Luxembourg in 2005 to 2006, became an artistic partner with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra in 2006, and in 2008 was artistic director of the Southbank Centres Messiaen centenary festival in London.  In 2009, he became artistic director of the Aldeburgh Festival in England.    
           Pierre-Laurent Aimard has an extensive discography with Sony Classical and Teldec, and now records exclusively for Deutsche Grammophon.  His first DG release, Bachs Art of the Fugue, won the Diapason dOr award and the prize for the Choc du Monde de la Musique.  Mr. Aimard also has received two ECHO Classic Awards:  in 2003 for his recording of the complete Beethoven Piano Concertos, and in 2004 for Debussys Images and Etudes.  His recording of Ivess Concord Sonata and Songs with Susan Graham garnered a 2005 Grammy Award.  Mr. Aimards recent releases include solo works by Carter, Messiaen, and Ravel, and the Mozart piano concertos, which he conducted from the keyboard.

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Celebrated Australian trio Splintergroup showcase incredible physicality and inspired storytelling harvested from myths and paranoia of the outback

TORONTO, ON (Jan. 12, 2010) Harbourfront Centres World Stage 2009-10 performing arts series resumes this winter with the celebrated Brisbane-based company Splintergroup and the intense contemporary dance-theatre piece roadkill. This edge-of-your-seat show runs four performances only, Feb. 3 6, at Harbourfront Centres Enwave Theatre.

Choreographed by Gavin Webber, Grayson Millwood and Sarah-Jayne Howard, the trio of collaborators who currently comprise Splintergroup, roadkill is set in Australias legendary and treacherous outback. A couple are stranded with a car that wont start next to a phone booth that doesnt work with a mobile phone out of range. The vast and unforgiving outback offers them little salvation, until a stranger comes along who seems all too eager to help. Splintergroup brings exceptional physicality to the stage in this work that explores dark and terrifying themes.

With a cinematic feel, roadkill surveys both the hyper-realized folklore of the outback and the realities of being stranded in its almost limitless emptiness. Drawing on similar themes from news headlines such as the recent and infamous Falconio case wherein an Australian man was convicted of murder and assault on a couple travelling through the outback and the horror film genre, such as the 2005 film Wolf Creek, roadkill is a gripping foray into the psychology of isolation in the midst of imminent danger.

Splintergroup boast unorthodox movement and an arsenal of wildly inventive choreography, notably demonstrated with the use of the couples car a red Toyota which sits centre stage throughout the show as the site of many dazzling and innovative performance feats. The much heralded sound design of Luke Smiles sinister soundtrack adds to the unnerving drama, and the clever lighting design from Mark Howett creates a spine-chilling environment where the audience never knows what lies beyond the dark edges of the stage.

*Media images and resources: http://media.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldstage/

New for World Stage 2009-10: Visit harbourfrontcentre.com/worldstage to learn about Harbourfront Centres commitment to developing artists and audiences through World Stage initiatives and programmes, such as special events, artist talks and more.

roadkill
Choreographed by Splintergroup

Produced by Brisbane Powerhouse and Dancenorth
Feb. 3 6, 8 p.m. Enwave Theatre, 231 Queens Quay West, Toronto
Tickets: $30

Creative Team Choreographers: Gavin Webber, Grayson Millwood & Sarah-Jayne Howard
Performers: Gavin Webber, Grayson Millwood & Gabrielle Nankivell
Dramaturg: Andrew Ross
Sound Design: Luke Smiles / motion laboratories
Lighting Designer: Mark Howett
Rehearsal Director: Michelle Ryan
Stage Manager: Melanie Dyer
Production Manager: Liam Kennedy

Complete information about performance times, single tickets, packages and the Performance Card ($15 tickets for arts workers and students, Tues. Thurs. performances only) is available through the Harbourfront Centre box office by phone at 416-973-4000, or harbourfrontcentre.com/worldstage.

Harbourfront Centres World Stage 2009-10 gratefully acknowledges the support of Department of Canadian Heritage, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council and Westin Harbour Castle, the official hotel of World Stage.

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Kaufman Center and New York Festival of Song Present The Voluptuous Muse



 MASTERS OF ROMANTICISM, FEBRUARY 16 AND 18
AT MERKIN CONCERT HALL

ARTISTS: DINA KUZNETSOVA, KATE LINDSEY, JOSEPH KAISER,
STEVEN BLIER AND MICHAEL BARRETT


On Tuesday and Thursday, February 16 and 18 at 8 PM, Kaufman Center and New York Festival of Song (NYFOS, www.nyfos.org) present The Voluptuous Muse, a celebration of the lush tonality and decadent Romanticism of late 19th- and early 20th- century song. NYFOS will bring its A-list artistry (TimeOut NY) to the music of Richard Strauss, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Alban Berg, Gustav Mahler, and Karol Szymanowski. The concerts will be presented at Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center, 129 West 67th Street (between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue), New York, NY 10023.

Tickets, $40 - $55 with group discounts, are available by calling 212-501-3330, or visiting www.kaufman-center.org. In addition, there are a limited amount ospecial $15 student discounts available by calling New York Festival Of Song at 646-230-8380.

The artists will be tenor Joseph Kaiser, a rising young star of the Metropolitan Opera who just scored a major triumph at the Opra Comique in Paris in the rarely-performed operetta Fortunio; Dina Kuznetsova, the Russian-American soprano who starred as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin opposite Dmitri Hvorostovsky at the Chicago Lyric Opera; mezzo-soprano Kate Lindsey, another fast-emerging Met artist, most recently heard in their new production of The Tales of Hoffmann; NYFOS Artistic Director Steven Blier (A national treasure when it comes to the art of song The New York Times) and Associate Artistic Director Michael Barrett (General Director of the Caramoor Center For Music and the Arts) as pianist/hosts.

NYFOSs next concert at Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center will be The Sweetest Path, on March 16. This program, which celebrates the first great flowering of French art song, is the second annual collaboration between NYFOS and the Caramoor Vocal Rising Stars program. It will also be presented on March 13 in the Music Room at Caramoor. The NYFOS season ends with The Newest Deal (May 4 and 6), a program of recent American works including the premiere of the Harold Meltzer song cycle Beautiful Ohio*, created for and performed by tenor Paul Appleby, and a complete performance of Gabriel Kahanes instant classic, Craigslistlieder.


Program to include:

JOSEPH MARX                                     Marienlied                                                                    
FRANZ SCHREKER                            Sommerfden
NICOLAI MEDTNER                          Elfenlied
ALEXANDER ZEMLINSKY             GeflsterderNacht
                                                                      HeiligeNacht
GUSTAV MAHLER                              Frhlingsmorgen
SERGEI RACHMANINOFF              Kakojeschastje(What wealth of rapture)

From Opus 38
Daisies
Pied Piper
Dreams
                                                                       
NICOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV     Pan
                                                                        Song of Songs
RICHARD STRAUSS                            Liebeshymnus
                                                                          Ich trage meine Minne
                        Nichts 

KAROL SZYMANOWSKI                   selections from Pienimuezinaszalonego
                                                                           (Songs of the Infatuated Muezzin)                        
ALBAN BERG                                        selections from Siebenfrhe Lieder                      
HUGO WOLF                                           Ganymed             
MAHLER                                                    Scheiden und Meiden
                                                                       
(Program subject to change)

Composers

Erich Korngold (1897 1957). Called (with Max Steiner) the father of film music, he created famous movie scores, but also romantic instrumental and vocal classical music, including the opera Die Todt Stadt. His work was praised by such composers as Richard Strauss and Giacomo Puccini.

Gustav Mahler (1860 1911) wrote mainly symphonies and songs, often fusing the two into symphonic lied. He was greatly influenced by Wagner, but his work is also distinguished by the use of folk themes and progressive tonality.

Joseph Marx (1882-1964) was an Austrian composer of opera, symphonies, symphonic poems, choral works, piano concertos, songs, and chamber music, as well as organ and piano music, characterized by modern harmonies and complex polyphony.

Nikolai Medtner (1880 1951) was a Russian composer who wrote a substantial number of instrumental and vocal compositions, all of which include the piano. His work was characterized by an intimate connection with Russian poetry and its images.

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) was the last great representative of Russian late romanticism. His music had a thoroughly personal idiom which included lyricism, expressive breadth, often unique structure and rich, distinctive orchestral colors.

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844 1908) composed operas, symphonies and smaller-scaled works laced with Russian folk and exotic harmonic elements mixed with traditional Western composition. He is considered a main creator of the Russian style of composition, and taught and influenced many prominent 20th-century composers.

Richard Strauss (1864 1949) was one of the most famous late romantic/early modern era composers. Profoundly influenced by Wagner, he created operas (including the Der Rosenkavalier and Salome), lieder and tone poems.

Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937) was born in Russia to a Polish family, and his music drew on Polish folk styles and those of contemporary Russian and French composers. He wrote orchestral and solo instrumental works, as well as songs and choral works in a highly individual rhapsodic style.

Hugo Wolf (1860 1903) created instrumental and vocal works, but was most famous for his hundreds of songs, greatly influenced by Richard Wagner. They are marked by their concentrated intensity, using tonality to express feeling.

Alexander Zemlinsky (18711942), a protge of Johannes Brahms, wrote orchestral works, operas, chamber music, choral works and songs, influenced by his teacher, Wagner, Mahler and others. He also taught, and among his students was Erich Korngold.

BIOS THE ARTISTS

Joseph Kaiser - Over the past year, the young tenor has performed the title role of Faust at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, conducted by Sir Andrew Davis; the title role of Messagers Fortunio at the Opra Comique under the baton of Louis Langre; and the role of Admete in Glucks Alceste at the Aix-en-Provence Festival, also with Mr. Langre.  The artist sings the role of Narraboth in a concert performance of Salome with Valery Gergiev and the Verbier Festival Orchestra, Beethovens Symphony No. 9 with Ivor Bolton and the Wiener Symphoniker at Viennas Konzerthaus, and Stravinskys Pulcinella with Roberto Abbado and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Other recent roles have included Tamino in Die Zauberflte under the baton of James Conlon at the Los Angeles Opera and as Steva Burja in Jenfa at the Bayerische Staatsoper in a new production by Swiss theatre director Barbara Frey, conducted by Kirill Petrenko.  He returned to the Salzburg Festival as Septimius in a new Christoph Loy production of Handels Theodora, conducted by Ivor Bolton, and sang Narraboth in Salome at the Metropolitan Opera, (where he had previously played Romeo to the Juliet of Anna Netrebko) with Patrick Summers conducting (seen internationally on The Met: Live in HD experience).  His dynamic concert schedule has featured performances of the Berlioz Requiem, under Marek Janowski, with the combined forces of the Tonhalle-Orchester Zrich and the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Beethovens Symphony No. 9 with Christoph von Dohnnyi and the Boston Symphony Orchestra; Mendelssohns Elijah with Yannick Nzet-Sguin and the Orchestre Mtropolitain du Grand Montral, and a European concert tour with soprano Annette Dasch and Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrcken Kaiserslautern under the direction of Christoph Poppen. He can be heard with the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson in the NYFOS performance of Spanish Love Songs, accompanied by Steven Blier on Bridge Records.

Dina Kuznetsova - the Moscow-born soprano graduated from The Academic Music College of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire (piano). She received her vocal training at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. In 1999, while attending the Music Academy of the West, California, Dina Kuznetsova sang the title role in Handel's Rodelinda and won the Marilyn Horne Foundation Competition, which granted her a New York debut recital in May 2000. That summer, she gave a duet recital under the auspices of Renata Scotto's Opera Academy in Savona, Italy. Ms. Kuznetsova's international performances in a wide variety of lyric and coloratura repertoire began with Merab in Saul in Brussels, followed by Donna Anna in Don Giovanni and Adina in L'elisir d'amore (Berlin Staatsoper), Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi (London's English National Opera) and the title role in Rodelinda (Munich's Staatsoper). She has brought her Musetta to San Francisco, her Violetta to Costa Mesa (Opera Pacific) and Boston Lyric Opera, and her Gilda to Boston Lyric Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago and Cincinatti. Kuznetsova sang the title role in The Cunning Little Vixen at Lyric Opera of Chicago. She also returned there as Juliette in Romeo et Juliette. Highlights of the past year included a return to the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin opposite Dmitri Hvorostovsky and conducted by Sir Andrew Davis, her Vienna State Opera debut as Gounod's Juliette and her Royal Opera and Covent Garden debut as Lauretta in a new production of Gianni Schicchi.

Kate Lindsey returns this season to the Metropolitan Opera in the role of Nicklausse in Offenbachs Les Contes DHoffmann, and makes her debut at the Bayerische Staatsopera as Cherubino in Mozarts Le Nozze di Figaro. A graduate of the Metropolitan Operas Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, Lindseys roles with the company have also included Cherubino, Wellgunde in Wagners Ring, Stphano in Gounods Romo et Juliette, and Sibel in Gounods Faust. Additional performances include Cherubino at Thatre des Champs-lyses and Boston Lyric Opera, Lazuli in Chabriers toile and Angelina in Rossinis Cenerentola at Wolf Trap Opera. As a Young Artist at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Lindsey sang Mercds in Bizets Carmen, Stphano, and Rosina. She made her debut with Santa Fe Opera as Zerlina in Mozarts Don Giovanni, and returns to the company this summer as Nancy in Brittens Albert Herring and Nicklausse. Concert performances include Ascanius in Berliozs Les Troyens at the Tanglewood Music Festival and Ravels L Enfant et les sortilges with the New York Philharmonic, as well as performances with the Mostly Mozart Festival and the Cleveland Orchestra. She will make her Seattle Opera debut this year in the title role in Daron Aric Hagens Amelia.

Steven Blier
Artistic director Steven Blier co-founded the New York Festival of Song (NYFOS) in 1988 with Michael Barrett. Since the Festivals inception he has programmed, performed, translated and annotated over one hundred vocal recitals with repertoire spanning the entire range of American song, art song from Schubert to Szymanowski, and popular song from early vaudeville to Lennon-McCartney.

Mr. Blier also enjoys an eminent career as an accompanist and vocal coach. His recitals with Rene Fleming, Cecilia Bartoli, Samuel Ramey, Susan Graham, Frederica von Stade, and Jessye Norman, have taken him to the stages of Carnegie Hall, La Scala, and Londons Wigmore Hall. He has premiered works of John Corigliano, Ned Rorem, William Bolcom, John Musto, Paul Moravec, Tobias Picker, Robert Beaser, and Lee Hoiby, many of which were commissioned by NYFOS.

In addition to his many recordings with NYFOS, Mr. Bliers discography includes four volumes of songs by Charles Ives with baritone William Sharp (Albany Records), a Grammy-nominated CD of American songs with Mr. Sharp (New World Records), and first recordings of music by Busoni and Borodin with cellist Dorothy Lawson (Koch International). His two most recent releases are The Land Where the Good Songs Go with Sylvia McNair and Hal Cazalet, and Spanish Love Songs with Joseph Kaiser and the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson (Bridge Records).

Mr. Blier is on the faculty of The Juilliard School, and has been active in encouraging young recitalists at summer programs, including the Wolf Trap Opera Company, Glimmerglass Opera, and the San Francisco Opera Center.

Michael Barrett
NYFOS co-founder and Associate Artistic Director Michael Barrett is Chief Executive and General Director of the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts. In 1992, he co-founded the Moab Music Festival with his wife, violist Leslie Tomkins. From 1994 to 1997, he was the Director of the Tisch Center for the Arts at the 92nd Street Y in New York.

A protg of Leonard Bernstein, Mr. Barrett began his long association with the renowned conductor and composer as a student in 1982. He is currently the Artistic Advisor for the estate of Leonard Bernstein. Mr. Barrett has been a guest conductor with the Orchestra of St. Lukes, the New York Philharmonic, the London Symphony, the Israel Philharmonic and the Orchestre National de France, among others. He also has served variously as conductor, producer, and music director of numerous special projects, including the world premiere of Volpone by John Musto.

Mr. Barretts discography includes: Spanish Love Songs, recorded live at Caramoor with Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Steven Blier, and Joseph Kaiser; Live from the Moab Music Festival; the Grammy-nominated Evidence of Things Not Seen (New World Records); Aaron Kernis: 100 Greatest Dance Hits (New Albion); On the Town (Deutsche Grammophon); Kaballah (Koch Classics) by Stewart Wallace and Michael Korie; Schumann Lieder with Lorraine Hunt and Kurt Ollman (Koch); and Arias and Barcarolles (Koch) by Leonard Bernstein (Grammy Award).

New York Festival of Song was founded in 1988 by Steven Blier and Michael Barrett.  NYFOS is dedicated to creating intimate song concerts of great beauty, humor and originality, combining music, poetry, and history to entertain, educate and create community among audiences and performers. With a far-ranging repertoire of art songs, concert works and theater pieces, its thematic recitals have included programs from Brahms to the Beatles, from the nineteenth-century salons of Paris to Tin Pan Alley, from Russian art song to Argentine tangos, from sixteenth-century lute songs to new music.  NYFOS particularly celebrates American song literature and culture, and specializes in premiering and commissioning new American works.

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Julian Bliss to Tour the United States

Starting in January, Julian Bliss, international clarinet soloist, will begin a tour of the United States, visiting Alabama, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Nevada. While on the road, Julian will present recitals, masterclasses, and clinics at universities and public schools in the South, Midwest, and Nevada. He will also make appearances at the Alabama and Illinois Music Educators Association Conferences. Stop by the Conn-Selmer booth at the Alabama Music Educators Association Conference in Tuscaloosa, Alabama January 20th - 23rd to meet Julian. He will also be at the booth during the Illinois Music Educators Association Conference January 28th - 30th in Peoria Illinois. On January 24th, Julian will present a recital and master class from 3 PM to 5 PM at the Recital Hall at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana. 
 
Julian's tour through the Midwest will continue with appearances at Conn-Selmer dealers, public school districts, and universities in late January. The Band Source in Downer's Grove, Illinois will host a "Meet and Greet" with Julian on January 25th. Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois welcomes Julian on January 27th, where he will present a masterclass from 6 PM to 7 PM for the Department of Music at the Sloane College of Communications and Fine Arts. On January 26th, The Music Shoppe in Bloomington, Illinois will host an in-store event with Julian as well. Julian will visit schools in Elkhart and Mishawaka, Indiana on February 1st, followed by a visit to the Grand Rapids, Michigan area on February 2nd. Several school and dealer visits in the Detroit area are scheduled for February 3rd and 4th. The tour will conclude with a performance and school clinics in the Las Vegas, Nevada area February 5th and 6th. 

 
If Julian is in your area during the tour, please make sure to meet him and learn more about the new line of Bliss clarinets. For complete information please visit our artist news website at http://centerstage.conn-selmer.com/

 
Conn-Selmer, Inc. is the largest manufacturer of band and orchestral instruments and accessories in the United States and a subsidiary of Steinway Musical Instruments, Inc. To contact Conn-Selmer, write to P.O. Box 310, Elkhart, IN 46515-0310 U.S.A. or visit www.conn-selmer.com.

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Sunday Showcase: Celebrate the marriage between the music of medieval magic and folk-art celebration in European Inspirations



Sunday, January 17th 2:00 pm

Edmonton, AB Ķ Music of medieval magic and folk-art celebration come together in your Edmonton Symphony Orchestras (ESO) first Sunday Showcase series event of 2010.  On Sunday, January 17th, Music Director William Eddins will fill ENMAX Hall of the Francis Winspear Centre for Music with the sounds of European inspired works by Dvok, Liszt, Arutunian, Estacio, and Falla. 

Young promising Canadian pianist, Shean Competition winner, and Juilliard graduate student Daniel Fung joins the ESO on stage for Liszts Totentanz, a dazzling showpiece of daring stylistic innovations based on the famous monastic chant Dies iraeNot to be outdone, our Principal Trumpet Robin Doyon plays Arutunians Trumpet Concerto, an energetic concerto of Eastern European lyricism and harmonic texture.  Resident Conductor Lucas Waldin will lead the orchestra through John Estacios poignant work for strings Such Sweet Sorrow, which will be complemented by a suite from Falla's wonderful comic ballet The Three-Cornered Hat, and Dvok's celebratory Carnival Overture.

Post-concert, guests are invited to sit down, relax, and engage in a casual conversation with Lucas Waldin and Daniel Fung in the main lobby.  Sunday Coffee Shop offers a uniquely interactive Q&A setting with our Resident Conductor and guest artists this season.

Flute duo Chiara and Juliana Concini will be performing in the main lobby beginning at 1:15 pm, as part of our Musicians in the Making program, generously supported by TELUS.

Ticket prices range from $20 $65 (agency fees apply), and are available through the Winspear Centre Box Office.  Call (780) 428-1414, toll-free 1-800-563-5081, or purchase online at www.edmontonsymphony.com.

The next performance of the Sunday Showcase series takes place on March 21st, 2010.  Acclaimed Mexican conductor Alondra de la Parra makes her ESO debut presenting richly colourful musical blends of tango and classical tradition.  Marimbist Pius Cheung appears as guest soloist, performing a Bach masterpiece as youve never heard it before.

Thank you to our season media sponsor CBC, and our series media sponsors CKUA Radio Network and Edmontons Child.

Sponsorship inquiries can be directed to Marc Carnes, Director of Development, at (780) 401-2518.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, marking its 58th season in 2009-2010, has taken its place as one of Canada's foremost orchestral ensemble.  Its current roster includes 56 musicians from Canada and around the world, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from the great classical masterworks to pops and children's concerts. The presence of the orchestra and its enrichment of the community's quality of life are key elements in the stature and profile of Edmonton on the national and international scene.

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Foodies invited to join the WSO on a gourmet

Winnipeg, MB January 11, 2010 Winnipeg foodies are invited to explore the world of music and food as the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra (WSO) and four fine dining establishments partner up to provide lovers of fine cuisine and symphony music with a gourmet journey all in one location at the Centennial Concert Hall.

The Winnipeg Symphony will be presenting a gourmet journey of food and music in partnership with: Fude, Bistro 7 , Bergmanns on Lombard and Lobby on York.

Each restaurant will be offering a three course meal that is themed to a specific WSO concert - thereby offering patrons a unique opportunity to explore cuisine from Russia, the New World, North America, Italy and Mexico.

The WSO wants to create memorable musical experiences for audience members. One way we can do this is by considering the opportunities to build other pleasurable components into a concert evening. Winnipeg has so many fine restaurants and chefs, and we can make it easy to explore new restaurants with cuisine inspired by the musical offerings in the concert, said Trudy Schroeder, Executive Director of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.

The dates of the four dining and concert experiences are as follows:

January 23: Rhythm & Heat ~ Local & Inspired Cuisine
Rhythm & Heat examines the exotic flavours and rhythms from Mexico, Spain and Egypt in partnership with Fude (dinner at 5:30 pm; concert at 8:00 pm).

Cardini Salad (Fude version of classic Caesar):
Field greens, leaf lettuce and artichoke hearts, tossed with
house-made cardini vinaigrette, topped with fresh parmesan cheese

Chili Chocolate Chicken with Cayenne Cream:
Manitoba free range chicken breast, seared then grilled to finish, slathered in a house-made dark chocolate sauce off-set with a spicy cayenne cream and chilies. Served with our featured potatoes & featured veggies

Or
Boomerang Gorang:
An Indonesian classic reworked Manitoba-style, curried basmati & Lac
du Bonnet wild rice sauted in exclusive boom sauce with celery, red peppers, red onion & bananas, topped with mango, pineapple, tart apples to bring on the cool house-made rhubarb chutney (vegan friendly)

Grand Marnier-Callebaut Chocolate Mousse Flute

February 20: Boreyko and Russian Masters ~ Russian Cuisine
Boreyko and Russian Masters explores the monumental and raw with former WSO music director Andrey Boreyko in partnership with Bistro 7 (dinner at 5:30 pm; concert at 8:00 pm).

Zakuski:
An array of marinated mushrooms, minsk eggs, meat and cabbage piragi, russian potato salad, cured fish and pickled vegetables to be eaten with dark bread and ice cold vodka

Beet caviar with sour cream and potato blini
Coulibiac:
Salmon or Cabbage cooked in pastry with vegetables served with horseradish sauce and green beans

Trio of Aleksandr Torte, Gogol Mogol and Strawberries Romanoff
March 27: Classic Movie Heroes and Villains ~ American Cuisine
Classic Movie Heroes and Villains delves into a musical battle of good vs. evil, featuring the themes of some of your favourite pop culture heroes and villains with Bergmanns on Lombard (dinner at 5:30 pm; concert at 8:00 pm).

Hero Spinach Salad:
Shaved Red Onion, Mushrooms, Bothwell Cheese Crumble and Creamy Herb Dijonette

Slow Roasted Breast of Chicken Martini:
Crowned with a Vermouth Jazzed Olive & Tomato Tapenade
Set on Fire Roasted Bell Pepper Infused Angry Rice
Sinister Streaked Balsamic Current Reduction

Or
Bow tie pasta with truffle cream, vegetable julienne and parmesan
All American Apple Pie with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Caramel Drizzle
May 15: Pines, Fountains & Festivals ~ Italian Cuisine
Pines, Fountains & Festivals investigates the colour and pageantry of Rome brought to life through Respighis stunning orchestral trilogy in partnership with Lobby on York (dinner at 5:30 pm; concert at 8:00 pm).

Insalata Caprese

Veal Marsala with Mushroom Risotto
Or
Penne with Grilled Peppers and Rose Sauce
Panna Cotta garnished with Berries

Prices are $85 per person for each event, which includes the meal and a ticket to the concert. Concert goers who already have a ticket to these concerts can enjoy the meal for just $60 per person. Or create a world package tour and enjoy all four dinner and concert events for only $75 per person per evening.

Tickets for the dinner and concert are only available through the WSO box office at 949-3999, online at www.wso.ca.

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The Victoria Symphony rolls out the red carpet for A Night at the Oscars

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January 11, 2010
Victoria, BC On January 14, 15 & 16, Regina Symphony Orchestras Music Director Victor Sawa conducts Oscar-winning music with the Victoria Symphony at the Royal Theatre.  Symphony goers will walk the red carpet as they make their way into the theatre for a glamorous evening of music from movies such as Lawrence of Arabia, Psycho, The Way We Where and Jaws.

A Night at the Oscars, led by Regina Symphony Orchestras Music Director Victor Sawa, was first introduced into the Victoria Symphony Pops series in 2008. Brought back by popular demand, this years programme features music filled with action, adventure and a little bit of romance.  From early scores, 1938s The Adventures of Robin Hood, to major blockbuster hits, 2008s Dark Knight, this concert will entertain all audiences.  Full concert programme is available at www.victoriasymphony.ca

These concerts are not only full of great music but also a lot of fun. We hope that the audience gets into the glamour of the evening by dressing the part, strutting on the red carpet and smiling for the cameras as they head into the Royal Theatre for an exciting live performance of award-winning music states Bethany Wilson, Director of Marketing and Development.

Maestro Victor Sawa, Music Director of the Regina Symphony Orchestra, is known for his impressive reputation, engaging audience interaction and passion for bringing new faces to classical and pops performances.  Sawa has made several guest appearances all over the world and won countless awards, including the Queen's Jubilee Medal and a Grammy.

The Victoria Symphony is Vancouver Islands largest and most active arts organization performing for more than 125,000 people each year, including 10,000 schoolchildren. Showcasing the outstanding talents of its musicians and guest artists, the Victoria Symphonys 2009-2010 season offers a diverse and exciting line-up of over 50 concerts led by its vibrant Music Director Tania Miller.

The Victoria Symphony wishes to acknowledge the generous support of series sponsor Beltone Better Hearing Centre.

For complete programming details of the 2009-2010 season please visit www.victoriasymphony.ca.

A Night at the Oscars
January 14, 2:00 pm
January 15 & 16, 8:00 pm
Royal Theatre
$30.50, $39.50, $50.50
$20.10 (web special), $12.00 (vsSoundcheck)

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Boston Baroque Performs its Grammy-Nominated Interpretation of Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610

AT CATHEDRAL OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE
Saturday March 6, 2010 at 8:00 p.m.
*
A MASTERPIECE WITHIN A MASTERPIECE
*
PERFORMANCE MARKS THE 400TH ANNIVERSARY
OF THE MONTEVERDI VESPERS
AND BOSTON BAROQUES
FIRST NEW YORK APPEARANCE IN 25 YEARS

Boston Baroque, the first permanent Baroque orchestra in North America, will perform Monteverdis masterpiece, the Vespers of 1610, under the leadership of music director Martin Pearlman, on Saturday, March 6, 2010.  The performance will take place within another masterpiecethe Cathedral of St. John the Divine, the largest Gothic cathedral in the world.  With its extraordinary beauty and scale, the Cathedral will provide a dramatic setting for the Vespers, which, in its own time, brilliantly exploited the spatial and acoustical possibilities of St. Marks Basilica in Venice.  The performance will mark both the 400th anniversary of the Vespers publication and Boston Baroques first appearance in New York since the mid 1980s (a Carnegie Hall performance of Handels Messiah under the ensembles original name, Banchetto Musicale).
Tickets for the March 6 concert, at $20, $35 and $55, are available online at www.BostonBaroque.org and www.Stjohndivine.org; and from Boston Baroque by telephone at 617/484-9200.

 
MONTEVERDI, VESPERS OF 1610
Boston Baroque
Martin Pearlman, conductor
Mary Wilson ............ soprano
Kristen Watson ....... soprano
Derek Chester ......... tenor
Aaron Sheehan ........ tenor
Lawrence Jones ....... tenor
Sumner Thompson ... baritone
Donald Wilkinson ..... baritone

 
Saturday, March 6, 2010 8:00 PM
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10025
Tickets: $20, $35 and $55; available online at www.BostonBaroque.org and www.Stjohndivine.org; or by calling 617/484-9200
 

The Vespers is a work of extraordinary emotional power, declares Martin Pearlman, astonishing for the grandeur of its conception and the opulence of its sound.  No other surviving work from that period is written on such a scale, combining the grandest of public music with the most intimate of solo songs.  Like the music itself, our performing forces are on a grand scale: seven solo singers; a chorus large enough to divide into anywhere from four to ten voice parts; and an orchestra with a rich variety of instrumental colors, including virtuosic solo parts for violins and cornetti.

The instrumentation for the Vespers, however, is specified by Monteverdi only in certain movements.  For much of the piece, it is the conductor who determines the orchestration whether and where to double voice parts with instruments, as well as which instruments to use.  It is also left to the conductor to decide whether to assign certain passages to the chorus or to solo singers.  Thus, the piece can vary greatly from one performance to another. 

Boston Baroques recording of the Vespers, in a performing version by Martin Pearlman and under his direction on the Telarc label (catalogue number 80453), received a Grammy nomination in 1998 for Best Choral Performance; and they have performed the work to acclaim in Boston, Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, and at the Ravinia and Tanglewood music festivals.

About the decision to perform at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Martin Pearlman remarks, For our return to New York City, I was looking for an extraordinary venue worthy of this piece, and was really struck with the sense of space at St. John.  I thought it might well reflect the scale and grandeur of the Vespers, and its profound intimacy as well; but the challenge was to make it work acoustically for a Baroque ensemble.  After an initial visit to the Cathedral in which we tried out instruments and voices in various placements, we began to see that we could carve out an intimate performance area in which we will sound warm, clear and big enough without amplification.  This acoustical sweet spot is almost entirely within the area that they call the Great Crossing, and will hold an audience of just 700, plus a platform for the performers.  The lighting design will add to the sense of intimacy within grandeur that seems perfect for the Vespers.

The New York performance will be presented as part of the Boston University Incite Arts Festival, a New York showcase for the BU College of Fine Arts and its Schools of Music, Theatre, and Visual Art.  Boston Baroque is the resident professional ensemble for Boston Universitys Historical Performance Program, where it is helping to train the next generation of period-instrument performers.
About Boston Baroque and Martin Pearlman
Founded by Martin Pearlman in 1973, Boston Baroque was the first permanent Baroque orchestra established in North America, and is now widely regarded as one of the worlds premier period-instrument ensembles.  Boston Baroque reaches an international audience with its 20 recordings on the Telarc label, three of which received Grammy nominations.  The ensemble produces a subscription concert series in Greater Boston, now in its 36th season, and made its European debut in 2003, performing Handels Messiah to sold-out houses and standing ovations in Krakw and Warsaw, Poland.  In addition to its acclaimed Disney Hall, Ravinia and Tanglewood performances of the Monteverdi Vespers, Boston Baroque has performed Purcells Dido and Aeneas with the Mark Morris Dance Group in Chicago and Ann Arbor.  In 2009, the ensemble made its debut with two programs at the international Casals Festival in San Juan, Puerto Ricothe first period-instrument orchestra invited to perform there.  Boston Baroques latest recording on Telarc, Mozart: Arias for Male Soprano, featuring soloist Michael Maniaci, was released in January 2010.

For more information, visit www.BostonBaroque.org.

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The Segal Centre for Performing Arts Presents Geometry in Venice

The Segal Centre for Performing Arts and Saputo Inc.

In association with Crows Theatre


Present

Geometry in Venice

By Michael Mackenzie

Directed by Chris Abraham

January 31-February 14, 2010

One day you may understand that murder, incest and infanticide are the very stuff of domesticity.
We modern people just practice them in a more...refined garb. Mrs. Moreen

MONTREAL January 2010 - The Segal Theatre is excited to launch the new year with the Montreal English premiere of Geometry in Venice, an intelligent and moving play featuring a stellar director, cast and design team.

Adapted from The Pupil, a novella by Henry James, who himself was inspired by the childhood of painter John Singer Sargent, Geometry in Venice brings us into the lives of the Moreen family, an outwardly aristocratic British family living in Venice towards the end of the nineteenth century. Unlike the novella, award-winning Montreal playwright Michael Mackenzie includes Henry James as one of his characters. 

In this poignant and timely story, Pemberton (played by Graham Cuthbertson) is a Canadian Cambridge grad and aspiring writer who is hired by the Moreens to provide their sickly, genius son Morgan (played by Montrealer Eliott Larson) with a classical education. Desperate to keep up appearances, they travel to the fashionable salons of Europe in search of a wealthy suitor to marry their daughter Amy. Henry James becomes the promising Paris suitor in this reading.

Geometry in Venice is a powerful and timely examination of a familys obsession with wealth and status, raising questions of ethics and morality, says Bryna Wasserman, Artistic Director of the Segal Centre for Performing Arts. In the very capable hands of creative director Chris Abraham, outstanding actor Damien Atkins and other talented cast members, Geometry in Venice promises to provide an exceptional time at the theatre.

Damien Atkins, who has delivered excellent performances at the Segal in the past, says he looks forward to playing the role of Henry James. I am excited to work again with Chris Abraham, with whom I collaborated on one of the most richly rewarding theatrical experiences of my life, The Glass Menagerie.

The set created by Julie Fox is dramatic, Spartan, and its unique colour palette of whites, sand tones and cool beach hues are meant to reflect the Lido beach in Venice. A grand piano will be played by the young prodigy.

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of Geometry in Venice. The play was performed in French for 5 years as Le Prcepteur and has also been produced in German, Italian and Chinese.

Other cast members include: Allegra Fulton as Mrs. Moreen (Stratford, solo tour-de-force Frida K.); Aiden Devine as Mr. Moreen (Balconville, multi-awards for film and television); and Susanna Fournier as Amy (Segals The Diary of Anne Frank).

The integral designs are by Julie Fox, set and costume; Luc Prairie, lighting; and Antoine Bdard, sound. Merissa Tordjman is the stage manager and Luciana Burcheri completes the team as assistant stage manager.

Sunday @ the Segal - January 31 at 11am
In keeping with the Segal Centres objective to enhance the theatregoing experience, we are also pleased to announce that the playwright has accepted to give a lecture about his play.  Michael Mackenzie will talk about what inspired him to write Geometry in Venice and describe his process of translating Henry James to the stage.

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Le pianiste Raoul Sosa devient membre de l'ordre du Canada

MONTRAL, 11 janvier 2010.   Raoul Sosa vient tout juste d'tre honor comme Membre de l'Ordre du Canada pour sa contribution l'avancement de la musique au pays en tant que pianiste, compositeur, chef d'orchestre et professeur et pour la dtermination avec laquelle il a poursuivi sa carrire.

Interprte  la fois exceptionnel et authentique, le pianiste, chef d'orchestre et compositeur qubcois  Raoul Sosa  est considr par la critique locale et internationale comme un des musiciens actuels les plus importants.

Raoul Sosa est un spcialiste de la musique romantique, bien que son panorama musical embrasse toutes les poques.  Il est aussi reconnu comme un des plus grands interprtes des uvres pour la main gauche, rpertoire pour lequel il a dvelopp une matrise et une virtuosit qui suscitent lmerveillement.
   
Trs vite,  Raoul Sosa sest impos comme un musicien de premire grandeur et a gagn de nombreux prix dans des concours nationaux en Argentine (Socit Hbraque, Les Jeunesses Musicales, etc.) et internationaux (France, Espagne, Belgique, Canada, etc.).
En 1978, il a reu du Conseil canadien de la musique  Ottawa le Prix de la meilleure mission radiophonique d'un soliste canadien. 

Raoul Sosa est membre du Conseil qubcois de la musique, compositeur agr au Centre de musique canadienne et a sig pendant plusieurs annes au Conseil des arts de Montral.
II s'est acquis une solide rputation, laquelle la amen se produire dans les principaux centres artistiques dAmrique, d'Europe et d'Asie en tant que pianiste, chef dorchestre et pour donner des cours de matre.

C'est un triomphe partout et il laisse une profonde impression sur les musiciens et le public. Les critiques sont unanimes louer la magnifique dimension sonore, musicale et expressive absolument complte qu'il confre ses interprtations. Tokyo, la critique a t sduite par sa sonorit et a parl du pianiste la main gauche en or .

En plus dune triple carrire de chef, pianiste et compositeur, Raoul Sosa est frquemment invit comme expert en technique pianistique et en interprtation et partage son exprience avec de nombreux jeunes musiciens. Professeur de piano et de musique de chambre au Conservatoire de musique de Montral, iI est galement membre du jury de nombreux concours.

La faon unique de Raoul Sosa de faire chanter le piano et sa grande sensibilit expliquent bien pourquoi la rputation de cet artiste de chez nous a depuis longtemps dpass nos frontires.

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Information vegetable, animal and mineral: Gilbert & Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance



EDMONTON, AB Complete with high-jinx, high-silliness and high-notes on the high-seas, Edmonton Opera presents the Gilbert and Sullivan classic, Pirates of Penzance, February 6, 9 and 11, 2010 at the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium. All performances begin at 7:30pm. Tickets, ranging from $32 to $165, are on sale now at Ticketmaster, call 780-451-8000 or visit www.ticketmaster.ca.
This show makes fun of absolutely everything, says Edmonton Opera Artistic Director Brian Deedrick.  And who better to bring the hilarity and exuberance of Gilbert and Sullivan back to Edmonton Operas stage than the director/conductor team, Rob Herriot and Peter Dala, who brought us the Sterling Award-winning H.M.S. PINAFORE and Daughter of the Regiment!
Also known as The Slave of Duty, Pirates of Penzance follows young Frederic as he celebrates the end of his 21-year apprenticeship with a band of merry pirates. When he leaves the ship and reaches civilization, he meets Mabel, (modern) Major General Stanleys daughter, and the young couple falls in love instantly. Plot twists abound before Frederic discovers his apprenticeship contract is to end on his 21st birthday. Technically, having been born February 29, only five of Frederics leap-year birthdays have passed, and he owes the pirates another 64 years of apprenticeship. Mabel and Frederic agree to remain faithful to each other until they are reunited upon his release, whereupon the plot thickens once more.
Comedy super-duo Director Robert Herriot and Conductor Peter Dala team up once more, with Curt Olds as Major General Stanley, Aaron St. Clair Nicholson as the Pirate King and Lawrence Wiliford as Frederic. The powerhouse cast includes Edmontons own Andrew MacDonald-Smith at the Police Sergeant, Sonia Gosse as Ruth, Nikki Einfeld as Mabel, Kendra OConnor in her Edmonton Opera dbut as Edith, and Edmonton-favourite Rene Brad as Kate. The production also features live accompaniment by Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and the Edmonton Opera Chorus. Pirates of Penzance is sung in English, with English surtitles projected above the stage.
Watch Brian Deedrick and the Edmonton Operateers Pirates of Penzance synopsis here.



For more information about Edmonton Operas season, signature events and education programs, visit www.edmontonopera.com.

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Shaw Festival Box Office Now Open for 2010 Season

2010 Shaw Festival Logo - with year - black - jpeg

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, January 11, 2010 . . . The Shaw Festival Box Office is accepting online, mail and fax orders from the general public for the 2010 season starting today.  Commencing January 16, the Box Office will be open for phone and in-person orders. 

The Shaw Festivals 2010 season resonates with the wit, social commentary and relevance for which Bernard Shaw himself was well known and features two plays by the Festivals namesake: The Doctors Dilemma, Shaws relevantly comedic exploration of the medical establishment, directed by Morris Panych; and John Bulls Other Island, Shaws exploration of the culture of misunderstandings and misconceptions, directed by Artistic Director Emeritus Christopher Newton.  

Artistic Director Jackie Maxwell directs An Ideal Husband, Shaws favourite Oscar Wilde work, featuring Shaw Festival favourites Patrick Galligan and Steven Sutcliffe.  Mr. Galligan will also be performing in The Doctors Dilemma, while Mr. Sutcliffe will also be featured in Eda Holmess production of Caryl Churchills Serious Money.  Ms. Maxwell will also direct Linda Griffiths Age of Arousal.

Deborah Hay, who garnered rave reviews as Billie Dawn in the 2009 runaway hit Born Yesterday, returns as Sylvia Fowler in Alisa Palmers production of Clare Boothe Luces The Women and as the whip smart Molly Grant in the S.J. Perelman, Ogden Nash and Kurt Weill musical One Touch of Venus, directed by Eda Holmes

Shaw Festival notables Benedict Campbell, Jim Mezon and Corrine Koslo will be featured in John Bulls Other Island.  Mr. Mezon and Mr. Campbell will also be performing in Tom Murphys adaptation of Anton Chekhovs The Cherry Orchard, directed by Jason Byrne; while Ms. Koslo will take on the role as society-conscious Veta Simmons in the Joseph Ziegler production of Mary Chases Harvey.

The Shaw welcomes back Norman Browning, Diana Donnelly, Kelli Fox, Jonathan Gould, Catherine McGregor, Moya OConnell, Jennifer Phipps and Severn Thompson to its stages this season. 

The Shaw Festival also offers a reading series of contemporary Shavian writers and a variety of enrichment activities that include workshops and seminars.  Affordable overnight and day packages are also available making a trip to The Shaw an enjoyable and hassle-free experience.

Ticket information and brochures can be obtained through the Shaw Festival Box Office:
       Toll free in North America: 1-800-511-7429
       Local: (905) 468-2172
       Fax: (905) 468-3804
       Internet: www.shawfest.com
       Mail: Shaw Festival, Box 774, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON  L0S 1J0

The Festival Theatre Box Office and Bernards, the Shaw Festival Shop, are located at 10 Queens Parade in Niagara-on-the-Lake.  To best serve our patrons, the Box Office will be open Monday to Thursday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from January 11 to January 24. Beginning January 25, Box Office hours will be Monday to Friday 9 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 9 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The Shaws 2010 season begins April 1 and features An Ideal Husband, The Women, The Doctors Dilemma, The Cherry Orchard, John Bulls Other Island, Age of Arousal, Harvey, One Touch of Venus, Half An Hour and Serious Money.

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Canadian Debuts Highlight of First February Events at the Royal Conservatory




The Royal Conservatory is offering a wide-ranging roster of enriching experiences in the first half of February, with performances from top international artists, and our stellar faculty and gifted students.  

Grammy Award-winning violinist and composer, Mark OConnor, comes to Koerner Hall on February 13 for the Canadian premiere of his genre-crossing String Quartet No. 2 (Blue-Grass) & No. 3 (Old-Time), issued on his 2009 album for OMAC Records. Joining him are Ida Kavafian (violin), Paul Neubauer (viola), and Matt Haimovitz (cello), in the quartets Canadian debut. Like all of OConnors works, these string quartets are inspired by, and evocative of, American musical traditions.  He is perhaps best known for his work with Yo-Yo Ma and Edgar Meyer on the Appalachia Waltz and Appalachian Journey discs.  Former U.S. President Bill Clinton described his music as uniting the strains of classical music with American hill country music.  OConnors musical vision also extends pedagogically; in November 2009, he issued the latest edition of his two-volume OConnor Violin Method, whereby students learn violin technique through a wide range of pieces, including traditional American songs.  As he puts it, students do not want to be left out of the great sounds and energy of fiddling and jazz because they wish to become fine classical players.  OConnor will demonstrate his passion for education during a free public master class on February 12.

The Royal Conservatory Orchestra (RCO) returns to Koerner Hall on February 12.  For this concert, the orchestra will be under the baton of Canadian Opera Company Music Director, Johannes Debus.  Recently described as a master conductor by the Toronto Star, Debus is making his debut with the RCO.  Joining them will be award-winning mezzo-soprano and Conservatory alumnus, Wallis Giunta, and pianists Nicholas King and Lucas Porter, both of whom are current students of The Glenn Gould School at The Royal Conservatory.  Debus will be leading the orchestra in a passionate program including Prokofievs Symphony No. 1 in D Major, Op. 25 Classique, Poulencs Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, Ravels Shhrazade, and Stravinskys Firebird Suite (1945).

The internationally renowned double bassist Jeffrey Beecher is performing a wide-ranging recital on February 7 in Mazzoleni Hall.  The program includes the Canadian premieres of Deyishme, a composition for tabla, bass, and string quartet by Azerbaijani composer Franghiz Ali-Zadeh, and the Sonata for Double Bass and Piano by American composer David Anderson.  Also on the program is Bachs Suite for Unaccompanied Cello No. 2 in D Minor, and John Harbisons Concerto for Bass Viol and Piano.  This accomplished faculty member of The Royal Conservatorys Glenn Gould School has toured extensively as a member of Yo-Yo Mas Silk Road Ensemble and is currently the Principal Bass with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.

Fellow faculty member David Louie will charm the audience of Mazzoleni Hall on February 14 with a harpsichord recital.  Described as a pianistic sensation (Rhein-Zeitung, Germany), this award-winning instrumentalist has appeared with orchestras across North America and Europe.  He will perform a special all Bach program that will include the Goldberg Variations, the Ricercar A 3 in C Minor, and Mr. Louie's own transcription of the Partita No. 2 for solo violin. 

Legendary pianist and pedagogue Leon Fleisher makes a welcome return to The Royal Conservatory from February 10-12, to continue his long-running series of master classes.  Held in Mazzoleni Hall, they provide a unique opportunity to gain knowledge and wisdom from the legendary pianist and pedagogue as he listens to students of The Glenn Gould School and provides insights into issues of technique, interpretation, and style. 

Founded in 1886, The Royal Conservatory is the largest and oldest independent arts educator in Canada.  It is an internationally renowned centre for performance and learning, providing opportunities for personal development through music and arts education in over 300 communities across Canada and a dozen countries around the world. Each year, more than 500,000 Canadians take part in RCM programs, exams, and public school initiatives. 

The Royal Conservatory acknowledges all of its donors and recognizes the remarkable generosity of:  

TELUS Official season sponsor of the 2009-10 Koerner Hall Concert Season
The Globe and Mail Season Media Partner
RBC Royal Conservatory Orchestra Guest Conductor Program Sponsor
MasterCard Royal Conservatory Orchestra Performance Sponsor
Classical 96.3 Media Sponsor (Mark OConnor)
The family of Lily Kertes Rolin Performance supporter (Johannes Debus Conducts the Royal Conservatory Orchestra)

CONCERTS AND EVENTS AT THE ROYAL CONSERVATORY FEBRUARY 1-14, 2010
KH Koerner Hall; MH Mazzoleni Hall; CT Conservatory Theatre

Jeffrey Beecher: Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 2pm; $20-$30 (MH)
Leon Fleisher Master Classes: Wednesday, February 10, 2010 at 10am & 2pm;
Thursday, February 11, 2010 at 10am & 2pm; Friday, February 12, 2010 at 10am & 2pm; $10 (MH)
Mark OConnor Master Class: Friday, February 12, 2010 at 5pm; FREE (CT)
Johannes Debus Conducts the Royal Conservatory Orchestra: Friday, February 12, 2010 at 8pm; $10-$20 (KH)
Mark OConnor: Saturday, February 13, 2010 at 8pm; $20-$50 (KH)
David Louie: Sunday, February 14, 2010 at 2pm; $20-$30 (MH)

Tickets are available online at www.rcmusic.ca, by calling 416.408.0208,
or in person at the Weston Family Box Office, 273 Bloor Street West, Toronto

More information about upcoming concerts and events is available The Royal Conservatory website at www.rcmusic.ca.

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Pentadre presente Visages d'Amrique

Diffrentes visions musicales de lAmrique


Mardi 2 fvrier 2010, 20 h

Salle Tanna Schulich
555, rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Mtro McGill

25 $ rgulier 15 $ tudiants / ans
Billets : 514-398-4547
www.pentaedre.com


Montral, 11 janvier 2010 - L'Amrique, avec ses nombreux visages, a depuis longtemps inspir les crateurs d'ici et d'ailleurs. Cest un voyage travers le temps et les poques auquel vous invite Pentadre le mardi 2 fvrier, 20 h, la salle Tanna Schulich.

Pentadre propose un programme centr autour de la cration amricaine des cent dernires annes dans lequel l'audace de John Cage, l'extrme virtuosit du fabuleux quintette de John Harbison, le romantisme du fameux quatuor "amricain" de Dvorak dans une transcription pour quintette, ainsi qu'une cration du montralais Blair Thompson composeront une courtepointe sonore riche et colore. De courts extraits de clbres discours amricains viendront s'insrer diffrents moments du concert, transformant de faon ludique ce portrait musical amricain en une exploration caractre historique.

Comme l'a dit Franklin Delano Roosevelt en 1933, la seule chose que nous ayons craindre, cest la crainte elle-mme . Alors, nhsitez pas venir nous rejoindreĶ.

Au programme :
Antonin Dvorak   Quintette no 12 op. 16 (transcription de David Walter)
John Cage   Living Room Music
Blair Thompson    Empathie (cration)
John Harbison   Quintette

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Mixed Company Theatre: Bouncing Back from Homelessness

Mixed Company Theatre Banner

Toronto, January 11, 2010 Every year Mixed Company Theatres initiatives include a homelessness project. Betty Joe Morris, a 2009 project participant described her experience as: It kept me clean and off the streets of the drug life.
This year, our artists collaborate with youth who are at-risk or have experienced homelessness to develop an original, interactive, and issue-based play in the Bouncing Back Project, funded by the City of Torontos Drug Prevention Community Investment Program. This production will tour shelters, community centers, and schools across Toronto to raise awareness surrounding the issues of homelessness and substance abuse.
The first step of this 4-week project is auditions for young people ages 15 25. On Wednesday, January 27, Mixed Company Theatre encourages those who have experienced homelessness and have a passion for performing to attend an open call for performers.
Garnering intense media interest over the years, Mixed Company Theatres homelessness projects result in astonishing experiences that transform the lives of participants, company members and audiences alike. 
AUDITIONS
WHERE: Mixed Company Theatre, 157 Carlton Street (at Sherbourne), Toronto ON
WHEN: Wednesday, January 27 2010
ADDITIONAL DETAILS: Interested youth are encouraged to book an audition appointment. Please contact 416 515 8080 or Duncan@mixedcompanytheatre.com for more information.

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A Total of 14 Spectacular Harbourfront Centre March Break Camps for Ages Three to 17 Including Circus, Fashion Design, Pop Star, TheatreKids, Senior Fine Arts, Junior Architects and more

TORONTO, ON (Jan. 11, 2009) Keeping the tradition of providing Toronto parents and children with the most diverse selection of day camps, Harbourfront Centre announces its one-of-a-kind March Break Camps 2010 session. At Harbourfront Centres beautiful 10-acre waterfront site, campers aged three through 17 can engage in a fully enriched environment with exceptional facilities and the citys best counsellors.

Harbourfront Centre is expanding on its reputation of providing fun opportunities for skill development and personal growth by offering 14 arts-based programmes. Whether a child is keenly interested in problem-solving and design or craves the spotlight to showcase singing and dancing talents, diverse programmes maximize learning and fun. A complete description of camps and fees is included at the bottom of this release.

Harbourfront Centre March Break Camps take place from Monday, March 15 to Friday, March 19, 2010, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay West. A supervised extended hours programme, perfect for working parents, is available from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., at an additional cost of $65. Registration is now underway. To register or for more information, the public can call the Camps office, 416-973-4093 or visit harbourfrontcentre.com/camps. Early registration is advised as camps fill up quickly.

MARCH BREAK CAMPS, MARCH 1519, 2010

Camp by the Water
Ages 35, $222

Our highly qualified staff foster a safe and nurturing environment for first-time campers, encouraging new friendships, camper enrichment, creativity and self-expression. Small groups offer a 6:1 camper-to-counsellor ratio, ensuring safe supervision and individual attention while facilitating camper learning and development. Our exemplary staff are selected based on enthusiasm, prior experience and capacity to supervise our youngest campers.

Discovery Day Camp
Ages 68, $222

Campers participate in arts and craft projects, drama and active games, science activities, and cooperative programming. Working with skilled staff and specialists, campers explore a world of imagination, creativity and culture.

Circus
Ages 713, $263

Circus camp includes juggling, stilt walking, acrobatics and clowning. Equipment is specially designed with youth and safety in mind. Circus professionals work with camp counsellors to maximize safety and allow groups and individuals to move at their own pace in accordance with age and ability. This camp is coordinated by Marsha Kennington, an instructor/trainer with Cirque du Monde the Social/Action division of Cirque du Soleil. *Please note: due to the cold winter weather this camp will be held in the Brigantine Room and not in a circus tent.

Junior Creative Arts
Ages 68, $232

Campers are encouraged to follow their creative instincts and let the imagination reign. Diverse cultural and artistic perspectives are explored through a variety of hands-on activities. Campers learn to appreciate art through lively workshop sessions, with emphasis on personal creativity and technique. Our skilled artist-instructors encourage campers to draw on imagination, creativity and artistic vision.

Intermediate Creative Arts
Ages 911, $232

Campers discover art, culture and creativity in this art camp for older campers. Diverse cultural and artistic perspectives are explored through drawing, painting, sculpture and printmaking! Guest artists blend traditional and contemporary art forms, while guiding campers through our galleries and craft studios for context and inspiration.

Fashion Design Camp
Ages 812, $232

Under the guidance of our experienced staff, campers learn about the world of fashion. Fundamentals of design provide the basis for campers to create sketches, illustrate, design and execute projects from start to finish. Campers work with raw fabrics, old jeans and shirts to craft their final masterpiece, concluding with a runway show.

Digital Photo Camp
Ages 812, $232

Our innovative, hands-on introduction to the creation of images using our new media lab will give campers the opportunity to experiment with contemporary digital photography. Campers learn creative vision and composition and shooting technique through the lens of our Digital Cameras (provided). Campers will have the opportunity to create and edit digital photographs by working on such projects as spoof advertising campaigns, digital photo collages, and self portrait photo projects.

Chess Challenge
Ages 812, $222

Chess enthusiasts, from beginner to advanced, enjoy unparalleled instruction in chess strategy. Our skilled instructors will teach campers to "see" the chessboard as tournament professionals do. Campers will be taught elementary techniques such as: how to open a game, defend a piece, mate, avoid stalemate and more.

Junior Authors
Ages 812, $227

For aspiring writers, junior authors and avid readers, these campers explore the wonderful world of literature with experienced camp staff and special guest authors. Campers read and discuss the material then participate in creative writing workshops. This camp stimulates creativity and the imaginative spirit of budding young readers and writers, exploring what lies below the surface of children's literature.

TheatreKids
Ages 812, $232

For the budding actor, this camp is created for campers who love being in the spotlight. TheatreKids explores the world of theatre in a relaxed, supportive, hands-on environment. Working together with the director, campers learn aspects of performance and theatre production while rehearsing and preparing for their own show, to be presented to family members and friends at the end of the session. Special guests are brought in when available to showcase aspects of drama or stage production.

NEW! Senior Fine Arts
Ages 1216, $237

This camp is for the young artist planning to take his/her artistic endeavours to the next level. Campers learn skills of art appreciation and critiquing through engaging workshop sessions, while emphasis is placed on both personal creativity and fine art technique. With the assistance of our qualified instructors and guest artists the campers will continue refining their artistic abilities as they prepare original artwork using artist quality materials.

Dungeons & Dragons
Ages 1015, $212

In this medieval role-playing game, campers harness their imagination through assumed characters; overcoming obstacles and outwitting opponents. Campers learn cooperation, independence and problem-solving skills while interacting with peers in this well-supervised programme. Suitable for first-time or experienced D&D-ers.

Junior Architects
Ages 812, $232

This groundbreaking camp allows campers to explore the world of architecture through design, engineering, and hands-on building and model-making activities. Projects are designed to develop decision making and problem solving skills, while emphasizing cooperation with peers. Workshops led by our skilled staff will provide real-life context to camp components.

Pop Star
Ages 812, $232

Campers explore different genres of music and learn to write their own songs as they work on their vocals and choreography with qualified instructors and guest musicians. Campers will then showcase their new learned skills on stage in a concert for their screaming fans!

For more information about registration, fees, policies and financial assistance, the public can call the Harbourfront Centre Camps Office at 416-973-4093 or visit www.harbourfrontcentre.com/camps for further details.

Harbourfront Centre is a proud member of the Ontario Camps Association.

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Free View Points forum series returns to Harbourfront Centre Thursday, Jan. 28, 2010 with Inside the Musicians Studio

Featuring Charles Spearins The Happiness Project


TORONTO, ON (Monday, Jan. 11, 2010) Harbourfront Centres View Points is a forum series that explores issues in contemporary culture and showcases current culture-makers. The series examines contexts that influence contemporary artists and communities, contexts that shape the ways in which culture is produced, viewed, consumed and discussed. It is timely, responsive and designed to stretch the definition of culture.

2010s four-part View Points series kicks off Thursday, Jan. 28, 2010 at 8 p.m. with Inside the Musicians Studio featuring Charles Spearins The Happiness Project, hosted by Stuart Berman. Admission is FREE.

Inside the Musicians Studio is a unique opportunity for audience members to experience what motivates a body of creative musical work, from inspiration to collaboration and production. It is also a chance to discover new perspectives, whether audience members are established musicians, aspiring artists or just curious observers. It is a tte--tte between the audience and the artists. Previous artists have included Final Fantasy and Emily Haines.

Charles Spearin is a multi-instrumentalist who has been an active and influential member of Canadas indie music community since the mid-90s. He is best known as a founding member of the instrumental post-rock ensemble Do Make Say Think and an original member of the indie-rock collective Broken Social Scene. Spearins most recent work, his first solo album entitled The Happiness Project, is focused on the natural, unselfconscious music of speech. The album is based on recorded conversations with his downtown neighbours about the concept of happiness; he plays with the cadence and melody of the speaking voices as though they were songs. His inspiration was drawn from his great love of music, a fascination with sound, and lifelong studies in Buddhism. By replicating the rise and fall of the recorded voices on different instruments, he succeeds in illuminating some of the hidden beauty of ordinary life. As Spearin says, "All of the melodies on this album are the melodies of every day life."


With The Happiness Project, Spearin blurs the line between speaking and singing - life and art - and writes music based on these accidental melodies. With the help of some musical friends, Spearin plays the instruments to match these natural neighbourhood melodies inspired by thoughts of happiness. The end result is a unique and inspiring musical work that speaks to hidden beauty all around us.

For more information about Charles Spearin and The Happiness Project, visit happiness-project.ca or myspace.com/charlesspearin.



ABOUT HOST STUART BERMAN
Stuart Berman is Online Editor at Eye Weekly and has been writing about the Toronto music scene for over 10 years. His writing on music and pop culture has appeared in the Toronto Star, National Post, PitchforkMedia.com, Magnet, The Village Voice, Toro and Azure. He is the author of 2009s This Book Is Broken: A Broken Social Scene Story and lives in Toronto.

OTHER UPCOMING FREE VIEW POINTS EVENTS:

Inside the City
Thursday, Feb. 25, 2010, 7-9 p.m.
This forum event will explore the inner workings of a city, looking to provide audiences with new insights about the urban by tackling issues such as architecture, city life and politics.

Behind the Lens
Thursday, March 25, 2010, 7-9 p.m.
Explore the ever-changing trends in film and culture with this interactive screening and forum event. A current film will be presented followed by a discussion with directors and other insiders.

Inside the Musicians Studio
Thursday, April 29, 2010, 7-9 p.m.
The 2010 View Points series comes to a close with a second music-based tte--tte. Featured artist and host TBA.

All View Points events take place at Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay West. For additional information and complete event listings, the public may visit harbourfrontcentre.com or call the Information Hotline at 416-973-4000.


ABOUT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE
Harbourfront Centre is an innovative, non-profit cultural organization which provides internationally renowned programming in the arts, culture, education and recreation, all within a collection of distinctive venues on a 10-acre site in the heart of Toronto's downtown waterfront.

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Rebecca Makonnen, Porte-Parole de Racines

LE CONCOURS NATIONAL DE CRATION MDIA

DE RADIO CANADA INTERNATIONAL

 
 
Montral, 11 janvier 2010  Lanimatrice Rebecca Makonnen vient dtre nomme porte-parole de RACINES, le nouveau concours national de cration mdia de Radio Canada International. ce titre, elle encourage chaleureusement les Canadiens et rsidents canadiens participer cette activit qui leur permet de sexprimer en sons et en images sur leur histoire et leurs origines, en mettant en relief leur contribution la grande mosaque canadienne.

Ne dun pre thiopien et dune mre qubcoise, Rebecca Makonnen anime Studio 12 sur Espace musique, la radio musicale de Radio-Canada. Bien connue des mdias (Musique Plus, TQS, Radio-nergie), elle a galement t chroniqueuse culturelle On fait tous du show business et Cest bien meilleur le matin avec Ren Homier-Roy, respectivement la tl et la radio de Radio-Canada.  Je suis trs heureuse que lon mait choisie pour parler du concours Racines, une initiative de RCI qui me touche beaucoup. Jespre que je saurai convaincre un grand nombre de personnes sinscrire et faire valoir leur origine et leur culture avec fiert! , dclare-t-elle.

La date limite pour soumettre une oeuvre est le 7 mars 2010. Ce concours est ouvert tant aux amateurs quaux professionnels.

Pour participer, les intresss doivent soumettre une uvre de 3 8 minutes  court mtrage ou document multimdia  qui nous parle de leurs racines et nous raconte une partie de leur histoire, un aspect de leur culture. Toutes les formes sont permises et dans tous les styles : fiction, reportage, documentaire, animationĶ Au printemps 2010, les jurs choisis par Radio Canada International slectionneront les uvres qui rpondront le mieux aux critres. Les internautes pourront galement voter en ligne pour leurs uvres prfres. Au total huit laurats (quatre dans chaque langue) se partageront en prix des appareils de haute technologie, tels camscopes, ordinateurs, iPod Touch et iPhone.

Information, inscription et rglements :
RCInet.ca/racines

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Sudbury pianist Yoko Hirota will perform selections from her new CD, Small is Beautiful: Miniature Piano Pieces, in the next concert of the 5-Penny New Music Concerts series

5-Penny Web Site: www.5pennynewmusic.ca
           
Sudbury pianist Yoko Hirota will perform selections from her new CD, Small is Beautiful: Miniature Piano Pieces, in the next concert of the 5-Penny New Music Concerts series. The concert is on Friday, January 22, at 8 p.m. at St. Peters United Church in Sudbury. Special tickets, which include a complimentary copy of the CD, are $25 and $20 for students.  General admission (without the CD) is $15 and $10 for students.  Both tickets are available at Black Cat, Laurentian University Bookstore, Laurentian Music Department and at the door. CDs may also be purchased at the concert at a cost of $15.

A celebration of the miniature in music, Hirotas program takes the listener on a musical journey from early twentieth-century Vienna to twenty-first century Northern Ontario. The opening set, entitled Six Little Piano Pieces, opus 19, was composed by Arnold Schoenberg in Vienna in 1911. One of the most admired compositions of its kind, the set presents in snapshot style a series of mood pictures ranging from playful to meditative. The moving sixth piece is said to be a tribute to Schoenbergs friend and mentor, Gustav Mahler, who died a short time before. Composers from Germany, Hungary, Italy, and the United States are also represented on the program.

Hirota pays particular attention to Canadian composers, including Brian Cherney (Elegy for a Misty Afternoon), Aris Carastathis (Traces) and Robert Lemay (Tanze vor AngstĶHommage Paul Klee). It is striking how the genre allows each of these composers to capture the essence of the moment while imaginatively exploring the technical and expressive possibilities of the piano.

 Small is Beautiful is earning favorable reviews. Writing in the Toronto classical music magazine, The Wholenote, John S. Gray praised Hirotas performance, noting that the album adds to her already impressive set of laurels. But it is the works from her adoptive land, Northern Ontario, which make the disc unique, wrote Gray. Aris Carastathis Traces and two recent works by Robert Lemay are remarkable. Carastathis is a music professor at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, while Lemay is an international prize-winning composer who teaches at Laurentian.

Prior to Hirotas performance, Lucien Pelletier, a philosophy professor at the University of Sudbury, will discuss the significance of the miniature in art.  Pelletiers presentation begins at 7 p.m.

The event is presented in cooperation with Laurentian University, Cambrian College and  Interdisciplinary M.A. Program in the Humanities of Laurentian University. It is also made possible with the financial support of the SOCAN Foundation, Ontario Arts Council, and the City of Greater Sudbury.


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Thursday, January 14, 2010

David Shermans The Daily Miracle is a bittersweet ode to a rapidly fading industry

MONTREAL, January 2010 - Ever wonder what its like to work for a major daily newspaper?  Former Gazette copy editor, David Sherman, offers a keyhole view of the newspaper industry with his play The Daily Miracle, directed by Guy Sprung and playing at the Bain St-Michel from January 26 to February 14, 2010.  

What has more dramatic possibilities than a room full of people under constant stress? asks Sherman and the elements he combines in his petri dish create a virtual powder keg.  While a winter storm threatens to shut down the city and the corporate big wigs meet behind closed doors across the hall to decide the fate of the newspaper, four copy editors hammer out tomorrows edition.  It's just another night on the news desk, where the battle-scarred and overworked wrestle with fractured syntax and crushed ideals to get the next edition out.  Tempers frayed from layoffs, cutbacks and corroded ambitions; it's a miracle they can get the paper out at all Ķ a miracle that happens every day.
The genesis of The Daily Miracle was in 2004 while Sherman was still copy editor at the Gazette as well as playwright-in-residence at Centaur Theatre.  The play sat on a shelf until one day when Sherman was screening films for the Gemini awards and met fellow juror, Guy Sprung.  When Infinithtre initiated the Write-On-Q playwrighting competition last year, Sherman submitted his play and Infinithtres independent jury chose it as one of the top three.  Its topical resonance was irresistible to Sprung, who couldnt wait to announce its inclusion in the following seasons line-up.
The Daily Miracle is Shermans love song to the newspaper industry.  "The men and women I worked with on the desk at The Gazette were almost all unsung heroes," Sherman says. "They worked their hearts out under what has become impossible conditions for what I believed was a noble cause. Getting the paper out, every night, no matter what. The reporters got the credit. The deskers went bald and crazy."

Shermans fascination with the industry was triggered at the tender age of 6 when his schoolteacher recommended the class read the newspaper to augment their reading skills.  Magically, The Montreal Star arrived at his doorstep every afternoon.  He would dash home from school to be the first to open those ungainly pages in search of new words and mythic tales of greed, corruption, courage and victory.  By the time he was 17 he was a copy boy at that very same paper.  A few years after graduating from Dawson College, Sherman worked at The Star as circulation manager but eventually quit to write freelance for both The Star and The Gazette and then took a job at the Sherbrooke Record.  Over the years Sherman has been a music critic, feature writer, reporter and finally a copy editor working the desk at The Gazette.
As an added bonus for hard-core news junkies, Infinithtre is hosting a special event on Wednesday February 3.  The Bain will open its doors at 6:30 PM for an early showing of The Daily Miracle at 7 PM.  Directly following the performance, there will be a panel discussion with four of Montreals senior journalists: Alan Allnutt, publisher and editor-in-chief of The Gazette; Henry Aubin, author, historian, and columnist at The Gazette; Jose Boileau, editor-in-chief at Le Devoir and Franoise Gunette, free-lance journalist and reporter for Radio-Canada.  Its anticipated that the panel and audience will be working up quite a thirst so cocktails will be served at a post-discussion reception.  To buy a ticket or for more information, call (514) 987 1774 or e-mail development@infinitheatre.com.

Arthur Holden, celebrated Montral actor (most recently seen on History Television in September as General James Wolfe in Galafilms Battlefield Quebec), and writer (his play, Father Land, won the Write-On-Q competition last year and will round up Infinithtres season with a March production) is Marty, newly back on the job after a nervous breakdown and clearly headed down that road again.  Ellen David, well known to Canadian audiences (Mambo Italiano, The Carpenter and In Piazza San Domenico) and who currently stars in the new CBC comedy series 18 to Life, plays Elizabeth, a dedicated professional trying to balance motherhood and an all-consuming career in a predominately male environment.  Howard Rosenstein makes an about-turn from paedophilic clown in Infinithtres Rabbit Rabbit last fall to Benjamin, the womanizing night editor determined to get the paper out with a minimum of histrionics so he can hightail it to the nearest bar to drown his troubles.  New kid on the block with dreams of television news anchor fame is Carrie, played by Sheena Gaz-Deslandes in her theatrical debut and veteran Qubec actor Jean-Guy Bouchard is Roland, resident philosopher and fallen demi-God reduced to janitor.


Hot commodity, James Lavoie, designs the set and costumes and Eric Mongerson returns to Infinite as lighting designer with assistance from Mylne Choquette.  Making his Infinithtre debut as sound designer is Julien St. Pierre and Kathryn Cleveland is two for two this season as stage manager with Michael Panich as her apprentice.


Performance Information

      Dates & Times    Jan. 26 Feb. 14

      Previews     Jan. 26 & 27
      Opening     Jan. 28
      Tues. through Sat.    20:00
      Sunday Matine    14:00
      Monday     DARK

      Tickets

      General Admission         $20
      Seniors & Students    $15
      Groups (6 or more)    $10

      Venue

      Bain St-Michel
      5300, St-Dominique

      Box Office

      (514) 987 1774

      Web Site

www.infinitheatre.com

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Introducing Artistic Director Josh Grossman

Toronto Executive Producer and CEO of Toronto Downtown Jazz (TDJ), Patrick Taylor announces the appointment of Josh Grossman as the organizations new Artistic Director.  At 33, Grossman is a young leading figure in the local jazz scene and is an educator, producer and performer.
 
The appointment begins immediately as TDJ prepares for this summers 24th edition of the TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival. The opportunity to have such young talent with an ear to the ground on the local scene will bring a fresh perspective to the Festival, states Taylor. We are excited to move forward with the next generation of jazz impresarios and educators and feel that Joshs artistic vision will carry the Festival to the next decade and beyond.
 
I am excited to be working with TDJ and building on an outstanding 23-year tradition, states Grossman. Some of my favourite musical experiences have been at the Festival and I look forward to creating memorable experiences for the current and next generation of jazz fans. Its an honour to get to work closely with Torontos jazz community and the fantastic talent in this city, this country and on the international stage.
 
Having previously held positions as the Artistic Director of the Markham Jazz Festival, Manager of High Park Choirs of Toronto and Production Manager of The Royal Conservatory of Music, and through his continuing work as Programming Co-Chair for the Jazz Performance and Education Centre, Grossman has been steadily building relationships in the local, national and international jazz, classical and world music communities. In addition to the organizational and production aspects, Grossman is a musician and Founder of the Toronto Jazz Orchestra which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary as a big band for young, local emerging talent.
 
As Artistic Director, he will also be instrumental in further developing the educational components of TDJ during the off-season with community partner, Regent Park School of Music. Through master classes and other educational opportunities, TDJ will be exposing a new generation of students to jazz. Grossmans experience with The Glenn Gould School, and the Jazz Performance and Education Centre will help build a solid foundation of the Festival and jazz community at the grassroots level. 
 
Josh Grossmans appointment as Artistic Director follows the retirement of Founding Artistic Director Jim Galloway last year.
 
For more information please visit www.torontojazz.com

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Peggy Baker Dance Projects presents confluence, a fascinating collision of science and art


Toronto, December 16, 2009 - Peggy Baker is one of Canada's most outstanding, influential and celebrated dance artists. For her company's first-ever season at Harbourfront Centre's Enwave Theatre, she unveils a fascinating collision of science and art in confluence, February 24-28, 2010.

A triptych of richly detailed contemporary dance works inspired by the subtle movement and communication patterns of insects, confluence is a bracingly original evening of dance that features two choreographies from Peggy Baker (a world premiere trio and Toronto premiere of a new solo) and the Canadian premiere of an intimate new duet by the masterful New York choreographer Doug Varone.

The centrepiece of the evening is the world premiere of coalesce, a trio by Baker created for superb dancers Kate Holden, Sean Ling and Sahara Morimoto. This complex and unpredictable piece inquires into the nature of communication received through vibration, heat, light, scent, and touch, musing on alternate sensory and movement pathways for eliciting interconnected action.

Baker's new solo earthling, first on the program, receives its Toronto premiere (it premiered at Vancouver's Dances for a Small Stage in January of 2009). The dancer is confined to a small tipped and tilted platform that provides the audience with a skewed, almost overhead view of her movements as she rocks and reaches, like a beetle caught on its back. The richly painted platform appears to repel or absorb her, creating images of stark contrast and muted harmony. earthling reflects on the irony of how solitary one can feel despite the utter impossibly of not being a part of something larger.

Both coalesce and earthling were inspired by the work of Montreal visual artist Sylvia Safdie and the scientific essays of Lewis Thomas in his 1974 classic Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher.

The latter also inspired Doug Varone's duet armour that is danced by Baker with Varone company veteran Larry Hahn. It is a direct choreographic response to a Thomas essay concerning the communicative necessity among social insects regarding being touched: "It is the being touched that counts, rather than the act of touching." Originally created as part of the full evening work Dense Terrain, Varone suggested it to Baker for her own repertoire.


The evening is illuminated by Montreal lighting wizard Marc Parent, and is performed to an evocative and other-worldly electro-acoustic score, commissioned from composer Debashis Sinha.

A founding member of Dancemakers (Toronto/1974), Peggy Baker toured internationally with Lar Lubovitch's New York company throughout the 1980s and joined Mikhail Baryshnikov and Mark Morris for the inuagural season of their White Oak Dance Project, subsequently forging important creative relationships with choreographers Paul-Andr Fortier (Montreal), and Doug Varone (New York City). Since 1990 she has created and commissioned dances through her Toronto-based Peggy Baker Dance Projects. Appointed Artist-in-Residence at Canada's National Ballet School in 1992, Baker is the recipient of the 2006 Premier's Award for Excellence in the Arts, an honorary doctorate from the University of Calgary, three Dora Mavor Moore Awards for outstanding performance and two for outstanding choreography. She has been inducted into both the Order of Ontario and the Order of Canada, and is the recipient of the 2009 Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts.



Peggy Baker Dance Projects presents confluence
Wednesday February 24 - Sunday February 28, 2010
Wednesday-Saturday at 8pm: $25 & $30 (Discounts for students, seniors, CADA, groups);
Sunday matinee at 4pm: PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN 
Harbourfront Centre's Enwave Theatre, 231 Queens Quay West
Box Office: 416-973-4000  and ONLINE at www.peggybakerdance.com

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Gotham Chamber Opera's Il Mondo Della Luna

GOTHAM CHAMBER OPERA
in partnership with the American Museum of Natural History
and in association with American Repertory Theater
presents

IL MONDO DELLA LUNA
(The World on the Moon)
An opera by Joseph Haydn
at the Hayden Planetarium, Rose Center for Earth and Space,
American Museum of Natural History

Directed by Diane Paulus
January 19 - 28, 2010
PERFORMANCE ADDED
DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND:
Wednesday, January 27 at 8pm


Gotham Chamber Opera, in partnership with the American Museum of Natural History and in association with American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.), presents Il mondo della luna (The World on the Moon) by Joseph Haydn, in a new production staged by Diane Paulus, director of Hair, which received the 2009 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. Il mondo della luna will run from January 19 - 28, 2010 at the Hayden Planetarium in the Rose Center for Earth and Space at the American Museum of Natural History. Tickets are $30-$125 and are available at www.ticketcentral.com or by phone at 212-279-4200.

For the first time ever, the Hayden Planetarium will be transformed into an intimate opera house using a 180-degree dome and projections courtesy of NASA. Taking advantage of breakthroughs in laser and light technology, Il mondo della luna will fuse live opera and stargazing, immersing the audience in a completely new kind of theatrical event - an out-of-this-world experience for opera lovers, science buffs, and theatergoers alike.

"This is Gotham's grandest and most audacious production in our eight-year history. The combination of Haydn, the Hayden, Diane Paulus, and our incomparable lineup of singers and designers adds up to a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said Neal Goren, Artistic Director and founder of Gotham Chamber Opera.

The production will be directed by Diane Paulus, whom Opera News calls one of the top 25 names in U.S. opera. Leading the 27-piece orchestra is conductor Neal Goren. Video and production design is by Philip Bussmann, costume design is by Anka Lupes, with Andrew Eggert as associate director. Il mondo della luna features Hanan Alattar, Albina Shagimuratova, Rachel Calloway, Nicholas Coppolo, Matthew Tuell, Timothy Kuhn, and Marco Nistic.
Gotham Chamber Opera will literally take audiences to the moon in this production, Haydn's personal favorite of all his operas. Written in 1777, it's the story of a nobleman who refuses to let his daughters marry their true loves. With the help of a fake astronomer and a sleeping potion, the daughters trick their father into believing he's been sent to the moon, where he discovers they do things differently, especially when it comes to courtship. On the moon, women are allowed to choose their own husbands.

Gotham Chamber Opera is the nation's foremost opera company dedicated to producing rarely-performed chamber operas from the Baroque era to the present. The company's mission is to present innovative, fully-staged productions of the highest quality in intimate venues.
Founded by conductor and Artistic Director Neal Goren in 2000, in its short history, Gotham Chamber Opera has presented seven U.S. premieres of 18th- and 20th-century operas, including such masterpieces as Mozart's Il Sogno di Scipione; Darius Milhaud's Les Malheurs d'Orphe; Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu's Dada opera, Les Larmes du Couteau; and Swiss composer Heinrich Sutermeister's Die schwarze Spinne. In February 2005, Gotham presented the U.S. stage premiere of Handel's Arianna in Creta. Also in 2005, Lincoln Center Festival and Spoleto Festival USA presented Gotham Chamber Opera's U.S. premiere of Ottorino Respighi's fantastical puppet opera, La bella dormente nel bosco featuring the puppetry of Basil Twist. In the spring of 2006, Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring received its first professional staging in New York in more than 30 years, and in winter 2007, Rossini's Il signor Bruschino received its first major professional New York staging in over a half century. In the 2007/2008 season, Gotham Chamber Opera celebrated dance with productions of Astor Piazzolla's tango opera Mara de Buenos Aires, directed by David Parsons and featuring Parsons Dance, and with a new work entitled Ariadne Unhinged, directed by Karole Armitage and featuring members of Armitage Gone! Dance. And in 2009, Mark Morris directed the U.S. stage premiere of Haydn's L'isola disabitata. In the future, Gotham Chamber Opera will present Montsalvatge's El gato con botas (Puss in Boots), staged by Tony Award-nominated director Moiss Kaufman.
A.R.T. Artistic Director Diane Paulus is a director of opera and theater. Her recent theater work includes The Public Theater's revival of Hair at the Delacorte in Central Park, now transferred to Broadway (2009 Tony Award winner for Best Revival of a Musical, nominated for 8 Tony Awards including Best Director, as well as winner of a Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award and Drama League Award for Best Revival of a Musical). She is the creator and director of The Donkey Show, a disco adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream, which ran for six years Off-Broadway, and toured internationally to London, Edinburgh, Madrid, and Evian, France, currently being revived at the A.R.T. Other recent work includes Kiss Me Kate at Glimmerglass Opera; Lost Highway, based on the David Lynch film, an ENO co-production with the Young Vic in London, which received The South Bank Show Award for outstanding achievement during 2008; Another Country by James Baldwin at Riverside Church; Turandot: Rumble for the Ring at the Bay Street Theatre; The Golden Mickeys for Disney Creative Entertainment; Best of Both Worlds, a gospel/R&B adaptation of A Winter's Tale produced by Music-Theatre Group and The Women's Project; and The Karaoke Show, an adaptation of Comedy of Errors set in a karaoke bar. She directed the Obie Award-winning and Pulitzer Prize finalist Running Man by jazz composer Diedre Murray and poet Cornelius Eady for Music-Theatre Group, and Swimming with Watermelons, created in association with Project 400, the theater company she co-founded with her husband Randy Weiner. Other work Off-Broadway: Brutal Imagination, and the Obie Award-winning Eli's Comin, featuring the music and lyrics of Laura Nyro. As an opera director, her productions include Don Giovanni, Le nozze di Figaro, Turn of the Screw, Cosi fan tutte, and all three Monteverdi operas, Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria, L'incoronazione di Poppea, and Orfeo at Chicago Opera Theater. She is a frequent collaborator with British conductor Jane Glover. In 2002, their critically acclaimed production of Orfeo was presented as part of The Monteverdi Cycle at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City. Ms. Paulus has taught at Barnard College/Columbia University, and the Yale School of Drama, and was recently appointed Professor of the Practice in Harvard University's English Department. She is a 2009 recipient of the Harvard College Women's Professional Achievement Award and Columbia University's I.A.L Diamond Award, presented each year to a Columbia University alumnus/a who has demonstrated continued commitment to and has found success in the arts. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Harvard University with a B.A. in Social Studies, and has a M.F.A. in Directing from Columbia University's School of the Arts.

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) is one of the country's most celebrated resident theaters and the wnnner of numerous awards -- including the Tony Award and the Pulitzer Prize; it was recently named one of the top three theaters in the country by Time magazine. Over its twenty-nine-year history the A.R.T. has welcomed major American and international theater artists whose singular visions generate and define the theater's work, presenting a varied repertoire that includes new plays, progressive productions of classical texts, and collaborations between artists from many disciplines. The Company has performed throughout the country, and worldwide in twenty-one cities in sixteen countries on four continents.

The American Museum of Natural History is one of the world's preeminent scientific, educational, and cultural institutions. Since its founding in 1869, the Museum has advanced its global mission to explore and interpret human cultures and the natural world through a wide-reaching program of scientific research, education, and exhibitions. The Museum accomplishes this ambitious goal through its extensive facilities and resources. The institution houses 45 permanent exhibition halls, state-of-the-art research laboratories, one of the largest natural history libraries in the Western Hemisphere, and a permanent collection of more than 30 million specimens and cultural artifacts. With a scientific staff of more than 200, the Museum supports research divisions in Anthropology, Paleontology, Invertebrate and Vertebrate Zoology, and the Physical Sciences. The Museum shares its treasures and discoveries with approximately four million on-site visitors from around the world each year. AMNH-produced exhibitions and Space Shows can currently be seen in venues on five continents reaching an audience of millions. In addition, the Museum's Web site, www.amnh.org, extends its collections, exhibitions, and educational programs to millions more beyond the Museum's walls.

Performances of Il mondo della luna are made possible in part with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency; and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Il mondo della luna will run from January 19 - 28, 2010 at the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History, with performances on Tuesday, January 19 at 7:30pm (Opening Night); Wednesday, January 20 at 8pm; Monday, January 25 at 8pm; Tuesday, January 26 at 8pm; Wednesday, January 27 at 8pm; and Thursday, January 28 at 8pm. The Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History is located in the Rose Center for Earth and Space on West 81st Street (between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue). Tickets are $30-$125 and are available through Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com. Opening Night and after-party tickets are available by calling (212) 868-4460.
For more information, visit www.gothamchamberopera.org.

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Deux musiciens de lOrchestre symphonique de Montral invits au Conservatoire de musique de Gatineau


Conservatoire de musique de Gatineau



Gatineau, le 8 janvier 2010 Le mois de janvier 2010 sera riche en vnements exceptionnels au Conservatoire de musique de Gatineau! Les 15 et 16 janvier se tiendra le Salon de la clarinette, avec le matre invit Andr Moisan, clarinette basse et saxophone solo lOrchestre symphonique de Montral. Monsieur Moisan offrira des classes de matre et un rcital, et il dirigera le Chur de clarinettes form pour loccasion. Le 30 janvier, Paul Merkelo, trompette solo lOSM, sera linvit de la Journe des cuivres. Monsieur Merkelo donnera une classe de matre et un rcital. Les professeurs du Conservatoire Yves Lussier (trompette) et Julie Fauteux (cor) offriront galement une classe de matre aux lves de la rgion.
Lentre est libre pour toutes les activits.
Les lves dsirant participer aux classes de matre doivent sinscrire en communiquant avec le Conservatoire au 819 772-3283 poste 29.
Ne manquez la visite de ces deux invits prestigieux! Pour plus dinformation, veuillez consulter lhoraire ci-dessous.

*************************************


Andr Moisan
est rput pour sa matrise de l'instrument, sa grande musicalit et la clart de son jeu. Il occupe, au sein de l'OSM, le pupitre de saxophone solo et de clarinette basse depuis mai 1999. Animateur et pdagogue accompli, il dirige, toujours l'OSM, la srie Matines Jeunessedepuis 1998. Il est galement professeur agrg la facult de musique de l'Universit de Montral o il enseigne depuis 1989.

Paul Merkelo
est reconnu dans toute lAmrique du Nord comme lun des plus minents trompettistes de sa gnration. Ses qualits techniques exceptionnelles et son sens du lyrisme lui ont valu les loges des critiques musicaux les plus influents. Monsieur Merkelo sest joint LOrchestre symphonique de Montral en 1995, o il occupe maintenant le poste de trompette solo.

*************************************
Salon de la clarinette


Vendredi 15 janvier
9h30-11h30 1re Classe de matre dAndr Moisan avec des lves des coles secondaires de Gatineau.
13h00-15h00 2e Classe de matre dAndr Moisan avec un autre groupe des coles du secondaire incluant Ottawa.
19h00-21h00 Kiosque Twigg pour achat ou essai des instruments.

Samedi, 16 janvier
9h30-11h30 3e Classe de matre avec les lves du conservatoire et des lves de lUniversit dOttawa.
13h00-16h00 Rptition dun Chur de clarinettes des clarinettistes avancs de la rgion Gatineau-Ottawa sous la direction de M. Andr Moisan.
19h30 1ere partie : Rcital du clarinettiste Andr Moisan. Au piano, Pierre-Richard Aubin.
2e partie : Chur de clarinette sous la direction de M. Andr Moisan.

Journe des cuivres

Samedi 30 janvier

10h-12h00 Classe de matre de Paul Merkelo

13h-14h Classe de matre de Julie Fauteux et Yves Lussier pour les lves de la rgion.

14h-15h Rcital du trompettiste Paul Merkelo. Au piano, Pierre-Richard Aubin.

Entre libre toutes les activits.



Consultez sans tarder le calendrier complet de nos activits sur notre site Internet www.conservatoire.gouv.qc.ca. Ce site vous offre de vous abonner un fil RSS, une faon simple et pratique dtre inform sur nos activits (www.conservatoire.gouv.qc.ca/rss). Procurez-vous galement notre dpliant de la programmation 2009-2010 en tlphonant au 819 772-3283.

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Nol en janvier

Les Rhapsodes - Saison 2009-2010 - Allegro e Maestoso!

Le Chur Les Rhapsodes enregistre au Palais Montcalm

Qubec, le 7 janvier 2010 Le Chur Les Rhapsodes retourne au Palais Montcalm du vendredi 8 janvier au dimanche 10 janvier 2010, pour une sance denregistrement qui sannonce prometteuse. Sous la direction musicale et artistique de David Rompr, prs de soixante-dix choristes et un ensemble instrumental compos de Jocelyn Turbis, tienne Lafrance et Ren Roulx enregistreront les arrangements de jazz de Nol prsents pour la premire fois avec un grand succs le 12 dcembre dernier, dans ce mme Palais Montcalm. Le CD Jazzons Nol ! sera lanc lautomne 2010.

Le CD sera consacr des nols parmi les plus connus, revisits par quelques-uns des meilleurs arrangeurs de jazz du Qubec. Ces musiciens de grand talent ont transform pour le Chur Les Rhapsodes les nols les plus traditionnels, leur donnant le rythme du jazz en mme temps quune nouvelle vie. Jocelyn Turbis au piano, tienne Lafrance la contrebasse et Ren Roulx la batterie accompagneront ainsi le Chur Les Rhapsodes pour le gospel endiabl de Il est n le divin enfant, la samba mlancolique des Anges dans nos campagnes ou le blues langoureux du Sommeil de lenfant Jsus. Le concert Jazzons Nol ! a t prsent le 12 dcembre dernier avec lappui de STEAMATIC.

Ds le 27 mars prochain, le Chur prsentera au Palais Montcalm, le Requiem allemand de Brahms, un monument du rpertoire symphonique et du chant choral, interprt avec un orchestre de prs de quarante instrumentistes. La saison 2009-2010 du Chur Les Rhapsodes est ralise en partenariat avec ASSURANCES ET SERVICES FINANCIERS DES AMRIQUES.

Lensemble de la saison 2009-2010 est commandit par LINSTITUT CANADIEN DES PRODUITS PTROLIERS, VOYAGES FUNTASTIQUE et HYDRO QUBEC. Le Chur Les Rhapsodes bnficie de lappui du Service de la culture de la Ville de Qubec, du Conseil des arts et des lettres du Qubec, de Patrimoine canadien, de Placements Culture, du ministre de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition fminine et de la Facult de Musique de lUniversit Laval.

propos du Chur Les Rhapsodes
Le Chur Les Rhapsodes prsente en 2009-2010 sa 48e saison. Il compte soixante choristes placs sous la direction musicale et artistique de David Rompr depuis 2000. Le Chur Les Rhapsodes est reconnu comme lun des organismes musicaux majeurs de la Capitale nationale. Il a pour mission de promouvoir lart musical et en particulier le chant choral, de dvelopper de nouveaux publics et de favoriser le dveloppement des nouveaux talents Qubec en engageant chacun des concerts de sa saison des solistes et instrumentistes professionnels de la rgion. Pour plus dinformation, visitez le site Internet du Chur, www.lesrhapsodes.com

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Cut/Paste: Creative Reuse in Canadian Design

Exhibition on display at the ROM from January 20 to 31, 2010

(Toronto, Ontario January 8, 2010) Motherbrand and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) proudly present Cut/Paste: Creative Reuse in Canadian Design, an exhibition that explores the practice of creating new designs from existing and salvaged products. The exhibition will run from January 20 31, 2010 at the ROMs Institute for Contemporary Culture (ICC), coinciding with the first annual Toronto International Design Festival.

Creative reuse has become one of the most visible trends in contemporary international design. Prominent Canadian designers such as Tobias Wong and Douglas Coupland have garnered attention for their witty redesigns of existing products and as Motherbrand cofounder Michael Erdmann explains, their work is part of a strong Canadian tradition. Creative reuse has deep roots in Canadian material culture. Naturally, this type of improvisation occurs all over the world, often arising out of necessity, but in a young nation like Canada these conditions tend to spring up a lot. Examples in the show range from early First Nations adaptations of European products, to depression era solutions such as the Bennett Buggy and Fred Moffats iconic K42 Kettle produced in response to war time manufacturing restraints. More recently, creative reuse has fueled many of the nations independent design manufacturers. Manufacturing in Canada tends to be relatively small scale and specialized. Sourcing materials from existing products is a powerful way to overcome these limitations, says Motherbrands John Ryan. Adding, The smallest of firms and even non-designers are able to produce products this way.

A function of the ICC at the ROM is the exploration of different cultures and their relationship to each other and over time. Concerns over the environment and sustainability, as well as the ways we confront these issues have become hallmarks of our generation.  As such, the ROM is very pleased to host this exhibition, which shines a light on the inventive ways Canadian designers are advancing contemporary design while adapting to 21st century needs, said Francisco Alvarez, Managing Director of the ICC.

Environmental sustainability is an issue that most of these designs address in some way, says Todd Falkowsky. The Motherbrand cofounder continues, This is a powerful tactic for reducing our consumption of energy and materials; it forces us to reconsider what we consider waste. A lot of these designs are produced in relatively small numbers, so their influence is largely conceptual, but the impact is real. Based on the success of these designs, manufacturers such as Umbra and Gus* Modern are finding ways to apply the same approach to larger production runs.  Working in the developing world, Canadian designers are also using creative reuse as a tactic for improving social conditions. The Bambulance Project by Design For Development is a great example, says Erdmann. Their bicycle ambulance provides basic emergency transportation in isolated communities. By utilizing local and reclaimed materials, even impoverished groups can afford to produce the design themselves.

Cut/Paste is one of a pair of exhibits curated by Motherbrand, exploring the act of sampling in Canadian material culture. The second exhibition titled Copy: The fine tradition of imitation in Canadian ceramics, highlights inspired cases of mimicry drawn from Canadian production ceramics, both past and present. Copy runs from January 8 to February 5 at the Gardiner Museum.

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Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Valrie Milot : harpiste prime au jeu color et puissant

smValrie_Milot2_30_jan_Photo_Eve_Leclerc-Perspective.jpg

Sherbrooke, le 8 janvier 2010   Proclame Rvlation Radia-Canada Musique pour lanne 2009-2010, la harpiste trifluvienne Valrie Milot donnera un concert de harpe solo le 30 janvier prochain au Thtre Centennial 20 h.  Au programme, une slection de pices tires de son premier disque  Rvlation : rcital de harpe  dont Suite pour harpe solo de Benjamin Britten ainsi que le Concerto pour harpe en si bmol majeur de Haendel.

Laurate du prestigieux Prix dEurope en 2008, elle a aussi t laurate de nombreux autres prix, dont le Prix Opus Dcouverte de lanne 2008 et le Prix Jeune Soliste 2009 des Radios francophones publiques.  PLUS DINFORMATION DANS LE COMMUNIQU EN PICE JOINTE.


*      Page du concert (vido/audio): http://www.ubishops.ca/centennial/program/valerie-milot-fr.html
*      Site Web de lartiste : http://www.valeriemilot.com/
*      Radio-Canada / Rvlations: http://musique.radio-canada.ca/concerts_evenements/revelations_musicales_2009_2010/valerie_milot.asp
*      Information sur lartiste et le nouveau disque: http://www.analekta.com/fr/artistes/valerie-milot.1138.html


VALRIE MILOT Samedi 30 janvier - 20 h
THTRE CENTENNIAL  www.centennialtheatre.ca
Billetterie / Rservations  819-822-9692                 Adultes : $20   Ans (60+) / tudiants (avec carte) : $15

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APAP Conference NYC 2010 Special Focus: Performing Arts Industry Looks to Greener Pastures in the New Year

First Ever Performing Arts Industry Greening Survey Indicates Strong Desire from Organizations to Enhance Environmental Practices

NEW YORK, NY Performing arts organizations are determined to make a positive impact on the environment. That is one of several key findings released today from the first industry-wide study of greening in the performing arts, commissioned by Arts Presenters, in partnership with the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and leading consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton. The survey, designed to examine the performing arts industry's attitudes and perceptions towards environmental issues, collected empirical data from 324 organizations. 83 percent of respondents said their organizations have implemented green initiatives, but only 24 percent have formalized green policies and goals in their organizations. One-third of respondents cited a lack of resources as the main barrier to going green. 

 "We are very encouraged learning through this first ever greening study for our performing arts industry that a large number of arts organizations are interested in greening and have taken the beginning steps to reduce their environmental footprint. We are also made aware of the important role the association can play in advancing knowledge about and providing resources to help our field take significant steps to reduce their impact on the environment and engage audiences and their communities in doing the same," said Sandra Gibson, President and CEO, Arts Presenters.

Survey results indicate the following:

  • The majority of organizations are committed to going green and have or are pursuing some of the first steps towards reducing their environmental footprint
  • Most organizations have an informal program focused on internal and ad hoc opportunities
  • Few organizations have a formal program with specific reduction commitments or the ability to measure their improvement
  • Few organizations are leveraging the full scope of their impact by connecting with their audiences, where they have the greatest ability to influence behavior and have the greatest environmental impact
  • Lack of resources is the most frequently cited reason for not doing more
  • Organizations are only moderately effective in communicating their work to the public and impacting their behavior
 "This survey demonstrates a critical opportunity for growth in our industry," said Terrence D. Jones, President and CEO of Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. "Because the arts are society's storytellers, we have a double opportunity of leading by example and using our art to encourage others to follow their own paths to environmental sustainability." The Wolf Trap Foundation has reduced its carbon footprint by 19% in two years and has commissioned environmentally-themed work as part of the summer season in the 7,000-seat Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts.

"It is impressive to see the number of performing arts organizations that are actively greening their facilities and operations. There are many opportunities for private and public participation in these efforts to take advantage of the enthusiasm and interest of the presenters and audiences to make even greater impact that will reduce operating costs and improve the environment," concluded David Erne, Senior Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton.
The complete survey results and analysis can be found here. 

About the Association of Performing Arts Presenters 

Founded in 1957, the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (Arts Presenters, or APAP) is the national service organization for the field of arts presenting. The organization is dedicated to developing and supporting a robust performing arts presenting field and the professionals who work in it. Arts Presenters has nearly 2,000 organizational members and brings nearly 4,000 performing arts professionals together from around the world at the annual APAP Conference NYC. Members range from the nation's leading performing arts centers, to civic and university performance facilities, to the full spectrum of artist agencies, managers, national consulting practices that service the field, and a growing roster of self-presenting artists.

Arts Presenters is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization, based in Washington, D.C. and is governed by a volunteer board of directors. Arts Presenters is led by its CEO Sandra Gibson, now in her ninth year. In addition to presenting the annual APAP Conference NYC the world's leading forum and marketplace for the performing arts (January 8-12, 2010) Arts Presenters continues to be the industry's leading resource, knowledge and networking destination for the advancement of performing arts presenting. 

About The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts 

The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts is a non-profit organization founded by Catherine Filene Shouse (1896-1994) that produces and presents a full-range of performance and education programs in the Greater Washington area, as well as nationally and internationally. Wolf Trap, America's National Park for the Performing Arts, is home to three performance venues: the Filene Center, Children's Theatre in the Woods and The Barns. The Filene Center, which operates in partnership with the National Park Service, is a 7,028-seat outdoor pavilion that showcases an extensive list of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk and blues to orchestra, dance, theater and opera, as well as multimedia presentations from May through September each year; The Barns operate year round. The Wolf Trap Opera Company is one of America's outstanding resident ensemble programs for young opera singers. Wolf Trap's education programs include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, scholarships, master classes, and internships. Visit the Wolf Trap Web site at www.wolftrap.org for more information. Terrence D. Jones is president and CEO of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. 

About Booz Allen Hamilton 

Booz Allen Hamilton has been at the forefront of strategy and technology consulting for 95 years. Every day, government agencies, institutions, corporations, and not-for-profit organizations rely on the firm's expertise and objectivity, and on the combined capabilities and dedication of our exceptional people to find solutions and seize opportunities. Providing a broad range of services in strategy, operations, organization and change, information technology, systems engineering, and program management, Booz Allen is committed to delivering results that endure.

With more than 22,000 people, Booz Allen generates $4.5 billion in annual revenue. To learn more about the firm, visit www.boozallen.com.

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Triumph for the Morgenstern Trio: German Piano Trio Awarded Prestigious Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson International Trio Award - National Tour Planned for 2010-2011 & 2011-12 Seasons -


http://mail.google.com/a/lascena.org/?ui=2&ik=40fe1fc82c&view=att&th=1260e185fe98bfeb&attid=0.2&disp=inline&zw 
FARMINGTON HILLS, MI. The Chamber Music Society of Detroit today announced that the 2009 winner of the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson International Trio Award (KLRITA) is the Morgenstern Trio. After a call for nominations sent internationally to classical music presenters, musicians, educators and other professionals, the trio was selected in New York by a panel comprising musicians Jonathan Biss, Joel Krosnick, Jamie Laredo, Sharon Robinson and Michael Tree, and two Award presenters, Jeremy Geffen, Carnegie Hall, and Shauna Quill, the University of Chicago Presents.

SUGGESTED STORY LINES
     Award supported by $30,000 gift from each of twenty participating presenters
     Only existing piano trio award worldwide
     Catapults the careers of talented, young piano trios
     As a benefit of the Award, the Morgenstern Trio will make its first U.S. tour
     Prestigious Award now announcing the winners of its fourth cycle
     Named for the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, now in its 34th year
    Personal Interest: Unaware of their nominations, the musicians are surprised and thrilled to win the Award: one ensemble thought the news was "a hoax," too good to be true, another trio danced in the streets and the current winners said they needed no other gifts for Christmas.

ABOUT THE WINNING ENSEMBLE
Taking its name from the popular German poet, author and humorist Christian Morgenstern (1871 1914), the Morgenstern Trio was formed in 2005 at the Folkwang Academy in Essen, Germany; its membership consists of pianist Catherine Klipfel from France, violinist Stefan Hempel from Germany (who joined the ensemble in the summer of 2009, succeeding violinist Nina Reddig) and cellist Emanuel Wehse from Germany. In 2007, after only two years of intensive collaboration, the Trio was awarded first prize at the International Joseph Haydn Competition in Vienna, second prize at the Fifth Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition and second prize and the audience prize at the prestigious ARD Competition in Munich.

The Morgenstern Trio has toured throughout Europe under the auspices of the Bundesauswahl Konzerte Junger Knstler (a national concert organization for Germanys rising young artists) and the Best of NRW concert series. Festival appearances include the Pablo Casals Festival in Prades, France, the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the Heidelberger Frhling, the WDR Musikfest and the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival in Finland.  The Trio was recently invited to participate in the European Concert Hall Organization (ECHO) "Rising Stars" series and is making its debut during the 2009-2010 season at leading concert halls across Europe in such major cities as Paris, Vienna, Amsterdam, Cologne, Brussels, Birmingham and Stockholm. The ensemble has appeared on numerous radio broadcasts throughout Europe and released its debut CD of works by Beethoven and Brahms in 2008. Providing the Morgenstern Trios debut appearances in the United States, the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson International Trio Award tour will take on a special significance for this accomplished trio.

ABOUT THE AWARD
A biennial piano trio award, the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson International Trio Award derives its impetus from the desire to honor the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio (Joseph Kalichstein, piano, Jaime Laredo, violin, Sharon Robinson, cello) in perpetuity by giving recognition to this prestigious trio's contribution to chamber music worldwide for over 30 years.  In addition, the award was created to encourage and enhance the careers of accomplished and extraordinarily promising young and "rising" piano trios that will be chosen every other year.  To be considered for the award, trios must have been together for approximately 5-10 years, be actively engaged in touring and have professional management. The KLRITA is administered by the Chamber Music Society of Detroit.

Originated by Lois R. Beznos, President of the Chamber Music Society of Detroit, the KLRITA is based upon the collaboration of 20 participating chamber music presenters. The winning trio benefits from presentation on the series of these 20 participating presenters nationwide over the two-year award period.  Moreover, the Award provides for a CD recording of the winning trio by Azica Records.  The winning trio also benefits from the contribution by Kenneth Warren & Son, Ltd. of instrument maintenance services by its workshop in addition to its efforts to identify the highest quality violins and cellos as prospective loans to the trio winners during the award period.

SUPPORT
The KLRITA is supported in part by the contribution of $30,000 each by the 20 participating chamber music presenting organizations across the U.S., including the Chamber Music Society of Detroit. A unique advantage to presenters is that, in perpetuity, they will have the benefit of an endowed concert, paid for by the award endowment fund, every other season.  Additional support for the KLRITA comes from Jean and Sam Frankel, the Matilda R. Wilson Fund and the Whitney Fund.

RECOGNITION OPPORTUNITIES
Significant recognition opportunities are available for additional major donors to the award endowment.  For information, please contact Lois Beznos, President, Chamber Music Society of Detroit at 248-737-9982.

KLRITA WINNERS
The winners of the KLRITA to date have been:
Claremont Trio, 2003
Trio con Brio Copenhagen, 2005
ATOS Trio, 2007
Morgenstern Trio, 2009

The ATOS Trio, current winner of the KLRITA, will complete its Award tour during the 2009-2010 season after which the Morgenstern Trio will embark upon its twenty-concert KLRITA Award tour during the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 seasons.

KLRITA PRESENTERS
The following chamber music presenters have contributed to the KLRITA endowment fund to participate in the award:

Ames Town & Gown Chamber Music Association
Arizona Friends of Chamber Music
Carnegie Hall

Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
Chamber Music Cincinnati

Chamber Music Monterey Bay
Chamber Music Sedona

Chamber Music Society of Detroit
Chamber Music Society of Louisville

Chamber Music Society of Utica
Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, University of Maryland
El Camino College Center for the Arts
Friends of Chamber Music - Kansas City

Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival

Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts
Naples Philharmonic Center for the Arts
Purdue Convocations - Purdue University
San Antonio Chamber Music Society

Thomasville Entertainment Foundation
University of Chicago Presents



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