Canada Council for the Arts announces 14 winners in Musical Instrument Bank Competition

I just returned from the Canada Council for the Arts Musical Instrument Bank Competition press conference at the Glenn Gould Studio. The slate of fourteen winners of this year's competition was announced, and all except one were there to formally receive their instruments for a three-year loan. There are twelve women and two men among the winners. Among the collection of instruments (all violins and cellos) include four Stradivari, the most valuable is the 1696 Bonjour Stradivari cello, insured for $8 million. This has been awarded to cellist Rachel Mercer. The 1689 Baumgartner Stradivari violin, valued at $4.3 million, has been awarded to Judy Kang.

The Instrument Bank was established in 1985, through donations and loans from private individuals and anonymous donors. It is designed to help young Canadian musicians to further their international solo or chamber music careers. Luthier Ric Heinl and his team at Geo. Heinl & Company Ltd are responsible for the restoration and maintenance of the instruments.

A free concert will be given this evening at 8 pm at the Glenn Gould Studio. Tickets are limited so be sure to secure a ticket before you go. The concert will be recorded for broadcast on CBC Radio 2's In Concert with Bill Richardson on Sunday, Oct. 4, and on Tempo with Julie Nesrallah at a later date. They will also be broadcast on Espace musique on tuesday, Oct. 27 at 8 pm on Soirees classiques, hosted by Michel Keable.

Below is the press release on the winners:

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The Canada Council for the Arts Musical Instrument Bank loans three‑hundred‑year ‑old instruments to exceptional young musicians

Toronto, September 24, 2009 – The Canada Council for the Arts is pleased to announce the winners of the Musical Instrument Bank competition (MIB). The 14 instruments loaned to gifted young Canadian musicians are worth more than $28 million.

Please find below the list of instruments and the winners of the 2009 competition.

The 1689 Baumgartner Stradivari violin, valued at $4.3 million, is awarded to Judy Kang. In 1997, 2000, 2003 and 2006, she won the loan of an instrument from the MIB. Born inEdmonton, she currently lives in New York.

The ca. 1696 Bonjour Stradivari cello, valued at $8 million, is awarded to Rachel Mercer. In 2006, she won the loan of an instrument from the MIB. Born in Edmonton, she currently lives in Toronto.

The ca. 1700 Bell Giovanni Tononi violin, valued at $188,000, is awarded to Marie-Ève Poupart. Originally from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu (QC), she currently lives in Baltimore,Maryland.

The ca. 1700 Taft Stradivari violin, valued at an estimated $4.3 million, is awarded to Renée‑Paule Gauthier. Originally from Jonquière (QC), she currently lives in Calgary.

The 1715 Dominicus Montagnana violin, valued at $858,000, is awarded to Véronique Mathieu. Also a winner in 2006, Ms. Mathieu has selected this violin for the second time.Born in Montreal and raised in Quebec City, she now lives in Bloomington, Indiana.

The 1717 Windsor-Weinstein Stradivari violin, valued at $4.3 million, is awarded to Caroline Chéhadé of Montreal. In 2006, she won the loan of an instrument from the MIB.

The 1729 Guarneri del Gesù violin, valued at $4.3 million, is awarded to Nikki Chooi. A native of Victoria (BC), he currently studies in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The 1747 Palmason Januarius Gagliano violin, valued at $322,000, is awarded to Andréa Tyniec. Originally from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu (QC), she currently lives Munich, Germany.

The ca. 1767 Joannes Baptista Guadagnini, valued at $536,000, is awarded to Min-Jeong Koh. Born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in Toronto, she currently lives in Montreal.

The 1820 Joannes Franciscus Pressenda violin, valued at $375,000, is awarded to Kerry DuWors. In 2003 and 2006, she won the loan of an instrument from the MIB. Originally from Saskatoon, she currently lives in Brandon (MB).

The 1824 McConnell Nicolaus Gagliano cello, valued at $375,000, is awarded to Chloé Dominguez, of Montreal.

The ca. 1830 Shaw Adam cello bow, valued at $43,000, is awarded to Emmanuelle Beaulieu Bergeron. Also a MIB winner in 2006, Ms. Beaulieu Bergeron has selected this cello bow for the second time. She was born in Roberval (QC), and currently lives in Toronto.

1869 Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume violin with its Vuillaume model bow, valued at $172,000, is awarded to Jessica Linnebach. In 2003 and 2006, she won the loan of an instrument from the MIB. Born in Edmonton, she currently lives in Ottawa.

1902 Enrico Rocca violin, valued at $214,000, is awarded to Jing Wang. Born in China and raised in Sainte-Foy (QC), he currently lives in Texas.

Instrument descriptions, biographical notes and downloadable photographs of the winners and instruments are available on the Canada Council’s website at www.canadacouncil.ca.

Competition

Since last Sunday, talented Canadian musicians have competed for a three-year loan of one of the thirteen fine stringed instruments and the one cello bow created between 1689 and 1902. The winners had the opportunity to choose the instrument they would like to have on loan in order of their placement in the competition.

The peer assessment committee evaluated all applications – which included recordings of the applicants’ playing – and selected finalists. Finalists were then invited to come to Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto for auditions and interviews. The winners were selected by a committee consisting of Peter Gardner, violinist and director of Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra (St. John’s, NL); Uri Mayer, violist and conductor (Toronto); and Sophie Rolland, cellist (London, England).

Musical Instrument Bank

Created in 1985, the Musical Instrument Bank acquires through donations and loans fine stringed instruments to be loaned to gifted young Canadian musicians to help further their international solo or chamber music careers. Luthier Ric Heinl and his team at Geo. Heinl & Co. Limited are responsible for the restoration and maintenance of the instruments.

Free concert

Tonight at 8 p.m., the 14 winners will perform in a free concert before a full house at the Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto.

The musicians’ performances will be recorded for broadcast on CBC Radio 2’s In Concertwith Bill Richardson on Sunday, October 4^th and on Tempo with Julie Nesrallah at a later date. They will also be broadcast on Espace musique, Radio-Canada’s music network, on Tuesday, October 27^th at 8 p.m. on Soirées classiques, hosted by Michel Keable.

General information

In addition to its principal role of promoting and fostering the arts, the Canada Council for the Arts administers and awards many prizes and fellowships in the arts, humanities, social sciences, natural and health sciences, engineering, and arts management. These prizes and fellowships recognize the achievements of outstanding Canadian artists, scholars, and administrators. The Canada Council for the Arts is committed to raising public awareness and celebration of these exceptional people and organizations on both a national and international level.

Please visit our website (www.canadacouncil.ca) for a complete listing of these awards.

This Week in Toronto (Sept. 21 - 27)

The fall music season swings into action this week, now that the Toronto International Film Festival is over and our main concert venues are once again free. For voice fans, a major event is the start of the Canadian Opera Company season, with Puccini's warhorse, Madama Butterfly, at the Four Seasons Centre beginning Saturday, Sept. 26 7:30 pm. This revival of the serviceable if slightly frayed Brian Macdonald production will receive an unprecedented run of fifteen performances. The principal roles are double cast - Butterfly (sopranos Adina Nitescu and Yannick-Muriel Noah), Pinkerton (tenors David Pomeroy and Bryan Hymel), Sharpless (baritones James Westman and Brett Polegato), Suzuki (mezzos Allyson McHardy and Anita Krause). With the exception of Romanian Nitescu, it is an all-Canadian cast. Westman is particularly well known as Sharpless, having sung it many times, including the COC about ten years ago. Tenor David Pomeroy is rapidly becoming a COC mainstay. Coached by retired Canadian tenor Ermanno Mauro, Pomeroy sings with a pleasing, Italianate timbre. The conducting duties are shared by Carlo Montanaro and Derek Bate.

A second major event is the opening of the new Koerner Hall of the Royal Conservatory of Music. The opening concert takes place on Friday Sept. 25 at 8:30 pm, with Jean-Philippe Tremblay conducting the Royal Conservatory Orchestra. It features Beethoven's Choral Fantasy and a video tribute to RCM graduate Glenn Gould on the anniversary of his birthday. On the program are pianist Anton Kuerti, Toronto Mendelssohn choir, soprano Erin Wall, mezzo Wallis Giunta, tenor Richard Margison, and bass Robert Pomakov. The tariff at $100 to $250 is not exactly cheap, with the less expensive seats all sold out at this point. But this is a special occasion and well worth attending. A more affordable alternative ($35 to $125) is the concert the next evening, with Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke and Lenny White. For me, a must-see concert is the great Frederica von Stade in a Farewell Tour Concert on Saturday, Oct. 10. This will be our last chance to hear this great mezzo.

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra launches its new season on Thursday Sept. 24, with violinist Joshua Bell playing Brahms Violin Concerto in D Major. Peter Oundjian conducts this and the Brahms Symphony No. 2. Also on the program is Canadian composer John Estacio's Frenergy. The program is repeated on Saturday Sept. 26 at Roy Thomson Hall.

On Thursday morning, the Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank Competition will announce its results in a press conference at the Glenn Gould Studio. Fourteen winners will get the use of 13 instruments plus a cello bow valued at a total of more than $26 million USD. This program is designed to aid promising young Canadian musicians in their careers by making available to them world-class instruments for performance. I will attend the press conference and will have more to report. In the evening at 8 pm, there will be a free concert given by the winners at the Glenn Gould Studio. Seating is limited so be sure to arrive early.