December events at the RCM

The Royal Concert Season 08.09

Warm up December with Spectacular Performances!

December at The Royal Conservatory (RCM) is filled with very special events, most of them free to the public, as The RCM continues to enjoy its return to Bloor Street and its newly refurbished TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning.

Legendary American pianist and conductor, Leon Fleisher, opens the first week of December with Fleisher Master Class Week from December 2 to December 5, during which he will give five master classes. The Master Classes are free and open to the public, a wonderful way to see a great artist at work! As well, Mr. Fleisher will give a very special concert on December 3, as part of the Great Artists Series. During the concert on Wednesday, (his first solo Toronto performance in over six years), Fleisher will perform a first half of solo piano repertoire. The second part of the concert will be comprised of Brahms' Piano Quintet in f minor, for which he will be joined by members of ARC (Artists of The Royal Conservatory) Erika Raum and Marie Bˆ©rard (violins), Steven Dann (viola), and Bryan Epperson (cello).

Great Artists Series will continue on Friday, December 12, with the renowned violinist and pedagogue Paul Kantor and his wife, Virginia Weckstrom (piano), both of whom joined the faculty of The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory in September of this year. They will be joined by two ARC members, Bryan Epperson (cello) and Joaquin Valdepeˆ±as (clarinet), in an array of chamber music repertoire.

Firmly rooted in the soil of their native land, the energetic and traditional Quˆ©bˆ©cois folk 'power trio', Genticorum, incorporates the dynamism of today's North American and European folk cultures in their music. They have performed in more than 15 countries all over the world, and on Thursday, December 11, they will appear as part of the World Music Concerts at The RCM.

Internationally renowned pianist and Beethoven interpreter Anton Kuerti returns to The RCM for the second of his 5-part lecture series, devoted to the Second Beethoven Piano Concerto, on Friday, December 12. Another wonderful free event will be the Saturday, December 6, concert by the Academy Symphony Orchestra, lead by conductor and artistic director, David Visentin.

A very special event will round out the December performances at The RCM - the world premiere of Dean Burry's opera, Pandora's Locker. This is the first major operatic commission by The Glenn Gould School, written specifically for a high school audience. Inspired by the Greek myth of Pandora's Box, in which a young woman's curiosity leads to the unleashing of all the world's evils, it is a simple, archetypal myth, which reflects humankind's own hunt for knowledge and the potential for disaster upon its discovery. Through the use of themes such as gender issues, sexuality, and gun violence, set to a musical ensemble including modern "urban music scratch electronica", the opera places the Pandora myth within a contemporary, inner-city high school setting. Performances on December 5, 11, and 13, will be conduced by Brian Current and directed by Jennifer Parr.

THE ROYAL CONCERT SEASON - December 2008

Leon Fleisher, piano (GGS Master Class Series): Tuesday, December 2 time TBD*

Leon Fleisher, piano, with members of ARC (Great Artists Series): Wed, December 3 at 8pm

Leon Fleisher, piano (GGS Master Class Series): Thursday, December 4 at 10am and 2pm*

Leon Fleisher, piano (GGS Master Class Series): Friday, December 5 time TBD*

Pandora's Locker (GGS New Music Ensemble and Opera Division): Friday, December 5 at 8pm*

Academy Symphony Orchestra (Rising Stars Series): Saturday, December 6 at 8pm*

Pandora's Locker (GGS New Music Ensemble and Opera Division): Thurs, December 11 at 11am*

Genticorum (World Music Concerts): Thursday, December 11 at 7:30pm

Anton Kuerti, piano (GGS Lecture Series): Friday, December 12 at 2pm*

Paul Kantor, violin, Virginia Weckstrom, piano, with members of ARC (Great Artists Series):

Friday, December 12 at 8pm

Pandora's Locker (GGS New Music Ensemble and Opera Division): Sat, December 13 at 2pm*

Tickets $20.00 - $30.00, students $10

Tickets available online at www.rcmusic.ca, by calling 416-408-2824 X321,

or at the door at the RCM, 273 Bloor Street West, Toronto

* Free event

All events take place at the Conservatory's new home, the TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, 273 Bloor Street West.

More information about the 2008-2009 Concert Season is available on The Royal Conservatory website at www.rcmusic.ca.