LSM Newswire

Friday, May 30, 2008

Les soires Cooking arrivent dans les chaumires!

La populaire srie de CD succs Cooking inspire de folles soires !

Avec les soires COOKING

les chaumires ont de quoi faire la fte !

Montral, le lundi 5 juin 2008 la suite du succs remport par la srie de disques Cooking, dith Provost, conceptrice des albums Cooking, propose de transposer chez vous lart de vivre et de bien manger contenue sur CD, alors que sont aujourdhui lances les Soires CookingĶ quelles soient places sous le signe de la gastronomie franaise, italienne ou asiatique !

Bien davantage que des rceptions prives la maison, ces soires sannoncent comme de vritables happenings. Le concept, la fois simple et des plus efficaces, vise la russite totale dune soire au cours de laquelle un hte convie ses invits dans le confort de son foyer, tandis que les spcialistes de La brigade Nord veillent tout. Lhte en question na qu choisir la destination culinaire de son choix (France, Italie ou Asie), et le tour est jou ! Au menu, on retrouve la prsence dun chef expriment, vritable cordon-bleu proposant pas moins de cinq services, agrment dun cours et dmonstration culinaire. Concert priv ou slection musicale sur CD selon le thme choisi viennent complter cet allchant tableau, sans oublier quun disque-souvenir Cooking sera remis chacun des convives.

Vous serez ainsi linvit de votre propre rception prive, sous les heureux auspices dun matre-cuisinier qui concoctera ses merveilles culinaires sous vos yeux et ceuxĶ de vos invits ! Une soire qui trouvera certes cho auprs de vos invits des annes durant ! La brigade Nord, prconise une approche la fois style et audacieuse en proposant sa clientle un service quatre toiles des plus personnaliss, ce qui ne fera pas dfaut loccasion de ces savoureuses soires intimes.

Trois types de soires soffrent aux amoureux de la gastronomie, soucieux de partager avec leurs proches leur passion de la bonne chre :

Les soires Cooking la franaise :

Chef priv, serveur sur place, menu cinq services et cinq toiles, cours et dmonstration sur le Foie gras pour lhte et ses convives, concert priv de musique typiquement franaise ou encore slection musicale sur CD axe sur les classiques du rpertoire dartistes de lHexagone, de mme quune copie du disque succs intitul Cooking chansons pimentes pour cuisine frenchy, laquelle sera remise chacun des convives.

Cooking litalienne :

Chef priv, serveur sur place, menu cinq services et cinq toiles, cours et dmonstration sur lart dapprter les ptes pour lhte et ses convives, concert priv de musique typiquement italienne ou encore slection musicale sur CD axe sur les classiques du rpertoire dartistes de la botte , de mme quune copie du disque succs intitul Cooking chansons pimentes pour cuisine al dente, laquelle sera remise chacun des convives.

Cooking lasiatique :

Chef priv, serveur sur place, menu asiatique cinq services et cinq toiles, cours et dmonstration sur lart dapprter les sushis pour lhte et ses convives, concert priv de musique typiquement asiatique ou encore slection musicale sur CD axe sur les airs de lOrient, de mme quune copie du disque succs intitul Cooking chansons pimentes pour cuisine pice, laquelle sera remise chacun des convives.

Enfin, rappelons que La brigade Nord offre un service la carte ou cl en main comprenant la prise en charge de tout vnement, en voyant la gestion globale du projet, de sa conception sa ralisation.

Pour en savoir davantage, rendez-vous au www.labrigadenord.com.

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:05 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Iturbi Music Competition Winners to Perform on Queen Mary 2

May 29, 2008 - In addition to first place prizes of $50,000, the winners of The 2008 Jos Iturbi International Music Competition at UCLA's Schoenberg Hall (June 16-21, 2008) will present Cunard Command Performances aboard Queen Mary 2 during the April 26, 2009 Transatlantic Crossing from New York to Southampton, England, it was announced by Donelle Dadigan, president of the Jos Iturbi Foundation. Cunard Line is the presenting sponsor of the competition.

Also during the voyage, Donelle Dadigan will be joined by members of the esteemed judging panel to present a series of classical music discussions and Q&As in association with Cunard Insights, the Line's award-winning Guest Enrichment Programme. Guests sailing on this voyage will also hear from the winners about their experiences as young musicians competing to win the world's only weeklong competition that adds features of "American Idol" to the world of classical music. Highlights of the 2008 Competition will be broadcast via Cunard's onboard stateroom television system.

"We thank Cunard for its generous support of this exciting week of competition that showcases the world's greatest classical music talent of tomorrow," said Donelle Dadigan, president and co-founder of the Jos Iturbi Foundation. "Cunard is helping ensure that the Jos Iturbi Foundation can continue to accomplish its mission to expand the popularity of classical music and live concert performances worldwide."

"Guests who sail Cunard have a profound appreciation for classical music and we are delighted to be part of an event that shines a spotlight on the exceptionally talented young people who will soon enough grace the great stages and concert halls of the world," said Carol Marlow, president and managing director of Cunard Line. "We are delighted to share their gift of music onstage in Queen Mary 2's Royal Court Theatre," added Marlow.

The Jos Iturbi International Music Competition gives 48 of the world's most gifted young pianists and singers the opportunity to compete for the largest cash prizes (more than $250,000) of any classical piano and singing competition worldwide.

For more information about the 2008 Competition performance schedule, go online to www.joseiturbifoundation.org. To make reservations on the April 26, 2009 Queen Mary 2 Transatlantic Crossing, contact your travel professional, call 1-800-7-CUNARD or visit www.cunard.com.

# # #

About The Jose Iturbi Foundation
Created in 1985 by Donelle Dadigan and Marion Seabury, The Jos Iturbi Foundation is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to continuing the legacy of concert great Jos Iturbi, and to fulfill his desire of bringing to the public's attention today's greatest emerging classical pianists and vocalists. The foundation's goal is to globally expand the passion for classical music through dynamic competition and compelling live performance. The competition distinguishes itself by giving the largest cash prizes ($50,000 each) for first place winners for solo piano and voice in the world. Last year, the foundation gave away $268,000 in prize money for the winners of The Jos Iturbi International Music Competition.

One of the greatest concert pianists of his time, Jos Iturbi was also a composer, conductor and performer of international acclaim who starred as himself in seven MGM musicals including "Anchors Away" (1945) starring Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly. He was the first classical musician to receive a Gold Record representing record sales in excess of one million and to receive a star on the world-famous Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame. Iturbi felt that classical music should be a more recognizable part of everyone's entertainment. It was his hope that through live concerts, motion pictures, recordings, international competitions and public forums, a larger number of people would learn to love classical music and attend live concert performances.

For rules and regulations on The 2008 Jos Iturbi International Music Competition, go to www.joseiturbifoundation.org. Ticket requests are available online for the public to attend all rounds of the competition on a first-come first-served basis.

About Cunard Line
Cunard Line, operator of the luxury ocean liners Queen Mary 2, QE2 and Queen Victoria, has long been synonymous with the quest for new discoveries and the epitome of British refinement since the company's first paddle-wheeled steamer, Britannia, crossed the Atlantic in 1840. Cunard voyages bring together like-minded travelers who relish the Cunard hallmarks of impeccable White Star ServiceTM, fine dining, sophisticated adventure, the legacy of historic voyages and transatlantic travel.

Cunard Line is a proud member of World's Leading Cruise Lines. The exclusive alliance also includes Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Costa Cruises and The Yachts of Seabourn. Sharing a passion to please each guest, and a commitment to quality and value, member lines appeal to a wide range of lifestyles and budgets. Together they offer exciting and enriching cruise vacations to the world's most desirable destinations.

For additional information contact:
Jackie Chase, Cunard Line, (661) 753.1035, jchase@cunard.com

For additional information regarding the Jose Iturbi Foundation, contact:
Christopher Robins, The Michael Russell Group, (310) 939.9024, chris@michaelrussellgroup.com

Chris Robins

The Michael Russell Group

1601 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Suite 509

Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Tel 310.939.9024

Fax 310.939.9034

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:36 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, May 29, 2008

NACO, June 4-5: Stewart Goodyear and Jun Mrkl perform Saint-Sans and Schumann


Ottawa, Canada Canadian pianist Stewart Goodyear is the guest soloist when the National Arts Centre Orchestra gives a rare performance of Saint-Sans exotic Piano Concerto No. 5, composed amid the ancient splendours of Egyptian temples. These Ovation Series concerts on Wednesday, June 4 and Thursday, June 5 at 20:00 in the NACs Southam Hall also feature the NAC Orchestra debut of German conductor Jun Mrkl (pronounced JEUN MARE-kel) who will open the concerts with the Orchestras debut performance of the Overture to Schumanns Manfred. The programme concludes with Schumanns joyful Spring Symphony No. 1, which drew its inspiration from the composers beloved young bride Clara.

Both concerts are preceded by free Musically Speaking talks at 19:00 led in English by music critic Jean-Jacques Van Vlasselaer, entitled Schumanns music as payment for lifeĶ

Stewart Goodyear is known for his imagination, for his graceful, elegant style and his exquisite technique. The career of this accomplished young artist spans many genres concerto soloist, chamber musician, recitalist and composer. Mr. Goodyear has performed with many of the major orchestras of the world. His regular appearances with the National Arts Centre Orchestra (where he made his debut at age 12) include recitals and chamber music concerts in addition to orchestral. In addition to his talents as a pianist, Stewart is a composer and frequently performs his own works, one of which will be heard on the June 10 Music for a Sunday Afternoon chamber concert. He has written on commission for the Toronto Youth Symphony for its 25th anniversary, as well as for the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival. A new work for chorus was premiered by the Nathaniel Dette chorale of Canada in Toronto (June 2005).

Jun Mrkl is in his third season as Music Director of the Orchestre National de Lyon, and his first as Principal Conductor and Artistic Director of the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony. Both orchestras have embarked upon ambitious recording projects with Naxos, for whom Mrkl will record Mendelssohn in Leipzig and Ravel, Debussy and Messiaen in Lyon. Mrkl has long been a regular guest with leading German orchestras, and in 2008 returns to the Munich Philharmonic and the Radio Sinfonie Orchester Berlin. Every season he conducts the NHK Symphony, with whom in 2006 he recorded the complete Schumann symphonies as part of an ongoing commitment to EXTON Records. He has also conducted the Orchestre de Paris, the Dutch Radio Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, to name only a few.

Tickets for these Ovation Series concerts on Wednesday, June 4 and Thursday, June 5 at 20:00 are on sale now at $19.00, $29.00, $49.00, $59.00, $69.00 with box seats at $83.00 (GST and Facility Fee included) at the NAC Box Office (Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 21:00), and through Ticketmaster (with surcharges) at 613-755-1111. Ticketmaster may also be accessed through the NACs website at www.nac-cna.ca.

Half-price tickets for students in all sections of the hall are on sale in person at the NAC Box Office upon presentation of a valid student ID card. Same-day Live Rush tickets (subject to availability) for full-time students (aged 13 to 29) are $10 at the NAC Box Office between 14:00 and 18:00 on the day of performance only, upon presentation of a valid Live Rush card.

Groups of 10 and more save 15% to 20% off the regular price of tickets to NAC Music, Theatre and Dance performances. To reserve your seats call 613-947-7000 ext. 384 or email grp@nac-cna.ca.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:59 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Charlie Parker Jazz Festival - Free in NYC this August

Charlie Parker Jazz Festival

2008 PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

The Charlie Parker Jazz Festival annually assembles some of the finest musicians in the world who reflect Parker's musical individuality and genius, to promote appreciation for this highly influential and world-renowned artist. The two days of free concerts take place in neighborhoods where Charlie Parker lived and worked, in Historic Harlem's Marcus Garvey Park and in Tompkins Square Park within Manhattan's Lower East Side. The festival is produced by the City Parks Foundation.

FREE. All programs throughout the festival begin at 3:00 p.m.

Marcus Garvey Park

124th St. & Mt. Morris Park

Saturday, August 23rd

Hank Jones

Henry "Hank" Jones believes that when you listen to a pianist, each note "should have a soul of its own." Jones' precise interpretations have been called "Eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable." The highest accolades possible have been given to this legendary musician, including the "NEA Jazz Masters" award from the National Endowment for the Arts, and a "Jazz Living Legend" award from The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. Mr. Jones has over sixty albums to his credit and countless others on which he has appeared, including collaborations with legends Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Charlie Parker.

Vanessa Rubin

Jazz musicians are talking about Vanessa Rubin. They all want her unique phrasing and velvety smooth tone to make their compositions come alive. After leaving Cleveland and moving to New York, she almost immediately began gigging with greats like the Pharaoh Sanders Quartet. She has eight albums to her credit, and has amassed a list of outstanding collaborations, partnering with Lionel Hampton, the Mercer Ellington Orchestra and Grover Washington, Jr. Ms. Rubin recently completed international tours with Herbie Hancock, the Woody Herman Orchestra, and the Jazz Crusaders.

Rashied Ali

Rashied Ali is the father of "free jazz" drumming and one of the most harmonic and innovative drummers to ever grace the world of jazz. He has sat in and collaborated with many R&B and jazz experimenters, most famously with the great John Coltrane. As the leader of the Rashied Ali Quintet, he continues to refine his art while discovering and nurturing new talent.

Robert Glasper

Pianist Robert Glasper is a perfect example of how old and new school can create the future. Classically trained, but moved by his own muse, Glasper has commanded the stage of jazz festivals throughout the world. The profundity of Glasper's talent is no longer a secret, making him an in-demand musician for numerous hip hop and R&B greats including Mos Def, Common, Jay Z, Erykah Badu and Me'Shell Ndegeocello. Robert Glasper's three albums have been met with widespread acclaim and his most recent, In My Element, has been called "ravishing."

Tompkins Square Park

E. 8th St. Between Aves. A & B

Sunday, August 24th

Randy Weston

Inspired by Jamaican roots and global travels, Randy Weston's jazz is like none other. Although Weston cites Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk as inspirations, what makes him unique is his unusually percussive and highly rhythmic piano compositions. In 2002, Weston performed with bassist James Lewis for the inauguration of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt. In June 2006, he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Music by Brooklyn College, CUNY. His great compositions include "Hi-Fly," "Little Niles," "Berkshire Blues," "African Sunrise," "The Healers," "Blue Moses," and "African Cookbook."

Jerry Gonzales and Fort Apache

"I am bilingual...I can play blues and I can play Rumba," says Jerry Gonzales of his multi-cultural sound. After several attempts at finding a musical home, Gonzalez finally found his voice in his own band. Their 1989 release, Rumba Para Monk, received critical acclaim and was honored by The Academie Du Jazz, naming it "Jazz Album of the Year." They have also been nominated for two Latin Jazz Grammy's for Rumba Para Monk and Y Los Pyratas de Flamenco.

Eric Lewis

With profound intensity, Eric Lewis is already a prodigious jazz pianist. A musical contortionist, Lewis' compositions twist, turn, and careen between styles, sounds, and emotions, resulting in a stunning aural experience. At the age of 22, Lewis began touring with legends Wynton Marsalis and Cassandra Wilson. At the age of 26 he won the Thelonious Monk International Piano Competition and became a member of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. Mr. Lewis will perform a work specially commissioned by City Parks Foundation to premier at the 2008 Charlie Parker Jazz Festival.

Gretchen Parlato

Herbie Hancock says of Gretchen Parlato's voice that it is "a deep, almost magical connection to the music." She combines classic Sinatra-esque vocals with insightful forays into melodey, unexpected scatting and Afro-Latin rhythms. In 2004 she walked away with first place at the Thelonious Monk Jazz Vocal Competition and has teamed up with Diane Reeves, Roy Hargrove's Big Band and Terence Blanchard. All About Jazz magazine has called Gretchen Parlato's vocal musings "delicious."


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:54 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Christina Petrowska Quilico winner of 2007 CMC/CLC Friends of Canadian Music Award

Christina Petrowska Quilico winner of

2007 CMC/CLC Friends of Canadian Music Award

May 29, 2008 (Toronto) The Canadian Music Centre and the Canadian League of Composers are pleased to announce Christina Petrowska Quilico as the recipient of the 2007 Friends of Canadian Music Award. This annual $1,000 award is a joint venture between the CLC and the CMC, honouring those who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to Canadian composers and their music. This award will be presented at a reception on Saturday, June 7, 2008 at Toronto's Music Gallery immediately following the Penderecki String Quartet's presentation of Intra/Introspections: Piacentini & Gentile.

A National jury (comprised of composers Keith Hamel, Melissa Hui and Christien Ledroit) recognized Christina Petrowska Quilico for her dedication to Canadian contemporary classical music as well as her unwavering support of this country's composing community. Throughout her exceptional performing and recording career Chrisina Petrowska Quilico has had a profound impact on Canada's classical music community from coast to coast to coast.

Born in Ottawa, Canada, Christina Petrowska Quilico was a child prodigy. She made her concert debut at ten years of age. A short time later, she was offered a scholarship to The Juilliard School where she studied under Rosina Lhvinne, Jeaneane Dowis and Irwin Freundlich. At fourteen, she won the High School of the Performing Arts Concerto Competition, a prize she shared with fellow student Murray Perahia, and made her New York City debut at the Town Hall.


After graduation, she studied in Europe, first at the Sorbonne in Paris and later in Darmstadt and Berlin under the tutelage of composers Karlheinz Stockhausen and Gyrgy Ligeti. In 1971, she married her first husband, the avant-garde French-Canadian composer Michel-Georges Brgent. From 1962 to 1980, Petrowska Quilico lived in New York City, where she performed extensively as a soloist and in collaboration with her husband.

In the late 80s, she returned to Canada where she became the recitalist of choice for many Canadian composers including, Glenn Buhr, Chris Paul Harman, Christos Hatzis, Larysa Kuzmenko, Alexina Louie, Heather Schmidt and Ann Southam. She debuted close to twenty piano concerti and solo works and toured extensively through North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Christina Petrowska Quilico has recorded 20 CDs as a soloist and four CDs in partnership with her second husband, the late Metropolitan Opera baritone, Louis Quilico. In 1992, her CD Virtuoso Piano Music of Our Time traveled into space with Canadian astronaut Steve Maclean and debuted aboard the Space Shuttle Colombia. Maclean reprised his role as music director to the stars by taking Eclipse, featuring Christina on piano, on his most recent trip. Recent recordings include Canadian Composers Portraits: Ann Southam and 16 Portraits: Michel-Georges Brgent.

Christina Petrowska Quilico has written three books, Mr. Rigoletto: In Conversation With Louis Quilico, Opera Illustrated: An Artistic Odyssey and Go Away Sisyphus, a volume of poetry. She is also a competitive ballroom dancer and appears in the short film, Tango Amore. Currently, Petrowska lives in Toronto where she is a Professor of Piano and Musicology at York University.

Established in 1959, the Canadian Music Centre exists to stimulate the awareness, appreciation and performance of Canadian music, making the music of its Associate Composers available through its music libraries and through various promotional and outreach activities. The CMC is Canada's primary information resource, producer, distributor of concert music and sound recordings.

Founded in 1951, the Canadian League of Composers is the voice of Canada's professional composers. Through advocacy, communications, and partnerships, it seeks to uphold and nurture an environment where composers' work is sought after, heard, and valued.


Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:30 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Slavery and the Absence of Truth. Online Solo Exhibition by Juan Carlos Llera

Slavery and the Absence of Truth
Online Solo Exhibition by Juan Carlos Llera


Click image to download PDF

Where will you be in 100 years and how prepared are you for this crushing reality? Can you separate the real from the delusional? Why do we, as a society, create the world we inhabit on a daily basis and feel victimized over what we see on the 10:00 p.m. news all the while never becoming conscious of the role we play in our own self created suffering?

Contemporary Cuban American Artist Juan Carlos Llera presents a series of virtual works intended to encourage reflection and ignite consciousness in the viewer. Through a virtual world of ones and zeros you are cordially invited to download and view his one man show "Slavery and the Absence of Truth" in the form of a PDF file which contains the unreal conceptual snapshots of the thoughts that generate them. It is the conceptual world and its relationship to natural truth which is being explored here. It is visual poetry constructed to break through thought and gain access to consciousness and awareness in its purest form.

Please accept an invitation to participate in the work by downloading, viewing, reflecting and commenting on the material presented.

For more information, please contact the artist at: llera@bellsouth.net


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:35 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

TR : Festival International Nuits d'Afrique

13 jours de concerts et d'activits pour toute la famille

LE TOUR DU MONDE EN MUSIQUEĶ 5 FOIS PLUTT QU'UNE!

Montral - Si on devait compter les kilomtres parcourir pour relier Montral chacun des 27 pays dont sont originaires les artistes qui cette anne composent la programmation de cette 22e dition du Festival International Nuits d'Afrique (grosso modo 195 000 kilomtres, aller simple!), on se rendrait vite compte que la distance cumule quivaut celle de prs de 5 tours du monde! a, c'est ce qu'on appelle un voyage!

Du 8 au 20 juillet 2008, le Festival International Nuits d'Afrique offrira aux Montralais et visiteurs de la mtropole un large ventail de la richesse des rythmes d'ascendance africaine. Afrique, Antilles, Amrique Latine : entre tradition et nouveaux courants, 13 jours de spectacles en salle mais aussi 4 jours d'activits et de concerts extrieurs pour toute la famille.

Ģ Le message d'Idir, parrain du festival Ģ

Idir, lgende de la musique kabyle, dont le spectacle marquera le lancement officiel de la programmation le 10 juillet au Mtropolis, a accept d'tre le parrain de ce 22e festival. Son message, ne pas oublier d'o l'on vient, pour mieux construire un prsent et un avenir, en essayant de les rendre les plus harmonieux possible , reflte bien l'approche particulire de l'artiste, qui tout au long de sa carrire a eu la volont de permettre aux diffrentes cultures de dialoguer travers la musique. Cette rencontre des cultures, c'est aussi ce qui motive Nuits d'Afrique. Et preuve que cela rsonne auprs de tous, le succs est au rendez-vous depuis 22 ans!

Monica Freire, toile de la scne des musiques du monde Montral depuis de nombreuses annes, agira quant elle en tant que porte-parole de l'vnement.

Ģ 23 spectacles en salle Ģ

De grands vnements en dcouvertes, les spectacles intrieurs auront lieu au Club Balattou, centre nerveux du festival depuis sa cration, au Kola Note, au National et au Mtropolis.

Srie Grands vnements

Leur carrire est internationale. Ils font indiscutablement partie de ceux qui ont permis de dmocratiser les musiques du monde. Ils nous feront l'honneur d'tre Montral cet t.

On ne prsente plus Idir (Algrie). Quand les kabyles expatris pensent leurs pays d'origine, ce sont ses chansons qui rythment leurs doux souvenirs. Seun Anikulapo Kuti (Nigria) est le fils du grand Fela. Avec son groupe, Egypt 80, il revisite d'une touche de hip hop le toujours trs actuel afrobeat de son pre. Black Umfolosi (Zimbabwe), icne des a capella, gospels, danses zulus et gumboots caractristiques du sud de l'Afrique, a ft l'an dernier ses 25 ans de scne, ce qui n'empche pas ses membres d'tre toujours aussi survolts! Les Go de Koteba, ces deux nanas la vitalit contagieuse, chantent et dansent sur des grooves mandingues aux vibrations urbaines. Le Brazilian Jamaica reggae unique des 5 musiciens aveugles et du chanteur brsilo-italo-libanais de Tribo de Jah sillonne les continents.

Srie Grande Premire

Ils sont connus de tous, foulent les scnes les plus prestigieuses de la plante, mais ne se sont encore jamais produit Montral avant aujourd'huiĶ

L'image emblme du Festival International Nuits d'Afrique reprsente un des leurs. C'est dire si la prsence des nomades peul-wodaabes de Etran Finatawa (Niger), dont le blues magntique a t nomin aux BBC3 World Music Awards, est haute en signification. Premier griot du slam, Souleymane Diamanka (Sngal) est un digne reprsentant de cette nouvelle gnration de potes qui dclament le quotidien des gens de leurs gnrations. Fallou Dieng (Sngal) est la nouvelle idole du mbalax dans son pays. Joueur de Sabar mrite, il a t le laurat d'un Djemb d'Or.

Srie Prdilection

Les artistes de cette srie ont fait les beaux jours du festival et c'est avec grand plaisir qu'on les retrouve une nouvelle fois non seulement pour entendre leurs standards, mais aussi pour dcouvrir leur actualit.

Dobet Gnahor (Cte d'ivoire) sduira le public avec ses rythmes modernes et avec sa personnalit de jeune femme dynamique bien ancre dans son poque. Shimita El Diego (Rpublique Dmocratique du Congo), figure emblmatique de la rumba et du soukous congolais, ramnera chacun la grande poque o ces genres musicaux, qui n'ont rien perdus de leur entrain, taient au sommet des palmars. Andr-Marie Tala (Cameroun), laurat d'un prix Kora meilleur artiste d'Afrique centrale , offrira une fois de plus une prestation digne de James Brown (qui l'a d'ailleurs plagi!), malgr sa ccit. Quant Kadan's (Guadeloupe), en dire qu'il s'agit probablement du groupe qui, de mmoire de festival, a fait danser les foules de la manire la plus convaincante, c'est dire l'essentiel !

Srie Dcouvertes

Trs talentueux, ils sont les ambassadeurs de la nouvelle gnration d'artistes des musiques du monde.

Menwar (le Maurice) prsentera son Saga, une nergie musicale qui transperce l'me, un style o prdominent les sons acoustiques et les percussions, parfois inventes de toute pice. Une nergie immense se dgage du Groovy people, men par le charismatique HAJAmadagascar (Madagascar), chanteur, guitariste, multi instrumentiste de talent. pice et colore par les traditions des diffrents membres du groupes, issus de l'Afrique et de sa diaspora, sa musique dmnage !

Srie Rythmes d'ailleurs, gens d'ici

Le nom de cette srie parle de lui-mme. Ils vivent ici mais l'origine de leur musique est ailleurs. Chaque jour, tout au long de l'anne, ils enrichissent la vie culturelle de notre petit coin de pays.

Le collectif Frank ESP et ses invits (Qubec) avec ses skas, jazz, funk, rock, pop et envoles latino dmontre quel point un joyeux mtissage de culture peut donner un spectacle du tonnerre. Esta߈o da Luz (Brsil / Qc), un collectif dirig par Vov, rcipiendaire du Syli d'Or de la musique du monde 2008, prsente Odara, 300 ans d'africanisme au Brsil, Cuba et Hati, fts dans une profusion de percussions incendiaires, de danses endiables et de costumes clatants. On ne prsente plus Pierre-Michel Mnard (Hati / Qc), le showman le plus clatant de la scne des musiques du monde montralaise, qui chaque coup sduit son public coup de salsa, zouk, compas et merengue ravageurs. La musique de James Azola (Cameroun / Qc) donnera une toute autre dimension aux contes de Boucar Diouf (Sngal / Qc), toujours drles et remplis de paraboles vocatrices. Papo Ross (Rpublique Dominicaine / Qc), accompagn d'Orquesta Pambiche, combine avec lgance les meilleures salsa, cumbia et versions de merengue pambiche. Les gnaouas du 21e sicle de Salaam (Maroc / Qc) mlent avec bonheur blues, jazz et funk aux harmonies ancestrales pour un rsultat tourdissant.

Srie Les Etoiles de Nuits d'Afrique / Les Rendez-vous des concerts nocturnes

Nouveaut 2008, la srie Les toiles de Nuits d'Afrique est rendue possible grce au soutien du Conseil des arts du Canada. Zal Idrissa Sissokho (Sngal), matre de la kora, invite plusieurs artistes matres de leur propre art traditionnel partager la scne avec lui pour trois rencontres exploratoires indites. Ces spectacles sont gratuits pour tous ceux qui dtiennent un billet du Festival International Nuits d'Afrique 2008.

Avec Celso Machado (Brsil / C-B), la guitare, ils salueront anctres mandingues et orishas. Avec Toumany Kouyat (Burkina Faso), lui aussi koriste virtuose, leurs histoires impriales exploseront en notes magiques. Hedi Arquillre (Espagne / Qc), danseuse experte du Mektoub Flamenca, apportera une autre dimension aux rythmes mandingues traditionnels de Zal.

Ģ 4 jours de spectacles et activits gratuits pour toute la famille Ģ

La Place milie-Gamelin (carr Berri, Sainte-Catherine, St-Hubert, De Maisonneuve), au cur du centre-ville de Montral, vivra aux rythmes chauds de l'Afrique, des Antilles et d'Amrique Latine les 17, 18, 19 et 20 juillet 2008, tandis que s'animera le Village des Nuits d'Afrique.

27 groupes locaux et internationaux, prs de 400 artistes sur scne, tous plus lectrisants les uns que les autres, se succderont sur la grande scne LOTO-QUBEC extrieure amnage pour l'occasion. Plusieurs ateliers sont galement organiss le matin, pour toute la famille : danse africaine, percussions marocaines, instruments malgaches, n'en sont que quelques exemples.

Mais le Village des Nuits d'Afrique, c'est surtout une ambiance qu'on ne retrouve nulle part ailleurs qu'en Afrique, dans les Antilles ou en Amrique Latine ; un vritable bouillonnement culturel o l'on chante, danse et baragouine pour le plaisir avec les commerants du March Tombouctou, rivalisant d'ingniosit pour vendre leurs boubous, percussions et autres produits de beaut et bijoux traditionnels ; un espace convivial o on s'assoit sur la terrasse amnage cet effet ou dans l'herbe, la bonne franquette , pour dguster un poulet grill sauce yassa, plat typique du Sngal, un buf jerk pic la mode jamacaine, ou encore une crme glace aux saveurs exotiques.

Pour une premire anne, l'Agor'Afrique Loto-Qubec, lieu de rencontres ouvert sur le monde, sera le thtre d'expositions de photos, de signatures d'artistes, d'animations gratuites, conteurs et ateliers d'initiation la musique africaine.

La tente du Montral Multicolore rjouira les plus jeunes. Sous le pinceau maquillage magique de Allison (Carabes), les enfants deviendront fleur multicolore ou lion roi des forts. Leurs jolis dessins, inspirs de conte africains ou d'animaux de la savane, seront quand eux exposs au regard de tous les festivaliers.

Ģ Le 10e anniversaire de la compilation du Festival Ģ

Dj la 10e dition de la Compilation du Festival International Nuits d'Afrique! Cette anne, 14 titres lectrisants des artistes qui seront acclams durant l'vnement : Les Go de Kotba, Monica Freire, Zon del Barrio, Andr-Marie Tala, Fallou Dieng, Dobet Gnahor, Menwar, Hakim Salhi, Yawo, Mad'Moi Zle Giraf, Tribo de Jah, HAJAmadagascar, James Azola et Seun Anikulapo Kuti. En vente dans tous les magasins de disques!

Compilation 2008

Festival international Nuits d'Afrique

22me dition

Rfrence : AFR2-2104

Label : Disques Nuits d'Afrique

Distribution : Slect

Nouveaux opus sous le label Disques Nuits d'Afrique :

Compilation 2008 Syli d'or de la musique du monde

Hakim Salhi (Algrie)

Tribo de Jah (Brsil)

Les Go de Koteba (Cte d'Ivoire)

Ģ La fte continue au Club Balattou Ģ

Tous les soirs, aprs les spectacles, la fte se poursuit au mythique Club Balattou, coin Saint-Laurent et Marie-Anne. Rythmes par les musiques populaires africaine, antillaise et latino-amricaine, de celles auxquelles nos hanches ne peuvent rsister, ces soires sont le rendez-vous informel des artistes du festival et de leur public. Une ambiance unique et chaleureuse!

Ģ Nuits d'Afrique remercie ses partenaires Ģ

Le Festival International Nuits d'Afrique est fire que Loto-Qubec se soit une nouvelle fois associ l'vnement titre de prsentateur officiel.

L'organisation tient galement remercier ses partenaires d'horizons divers :

Commanditaires : Western Union, Belle Gueule, Guitares Godin

Partenaires publics : Patrimoine Canadien, Ministre de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition fminine du Qubec, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Qubec, Ministre des Affaires municipales et des Rgions, Tourisme Qubec, Ville de Montral, Arrondissement Ville-Marie, Tourisme Montral

Partenaires mdias : La Presse, The Gazette, RDI, ARTV, CBC Television, TV5, CBC Radio 2, Espace Musique, Mix 96, CHOM, CJAD, CINQ FM, CKUT, CKDG, CIBL,

CHOQ FM

Partenaires de soutien : Publicit Sauvage, Archambault, Groupe Berger, Blue Communications, Ol Sangrita.

Ģ Informations gnrales Ģ

Pour plus d'informations sur les spectacles, les activits, la billetterie :

www.festivalnuitsdafrique.com

ou

514 499-FINA (3462)

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:50 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Une premire tourne en France pour Hert LeBlanc

(Moncton) - Cest maintenant confirm : Hert LeBlanc et ses musiciens seront en France cet t afin deffectuer une premire tourne. Cette srie de spectacles outre-mer se veut la concrtisation dun rve de longue date pour le Roi du gros tyme acadien qui a su se faire remarquer par des diffuseurs franais lors de la dernire FrancoFte en Acadie.

Aprs 22 ans de carrire, je pars finalement en tourne en France. Cest un nouveau march musical pour la musique traditionnelle acadienne et lintrt est l ! Moi et tout le groupe nous somme trs excits dy aller car cest une occasion unique de vendre notre musique et en mme temps, notre culture acadienne , affirme Hert LeBlanc.

La tourne sarrtera dabord dans la ville de Tullins 28 juin pour le Festival Sur la route de Tullins (www.surlaroutedetullins.com) ; le 3 juillet Schoir Noix de Vinay (www.legrandsechoir.fr) ; le 4 juillet au Golf Htel de Saint Quentin Saint Quentin sur Isre (www.golfhotelcharmeil.com/uk_index.php) et le 8 juillet au Festival des Musiques dIci et d'Ailleurs la Place d'Austerlitz de Ste-Mnhould (www.musiques-ici-ailleurs.com).

Spectacle venir en AcadieĶ

Les fans incontestables de Hert auront la chance de le voir en spectacle tout le mois daot dans son coin de pays : 1er aot - Frolic du vendredi soir au Pays de la Sagouine, Bouctouche ; le 2 aot - Mega Party acadien au Minic avec le groupe Rveil et Scott et Grald Delhunty en premire partie, Tracadie-Sheila ; le 3 aot - Festival du Choux de Bruxelles Rogersville ; le 15 aot Dieppe ; le 16 aot - Campagne de financement pour la Socit canadienne du cancer lArna de Shippagan ; le 30 aot - Soire de musique au Festival acadien de la rgion vangline Abram Village, IPE.

Un album qui swingĶ

Lartiste acadien a quatre albums son actif dont le plus rcent Voyages vcus et imagins sorti en juin 2007. Ce dernier album se retrouve dans le top 5 du palmars des albums les plus vendus chez Distribution Plage Lte. Ses airs cajuns, acadiens, country et bluegrass ont su faire danser des gens dun peu partout en Atlantique et au Qubec.

www.hertleblanc.com

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:59 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Luminato Transforms Yonge-Dundas Square

KPMB Architects help Luminato to shine brightly this June

TORONTO, {May 28, 2008} For the first six nights of Luminato (June 6-11), the heart of downtown Toronto Yonge-Dundas Square will be transformed into a beacon of arts and creativity.

Yonge-Dundas Square is dramatically re-imagined as a stunning display of light and interactivity as Torontos KPMB Architects transform the space into the eye of Luminato with a huge suspended web of illuminated spheres.

The Yonge-Dundas Square Transformation features 250 lit balloons tethered to over 10,000 feet of rope and suspended over the Square. The lights within each balloon respond visually to sound and establish an interactive relationship with the audience below as participants dance and groove to various Luminato musical performances.

The public square transforms into a huge open-air dance hall for Luminatos six night series of TELUS Light on Your Feet, where live bands celebrate different musical genres each night, including swing, Scottish square dancing, salsa, tango, disco, hip hop and Bollywood. Early-evening dance lessons are offered, making these the ultimate dance parties for all ages and skill levels.

Thirsty festival-goers are invited to enjoy the limited time Mill Street Brew Pub on-site. Grab a cold refreshment and enjoy the many shows and performances live at the Square.

Yonge-Dundas Square is not the only local landmark glowing for Luminato. National and local Toronto icon the CN Tower will be lit with Luminato colours for the duration of the Festival. This world renowned dining and entertainment destination will feature lighting programs from dusk to sunrise each day of the Festival. Torontos City Hall follows suit with its own lighting program as the building glows Luminato blue throughout the Festival.

Mill Street Brew Pub Hours

June 6-11, 2008

12:00 p.m. 11:00 p.m.

CN Tower Lighting Program

June 6, 2008 Solid blue with shows at the top of each hour

June 7-14, 2008 Blue and White with shows at the top of each hour

June 15, 2008 Solid blue with shows at the top of each hour

Luminatos Yonge-Dundas Square transformation is presented in association with KPMB Architects and the Mill Street Brewery, with support from LOral Paris.

Luminatos free opening weekend celebrations are presented by TELUS.

For more information about the Yonge-Dundas Square transformation, please visit www.luminato.com

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:03 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Sherrie Johnson to receive John Hobday Award in Arts Management

Ottawa, May 28, 2008 Independent theatre producer Sherrie Johnson will be presented with the John Hobday Award in Arts Management, which celebrates outstanding achievement in the field of arts management, during the Festival TransAmriques in Montreal.

The Canada Council for the Arts, which administers these awards, announced the creation of the John Hobday Awards in May 2006. The awards were made possible by a $1 million endowment from The Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation. John Hobday was executive director of the Foundation between 1983 and 2002, and director of the Canada Council from 2003 to 2006. Ms. Johnson is one of the first two recipients of the John Hobday Awards. The other recipient is Santee Smith, artistic director of the Kaha:wi Dance Theatre, who was presented her award on May 20 in Hamilton.

Sherrie Johnson's award is for professional development. She will enroll in the executive MBA (master of business administration) program at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto to develop her marketing, financial and business skills. Ms. Johnson plans to expand the scope of her work as an independent producer and exporter of Canadian theatre by working with philanthropists, banks, corporations and other patrons to build foundations for the performing arts in Canada.

News release and biographical notes are available on our website: The Canada Council for the Arts - Sherrie Johnson and Santee Smith win first John Hobday Awards in Arts Management.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 10:07 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Queen Elisabeth Competition - Results Singing 2008

SINGING 2008
RESULTS

1st Prize
Szabolcs BRICKNER
tenor
2nd Prize
Isabelle DRUET
mezzo-soprano
3rd Prize
Bernadetta GRABIAS
mezzo-soprano

4th Prize
Anna KASYAN
soprano
5th Prize
Yury HARADZETSKI
tenor
6th Prize
Gabrielle PHILIPONET
soprano
v
unranked laureates : Elizabeth BAILEY
soprano		 Michle LOSIER
mezzo-soprano

Layla CLAIRE
soprano		 Tatiana TRENOGINA
soprano

LIM Changhan
baritone		 YOON Jung Nan
soprano

VOD (video on demand) of the final and the semi-final
until 15 September 2008 on www.qeimc.be

Order your 2 CD box live : www.cd-elisabeth.be

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:52 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The Vancouver International Song Festival


The Vancouver International Song Festival Full Concert Schedule Announced
June 8 - 22, 2008
Vancouver, BC - The Vancouver International Song Institute announces the full concert schedule of the 2nd annual Vancouver International Song Festival, taking place June 8-22, 2008 at the School of Music on the beautiful campus of the University of British Columbia. This festival focuses on Art Song, the powerful realm of fused poetry and music - gateway to a rich world where history, sociology, psychology and philosophy meet in a musical experience of unforgettable intensity.
Vancouver International Song Festival: June 8-22, 2008
All concerts at the Recital Hall, UBC School of Music
(6361 Memorial Road, two blocks south of the Museum of Anthropology)
Immerse yourself in the art of song with great artists and thinkers
Song Evening Concerts
All concerts at 8:00 PM; Free pre-concert conversations at 7:15 PM.
Tickets only $28. ($15 for students) Save 19% with a 6-concert Song Evening Package: just $136! Tickets available at www.ticketstonight.ca, 604.684.2787 or at the door.
Friday, June 13, 2008 at 8:00pm
Join stage legend Joy Coghill in a tribute to composer Jean Coulthard. With Robyn Driedger-Klassen (soprano), Terence Dawson (piano), John Wright (theatre director), David Gordon Duke (librettist), Phoebe MacRae (soprano), Tyler Duncan (baritone) and Erika Switzer (piano).
Saturday, June 14, 2008 at 8:00pm
Don't miss this unforgettable evening of stunning intensity and intimate disclosures of the heart with three internationally acclaimed performers: Sanford Sylvan (baritone), Susan Platts (mezzo-soprano) and Rena Sharon (piano).
Sunday, June 15, 2008 at 8:00pm
Oh Canada! From far wide, the repertoire on this concert celebrates the vibrancy, freshness and diversity of Canadian song with a host of brilliant performers and genres.
Monday, June 16, 2008 at 8:00pm
Experience the immediacy of the composer/poet/performer relationship when American song expert Paul Sperry (tenor) joins renowned pianist Alison d'Amato for a performance of musical gems from America, alongside delights by France's Francis Poulenc.
Friday, June 20, 2008 at 8:00pm
Vive la France! Here's a rare chance to hear French baritone Franois Le Roux with his long time collaborator, Belgian pianist Mikhail Hallak. Together they weave the story of French song with words and music by leading French artists.
Sunday, June 22, 2008 at 8:00pm
What a fun way to round off this year's Song Festival! Join dozens of Song Festival artists and gifted particpants of The Audible Soul in a memorable evening of French and English song. With a programme that ranges from heart-stopping beauty to laugh-out-loud funny, including legendary collaborative pianist Margo Garret performing Dominik Argento's hilarious song cycle "Miss Manners on Music," this concert will leave you with a smile in your heart.
Noon Hour Concerts
All concerts at 12:30 PM. Tickets just $10! Available at the door, cash only. (Students & UBC Card Holders: $5)
Monday, June 9, 2008 at 12:30pm
Martha Guth, soprano | Alison d'Amato, piano
Faur's Chanson d'Eve and songs by Olivier Messiaen
Tuesday, June 10, 2008 at 12:30pm
Lynne McMurtry, mezzo-soprano | Alison d'Amato, piano
Debussy's Chansons de Bilitis, John Musto's Recuerdo, and Robert Fleming's Confession Stone
Wednesday, June 11, 2008 at 12:30pm
Phoebe MacRae, soprano | Gayle Shay, mezzo-soprano
Contemporary songs for solo voice, including Cathy Berberian's Stripsody
Thursday, June 12, 2008 at 12:30pm
Martha Guth, soprano | Lynne McMurtry, mezzo-soprano | Alison d'Amato, piano | Erika Switzer, piano
A musical journey through Paris during the Second World War
Friday, June 13, 2008 at 12:30pm
Lambroula Pappas, soprano | Robert Holliston, piano
Songs by Olivier Messaien and Darius Milhaud
Monday, June 16, 2008 at 12:30pm
Tyler Duncan, baritone | Erika Switzer, piano
Canadian music by Lothar Klein, Imant Raminsh and Nancy Telfer
Tuesday, June 17, 2008 at 12:30pm
Martha Guth, soprano | Robyn Driedger-Klassen, mezzo-soprano | Terry Dawson, piano
Lili Boulanger's Clairires dans le Ciel & Poulenc's Tel jour, telle nuit
Wednesday, June 18, 2008 at 12:30pm
Emerging Artists from The Audible Soul 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008 at 12:30pm
Martha Guth, soprano | Laura Loewen, piano
The "100 Mile Diet" in song!
Friday, June 20, 2008 at 12:30pm
Emerging Artists from The Audible Soul 2008
In addition to 6 evening concerts and 10 noon hour concerts, The Vancouver International Song Festival also offers an assortment of engaging and insightful masterclasses, lectures and Listeners' Studies. Learn more about Art Song by leading experts in the field! Visit www.songinstitute.ca for more details.
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION
The Vancouver International Song Institute Society has been formed through the collective efforts of an international group of renowned musicians, music scholars, poets, composers, and social scientists, as a stronghold to support the perpetuation of Art Song as a vital human legacy.
MORE INFORMATION
Phone: 778.868.6531| Email: info@songinstitute.ca | Website: www.songinstitute.ca

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:17 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

coOpra

Le projet coOpra

En 1998, la Ville de Montral et de nombreux partenaires ont mis sur pied un projet intitul Les Arts de la scne, visant lapprentissage des matires scolaires travers llaboration dun spectacle. En 2004, lOpra de Montral, dans le cadre de son volet ducatif en milieu scolaire, se joint cette initiative avec la mise sur pied de coOpra, et sengage dans quatre coles primaires de larrondissement du Sud-Ouest, Jeanne-LeBer, La Petite Bourgogne, Saint-Zotique et Notre-Dame-du-Perptuel-Secours.

Depuis quatre ans, une centaine dlves, avec la complicit de leurs formateurs et professeurs de ces quatre coles, conoivent collectivement, dans le cadre de plusieurs ateliers, leur propre spectacle musical, de la conception scnique au livret dopra, en passant par des ateliers sur la voix, les dcors, les costumes, le maquillage, etc. Ils bnficient du concours de lquipe technique et artistique de lOpra de Montral et des chanteurs de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral.

Depuis septembre 2007, les lves se sont runis chaque semaine dans leur cole pour crire les textes, composer la musique, transposer lintrigue, crer les personnages, concevoir les dcors et costumes. Les rptitions vont bon train... Aprs Didon et ne, Trahison et cie, Le monde de la lune, ces petits rats de lOpra prsenteront devant public, leur production originale inspire de lopra Un bal masqu de Verdi, les 28 et 29 mai 2008 10 h, 13 h 15 et 19 h 30, la salle Jean-Grimaldi [1111, rue Lapierre (La Salle), mtro Angrignon]. Des gnrales ont lieu les 26 et 27 mai 10 h et 13 h 15, la mme salle.

Ce projet a permis une diminution mesure de labsentisme scolaire et connat un immense succs auprs des lves qui mettent profit leur crativit et leur ouverture lautre.

Lancement du dvd : coOpra, tout un monde !

Le projet coOpra est un succs indniable. Afin de faire connatre au plus grand nombre cette formidable russite pdagogique, artistique et communautaire, lOpra de Montral a produit un DVD intitul coOpra, tout un monde ! qui sera distribu dans plusieurs coles primaires de Montral.

Durant lanne scolaire 2006-2007, une quipe de tournage a accompagn les jeunes lves dans llaboration du spectacle Le Monde de la Lune, qui sinspirait de lopra laffiche de la 27e saison de lOpra de Montral, Il Mundo della Luna de Joseph Haydn. Le documentaire, dune dure de 10 minutes, prsente chacune des tapes du projet coOpra, depuis la formation des enseignants jusquau soir de la premire, en passant par la visite des coulisses de la salle Wilfrid-Pelletier de la PDA, la prsentation du mtier de chanteurs dopra par des chanteurs de lAtelier lyrique, lcriture des textes, les ateliers de musique, de danse, de chants, la confection des costumes et des dcorsĶ. Tous ont ctoy de prs le monde magique de lopra, pour concevoir ensemble leur propre production, et vivre une exprience artistique et pdagogique stimulante.

Ralis par Anim-Mdia et soutenu financirement par La fondation de la famille J. W. McConnell, le documentaire se termine par des tmoignages enthousiastes de jeunes et dadultes ayant travaill ensemble pendant prs de huit mois.

Les projets ducatifs de lOpra de Montral bnficient du gnreux soutien financier de La fondation de la famille J. W. McConnell. CoOpra bnficie du soutien financier de lEntente sur le dveloppement culturel de Montral intervenue entre la Ville de Montral (Arrondissement du Sud-Ouest), la SDM et le ministre de la Culture et des Communications du Qubec (Programme La culture lcole), du Ministre de lducation, Sport et Loisir (Programme Soutenir lcole montralaise), et est ralis en collaboration avec la commission scolaire de Montral, et la Place des Arts.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:48 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

NAC announces Summer Music at the National Arts Centre

Summer Music at the NAC includes Great Composers Series with Pinchas Zukerman, Orchestras in the Park, Through Roses, and visiting orchestras

Ottawa, Canada The National Arts Centre today announced details of Summer Music at the NAC, a festival of summer concerts by the NAC Orchestra and others. The line-up includes three Great Composers Concerts featuring Pinchas Zukerman and the NAC Orchestra in Southam Hall; a special presentation of Marc Neikrugs music-theatre piece Through Roses starring Pinchas Zukerman and Saul Rubinek; four Orchestras in the Park concerts outdoors in LeBreton Flats Park presented in collaboration with the National Capital Commission beginning with Measha Brueggergosman and Richard Margison in Opera Under the Stars; and concerts by the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, lOrchestre de la francophonie canadienne and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. Concerts are either free or priced at special low summer prices.

The three Great Composers Concerts by the NAC Orchestra led by Pinchas Zukerman in Southam Hall take place on Thursday, July 3 (Rachmaninovs White Night with pianist Katherine Chi and Pinchas Zukerman as violin soloist as well as conductor); Tuesday, July 8 (Zukermans Romance featuring the 2008 Gilmore Young Artist Adam Golka on piano, and Zukerman again as violin soloist as well as conductor), and Thursday, July 10 (Mendelssohns Italy featuring pianist Angela Cheng).

These three concerts start at 7:30 pm and are available at the special summer price of $19 per concert or $39 for all three. Le Caf is providing a tempting summer menu in the newly renovated Outdoor Terrace for those who would like to begin or end their evening by the canal.

Through Roses is a gripping and sensitive music-drama for narrator and eight solo instruments depicting the inner turmoil of a Holocaust survivor who was once destined to be a great violinist. Through Roses was composed in 1980 by acclaimed composer Marc Neikrug (well known to Ottawa audiences as Pinchas Zukermans recital partner) and has been performed hundreds of times and translated into 11 languages. On Tuesday, July 15 and Wednesday, July 16 at 7:30 pm, Saul Rubinek, Canadian star of stage and screen, is the narrator and Pinchas Zukerman is the violinist for two special performances of Through Roses in the Barney Danson Theatre at the Canadian War Museum presented in conjunction with Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race, an exhibition organized and circulated by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Tickets at $24 are available at both the NAC and the Canadian War Museum.

From July 17 to 20 at 7:30 pm, the National Arts Centre Orchestra will present its second season of Orchestras in the Park in collaboration with the National Capital Commission in the special outdoor performance space developed at LeBreton Flats Park in front of the Canadian War Museum. The series begins on Thursday, July 17 with Opera Under the Stars featuring two Canadian superstars soprano Measha Brueggergosman and tenor Richard Margison in a programme of operas greatest hits conducted by Alain Trudel with the Opera Lyra Chorus directed by Laurence Ewashko. On Friday, July 18, the Orchestre de la francophonie canadienne takes over the outdoor stage led by Jean-Philippe Tremblay and featuring soprano Marianne Fiset, Grand Prize winner of the 2007 Montreal International Musical Competition. The National Arts Centre Orchestra returns on Saturday, July 19 with Canadian folk-country icon Ian Tyson celebrating his 75th birthday. Orchestras in the Park concludes with pianist Jon Kimura Parker and NAC Orchestra violinist Jessica Linnebach as soloists with the NAC Orchestra led again by Alain Trudel in a programme including dazzling showpieces by Rachmaninov and Sarasate. Orchestras in the Park concerts are free with no tickets required.

Three visiting orchestras will perform in Southam Hall as part of Summer at the NAC. On Saturday, June 28 at 7:30 pm, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra makes its NAC debut in an exciting programme by the best and brightest composers of today featuring the NAC Orchestras principal horn Lawrence Vine as soloist. Tickets are $15. Two free concerts complete the summers musical offerings: On Wednesday, July 23 at 7:30 pm, the Orchestre de la francophonie canadien led by Jean-Philippe Tremblay will return, and on Friday, July 25, the National Youth Orchestra of Canada led by Jacques Lacombe makes its annual visit to the Capital.

There are also numerous public concerts presented as part of the 10th annual Summer Music Institute during the month of June. These have been announced separately.

And dont forget to visit the National Arts Centre on Canada Day where activities will take place all day long including a massed choral performance by Unisong 2008 at 10 am in Southam Hall and two concerts by the NAC Orchestra led by Pinchas Zukerman at 2:30 pm and 7:30 pm.

Tickets for Summer at the National Arts Centre are on sale now at the NAC Box Office (Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 21:00), and through Ticketmaster (with surcharges) at 613-755-1111. Ticketmaster may also be accessed through the NACs website at www.nac-cna.ca.

CHRONOLOGICAL LISTING OF EVENTS

Manitoba Chamber Orchestra

Saturday, June 28

Southam Hall at 7:30 pm

Anne Manson, conductor

Lawrence Vine, horn

WOJCIECH KILAR Orawa

LARS-ERIK LARSON Concertino for Horn and String Orchestra, Op. 45

REGER Scherzino for Horn and String Orchestra

JOHN ESTACIO Such Sweet Sorrow (MCO commission)

BARTOK Divertimento

PETER HEIDRICH Theme and Variations on Happy Birthday

Tickets: $15

Canada Day

Tuesday, July 1

Southam Hall at 10 am

Unisong Massed Choir

Mark Sirett, director

A massed choir of 400 voices from across Canada sings in honour of Canadas birthday.

Southam Hall at 2:30 pm and 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Pinchas Zukerman, conductor

Unisong Massed Choir

Members of the NAC Summer Music Institute

Free admittance: No tickets required

Great Composers: Rachmaninovs White Night

Wednesday, July 3

Southam Hall at 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Pinchas Zukerman, conductor / violin

Katherine Chi, piano

RACHMANINOV Vocalise

PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 3

RACHMANINOV Symphony No. 2

Tickets: $19 (or all three Great Composers concerts for $39)

Great Composers: Zukermans Romance

Tuesday, July 8

Southam Hall at 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Pinchas Zukerman, conductor and violin

Adam Golka, piano

BEETHOVEN Romance for Violin and Orchestra

MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 1

Tickets: $19 (or all three Great Composers concerts for $39)

Great Composers: Mendelssohns Italy

Thursday, July 10

Southam Hall at 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Pinchas Zukerman, conductor

Angela Cheng, piano

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 1

MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4, Italian

Tickets: $19 (or all three Great Composers concerts for $39)

Through Roses (music-drama)

Tuesday, July 15 and Wednesday, July 16

Barney Danson Theatre (Canadian War Museum) at 7:30 pm

Saul Rubinek, actor

Pinchas Zukerman, violin

Jethro Marks, viola

Amanda Forsyth, cello

Emily Smethurst, flute

Charles Hamann, oboe

Michael Rusinek, clarinet

Beverly Johnston, percussion

Angela Cheng, piano

Marc Neikrug, conductor and piano

MOZART Piano Quartet in G minor

MARC NEIKRUG Through Roses

A unique collaboration between the National Arts Centre Orchestra and the Canadian War Museum in conjunction with Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race, an exhibition organized and circulated by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Tickets: $24 (also available at the Canadian War Museum)

Orchestras in the Park: Opera Under the Stars

Thursday, July 17

LeBreton Flats Park at 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Alain Trudel, conductor

Measha Brueggergosman, soprano

Richard Margison, tenor

Opera Lyra Chorus

Laurence Ewashko, director

Two Canadian vocal superstars join forces with the NAC Orchestra for a programme of operas greatest hits.

Free admittance: No tickets required

Orchestras in the Park: LOrchestre de la francophonie canadienne

Friday, July 18

LeBreton Flats Park at 7:30 pm

LOrchestre de la francophonie canadienne

Jean-Philippe Tremblay, conductor

Marianne Fiset, soprano

JULIEN BILODEAU Commission for OFC

R. STRAUSS selected songs

BRAHMS Symphony No. 2

Free admittance: No tickets required

Orchestras in the Park: Ian Tyson with the NAC Orchestra

Saturday, July 19

LeBreton Flats Park at 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Ian Tyson, vocalist / guitar

The NAC Orchestra celebrates the 75th birthday of Canadian folk-country legend Ian Tyson, composer of Four Strong Winds".

Free admittance: No tickets required

Orchestras in the Park: National Arts Centre Orchestra

Sunday, July 20

Lebreton Flats Park at 7:30 pm

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Alain Trudel, conductor

Jon Kimura Parker, piano

Jessica Linnebach, violin

One of Canadas most gifted, popular and charismatic pianists and an equally talented member of NACO perform two dazzling showpieces Rachmaninovs Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini for piano, and Sarasates finger-busting Carman Fantasy for violin.

Free admittance: No tickets required

LOrchestre de la francophonie canadienne

Wednesday, July 23

Southam Hall at 7:30 pm

LOrchestre de la francophonie canadienne

Jean-Philippe Tremblay, conductor

MARQUEZ Danzon 2

JULIEN BILODEAU Commission for OFC

WAGNER Prlude et mort de Tristan

R. STRAUSS Till Eulenspiegels Merry Pranks

Free tickets: available in person at the NAC Box Office (donations welcome)

National Youth Orchestra of Canada

Friday, July 25

Southam Hall at 7:30

Jacques Lacombe, conductor

MURPHY NYOC commission

PROKOFIEV Scythian Suite

MAHLER Symphony No. 1

Free tickets: available in person at the NAC Box Office (donations welcome)

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:15 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Canadian Opera Company - End of Season

Canadian Opera Company's 2007/08 Season: Second Year at 99% Capacity

Toronto, Ontario The Canadian Opera Company is pleased to announce a second consecutive year with an average attendance of 99%. Celebrating its second season in the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, the COC staged seven mainstage productions: The Marriage of Figaro, Don Carlos, Tosca, From the House of the Dead, Eugene Onegin, The Barber of Seville, and Pellas et Mlisande.

The 2007/08 season subscriptions were strong at close to 99,000 tickets sold with gross revenue of over

$10 million. In total, 135,000 patrons attended 66 COC performances, with overall ticket-related revenue grossing close to $12 million. In addition, 9,500 $20 tickets were sold 8,500 to patrons under 30.

Sales for the 2008/09 season remain strong with over 91,000 seats sold, representing close to $9.7 million in gross sales. Less than 24% of total ticket inventory (subscriptions and single tickets) remains available for sale.

Four of the mainstage productions were generously supported by corporate sponsors: RBC Financial Group for The Marriage of Figaro, Harry Winston for Don Carlos, CIBC World Markets and CIBC Mellon for Tosca, and National Bank Financial for The Barber of Seville. In addition, the new production of Tosca was generously underwritten by Mrs. Delia M. Moog.

The 2007/08 season was a particularly challenging one for the Canadian Opera Company, and its success is a testament to the companys and, in particular, the Boards extraordinary energy, ability, and foresight, says Rob Lamb, Acting General Director. We are grateful for the commitment and caring support of our subscribers, patrons and generous donors who have proven once again that they are the force behind the company, helping us achieve another successful season the first seven-opera season in the new house. Were extremely encouraged that next year is shaping up to be another exciting one for the company.

The COCs successful 2007/08 season began with Mozarts The Marriage of Figaro, which was brilliant instrumentally (Toronto Star), and continued with Verdis Don Carlos, a solid musical and dramatic success (Concertonet). The winter run began with the sumptuous new production (Opera U.K.) of Puccinis Tosca, followed by Janeks From the House of the Dead, which was a smashing success (The Buffalo News). Running in repertory during the spring run were Tchaikovskys Eugene Onegin which was a visual treat (Toronto Star), Rossinis The Barber of Seville, hailed a cut above the rest (National Post), and the superbly sung (Globe and Mail) production of Debussys Pellas et Mlisande.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 9:43 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Monday, May 26, 2008

Opra de Rimouski- La belle Hlne

LOpra au temps de la Grce antique!


LOpra-Thtre de Rimouski prsentera, les 27 et 28 juin 2008, 19h30 et le 29 juin, 13h30, lopra La Belle Hlne de Jacques Offenbach.

La Belle Hlne La Grce antique en toile de fond. La guerre de Troie na pas encore eu lieu! Mais Vnus mne la belle Hlne dans les bras de Pris tandis que les rois de la Grce, le bouillant Achille et Mnlas, lpoux de la Reine, font la fte Sparte et Nauplie. Cest la fatalit! Offenbach avec sa musique tincelante nous conduit au royaume des rois et des reines, des dieux et des dessesĶ Dune place publique Sparte la chambre de la reine puis aux bains de Nauplie, cet opra-bouffe en trois actes sera haut en couleurs tout comme les prcdentes productions de lOpra-Thtre de Rimouski.

Mis en scne par Odette Beaupr, dans un dcor de la Grce antique, lopra La Belle Hlne mettra en vedette Caroline Bleau, soprano, dans le rle dHlne tandis que le tnor Antoine Blanger tiendra le rle de Pris. Le bouillant Achille sera personnifi par Marc-Andr Pronovost, tnor et le baryton Dominique Ct jouera le rle de Mnlas, lpoux de la reine Hlne. Le grand augure de Jupiter, Calchas, sera parmi nous en la personne de Robert Huard, baryton-basse. Plusieurs autres artistes se joindront la distribution. Nommons tienne Cousineau, sopraniste, Mario Brillant, tnor, Alexandre Sylvestre et Marc-Antoine dAragon, barytons, pour les voix dhommes. Les autres rles fminins sont tenus par Nadia Drapeau, mezzo-soprano, milie Tremblay et Anne Hardt, sopranos. Le Chur de Rimouski interprtera les nombreux airs du Chur de lOpra. LOrchestre symphonique de lEstuaire sera sous la direction de Jean-Franois Lapointe et les chorgraphies sont signes Esther Carr.

Les billets, au cot de 50$ et de 25$ pour les 18 ans et moins, sont dj en vente la billetterie de la Salle Desjardins-Telus au 724-0800 et auprs de lOpra-Thtre de Rimouski au 722-1985. Il est aussi possible de sen procurer auprs des choristes du Chur de Rimouski.

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 9:19 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Festival de musique de chambre de Montral : Un franc succs !

Festival de musique de chambre de Montral
13e dition 1er au 24 mai 2008


Un franc succs !



La programmation offerte aux festivaliers tait plus diversifie que jamais. Lexcellence des artistes et la qualit des prestations taient telles que tous les concerts se sont termins par des ovations debout ! Que les spectateurs soient ravis de leur soire, quils repartent du Festival heureux et souriants, cest pour moi la premire des rgles. Un public enthousiaste, stimul et combl, cest la preuve que nous avons russi notre mission .

- Denis Brott, fondateur et directeur artistique du Festival.


Montral, 26 mai 2008 Cest sur un formidable marathon de six heures consacr Beethoven qua pris fin, samedi dernier, la 13e dition du Festival de musique de chambre de Montral. Cette ultime soire est venue clore en beaut quatre semaines de musique de chambre de tous les horizons.

Prs de 5 000 mlomanes ont rpondu lappel du Festival et sont venus entendre lun ou lautre des seize concerts proposs lglise Unie St-James. La programmation, dbride et dune qualit artistique irrprochable, proposait aux mlomanes des prestations musicales de prs de 80 artistes de renom tels que Natalie Choquette, Rachel Barton Pine, Ignat Solzhenitsyn, Ranee Lee, Simone Dinnerstein, Quartango, Gary Graffman, Florence K et Les Violons du Roy, en plus daccueillir de prestigieux ensembles tels que le Festival de musique de chambre de Jrusalem, Socalled, le Bell Orchestre, compos de membres du populaire groupe Arcade Fire et le Trio Janek.

Fort de ce succs, le Festival de musique de chambre de Montral est fier dannoncer son retour, pour une quatorzime dition, en mai 2009. Cest un rendez-vous !

Le Festival de musique de chambre salue ses gnreux commanditaires de leur appui et pour avoir rendu la 13e dition du Festival possible.

www.festivalmontreal.org

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:33 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The 7th Biennial ASHKENAZ Festival!


THE 7th BIENNIAL ASHKENAZ FESTIVAL
Harbourfront Centre
August 26 - September 1, 2008
MOST EVENTS FREE!

The 7th ASHKENAZ FESTIVAL takes place August 26 to September 1, 2008, at Harbourfront Centre and various satellite locations throughout Toronto, Canada.
Programming highlights include Jewish funk supergroup Abraham Inc. (featuring Fred Wesley, David Krakauer, and Socalled); Argentinian Yiddish Tango diva Zully Goldfarb; legendary mandolinist/clarinetist Andy Statman; Ukrainian brass band Konsonans Retro; Kosher Gospel with Joshua Nelson; Russian Klezmer garage band Nayekhovichi; Sephardic Jewish music with Pharaoh's Daughter, Flory Jagoda and Spain's Mashala; and from Canada, jazz pianist Marilyn Lerner, Ken Whiteley & David Wall, Theresa Tova, Shtreiml, Beyond the Pale, Michael Wex, Allen Merovitz, Sisters of Sheynville, and many more.

The ASHKENAZ FESTIVAL is one of the world's largest public celebrations of Yiddish and Jewish culture. Each edition of this multidisciplinary event presents approximately 50-75 artists/groups from Canada and around the world, working in music, film, theatre, dance, literature, craft, and visual arts. This year's festival promises as diverse a program as ever, with artists from over a dozen countries. Once again the famous Ashkenaz Parade will enliven Harbourfront Centre on Labour Day with a community celebration featuring music, dance, massive puppets, stilt-walkers, and overall group revelry, featuring Shadowland Theatre.

The ASHKENAZ FESTIVAL was founded in 1995 by David Buchbinder, Bruce Rosensweet, and Dianne Wienrib. The 2008 Festival celebrates the organization's "Bar Mitzvah," and will be the first Ashkenaz Festival presented by the new (as of fall 2006) management team of Executive Director Karen Tisch and Artistic Director Eric Stein.

The Ashkenaz Foundation is a community-based non-profit organization which fosters an increased awareness of Yiddish and Jewish culture through the arts. Showcasing the work of leading contemporary artists from Canada and around the world, Ashkenaz places an equal emphasis on preservation and innovation within its cultural milieu. ASHKENAZ FESTIVAL programming incorporates many other manifestations of Jewish music and art beyond Klezmer/Yiddish, and actively pursues fusion and cross-cultural exchange with artists from outside Jewish cultural traditions through commissioned work and special projects. The Ashkenaz Foundation places a strong emphasis on local and emerging talent, as well as on education and community outreach.


THE 7th BIENNIAL ASHKENAZ FESTIVAL
August 26 - September 1, 2008
HARBOURFRONT CENTRE
MOST EVENTS FREE!
416.979.9901 or www.ashkenazfestival.com
416.473.4000 or www.harbourfrontcentre.com

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:09 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Award Announcement 2008: Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation

The Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation is pleased to announce that Meghan Forsyth of Toronto has been awarded $12,000 as the recipient of the Foundation's 2008 advanced music study award. The 2008 award was offered in the area of research in Canadian music and was open to candidates from across Canada under thirty years of age.

The Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation Award is intended to provide significant career development opportunities to a young Canadian musician or music scholar, typically at the graduate level. The recipient is chosen through a competitive process that is national in scope. The award, $12,000 in recent years, is offered annually or biennially.

Reflecting Sir Ernest's wide-ranging endeavours, the award is offered in different areas of music, areas that are not funded appreciably from other sources. Awards have been offered in composition, conducting, instrumental and vocal performance, pedagogy, early music, chamber music, collaborative piano and music education.

Twenty-four awards have been given since 1985, and past winners include: Bernard Labadie, James Sommerville, Marc-Andr Doran, The Tokai String Quartet, The Lloyd-Carr Harris String Quartet, Jens Lindemann, Jonathan Oldengarm, Robert May, Meredith Hall.

More information on the MacMillan Foundation Award is provided at Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation Award

http://www.macmillanfoundation.com/e~semmf_award.html

Information:

Dr. Robin Elliott, 416 978-4798, robin.elliott@utoronto.ca


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:40 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Do it in ... June at Yonge-Dundas Square!


YONGE-DUNDAS SQUARE
DO IT IN PUBLIC... THIS JUNE!

This June, Yonge-Dundas Square (YDS) invites everyone to... DO IT IN PUBLIC! Or, at the very least, watch, listen, dance, and shop in public! With two free original concert series, a summer of big-screen romances, indie arts markets and spectacular guest events such as Luminato and North by Northeast, YDS is bursting with fun all summer long.

SERENADES IN THE SQUARE, Wednesdays @ Noon, Free Admission
Do it on your lunch hour in public! YDS hosts Serenades in the Square, a weekly series of free midday concerts featuring some of Canada's hottest new performers. Concerts start at 12 Noon. Lunchtime is about to get a whole lot tastier!

Wednesday, June 18 Flat Fifth
Pop meets jazz in this melodic five-piece from South Shore, Nova Scotia. With piano, guitar, fiddle, double bass, harmonica, percussion and vocals, Flat Fifth creates an infectious, fresh sound that shows the influence of artists such as Steely Dan, Ben Folds, The Beatles, Nat King Cole, Monte Alexander, Duke Ellington and Joe Jackson.

Wednesday, June 25 Ciara Adams
With her incredible vocal prowess and undeniable charisma, Ciara Adams is a talent that, once experienced, is never forgotten. A classically trained opera singer with a background in cabaret and a love of jazz, Adams blends cabaret, pop, electronica and jazzy grooves to create a style all her own.


Citytv and OMNI Television present
MONDO MUZIKO A-GO-GO!
Fridays, June 27 - September 19, 8-10 pm, Free Admission
Do it on Friday nights! Mondo Muziko A-Go-Go sets your burner to sizzle with a concert series that'll get hips swaying and temperatures rising - muy caliente !

Fri. June 27 Psychotropical Orchestra
It's a psycho-tropical brew of Latin rhythms, afrobeat, dub-reggae and straight-up rock with a dash of psychedelia, served up in a groove-busting, high-energy show.
Future Shop presents CITY CINEMA
ROMANTIC REELS 2008
Tuesdays at Sunset, June 24 - August 26, Free Admission
Tuesday night is movie night at YDS and this summer, the season is dedicated to the most romantic movies of all time as voted by you! Our countdown begins with that sweeping saga of southern love, lust and war. Lawzy!

Gone With the Wind (Part I - June 24; Part II - Mon. June 30)
It won a record-setting 10 Academy Awards, was named the 6th greatest movie of all time by the American Film Institute, and was voted by Torontonians as one of the most romantic movies ever made. Don't miss this opportunity to see virile Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) and wily flirt Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) as they were meant to be seen - on a huge screen!


ARTS AT THE HEART
Friday, Saturday, Sunday and all Holidays, May 9 - October 26, Free Admission
Yonge Dundas Square hosts ARTS AT THE HEART, a fabulously eclectic marketplace featuring unique work from local artists, artisans and designers.


MORE FREE EVENTS AT YDS
June 6-11 Luminato - Toronto's Festival of Arts and Creativity
June 12-14 North By Northeast (NXNE) concerts and music marketplace
June 28 Mexico: Cultural & Gastronomic Festival
July 1 Multicultural Canada Day Festival


Admission is FREE to all these events at YONGE-DUNDAS SQUARE!
Programming is subject to change.
For more information visithttp://www.ydsquare.ca.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:33 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Grande rentre Montralaise : Retrouver les sens dAriane Moffatt

GRANDE RENTRE MONTRALAISE : RETROUVEZ LES SENS D'ARIANE MOFFATT
Au Club Soda les 15, 16 et 17 octobre 2008
Communiqu pour diffusion immdiate
Ariane Moffatt
En spectacle
Ariane Moffatt




Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:31 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

NACO June 15-July 1: 10th edition of NAC Summer Music Institute - public events


The 10th edition of the NACs Summer Music Institute offers a wealth of public events from June 15 to July 1

Ottawa, Canada The National Arts Centres 10th Summer Music Institute (SMI) will see 90 talented young musicians, conductors and composers from across Canada and around the world gather in Ottawa from June 9 to July 1 to study with an international faculty headed by Pinchas Zukerman, the Music Director of the NAC Orchestra. The celebratory 10th edition of the SMI offers more opportunities than ever for the public to view these exceptional participants in performance.

The NAC Summer Music Institute was founded by Pinchas Zukerman in 1999, his first year as Music Director of the Orchestra. With this summers edition, the SMI will have provided training to 581 participants from 34 countries including Canada. The SMI consists of the Young Artists Programme (YAP) for highly talented string, wind and piano musicians and this year for the first time, a vocal quartet; the Conductors Programme (CdP), added in 2001 giving experienced conductors the chance to hone their skills in workshop format; and the Composers Programme (CmP), added in 2003 during which composers develop an original work on a live ensemble. All three programmes include concerts showcasing the talents of these stars of the future. (A chronological list of public events follows.)

The 2008 Young Artists Programme (YAP) offers 68 highly talented students from across Canada and around the globe the opportunity to take part in junior and senior levels of technical study. Exceptional students aspiring to be tomorrows best classical musicians are chosen by audition to participate in this intense programme of study. Chamber music coaching is a key element of the students instruction and all the participants perform publicly in their chamber ensembles. There also three open masterclasses.

Two separate concerts of piano and string ensembles will take place at the Canadian Museum of Civilization on June 18 and 19 using Glenn Goulds famous piano. Attendance at Glenn Gould I and II is free with admission to the Glenn Gould Exhibit currently taking place. Three concerts will take place on June 24, 25 and 26 under the Plaza Bridge beside the NAC as part of the NCCs Noon Under the Bridge series. Three final recitals will take place at the University of Ottawa: Spotlight on Winds on June 24, and two Spotlights on Strings and Vocals on June 29 and 30. And finally, members of the YAP will participate in the Canada Day concerts with the NAC Orchestra led by Pinchas Zukerman on July 1. Summer Music Institute public events also include three masterclasses with Pinchas Zukerman and Patinka Kopec on June 20, with Hans Jorgen Jensen on June 21 and with vocal coach Benita Valente on June 27. The NAC Summer Music Institute is presented in collaboration with the University of Ottawa.

The NAC Composers Programme (CmP) concludes with a Celebration of Future Classics on June 25 at which the audience joins the performers on the stage of Southam Hall to hear compositions by the participants and their mentors. An earlier Celebration of Future Classics on June 23 will feature works by Gary Kulesha (Lead Composer of the 2008 CmP), and Canadian composers Alexina Louie and Ana Sokolovic. It will also feature renowned percussionist Colin Currie performing the Canadian premiere of Time Release by American composer Steven Mackey.

The NAC Conductors Programme (CdP) concludes on June 26 with the five skilled participants leading the NAC Orchestra in a concert of musical classics. For the first time this year, the Conductor Programme has the benefit of the full-sized Orchestre de la francophonie canadienne to practice on throughout the programme under the expert guidance of Kenneth Kiesler, conductor and mentor-to-conductors, as well as Pinchas Zukerman.

Canadian participants of the Summer Music Insitute senior YAP, conductors and composers are considered for full scholarships, and private donations help provide partial scholarships for Junior Strings and international students. The National Arts Centre Summer Music Institute is generously supported by private and corporate donations and through the NAC Foundations National Youth and Education Trust (Founding Partner TELUS). Major supporters include: Scotiabank, Universal Music, University of Ottawa, Galaxie The Continuous Music Network through its Galaxie Rising Stars Program of the CBC and the NAC Foundation Donors Circle.

CHRONOLOGICAL CALENDAR OF SUMMER MUSIC INSTITUTE EVENTS

Sunday, June 15 at 6:30 pm

Friends of NACO Young Artists Programme Appreciation Concert

Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $5 (free for members of Friends of NACO; memberships on sale at door)

Wednesday, June 18 at 12 noon

In Honour of Glenn Gould I

Chamber music by piano and string ensembles of the Young Artists Programme

Canadian Museum of Civilization

Free with admission to Glenn Gould Exhibit

Thursday, June 19 at 7 pm

In Honour of Glenn Gould II

Chamber music by piano and string ensembles of the Young Artists Programme

Canadian Museum of Civilization

Free with admission to Glenn Gould Exhibit

Friday, June 20 at 7:30 pm

Summer Music Institute Masterclass

Pinchas Zukerman and Patinka Kopec, violin and viola

Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $5 at the door

Saturday, June 21 at 9:30 am

Meet the Maestro: Kenneth Kiesler

Behind the Music, presented by Friends of the NAC Orchestra

Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $14 (Friends of NACO members: $12; Students: $6)

Saturday, June 21 at 7:30 pm

Summer Music Institute Masterclass

Hans Jorgen Jensen, cello

Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $5 at the door

Monday, June 23 at 7:30 pm

Celebration of Future Classics: Time Release

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Members of the Orchestre de la francophonie canadienne

Jean-Philippe Tremblay, conductor

Julian Wachter, conductor

Colin Currie, percussion

Southam Hall

Tickets $15 (or all 3 Celebration of Future Classics for $30 June 23, 25, 28)

Tuesday, June 24 at 12 noon

Noon Under the Bridge

Outdoor chamber music with participants in the NAC Young Artists Programme.

Presented in collaboration with the National Capital Commission
Plaza Bridge (beside the NAC)

Alternate site in case of rain: Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Free no tickets required

Tuesday, June 24 at 7 pm

Young Artists Programme: Spotlight on Winds

Chamber music by the highly talented Canadian and international young musicians of the YAP in recital.

Tabaret Hall, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $10 ($15 for two concerts; $22 for all three June 24, 29, 30)

Wednesday, June 25 at 12 noon

Noon Under the Bridge

Outdoor chamber music with participants in the NAC Young Artists Programme.

Presented in collaboration with the National Capital Commission
Plaza Bridge (beside the NAC)

Alternate site in case of rain: Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Free no tickets required

Wednesday, June 25 at 7:30 pm

Composers Programme: Celebration of Future Classics

Ensembles from the NAC Orchestra and lOrchestre de la francophonie canadienne

Jean-Philippe Tremblay, conductor

Gary Kulesha, conductor

Roberto Sierra, guest composer

Sit on Southam Hall stage with the performers and experience brand new creations by members of the sixth annual Composers Programme and their mentors.

Southam Hall: onstage seating

Tickets: $15 (or all 3 Celebration of Future Classics for $30 June 23, 25, 28)

Thursday, June 26 at 12 noon

Noon Under the Bridge

Outdoor chamber music with participants in the NAC Young Artists Programme.

Presented in collaboration with the National Capital Commission
Plaza Bridge (beside the NAC)

Alternate site in case of rain: Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Free no tickets required

Thursday, June 26 at 7:30 pm

Conductors Programme Concert

A free concert of orchestral classics performed by the National Arts Centre Orchestra under the baton of the five Canadian and international conductors participating in the 2008 Conductors Programme.

Southam Hall

Free tickets available in person at the NAC Box Office

Friday, June 27 at 7:30 pm

Summer Music Institute Masterclass

Benita Valente, vocal

Freiman Hall, Perez Building, University of Ottawa

Tickets $5 at the door

Saturday, June 28 at 7:30 pm

Manitoba Chamber Orchestra

Special Concert (Celebration of Future Classics not part of Summer Music Institute)

Southam Hall

Tickets $15 (or all 3 Celebration of Future Classics for $30 June 23, 25, 28)

Sunday, June 29 at 7 pm

Young Artists Programme: Spotlight on Strings and Vocals I

Chamber music by the highly talented Canadian and international young musicians of the YAP in their final recital.

Tabaret Hall, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $10 ($15 for two concerts; $22 for all three June 24, 29, 30)

Monday, June 30 at 7 pm

Young Artists Programme: Spotlight on Strings and Vocals II

Chamber music by the highly talented Canadian and international young musicians of the YAP in their final recital.

Tabaret Hall, University of Ottawa

Tickets: $10 ($15 for two concerts; $22 for all three June 24, 29, 30)

Tuesday, July 1

Canada Day Celebrations

400-voice massed Unisong Choir 2008

Southam Hall, 10 am

National Arts Centre Orchestra

Pinchas Zukerman, conductor

musicians of the NAC Young Artists Programme

400-voice massed Unisong Choir

Southam Hall, 2:30 pm and 7:30 pm

Free (no tickets required)

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:49 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash takes place August 3rd


The 19th annual Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash
a highlight of the Festival 150 weekend joins Festival 150 in celebrating the best of BC

Victoria, BC - The 19th annual Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash will take place on Sunday, August 3, 2008. This year, the Victoria Symphony presents a very special performance celebrating BC's 150th anniversary, including participation by BC musicians, the introduction of a young Victoria soloist and the premiere of a new piece by a BC composer, Tobin Stokes.
Tania Miller will conduct the Victoria Symphony when it takes the stage at 7:30 opening with the world premiere of composer Tobin Stokes' piece Inner Harbour Overture. Inspired by the sights and sounds of the Victoria's Inner Harbour this piece will not only showcase the incredible talent of this BC composer but will make the busy historical harbour a star of the show.
As one of the mainstage highlights of the BCFestival 150 weekend celebrations Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash will showcase music by BC composers, music from 150 years ago and some of the incredible musical talents BC has to offer.
"We are delighted that this year's Splash event can be part of an entire weekend of festivities!," says Patricia Mariash, vice-president of Bayview Residences.
Annually a young BC soloist is chosen to perform with the Victoria Symphony. Auditions will be held on June 6th. Tania Miller will announce the 2008 young performer on June 7th as well as more event programming details.

"There is an amazing amount of musical talent in BC and this year we are extremely excited to introduce yet another musical talentadd another name to the list of BC performers to at Festival 150 when we choose the young soloist who will perform debut with the Symphony on August 3rd." exclaims Tania Miller, Music director for the Victoria Symphony
This year's Splash Kids Tent sees a part of the Legislature lawns transforming into a zoo! An Instrument Petting Zoo. Run by musical youth volunteers the Instrument Petting Zoo will the Symphony's biggest yet. The Instrument Petting Zoo take place from 2-5pm on the Legislature Lawn near Belleville Street. Thanks to Long and McQuade, the zoo will feature over 20 musical instruments that young audience members can hold, blow and bow. Studies have shown that early exposure to music and musical instruments can promote better cognitive, memory and learning skills later in life. The Victoria Symphony's Instrument Petting Zoo is present at every Concerts for Kids show and also visits community events and organizations.

This year marks the second in a five year commitment for title sponsor Bayview Residences In 2007 Bayview Residences came to the rescue of the annual event replacing the previous title sponsor when a change in corporate directive no longer provided funding for the Victoria-based event.
Several other sponsorships have also been confirmed for the 2008 Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash: Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash is presented by Bayview Residences and the Victoria Symphony and the following corporate and community sponsors:
Community Partners:
The Allen and Loreen Vandekerkhove Family Foundation,
Splashes Bath & Kitchen Centre and
WAX Partnership
Volunteer Sponsor:
Thrifty Foods
Event/Vendor Sponsors:
Level Ground Trading Ltd, .
Long and McQuade
Government Supporters:
British Columbia Arts Council,
Canada Council for the Arts,
City of Victoria,
CRD,
Province of British Columbia

Tania Miller's reputation as a consummate musician, leader, and communicator has grown rapidly in today's orchestral scene. Maestra Miller was the youngest current music director of a major Canadian orchestra and the first Canadian woman to be appointed to such a significant position in Canada. The 2008-2009 season will mark Maestra Miller's sixth season as music director of the Victoria Symphony Orchestra.
The Victoria Symphony is Vancouver Island's largest and most active arts organization offering its audiences 67 years of tradition, a commitment to fostering new music and a dedication to community involvement through music education. Showcasing the outstanding talents of its musicians and guest artists the Victoria Symphony's 2008-2009 season offers a diverse and exciting line-up of over 100 concerts led by its vibrant Music Director Tania Miller.
Bayview Residences is part of a 20-acre hilltop community being created on Victoria's Inner Harbour. When completed, this Urban Resort Community will include residential towers as well as retail and commercial services as part of the revitalized CPR Roundhouse - a designated National Historic Site. Bayview Residences offers spacious one, two and three bedroom residences with exceptional interior design and attention to detail. The community's Amenity Clubhouse will feature squash and tennis courts, gym facilities, lap pool and cafe. Bayview is a strong supporter of the community, sponsoring numerous national and local events including the Canadian National Junior Squash Championships and the annual Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash. For further details, visit the on-site presentation centre at 80 Saghalie Road or www.bayviewresidences.com.
Each year, the Victoria Symphony performs on Sunday of the BC Day long weekend for 40,000 people from a floating stage in Victoria's picturesque Inner Harbour during the Bayview Residences Victoria Symphony Splash. Recognized as one of North America's most popular and successful outdoor family, cultural and community events, the Victoria Symphony plays to an audience of more than 40,000 people.
while sitting on a floating stage in Victoria's Inner Harbour. The event concludes with a spectacular fireworks display.

For more information, please visit www.victoriasymphony.ca.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:45 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Lancement QBANITO !


Montral, le 26 mai 2008

Rappel

QBANITO

De 0 25 degrs

Cest ce vendredi 30 mai 2008 que toute lquipe de COPA Records vous reoit pour le lancement du 4e album de QBANITO De 0 25 degrs . Le succs radiophonique de leur chanson Seorita , Cuba et au Qubec, inspire le thme du lancement qui sera bas sur un vol arien destination de Cuba.

Le dcollage se fera 15:30 aux portes du Club Copacabana. Le capitaine de bord et ses htesses vous attendent avec un cocktail spcialement conu pour loccasion. Durant le vol, vous aurez le privilge de visionner les huit nouveaux vidoclips, tirs des chansons de lalbum De 0 25 degrs, que QBANITO a enregistrs sous le soleil chaud de Cuba ainsi que la musique du Dj maison. Atterrissage prvu : 17:00.

A la fin du priple, vous aurez droit des prestations en direct de QBANITO et Cindy Chavez, artiste de renomme nationale.

Pas de rservation, pas de place, pas de vol !

Alors, dpchez-vous et rservez vos places en tlphonant au (514) 788-2123 (RedFlag2.0) ou en vous rendant directement au Club Copacabana situ au 1106 boulevard de Maisonneuve Ouest.

DS VOTRE ARRIVE SUR PLACE, DEMANDEZ VOTRE 0 25oC

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 7:27 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Festival Montral Baroque

* Prix du Conseil des Arts de Montral *

Laurat musique 2007

Lettres damour au soleil levant

Premier concert dans la Tour de Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours

Montral, le lundi 26 mai 2008. Du haut de la Tour de Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours, admirer le soleil se lever sur le fleuve aux rythmes du luth et du pipa accompagnant des lettres damour, cest lexprience enchanteresse qui attend les lve-tt au Festival Montral Baroque.

Pour son clbre concert matinal, dimanche 22 juin 7h, Montral Baroque invite les festivaliers un change pistolaire entre deux amoureux chinois, Yuan et Sassa. Lun vivant maintenant Montral et lautre Shanga, leurs lettres damour inspirent, de leur mlancolie et passion, les musiciens Wen Zhao (pipa) et Luc Harris (luth).

Le concert intitul Lettres Chinoises, de loeuvre de la romancire sino-canadienne Ying Chen, qui aborde le dracinement et le choc des cultures, se traduit dans une performance de musique aux traditions orientales et occidentales. Pour cet change amoureux sur deux continents, Le Festival Montral Baroque propose un site au bord du fleuve: la Tour de la Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours. Aprs un rveil tt dimanche matin, les Festivaliers devront gravir les 90 marches de la Tour pour se rendre au lieu de concert, aux boiseries et vitraux magnifiques.

Nombre de places trs limit, les billets senvolent rapidement.
Billetterie lectronique au www.montrealbaroque.com.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 7:03 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Sunday, May 25, 2008

The North/South Chamber Orchestra Premieres Four Works by American Composers on June 10 (Tuesday) at 8 PM!

Ethnic Echoes
Chamber Orchestra Works by Three Generations of American Composers
premieres by

Hayg Boyadjian, Max Lifchitz,
Hilary Tann, & Mary Jeanne van Appledorn

Lisa Hansen, alto flute;
Virginia Shaw, oboe;
Claudia Schaer, violin
Max Lifchitz, conductor

The North/South Chamber Orchestra
Tuesday, June 10 at 8 PM

Christ & St Stephen's Church

120 West 69th St (bet Bway & Columbus), NYC
Free Admission. No tickets required.
http://www.northsouthmusic.org

 North/South Consonance, Inc. continues its 28th season with a concert featuring music by three generations of American composers The North/South Chamber Orchestra under the direction of conductor Max Lifchitz will be joined by guest artists flutist Lisa Hansen; oboist Virginia Shaw; and violinist Claudia Schaer.

The event will be held on Tuesday, June 10 at 8 PM at the auditorium of Christ & St. Stephen's Church (120 West 69th St) in Manhattan. Admission is free.

The program will open with the New York premiere of Ayre for strings by Texas based Mary Jeanne van Appledorn who is celebrating her 80th birthday this season. Born in Holland, MI, van Appledorn studied with Howard Hanson at the Eastman School of Music. She has taught at Texas Tech University in Lubbock since 1951 and has earned yearly ASCAP Award for the last 25 years. Her works have been performed throughout the US, Japan, Russia and Latin America and appear on many recordings including those issued by the North/South label. Commissioned by he Music Teachers National Association, Ayre is a single-movement work inspired by 19th century American Hymns. Its simplicity and directness is both moving and refreshing.

The program will continue with the US premiere of Sevan for alto flute, strings and timpani by Hayg Boyadjian, the Armenian-American composer. Born in 1938 in Paris to Armenian parents, Boyadjian lived in Argentina before settling in the Boston area in 1958. His composition teachers included Alberto Ginastera, Seymour Shiffrin, Alvin Lucier and Edward Cohen. His works have been performed in Argentina, Armenia, Brazil, Europe, Korea, Japan and throughout the US. The Boston Globe referred to his music "as displaying the fine craftsmanship associated with a master like Hindemith." Sevan is the name of the large lake in the Caucasus Mountains of Armenia that provided inspiration to the composer.

Flutist Lisa Hansen will be the featured Sevan soloist. Ms. Hansen's recent recording of Nielsen's Flute Concerto was warmly praised by Fanfare Magazine and her recording of Rodrigo's Concerto Pastoral for the EMI label has been broadcast by radio stations throughout the world. A graduate of The Juilliard School, Ms. Hansen has performed with North/South Consonance since 1988.

English oboist Virginia Shaw will be the featured soloist in the US premiere of Shakkei, a recently completed concerto by Welsh-born Hilary Tann. The John Howard Payne Professor of Music at Union College in Upstate New York, Ms. Tann's orchestral compositions have been performed by prominent ensembles including among others, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic; the European Women's Orchestra; the National Orchestra of Wales; the San Francisco Women's Philharmonic; and the KBS Philharmonic in Seoul, Korea.

Shakkei, a term used in Japanese landscape design, means "borrowed scenery." The first movement of the work was inspired by Mount Hiei as viewed from Shoden-ji, a temple with a dry landscape garden. The second movement was inspired by the hills of Arashimaya as viewed from Tenryu-ji, a temple with a lush garden. Its musical language is somewhat reminiscent of Impressionism.

Oboist Virginia Shaw was joint first prize winner of the 1995 Isle of Wight International Oboe Competition. A founder of the new music collective Okeanos, Ms. Shaw has premiered several oboe concerti written especially for her by British composers including Kenneth Leighton and John McCabe.

The concert will close with the New York premiere of Intervencion (Intervention) for violin and chamber orchestra by North/South Consonance's founder Max Lifchitz. Born in Mexico City, Mr. Lifchitz has resided in New York since 1966 where he maintains an active career as performer and composer. A graduate of The Juilliard School and Harvard University, Lifchitz has received grans and fellowships from among others, the ASCAP, Ford and Guggenheim Foundations; the New York State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Canadian violinist Claudia Schaer will be the featured soloist. A graduate of The Juilliard School and SUNY Stony Brook, Ms. Schaer and taught has performed throughout the US, Canada, Europe and China where she was named guest professor at the Guangxi Arts College of Nanning. An advocate of contemporary music, Ms. Schaer has performed at the Lucerne Music Festival under the baton of Pierre Boulez.

Intervencion was composed in the summer of 1976 under a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts commemorating the US Bicentennial. The title of the three movement work refers to the instrumental plan of the work: while the solo violin clearly dominates the first movement of the composition, the ensemble gradually "intervenes" in the soloist's territory eventually assuming an equal role to that of the solo instrument in the closing movement. Intervencion was premiered in Minneapolis, MI on September 28, 1976 by violinist Romuald Tecco and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Dennis Russell Davies.

The composers will be on hand to introduce their works and meet with the audience during intermission and after the concert. All participants in the event are available to the press for interviews and may be contacted through our office at (212) 663-7566 or by e-mail at ns.concerts@att.net

North/South Consonance's 2007-08 season is made possible in part with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. For further information about its activities, including concerts and recordings, please visit http://www.northsouthmusic.org/

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 5:36 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Olivier Messiaen

OLIVIER MESSIAEN

ET UNE CRATION MONDIALE DE NICOLAS GILBERT

C'est encore les doigts agits de chants d'oiseaux que Louise Bessette se prpare pour un autre concert soulignant l'importance d'Olivier Messiaen sur la scne musicale. Le 8 juin, 15h, dans le site historique du Sharon Temple, Sharon, Ontario, elle interprtera le Quatuor pour la fin du temps en compagnie de Simon Aldrich (clarinette), Yegor Dyachkov (violoncelle) et Olivier Thouin (violon).

Oeuvre marquante dans l'volution exprimentale du compositeur, le Quatuor pour la fin du temps a t crit alors qu'Olivier Messiaen sjournait au Stalag VIII A pendant la deuxime guerre mondiale, en Silsie. La formation instrumentale correspond aux instruments disponibles dans le camp de prisonniers. Malgr des contraintes physiques et motionnelles extrmes, Messiaen compose, sans les instruments sous la main, une musique dans un langage essentiellement immatriel, spirituel et catholique qui le mnera indubitablement vers les recherches musicales plus pousses des annes venir. Cre au camp, trois jours avant sa libration, avec Messiaen lui-mme au piano, cette uvre reste un hommage musical poignant la vie et l'humanit. Au mme programme, le Trio opus 11 en Sib Majeur pour piano, clarinette et violoncelle de Beethoven, une oeuvre de chambre trop peu joue, ddie la comtesse Maria Wilhelmine von Thun, protectrice du compositeur Vienne. galement, le public entendra en cration mondiale Le temps des impossibles du compositeur qubcois Nicolas Gilbert, quatuor crit pour les quatre musiciens en hommage Olivier Messiaen, grce une subvention du Conseil des Arts du Canada.

Musicienne chevronne et pianiste de haute voltige, Louise Bessette est une artiste constamment recherche et estime. Elle a une vingtaine d'enregistrements son actif. Premier Prix au Concours International de Musique Contemporaine de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Premier Prix au Concours International Gaudeamus, Prix Opus soliste de l'anne, 1996-1997, pour son rcital consacr aux Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jsus d'Olivier Messiaen, membre de l'Ordre du Canada, Officier de l'Ordre national du Qubec, Louise Bessette cumule les distinctions honorifiques, soulignant l'importance de son apport musical. Depuis 1996, elle est titulaire d'une classe de piano au Conservatoire de Musique de Montral.



OLIVIER MESSIAEN

AND A WORLD PREMIERE BY NICOLAS GILBERT

Her fingers still hot with Messiaen's "birdcalls" from her last performance, Louise Bessette is getting ready to attack another masterpiece by the French composer. On June 8, at 3PM, on the historical landmark of Sharon Temple, in Sharon, Ontario, she will perform the Quartet for the end of time with Simon Aldrich (clarinet), Yegor Dyachkov (cello) and Olivier Thouin (violin).

Significant composition for the experimental evolution of the composer, Quartet for the end of time was written when Olivier Messiaen was a prisonner of the Second World War, in Stalag VIII A, in Silesia. The chamber formation corresponded to the available intruments in the camp. Through extreme physical and emotional pressure, and without the instruments at hand, Messiaen composed a work glowing with ethereal, spiritual and catholic musical qualities, which would paved the way for his foray into musical research of future years. Created at the camp, three days prior to his release, with him at the keyboard, this masterpiece remains one of the most poignant homage and celebration of life and humanity. Completing this program is Beethoven's Trio opus 11 in Bb Major for piano, clarinet and cello, a delightful chamber work not performed often enough and dedicated to the Countess Maria Wilhelmine von Thun, a patron of the composer in Vienna. Finally, the public will hear Le temps des impossibles, a world premiere by quebecer composer Nicolas Gilbert, a quartet specially written for the four musicians, thanks to a grant from the Canada Council for the Arts, and a musical tribute to Olivier Messiaen.

A versatile musician with an acrobatic mastery of the keyboard, Louise Bessette is appreciated throughout the world. She performs frequently with renowned formations and is seen regularly in festivals throughout Europe and America. She won the First Prize at the Concours International de Musique Contemporaine in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the First Prize and the Special Prize for Piano at the International Gaudeamus Competition, the 1991 Flandre-Qubec Award, and the Prix Opus for "soloist of the year" 1996-97, awarded by the Conseil Qubcois de la Musique. Piano teacher at the Conservatoire de musique de Montral since 1996, she is transmitting to young virtuosos her passionate love of music.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:38 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Scarborough Society of Musicians

Scarborough Musicians want to keep the Music Alive

A quartet of Scarborough graduates have formed the Scarborough Society of Musicians with the mission of keeping music alive for post-secondary students who are not pursuing professional studies in music. They plan to provide an environment for the members to continue developing and exercising their talent.

Their goal is to involve those graduates who would like to keep involved in music but do not have the time to be involved in community groups that practise weekly and in most cases meet on week nights. Musicians will meet twice a month for practices and the quartet hopes that students who are now studying out of town will be able to attend the practices on Saturday
mornings. The tentative rehearsal location is Dr. Norman Bethune C.I. which has an award winning music programme and fostered the musical interests of some of these students who now want to give back to the community.

Because they benefited from participation in music studies in elementary and high schools, the group also plans to contribute to the community by helping to keep music alive in the community and fostering links.

For further information about this new venture check the website:
www.continuingmusic.ca or e-mail ssm@continuingmusic.ca.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:10 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Concert d'inauguration de l'orgue Casavant

l'heure o plusieurs de nos glises catholiques ferment, de nombreux et valeureux orgues quittent le pays ou sont abandonns avec l'difice ou pire, destins la dmolition. C'est avec fiert que les paroissiens de Sainte-Angle vous invitent au concert d'inauguration de leur orgue Casavant. L'instrument, rcemment install Sainte-Angle et qui provient du Couvent des Franciscains du boulevard Ren-Lvesque, est compos de 17 jeux, rpartis sur deux claviers et un pdalier. Ce concert qui runira trois grands noms du monde de l'orgue montralais, Hlne Dugal, Christopher Jackson et Rjean Poirier, se tiendra le dimanche 8 juin 16h, l'glise Sainte-Angle, au 5275, boul. Lavoisier, Saint-Lonard (entre Viau et Lacordaire, au nord du boulevard Mtropolitain). Le programme musical est compos d'uvres de Poulenc, Bonnet, Piern, Capocci, Durante et Bolmann. Un vin d'honneur suivra. L'entre est libre. Pour se procurer les laisser-passer, vous tre pris de tlphoner au 514-321-3644. Un vnement ne pas manquer.

PROGRAMME

Hlne DUGAL

Francis POULENC (1899-1963)

Priez pour paix , Texte de Charles D'Orlans *


Joseph BONNET (1884-1944)

- Trois versets sur l'hymne Ave Maris Stella (op.5, n 5)
- Rverie (op.5, n6)
- Moment musical (op.10, n 4)
- Consolation (op. 10, n 5)

Gabriel PIERN (1863-1937)
- Prlude en sol mineur, op. 29, n1

Rjean POIRIER

Filippo CAPOCCI (1840-1911)

- Meditazione

- Andante con moto

- Preludio e Fuga

Christopher JACKSON

Francesco Durante (1684-1755)

"Vergin tutto amor" *

Lon BOLLMANN (1862-1897)

Suite Gothique, opus 25

- Introduction et Choral

- Menuet Gothique

- Prire Notre Dame

- Toccata

* chant par le baryton Jean-Pierre Couturier

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:04 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The award-winning Mississauga Waterfront Festival


The Mississauga Waterfront Festival is again celebrating Great Canadian Music at Port Credit's Memorial Park, June 13 - 15 Father's Day Weekend with Matthew Good June 13th Colin James June 14th & Suzie McNeil & Rik Emmett June 15th.

At Festivals & Events Ontario the festival won numerous awards including being one of Ontario's Top 100 Festivals for the 5th year in a row and winning the prestigious Best Overall Media, Marketing and Promotional Campaign Award. They also won Best Fundraising Idea for Full Circle, a fundraiser for their Sponsor a Child Program. The Mississauga Waterfront Festival is again proud to present an exciting festival weekend with four of Canada's most popular artists: MATTHEW GOOD, COLIN JAMES, SUZIE MCNEIL AND RIK EMMETT who are enjoying record-breaking CD and video success and appearing in concert worldwide. Supporting acts include JOHNNY MAX, THE SPADES, CRASH PARALLEL, BACKDRAFT & Australian newcomer, MARTA. Attractions include extreme jet-ski & water-ski shows, Purina dog show, petting zoo, pony rides, carnival, great food, First Nations Stage, McDonald's Sports Zone, crafters, vendors, BMX competition, YTV WOW, Mississauga Future Stars Finals, Pizza Nova & Home Depot workshops & World Vision's One Life Experience. Children's stage highlights include TOOPY & BINOO, MISS SPIDER, MEET & GREETS WITH MAX FROM MAX & RUBY and DORA THE EXPLORER, RONALD MCDONALD AND TRIBUTES TO HANNAH MONTANA AND HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL.

A weekend wristband will get you to all concerts, attractions and events! Prices are $15 for adults and $10 for children and seniors Advance price: $13 for adults and $8 for children and seniors available on our Web site: www.mississaugawaterfrontfestival.com


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:50 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Festival Montral Baroque

Photo : directrice artistique : Suzie Napper

FESTIVAL MONTRAL BAROQUE

PROGRAMMATION

CONCERTS

LA TRAVERSE MIRACULEUSE

Charbonniers de lEnfer, Meredith Hall (soprano), La Nef, Lisa Ornstein (fiddle qubcois) et David Greenberg (fiddle no-cossais)

Musiques traditionnelles no-cossaises et qubcoises

Vendredi 20 juin 19h30 Grand Concert - Hangar 16, Quais du Vieux-Port (vis--vis la rue Bonsecours)

CHINOISERIES - Premire montralaise

Qian Yi et Samantha Louis-Jean (sopranos), Ensemble Tsuni Shou, Les Voix Humaines

Chansons damour franaises et chinoises du XVIIe; extraits dun opra Kun banni en Chine lors de la Rvolution culturelle.

Vendredi 20 juin 21h30 Grand Concert - Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours (400, rue Saint-Paul Est)

I MERCANTI DI VENEZIA!

Les Borades de Montral, Consort des Voix Humaines

Musique vnitienne du XVIIe sicle pour vents, cordes, violons et violes de Bassano, Rossi, Cima et Fontana

Samedi 21 juin 17h30 - Grand Concert - Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours (400, rue Saint-Paul Est)

KLEZMER : VENEZIA-VARSOVIE / CONCERT BNFICE

Ensemble Budowitz

De Budapest, Berlin et New-York, Budowitz est un des rares groupes interprter le Klezmer sur instruments du XIXe sicle. Concert suivi dune soire dansante avec la caller Avia Moore.

Samedi 21 juin 20h00 Grand concert - Cirque loize/Gare Dalhousie (417, rue Berri)

LETTRES CHINOISES

Wen Zhao (pipa), Lucas Harris (luth), 2 comdiens

Luth et pipa sur les crits de la canadienne Ying Chen : les lettres damour entre Yuan, immigr Montral, et Sassa Shanghai.

Dimanche 22 juin 7h Concert intime matinal - Tour de Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours (400, rue Saint-Paul Est)

Note : 90 marches monter

CANTATES DE BACH : HOMMAGE GOULD

Monika Mauch (soprano), Daniel Taylor (contre-tnor), Bande Montral Baroque, Eric Milnes, direction.

Point culminant de la journe consacre Glenn Gould, les Cantates BWV 170 et 210

Dimanche 22 juin 17h30 Grand Concert - Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours (400, rue Saint-Paul Est)

PLANXTY OCAROLAN

Ensemble La Cigale, Sara Lackie (harpe)

Musique irlandaise du XVIIIe sicle, dont celle du bien connu OCarolan!

Lundi 23 juin 15h Concert intime - Galerie Pange (40, rue Saint-Paul Ouest)

SOIRE SAFRAN

OHSO SQUARE, OU LE MARCH DE CALCUTTA!

Ensemble Notturna (nouvel ensemble montralais)

Les soires musicales des employs de la British East India Company telles que relates dans des lettres datant du XVIII sicle.

Dimanche 22 juin 19h30 Concert intime - Cirque loize/Gare Dalhousie (417, rue Berri)

TABLA DHAUTE!

Pandit Sharda Sahai (tabla), Ramesh Mishra (sarangi)

Rcital de musique classique indienne par des artistes de renomme internationale. Le Pandit Sharda Sahai compte parmi ses anctres le premier virtuose de tabla, n en 1775 Bnars en Inde.

Dimanche 22 juin 21h30 Grand Concert - Cirque loize/Gare Dalhousie (417, rue Berri)

SOIRE DES CARABES

LE COULICAM, ROI DE PERSE !

Ensemble Masques

De talentueux jeunes montralais interprtent lintgrale des Pices de clavecin en concert de Rameau, compositeur trs populaire chez les colons franais dHati au XVIIIe sicle.

Lundi 23 juin 17h30 Concert intime - Galerie Pange (40, rue Saint-Paul Ouest)

VERSAILLES VAUDOU!

Samantha Louis-Jean (soprano), Chris Coyne (tnor) Ensemble Diolkidi (percussions), Oswald Duran (flte hatienne), Ensemble Caprice; Jeanty, Jocelyne Leger, Marie-Nathalie Lacoursire (chorgraphes)

Lhistoire fascinante dHati, pays o la France et lAfrique se croisent... en musique et

en danse. Oeuvres du Chevalier de St-George, Rousseau, Rameau, Grtry; danses et musiques vaudous.

Lundi 23 juin 20h Grand Concert - Hangar 16, Quais du Vieux-Port (quai vis--vis la rue Bonsecours)

ACTIVITS DANIMATION ET PDAGOGIQUES

DFIL

Vendredi 20 juin 18h45 - Dpart de la Place Jacques-Cartier

avec des artistes des Quatre Coins du Globe, dont des joueurs de raras hatiens

FOIRE

Samedi 21 et dimanche 22 juin, de 11h 21 h - Place de La Dauversire

Concerts gratuits, produits artisanaux, souvenirs, billetterie

Free concerts, crafts, souvenirs, box office

SOIRES AU CAF

Du vendredi 20 au lundi 23 juin de 23h ... au Caf propos

Ateliers dimprovisations et rencontres amicales avec les artistes et les festivaliers.

Improvising with, learning from & meeting with the artists and festival goers.

ATELIERS ET CONFRENCES

MUSIQUES DU MONDE

Samedi 21 juin - Chteau Ramezay

10h Chinoiseries : musique classique chinoise

Atelier-confrence avec Qian Yi et Shuni Tsou

11h Musique classique hatienne?

Confrence de Claude Dauphin

12h Fiddlers Fayre

Class with David Greenberg

14h Whats this Klezmer?

Class with Tamas Gombei & Joshua Horowitz of Budowitz

15h An Indian improvisation

Class with Pandit Sharda Sahai and Shawn Mativetski, tabla

JOURNE GLENN GOULD ET LE BAROQUE

Dimanche 22 juin - Chteau Ramezay

10h Espace Goldberg

Table-ronde anime par Rachelle Taylor, experte en matire Gould, avec des confrenciers internationaux.

Round Table : Gould-berg Variations.

14h Gould, the Renaissance Man!

Rachelle Taylor (virginale) interprte et commente des pices prfres de Gould : Byrd et Gibbons.

Rachelle Taylor will perform, and comment on, some of Goulds favourite music by Byrd, Gibbons

15h Gould au cinma

Archives rares CBC et LAC

Extasis (SRC)

Glenn Gould : Au-del du temps (ARTE)

Glenn Gould LAlchemiste (ORTF)

La journe Gould se termine avec le concert des Cantates de Bach 17h30, la Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours

BILLETTERIE

AVANT LE FESTIVAL, ON PEUT SE PROCURER DES BILLETS :

Via le site Web : www.montrealbaroque.com

Par la poste : Montral Baroque, 3589, rue Sainte-Famille, Montral (Qubec) H2X 2L2

Par tlphone : 514.845.7171 ; 1.866.845.7171

PENDANT LE FESTIVAL

Billetterie la Foire (Place de la Dauversire), samedi le 21 juin et dimanche le 22 juin de 13h 16h30; et lentre des salles de spectacles, une heure avant le concert.

ADULTES

ANS (60+)

TUDIANTS

PASSE GRANDS CONCERTS

220 $

160$

70 $

GRANDS CONCERTS

35 $

25 $

10 $

[#1] La Traverse Miraculeuse, 20/06 19h30




[#2] Chinoiseries, 20/06 21h30




[#3] I Mercanti di Venezia!, 21/06 17h30




[#4] Klezmer: Venezia-Varsovie, 21/06 20h




[#6] Cantates de Bach, Volume V, 22/06 17h30




[#9] Tabla dHaute!, 22/06 21h30




[#11] Versailles Vaudou!, 23/06 20h




CONCERTS INTIMES

20 $

15 $

10 $

[#5] Lettres chinoises, 22/06 7h




[# 8] Ohso Square..., 22/06 19h30




[#7] Planxty OCarolan, 23/06 15h




[#10] Le Coulicam, roi de Perse ! 23/06 17h30




PROGRAMME SOUVENIR : 10 $




Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:30 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Romeo et Juliette July 24 and 26 at Merrill Auditorium



PORTLAND, Maine PORTopera will present Charles Gounod's Romo et Juliette at Portland's Merrill Auditorium on Thursday, July 24 and Saturday, July 26, under the direction of Dona D. Vaughn, Artistic and Stage Director, with guest conductor Israel Gursky. Tickets for this romantic opera, based on Shakespeare's classic tragic drama Romeo and Juliet, are on sale now through PortTix, 207-842-0800.

For more information about Romo et Juliette visit www.portopera.org. Tickets are available online at www.porttix.com, by phone, 207-842-0800 or in person at the 20 Myrtle St. box office in Portland, Maine between noon and 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

About PORTopera:
PORTopera is Maine's only opera company performing fully staged operas with nationally and internationally acclaimed singers. PORTopera will be celebrating its 14th season in 2008 with two performances of Gounod's Romeo et Juliette in late July.


Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:20 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Music of the Mediterranean in Westben Jazz Series

3Westben_'Concerts'_logoCanadian multicultural artists perform Music of the Mediterranean in the

Jazz Out of This World series at Westben Concerts at The Barn

August 2 3, 2008

Campbellford, OntĶ Three of Canadas highly-renowned multicultural artists perform Music of the Mediterranean in Westben Concerts at The Barns Jazz Out of This World series on August 2 and 3, 2008, featuring performances of Portuguese Fado, Spanish Flamenco and Greek Rembetika.

On August 2, 2008 at 2:00 p.m. vocalist Catarina Cardeal and guitarist Mike Siracusa of Musica 15 Fado Blues present Portuguese Fado with a contemporary twist. Fado, considered amongst the oldest urban folk music in the world is described as music played for pleasure and to relieve the pain of life. In 2000, Cardeal was the co-winner for best interpretation in Portugals first annual Festival de Communidades, broadcast by RTP Porto Portuguese National. The group collaborated with Jane Bunnett and the Spirits of Havana performing a sold out concert at Torontos Glenn Gould Studio in 2004.

Robert Michaels, double Juno winner and Canadas foremost Spanish Flamenco style guitar player returns to Westben on August 2, 2008 at 7:30 p.m. Michaels guitar playing has exceeded gold and platinum sales on all five of his recordings. In 2006 he released his sixth recording The Spanish Guitar Collection that includes a sampling of music from all five of his previous CDs that give the listener a summary of his exquisite style.

Calgarys nationally-acclaimed Greek artists Rembetika Hipsters close Westbens 9th season on August 3, 2008 at 2:00 p.m. Since 1996, the group has thrilled audiences across Canada with their unique blend of Greek, Balkan and Middle Eastern music, ranging from belly-dance instruments to jazz-influenced bouzouki pop. The Hipsters write and record original songs in the rembetika tradition, coloured by their backgrounds in jazz, rock and experimental music. They have recorded two acclaimed CDs during a busy touring schedule that has taken them from the Maritimes to the Yukon.

Tickets for Jazz Out of This World! Music of the Mediterranean, range from $10 - $33 and can be purchased by calling 1-705-653-5508 or 1-877-883-5777, or online at www.westben.on.ca

Westben Concerts at The Barns season runs from Saturday, June 28 through Sunday, August 3, 2008. For a complete schedule of performances log on to www.westben.on.ca. Tickets can be purchased by calling 1-705-653-5508 or 1-877-883-5777 or online.

Founded by internationally renowned musicians, soprano Donna Bennett and pianist Brian Finley, Westben is where music and nature come wonderfully to life in each others company. Audiences of all ages continue to enjoy an array of musical styles from classical to Broadway and jazz to world music at The Barn, Westbens main performance venue. This 400-seat custom-built, timber-frame theatre is located 3 km outside of Campbellford. Ontario. Situated on a fifty acre farm, The Barn is 40 minutes from Peterborough, Belleville and Cobourg, or 100 minutes east of Toronto.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:00 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Shakespeare season opens with aboriginal theme

The work of Shakespeare will prove its timelessness once again this summer when Mount Royal's Shakespeare in the Park (SITP) stages a fresh and strikingly relevant production of The Tempest with an aboriginal theme.

"I have always loved and wanted to do The Tempest, and I've been looking for the right context for the play," says Martin Fishman, artistic director of SITP, which kicks off its 21st season on July 3 at Prince's Island Park.

"We ended up going with an aboriginal theme in order to explore the different images we have of aboriginal people, and to showcase the best talent in the aboriginal community," he says.
A co-production with Mount Royal's Iniskim Centre dedicated to supporting aboriginal students and promoting their cultures the play tells the story of Prospero, an exiled duke who takes over an island and enslaves its native inhabitants.

Fishman's interpretation will feature aboriginal dancers and drummers, as well as actor Telly James in the role of Prospero's slave, the downtrodden Caliban.
"I'm pretty excited because, essentially, native theatre and mainstream theatre are coming together in this production," says James, a graduate of Mount Royal's Theatre Arts Performance Diploma program. "And as a native person, I definitely see relevance in Shakespeare's story. It's relevant because he deals with human nature. The settings can change, the times change, but human nature doesn't change."

Fishman adds that Shakespeare is extraordinary partly because his plays are open to a vast array of interpretations. "The language is remarkable, the characters so rich and the stories so universal that they speak to your heart.

"I think a lot of people still come to Shakespeare with fear and trepidation but, when we present it in a way that makes sense to them, the audience comes away with total understanding."

This season, SITP will also bring a new perspective to The Merry Wives of Windsor by setting the comedy in the 1950s. "If Shakespeare wrote a sit-com, this would be it," Fishman says, laughing. A noon-hour production of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) will also run from August 616, starting at 12:10 p.m.

Mount Royal's 2008 Shakespeare in the Park season
The Tempest
The Merry Wives of Windsor

Dates: July 3August 23 (no Sunday performances)
Time: 7 p.m. nightly
Location: Prince's Island Park

For more information, visit www.myshakespeare.ca or call 440-6374.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:56 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The VSO's Season Finale with cellist Daniel Muller-Schott!

The VSOs Blockbuster Season Finale with renowned

cellist Daniel Mller-Schott

Vancouver BC The VSOs blockbuster 2007/2008 season finale features one of the finest young musicians in the world. Cellist Daniel Mller-Schott will play the lavish Dvork Cello Concerto one of Mller-Schotts personal favourites. Other highlights of the concert are Shostakovich's monumental Symphony No. 5, one of the most important symphonies ever written, and Deliuss enchanting Song of Summer. There will be three finale performances which take place from Saturday to Monday, June 7th to 9th at the Orpheum Theatre. VSO contrabassoonist Sophie Dansereau will deliver a pre-concert talk on the Saturday and Monday evenings, and Maestro Bramwell Tovey conducts.

Daniel Mller-Schott has found international acclaim for his high degree of musicality, the wealth of nuances in his playing, and his uncompromising passion for music. Mr. Mller-Schott, although a virtuoso in his own right, has also absorbed influences from his many great teachers and mentors, including Anne-Sophie Mutter, Steven Isserlis, and Heinrich Schiff.

Daniel Mller-Schott has the power and dramatic fire to bewitch the audience.

- Uwe Mitsching

A fearless player with technique to burnĶ

- The New York Times

Daniel Mller-Schott was recently featured on live television performing the Brahms Double Concerto with violinist Julia Fischer and Mozarts Piano Trio No. 5 with Anne-Sophie Mutter and Sir Andr Previn. In high demand world-wide, Mr. Mller-Schott will be featured in concerts in Germany, Norway and Mexico in the month leading up to his performance in Vancouver. This epic season finale concert will mark Daniel Mller-Schotts debut with the VSO.

The Dvork Cello Concerto has taken its place as the greatest cello concerto ever written, as well as the most popular. Written during Dvorks three-year stint as Director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York, the piece received its premiere in London on March 16th, 1896.

Forty-one years after Dvoraks Cello Concerto, Shostakovichs Symphony No.5 received its first public performance in Leningrad, to a resoundingly positive reception. The composer needed to have a bounce back piece after his emotionally brutal opera Lady Macbeth which was met with harsh criticism by Soviet officials as the kind of formalist and pessimistic music that composers should not be writing. Much was at stake here, as Shostakovich would likely have been subject to a disappearance the like of which were commonplace in the Stalinist purges of the time. Although there was some mild grumbling by officials suspicious about the sincerity of the apology symphony, Shostakovich came through with flying colours. When the work had become entrenched the following year, Shostakovich had this to say about the piece: The theme of my symphony is the making of a man. I saw man with all his experiences at the centre of the compositionĶ In the Finale, the tragically tense impulses of the earlier movements are resolved in optimism and the joy of living.

Of course, Shostakovich was no fan of Stalin and his regime, to say the least, and one wonders if in fact he was pulling something. Later on, Shostakovichs book of memoirs (published after his death in 1975) offers a much different story than what he had said about the work in 1938 while still living under the Stalinist yoke: The rejoicing is forced, created under threat. Its as if someone were beating you with a stick and saying, Your business is rejoicing, your business is rejoicing, and you rise, shaky, and go marching off, muttering, Our business is rejoicing, our business is rejoicing. What kind of apotheosis is that? You have to be a complete oaf not to hear that. But is the finale of this piece actually triumphant? Much depends on the conductors view of the work, and their approach to the conclusion a faster tempo indeed makes the music sound positive, festive a slower tempo, favoured by the composer himself (and this perhaps reveals the real answer) makes it sound like an agonized funeral march. This music says different things to different people, but its message is an important and relevant one. Shostakovichs reaction to oppression is a complex one, resulting in complex music. It is impossible to hear it in a live concert with a full symphony orchestra and not be affected by it at an emotional level, especially such a powerful and relevant work as Symphony No.5.

This concert features a Pre-Concert Talk at 7:05pm on June 7th & 9th, free to ticketholders. The Pre-Concert Talk features VSO orchestra member Sophie Dansereau speaking about the evenings program, as well as her role in the orchestra.

CONCERT INFO

Masterworks Diamond Series / Beltone Symphony Sundays Series

The VSOs Blockbuster Season Finale!

Saturday & Monday, June 7 & 9, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Sunday, June 8, 2pm, Orpheum Theatre


Bramwell Tovey conductor

Daniel Mller-Schott cello

Sophie Dansereau bassoon

Delius Song of Summer

Dvork Cello Concerto

Shostakovich Symphony No.5

Ticket prices for June 7 & 9: $25 - $78 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Ticket prices for June 8: $20 - $55 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets Available at VSO Customer Service, 604.876.3434; Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone, 604.280.3311; online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Symphony Sundays Series Generously Sponsored By:

Beltone

Radio Sponsor:

CKNW AM 980

BIOGRAPHIES

Bramwell Tovey, conductor

A musician of striking versatility, Bramwell Tovey is acknowledged around the world for his artistic depth and warm, charismatic personality on the podium. Toveys career as a conductor is uniquely enhanced by his work as a composer and pianist, lending him a remarkable musical perspective.

His tenures as Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony, Luxembourg Philharmonic and Winnipeg Symphony Orchestras have been characterized by his expertise in the opera, choral, and British repertoire. Tovey recently garnered a 2007 Grammy Award and a 2007 Juno Award for his recording with violinist James Ehnes and the Vancouver Symphony. Recently named Principal Guest Conductor for the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, he works frequently with the Toronto Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Royal Philharmonic and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestras, among many others. He has presided as host and conductor of the New York Philharmonics Summertime Classics series at Avery Fisher Hall since its founding in 2004.

A champion of contemporary music, Tovey developed the highly regarded New Music Festival in Winnipeg, during his tenure as Music Director. As a composer, he was honored with the Best Canadian Classical Composition Juno Award in 2003 for his Requiem for a Charred Skull. Upcoming new works include a co-commission for the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics respective 2008 summer seasons as well as a full-length opera for the Calgary Opera, The Inventor, to premiere in January of 2011.

Tovey has been awarded honorary degrees, including a Fellowship from the Royal Academy of Music in London, honorary Doctorates of Law from the universities of Winnipeg and Manitoba, and Kwantlen University College, as well as a Royal Conservatory of Music Fellowship in Toronto. In 1999, he received the M. Joan Chalmers National Award for Artistic Direction, a Canadian prize awarded to artists for outstanding contributions in the performing arts.

Daniel Mller-Schott, cello

In only a few years, Daniel Mller-Schott has succeeded in establishing himself on the worlds important concert stages. With his technical brilliance and authority, coupled with great intellectual and emotional esprit, he fascinates his audiences. In recent years, Daniel Mller-Schott has found international acclaim for his high degree of musicality and the wealth of nuances in his playing, his constant search for a musical vision, and his uncompromising passion for music. It is especially important for him to discover unknown works and to extend his repertoire on the cello, for example through his own transcriptions, in particular to work closely with composers and to perform the music of the 20th and 21st centuries.

He created a furore internationally by winning first prize at the Moscow International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians. It was after this win that his steady and remarkable career began. Since then he has appeared in concerts all over the world with such renowned conductors as Vladimir Ashkenazy, Charles Dutoit, Christoph Eschenbach, Michael Gielen, Alan Gilbert, Hartmut Haenchen, Marek Janowski, Dmitrij Kitajenko, Andrew Litton, Mario Venzago, Gianandrea Noseda, Yakov Kreizberg, Michail Jurowski, Kurt Masur, Sakari Oramo and Sir Andr Previn. Furthermore, he plays with internationally famous orchestras including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, the NDR-Sinfonieorchester Hamburg, the Orchestre National de France, the Orchestre de Paris, the Israel Symphony Orchestra, the New Japan Philharmonic, the Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest, the BBC Philharmonic, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, as well as the Philharmonia Orchestra London.

During the 2006/07 season, Daniel Mller-Schott performed recitals and appeared with renowned orchestras in many European countries and also in North America, South Africa and Japan. The real highlight was his debut at the Tanglewood Music Festival before an audience of 10,000 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Sir Andr Previn, a performance which was lauded by the New York Times. In August he will be performing Ligeti's Cello Concerto at the Schleswig-Holstein festival of music, with Peter Ruzicka conducting the NDR-Sinfonieorchester.

During the autumn of 2007, further concerts are planned with the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra under Michail Jurowski, with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra under Carlos Prieto when Daniel Mller-Schott can again be heard playing Ligeti's Cello Concerto and the Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra under Andrew Davis, and the Tapiola Sinfonietta under Olli Mustonen. In Germany, audiences can also enjoy the cellist together with Julia Fischer and the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Saarbrcken under Christoph Poppen, and with the Potsdam Kammerphilharmonie, also with Julia Fischer and Martin Helmchen under Michael Sanderling. In November he will be making guest appearances in Germany and neighbouring countries with the Nationales Sinfonieorchester of Polish Radio under Daniel Raiskin. Over the next two years, Daniel Mller-Schott will be performing together with Angela Hewitt in connection with the release on Orfeo in the spring of 2007 of Bach's Gamba Sonatas.

Major concert appearances scheduled for 2008 include another invitation to perform at the Tanglewood Music Festival with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Bernard Haitink, his appearance with the Tivoli Symphony Orchestra at the Roskilde Festival (Northern Europe's biggest music festival) and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Festival when - with Daniel Mller-Schott as the "resident artiste", various orchestral and chamber music concerts and workshops are planned. In addition, Daniel Mller-Schott will be appearing with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg under Simone Young, with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under Yakov Kreizberg, the Strassbourger Philharmoniker under Marc Albrecht, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra under Bramwell Tovey and the Wiener Symphoniker under Yakov Kreizberg in Vienna's Musikvereinssaal. Together with the Brabant Orchestra, and with Reinhard Goebel conducting, Daniel Mller-Schott will be playing Haydn's Cello concerto in several cities in the Netherlands. A tour is being planned for July with Christoph Eschenbach and the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchester.

Recitals, solo evenings and trio concerts will find him performing, among other venues, at the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, the Musikhalle Hamburg, the Philharmonie Mnchen, the Salzburg Mozarteum, London's Wigmore Hall, New York's Carnegie Hall, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, for the Vancouver Recital Society, and in Zrich's Tonhalle. His chamber music partners include Renaud Capuon, Julia Fischer, Jonathan Gilad, Angela Hewitt, Steven Isserlis, Robert Kulek, Olli Mustonen, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Sir Andr Previn, Denys Proshayev, Quatuor Ebne, Vadim Repin, Christian Tetzlaff, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, the Vogler Quartett and Lars Vogt.

Daniel Mller-Schott is a regular guest at international festivals of music, for example in Schleswig-Holstein, Rheingau, Schwetzingen and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, at the Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, the Aspen Music Festival, the Festival Lucerne, the Ravinia Festival Chicago, the Saratoga Festival, the Festival of Chamber Music in Vancouver and the City of London Festival.

Daniel Mller-Schott studied under Walter Nothas, Heinrich Schiff and Steven Isserlis. He benefited from the personal sponsorship and support of Anne-Sophie Mutter as the holder of a scholarship from her Foundation.

Encouraging young people to understand the fascination of music, and helping them to experience the magical moments that music provides, is a matter of course for Daniel Mller-Schott, and something he introduces, with enormous delight and commitment, into the "Rhapsody in School" project.

Since his childhood, Daniel Mller-Schott has felt a great love for the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Consequently, it is hardly surprising that when he came to record his first CD, he chose the Six Suites for Cello Solo (Glissando Records).

In the meantime, Daniel Mller-Schott has made recordings for several well-known labels, and he works closely with the Orfeo label. His recordings delight both the public and the press, and have also been awarded several prizes as the Gramophone Editors Choice, Strad Selection or the Edison Award Nomination. For his release with Elgar and Walton Cello Concertos he was decorated with "Vierteljahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik".

In the autumn of this year, Daniel Mller-Schott will be releasing another CD on the Orfeo label, namely performing Shostakovich's Cello Concertos, together with the Symphony Orchestra of the Bayerischer Rundfunk conducted by Yakov Kreizberg.

Daniel Mller-Schott plays the Saphir "Ex Shapiro" Matteo Goffriller cello, made in Venice in 1727.

He lives in Munich, his home-town. In his spare time he is an enthusiastic jogger and badminton player. He is very interested in art, and feels a strong affinity with 19th century French painters; it is the way they treat colours and light which constantly fascinates and inspires him.

Sophie Dansereau, bassoon

Born in Sorel-Tracy, Sophie Dansereau obtained the "Prix avec Grande Distinction lunanimit" in bassoon and chamber music from the Conservatoire de Musique du Qubec as well as a Masters of Music from Yale University. Her main teachers are Richard Gagnon, Frank Morelli, Christopher Millard and Stphane Lvesque.

Contrabassoonist and assistant principal bassoonist of the Vancouver Symphony and principal bassoonist of the CBC Radio Orchestra, Sophie has performed with the Auckland Philharmonic (New Zealand), the New World Symphony, the National Art Centre and lOrchestre Symphonique de Qubec, as well as several major music festivals around the world. She has worked on several occasions with the finest conductors, such as Bramwell Tovey, Seiji Ozawa, Robert Spano, Michael Tilson Thomas, Pinchas Zukerman, Alain Trudel, Yannick Nzet-Sguin, and Charles Dutoit. Sophie has been awarded many prizes in major national and international competitions and was featured as a soloist on many occasions with the APO and the VSO. A sought after bassoonist in chamber music, she is a member of the Admare Quintet.

Sophie, who had received the Governor General Medal for Academic Merit in 1992, has also served on the faculty of the University of British Columbia. She is now teaching at the Vancouver Academy of Music and is the instructor for the woodwind section.

Besides her full work schedule, Sophie is an enthusiastic runner and swimmer. Her unexpected time at the 2007 Vancouver Marathon gave her the qualification for the legendary Boston Marathon, which she plans to train for and run in 2008.


Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:50 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Create a Meditation Oasis with New Deva Premal CD Into Silence

Deva Premal's CD Into Silence Invites Stillness

Picture (Metafile)From the moment you arise in the morning your life is filled with noise: conversation, electronics, traffic, the inner noise of busy-ness. Into Silence, a new CD from Deva Premal and Miten, offers the perfect antidote: a soothing collection of down-tempo, meditative chants selected to help you create a personal oasis of stillness.

With a voice spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle calls pure magic, Deva Premal is known the world over as the superstar of sacred chant. Arranged as a sequenced stairway of devotional chant into the ecstatic heart of the Divine, Into Silence features Deva Premals personally-selected collection of music for meditation.

Learn more about the album: www.devapremalusa.com
Listen to sample tracks: http://store.soundstrue.com/mm01258d.html
Deva Premal has released 14 albums with her partner, Miten. She is a classically trained singer and musician known around the globe for her serene, sacred chants. Raised in a German home permeated with Eastern spirituality, Deva Premal was chanting the Gayatri Mantra by age five and has practiced meditation throughout much of her life. The healing effects of her music are informed by her training in shiatsu, reflexology, craniosacral therapy, and massage. Many of her records have topped the New Age charts including The Essence, Love is Space, Embrace, and Dakshina.

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:46 PM | 1 Comments Links to this post

2008 AVS Primrose Competition Update


ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST PRESTIGIOUS INTERNATIONAL STRING COMPETITIONS TO BE HELD IN TEMPE, ARIZONA JUNE 1-8
Phoenix, AZ - The Primrose International Viola Competition (PIVC), one of the most renowned string instrument competitions in the world, takes place June 1 through June 8, 2008 at Arizona State University's Herberger College of Music.

The 11th Competition features the world's best young violists up to age 29. The competition received a record number of entries this year - up thirty percent from 2005. The 75 competitors represent the countries of Belgium, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Israel, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Mexico, New Zealand, Romania, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United States. The 2008 Competition awards over $30,000 USD in cash and prizes, including a viola by Italian master luthier Carlo Testoni and select engagements in the United States and Europe. The Competition offers the Phoenix area one week of exceptional international competition, exquisite music and an exhilarating finish. All rounds are open to the public, and audiences can expect to hear a broad survey of the viola repertoire.

Renowned violist and 1993 Competition First Place winner Nokuthula Ngwenyama serves as current director of the Primrose International Viola Competition. She is joined by former Competition director Claudine Bigelow of the United States, who serves as this year's jury chair. Joining the Competition as jurors for the first time will be Amir Shiff of Israel, Bruno Pasquier of France, Steven Tenenbom of the United States, Eugene Sarbu of Romania, and Ensik Choi of Korea. Carol Rodland of the United States will return having served as juror for the semi-final and final rounds in 2005.

In addition to the performances, which include the world premiere of Recitativo for solo viola by New Orleans composer and violist Scott Slapin, there will be many exhibits and educational symposiums as part of the 36th International Viola Congress, concurrently held June 4 through June 8, 2008.

Founded in 1979 as the first international competition solely for violists, William Primrose served as chair of the jury for its inaugural year. The American Viola Society (AVS), through an endowment established by memorial contributions made by friends, collegues, artists, and admirers, has sponsored the competition since 1986. The Competition continues to function as an inspiration to young artists. Over the last thirty years it has continued to attract the most distinguished jurors and most talented applicants worldwide. The Competition has an international reputation for identifying the talent of tomorrow and is respected for its artistic and professional integrity. Its laureates occupy principle seats of major symphony orchestras, act as professors in major centers of higher education, and have achieved success as international soloists.

Opening ceremonies and the competitors' drawing of lots are held Sunday, June 1, 2008 at 5 PM. Competition performance rounds begin Monday, June 2 at 9:30 AM.
For more information email info@primrosecompetition.org or go to www.primrosecompetition.org.


Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:35 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Spectacle de Roch Voisine


Festival acadien de Caraquet

Spectacle de Roch Voisine : billets en vente !

Premire partie avec Isabelle Cyr

Les billets pour le spectacle de Roch Voisine sont disponibles depuis vendredi le 16 mai. Pour la premire fois en carrire, Roch Voisine sera en spectacle au Festival acadien de Caraquet le mercredi 6 aot prochain, 20 h, au Carrefour de la mer de Caraquet. Les billets seront en vente travers le rseau de la billetterie Accs au cot de 38 $, 33 $ et 28 $.

En prparation pour son prochain album, Roch Voisine revient dans son coin de pays le temps dun spectacle. Originaire du nord-ouest du Nouveau-Brunswick, le chanteur roule sa bosse depuis la fin des annes 1980, suite au lancement de son premier album Hlne. Auteur-compositeur-interprte maintes fois rcompens, il a son actif de nombreux album et a fait des tournes un peu partout dans le monde. Avec une rputation qui nest plus refaire, Roch Voisine demeure une idole de chez nous.

Isabelle Cyr en premire partie

La premire partie du spectacle sera assure par la chanteuse acadienne Isabelle Cyr. Isabelle Cyr est une artiste multidisciplinaire quon connat surtout de la tlvision et du cinma avec des rles dans Karmina, Les Aimants, Nos ts, Rumeurs, Chambres en ville, etc. Lauteure-compositrice-interprte a lanc son tout premier album ponyme en fvrier dernier, album dont elle a sign les onze pices. Sur scne, sa douceur et son charisme savent envoter son public.

Les billets sont en vente travers rseau de la billetterie Accs partir de ce vendredi 16 mai. On peut galement effectuer des achats par tlphone au (506) 727-7665 et 1-800-992-4040 ou encore en ligne en visitant le www.billetterieacces.ca. Pour plus de dtails, visitez le www.festivalacadien.ca.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:20 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Le trio de 'popra' Destino enchante le public / "Popera" trio Destino enchants audiences

LE TRIO DE 'POPRA' DESTINO ENCHANTE LE PUBLIC AVEC LEUR FUSION MUSICALE

Toronto, ON le groupe popra incontournable Destino prpare le lancement de son premier album Forte le 8 juillet, 2008. Le son du groupe, dit popra , mlange l'opra avec les styles de musique pop, R&B, soul, jazz et gospel. La musique est passionne et captivante, et a dj attir un grand nombre d'amateurs dvous. Un montage de douces harmonies mlodiques et de solos enflamms, le trio de Vancouver largit le paysage musical grce son unique son et aux voix puissantes des membres, mis en vidence sur leur premier extrait, Show Me The Way Back To Your Heart, crite par la sensation musicale Diane Warren.
Nous voulons largir le contexte et l'opinion des gens sur l'opra, et rendre cette musique plus accessible aux gens qui ne pensent pas l'couter. Notre son permet aux adeptes de l'opra et de la pop d'apprcier un mlange de diffrents styles musicaux, et c'est un style qu'ils n'auront pas sitt oubli ! dit Joey Niceforo.
Simplement, les voix de Destino continuent hypnotiser les auditoires lors de leurs prestations. Avec une gamme vocale si varie, Leon Leontaridis, Joey Niceforo et Paul Ouellette attirent et intriguent leurs fans avec leur unique superposition de voix classiques et apparences lgantes et styles. tant tous chanteurs d'opra formation classique, on ne peut ignorer leur prsence sophistique sur scne, alors qu'ils chantent en anglais, franais, italien, et espagnol. C'tait par chance que le trio s'est form lorsque les trois membres furent engags pour travailler sur un mme projet. Leur chimie est rapidement devenue vidente. Voyant que leurs talents naturels se compltaient bien, leur destin en tant que groupe tait dcid.
Sparment, chaque membre a connu du succs avant de se joindre Destino. Leontaridis, qui tudiait le chant ds l'ge de huit ans, a travaill avec des professeurs de renom tels la soprano Wendy Nielson et Theodore Baerg. Il a jou Giuseppe dans La Traviata, en plus d'avoir jou dans La Bohme et Filumena. Niceforo connu ses dbut sur scne lors de l'vnement Toronto Opera in Concert's Canadian Gala Concert. Il a rcemment partag la scne avec le tnor notoire Salvatore Licitra lors d'un gala New York. En plus de Destino, Ouellette fait partie de l'ensemble de tourne Vancouver Opera Touring Ensemble, et a donn 150 prestations en tant que Tamino, le personnage principal de l'opra allemande La flte enchante. Gagnant trois fois conscutives les auditions dans le district de l'Ouest du Metropolitan Opera National Council, Ouellette poursuit sa participation dans divers concerts, rcitals, films, et missions tlvises en Colombie Britannique.
Lancer son premier album, pour un musicien, c'est une initiation au monde musical. C'est un passage au niveau suprieur, d'un chanteur sur scne un artiste qui s'ouvre l'apprciation, les critiques, l'amour ou le dgot du monde entier, c'est un grand pas. C'est mouvant et effrayant en mme temps, dit Leontaridis.
Spectacles canadiens:
1 juillet Vancouver, BC Canada Place
12 juillet Peterborough, ON Parc Del Crary, Summer Festival of Lights
31 juillet Toronto, ON First Canadian Place
1 aot Elora, ON Festival Elora
Liste de pistes sur Forte:
1) Adagio
2) Show Me The Way Back To Your Heart
3) Il Canto
4) My Baby You
5) Una Furtiva Lagrima
6) Someday
7) Hymme a L'amore
8) Breath Again
9) Malinciona d'amore
10) Keep The Dream Alive
Lien Web : www.destinotenors.com ou www.myspace.com/destinotenors

___________________________

"POPERA" TRIO DESTINO ENCHANTS AUDIENCES WITH THEIR MUSICAL FUSION

Toronto, ON "Popera" powerhouse group Destino are set to release their new album Forte on July 8, 2008. The group's sound, coined "popera", combines pop and opera with the musical influences of R&B, soul, jazz and gospel. The music is passionate and captivating, and is already garnering the group a dedicated fanbase. A union of quiet, melodic harmonies and fiery solos, the Vancouver trio is expanding the musical landscape through the blending of their unique sound and incredibly commanding vocals, demonstrated with the first single "Show Me The Way Back To Your Heart", written by music sensation Diane Warren.
"We want to expand the scope and opinion that people have of opera music and make it more accessible to those who might not think about listening to it. Our sound allows fans of both opera and pop to enjoy a mix of different types of music, and it's a style they won't quickly forget!" says Joey Niceforo.
Simply put, the voices of Destino consistently mesmerize audiences with their live performances. With such a diverse vocal range, Leon Leontaridis, Joey Niceforo and Paul Ouellette allure and intrigue their fans with the unique amalgamation of their classic voices and stylish, elegant looks. All classically trained operatic singers, they exude sophistication on stage, performing in English, French, Italian and Spanish. It was only by a chance encounter that the trio first met when they were all hired to work on a project together. It wasn't long before their chemistry was apparent. Discovering that their individual talents complemented each other, their destiny as a group was sealed.
Each member of the group had enjoyed success on an individual level prior to Destino. Leontaridis, who has studied voice from the age of eight, has worked under such renowned instructors as soprano Wendy Nielson and Theodore Baerg. He has performed as Giuseppe in La Traviata, in addition to performing in La Boheme and Filumena. Niceforo made his professional stage debut in Toronto at the 'Toronto Opera in Concert's Canadian Gala Concert'. He recently shared the stage with notable tenor Salvatore Licitra at a gala in New York City. In addition to Destino, Ouellette is part of the Vancouver Opera Touring Ensemble and has performed in 150 shows as Tamino the lead character from the German Opera The Magic Flute. A three-time consecutive winner of the Western district level of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Ouellette continues to participate in concerts, recitals, film and television work in British Columbia.
"Releasing a debut album as a musician is like an initiation into the music world. It's taking it to another level of just being a performer on a stage to exposing yourself worldwide for all to enjoy, criticize, love or hate and that's a big step of faith. It's exciting and scary at the same time", says Leontaridis.

Canadian shows:
July 1st Vancouver, BC Canada Place
July 12th Peterborough, ON Del Crary Park, Summer Festival of Lights
July 31st Toronto, ON First Canadian Place
August 1st Elora, ON Elora Festival
Forte Track List:
1) Adagio
2) Show Me The Way Back To Your Heart
3) Il Canto
4) My Baby You
5) Una Furtiva Lagrima
6) Someday
7) Hymme a L'amore
8) Breath Again
9) Malinciona d'amore
10) Keep The Dream Alive
Weblinks: www.destinotenors.com or www.myspace.com/destinotenors

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:15 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Culture Montral lance "Vieux snoreaux, p'tits nouveaux"



www.culturemontreal.ca


Culture Montral lance Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux Des soires-rencontres de haute voltige pour les artistes de la relve et des pratiques mergentes

Vous rvez de trinquer avec un bonze de la scne musicale? De prendre le pouls des grandes tendances en danse en ctoyant une chorgraphe rpute? De discuter gestion dorganisme culturel avec un spcialiste? De boire, le temps dune soire, la mme source dinspiration quune auteure montralaise de talent? Cest exactement ce que propose Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux, une toute nouvelle activit de Culture Montral dont la premire aura lieu le 16 juin 2008.

Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux a t imagin par le comit Relve et Pratiques mergentes (RP) de Culture Montral afin de rpondre au besoin des jeunes artistes et crateurs, dbutant dans le mtier, de se constituer un rseau, dapprofondir leur savoir et dentrer en contact avec des individus dexprience qui les aideront, par leurs conseils, faire leurs armes dans lunivers des arts , explique Marie-Claude Parenteau-Lebeuf, prsidente du comit RP de Culture Montral, membre du conseil dadministration de Culture Montral et co-designer.

Le concept? Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux, ce sont des soires de pairage o les jeunes de la relve et des pratiques mergentes sont convis une rencontre exclusive avec des personnalits montralaises, manant des arts ou dun autre secteur, des individus dexprience respects pour leur savoir-faire, pour leur feuille de route et pour leur approche.

Le lieu? Le Thtre des Deux Mondes, dans le quartier Villeray. Le dcor? Un bar et trois tables mises pour le souper. chaque table, trois jeunes de la relve et trois professionnels aguerris qui, pendant deux heures, changent sur leurs expriences; refont le monde leur faon; et, surtout, tissent des liens qui pourraient devenir le noyau de nouvelles dynamiques ou collaborations. Parce quon ne peut philosopher le ventre creux, les membres du comit RP, htes de la soire, serviront repas et commentaires protins aux convives.

Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux reprend lide du blind date, dans un contexte professionnel bien sr! rigole Marie-Claude Parenteau-Lebeuf. En matire daccompagnement de la relve, de nombreux programmes de mentorat existent dj. Nous voulions pour notre part aller vers le jeu, lintuitif, lorganique. On rvait dune formule qui nourrirait linspiration et limaginaire des jeunes crateurs, qui vivent parfois une priode dincertitude au sortir de leur formation. Vieux snoreaux... est entirement ax sur le plaisir de lapprentissage par lchange dbrid. Nous esprons que cela donnera lieu de belles rencontres.

Tout artiste de la relve et des pratiques mergentes g de moins de 35 ans est invit sinscrire en ligne au www.culturemontreal.ca avant le 26 mai 2008 ou contacter Culture Montral au (514) 845-0303. Dites-nous qui vous aimeriez rencontrer ; Culture Montral mettra son rseau votre service! Faites vite, les places sont limites. Dautres soires Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux sont prvues lautomne les inscriptions sont reues ds maintenant.

Cette premire soire Vieux snoreaux, ptits nouveaux a t labore grce au soutien obtenu du Forum Jeunesse de lle de Montral dans le cadre du projet Outiller la relve artistique montralaise.

***

Fond en 2002, Culture Montral est un mouvement citoyen et non partisan dont le mandat est daffirmer le rle central des arts et de la culture dans toutes les sphres du dveloppement de Montral. Par le biais dactivits danalyse, de communication, de recherche et de concertation, Culture Montral contribue difier lavenir de Montral, mtropole culturelle. Lorganisation bnficie du soutien de ses membres, du ministre de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition fminine du Qubec, de la Confrence rgionale des lus de Montral, de la Ville de Montral et du Cirque du Soleil.

Les membres du comit Relve et Pratiques mergentes de Culture Montral sont :

Marie-Claude Parenteau-Lebeuf, co-designer, prsidente du Comit et membre du conseil dadministration de Culture Montral
Annie Ranger, Thtre I.N.K., vice-prsidente du Comit et membre du conseil dadministration de Culture Montral
Karine Landry, Culture Montral
lisa Belhache, Festival TransAmriques
Franois Bergeron, Oxy-Jeunes
Martin Choquette, Diversit artistique Montral, membre du conseil dadministration de Culture Montral
Sbastien Croteau, APLAS
Katy Fortin, Conseil de la culture de la Montrgie
Martin Giroux, SOPREF
Martin Gladu, SODRAC
Annie Morin, Annie-mots
lisabeth Locas, La Socit des anges
Dominic Pilon, Hyperzic
Kim Robert, En Piste

Culture Montral 2008

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:05 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Lineup Announced for 2008 IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival

Queen of the Blues Koko Taylor

Headlines 2008 IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival Lineup

Festival Highlights Include Kids Teaching Kids the Blues

and a Journey Back to the Roots of the Blues

DAVENPORT, Iowa-Grammy-award winner Koko Taylor, dubbed The Queen of Blues for having won more Blues Awards than any other blues artist-male or female, returns to the 2008 IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival.

The Mississippi Valley Blues Society (MVBS) has announced the festival lineup of 28 acts performing on two stages, July 3 - 5, in Davenport, Iowa. Produced by MVBS and presented by IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union, the event draws nearly 15,000 to LeClaire Park-a blues-inspiring outdoor venue located at the crossroads of U.S. Route 61, known as the Blues Highway, and the Mississippi River-for three days of music, food, fun and friends.

People loved having blues legend Koko Taylor play our festival in 2001, and were certain this firecracker of a performer will light up the bandshell stage again this Fourth of July, said Karen McFarland, co-chair of the MVBS Entertainment Committee, which books the acts for the Festival. And no matter what day, time or stage you find yourself at during our three-day fest, you will be entertained by very talented musicians-from Grammy-award- winning headliners like Koko to opening acts like Kilborn Alley Blues Band, who was nominated for their first Blues Award this year.

In addition to Taylor, other headliners include Elvin Bishop, Otis Taylor and the Black Banjo Project, Billy Boy Arnold with Jody Williams, The Holmes Brothers and Denise LaSalle.

Former Iowa farm boy Elvin Bishop, known to the mainstream for his one-hit wonder, Fooled Around and Fell in Love, is known to blues fans as a founding member of the legendary Paul Butterfield Blues Band and his Booty Bumpin resurgence in the blues scene after his daughters murder.

Blues Fest/2
Bishop always seems to engage the audience with his performance, and hes not the only crossover artist playing our festival this year, continues McFarland. Donald Kinsey has crossed over from blues to heavy metal to reggae and back to blues again. Donald Kinsey, the front man for The Kinsey Report, started his blues career with Big Daddy Kinsey and Albert King. In the 70s he formed the heavy metal band White Lighting before switching genres again to tour and record with reggae legends Bob Marley and Peter Tosh, and then returning to the blues in 1984 to form the Kinsey Report.

Were really excited about our daylong focus on Roots of the Blues on Thursdays tent stage, said McFarland. The use of blue notes, call-and-response format and primitive instruments-such as the banjo and diddley-bow-will be featured in performances by artists specializing in the origin of blues music and its subgenres.

Ben Prestage opens this special daylong tribute to the Roots of the Blues performing on the diddley-bow. Steve James and Del Rey will play a hillbilly, smarty-pants style of old country blues, and the Carolina Chocolate Drops, an African-American string band, will play the rich tradition of fiddle and banjo music from Carolinas Piedmont. Otis Taylor and the Black Banjo Project, featuring Guy Davis, close the day by tracing the banjos history back four centuries to the African xalam.

Other artists playing at this years festival include: Kal David; Little Bobby and the Storm; Phil Guy; Teresa James; Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers; Kent Burnside and New Generation; Paul Geremia; Big Pete Pearson and the Rhythm Room Allstars; Great Black Music Ensemble; Alexis P. Suter; John Nemeth with Junior Watson; Tinsley Ellis; Boo Hanks; Doug MacLeod; Marie Knight; and Big George Brock.

Kids will have a special treat at this years BlueSKool, says McFarland. Kids who received lessons and tips at the River Music Experiences Winter Blues Academy will assist blues artists Hal Reed and Ellis Kell teach other kids the blues at this years festival, and then theyre going to jam together.

The mission of the Mississippi Valley Blues Society is to educate the public about the native art form of blues-related music and to keep the blues alive. The IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival offers adults free workshops and children BlueSKool to get hands-on instruction from blues artists. The festival also includes a free photo exhibit of blues artists and past festivals at Union Station across the street from the festival.

Blues Fest/3

RiverRoad Lifetime Achievement Awards will be presented this year to soul blues artist and businesswoman Denise LaSalle and Chicago harp-master Billy Boy Arnold. The Mississippi Valley Blues Society annually presents this award to recognize artists who have devoted their lives to bringing river blues, music that runs deep with soul, to anyone they meet on lifes highway. The artists may not have been as recognized as the stars, but they are the true legends of the blues and the art forms living history.

Now in its 24th year, this blues festival is one of the longest-running in the country and is operated by an all-volunteer nonprofit group dedicated to providing top-notch entertainment at a reasonable price. According to the Quad Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau, the festivals economic benefit to the area is $2.5 million.

Sponsors for this years festival include presenting sponsor IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union, and blues supporters River Cities Reader, the Illinois Arts Council, Scott County Regional Authority, Sams Club, National Reso-Phonic Guitars, The City of Davenport, KALA 88.5 & 105.5, The Lodge Hotel & Conference Center, AAA Rents and ME&V Advertising & Consulting.

For the fourth straight year, we are proud to partner with the Mississippi Valley Blues Society as the festivals presenting sponsor, says Dennis Hall, president, IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union. "We believe in supporting organizations and events that make the Quad Cities a great place to live and work. This family event over the fourth of July is a great addition to our community.

Advance three-day passes are available for $40 and must be purchased before June 30. Advance one-day passes are $15 per day for MVBS and IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union members. Children ages 14 and under will be admitted free if accompanied by an adult with a ticket. Advance tickets may be purchased at all IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union branches, at the River Center/Adler Theatre box office in Davenport, or through Ticketmaster. One-day tickets will be sold at the gate for $18.

About IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival
For 24 years, the IH Mississippi Blues Festival has attracted local, regional and national legendary blues acts, making it one of the most highly regarded blues festivals in the nation. Musicians performing at past festivals include Buddy Guy, Dr. John, James Cotton, Clarence Gatemouth Brown and John Lee Hooker. For more information about the festival, artists and lodging, please visit http://www.mvbs.org or call 563-32-BLUES.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:04 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Depart sur scene_4



Dpart sur scne_4

Essais chorgraphiques des danseurs du Jeune Ballet du Qubec

4 et 5 juin > Maison de la culture du Plateau Mont-Royal
6 juin > Centre Culturel Henri-Lemieux, LaSalle
11 juin > Maison de la Culture Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie (salle Jean Eudes)
En juin prochain, les danseurs du Jeune Ballet du Qubec vous convient venir dcouvrir leurs essais chorgraphiques dans trois lieux de diffusion culturelle de lle de Montral. Compltement assumes par les danseurs et interprtes par leurs collgues du JBQ, ces crations sont une opportunit dentrer en contact avec un univers chorgraphique en devenir, quelquefois loufoque et dbrid mais toujours touchant et rvlateur des proccupations de la jeunesse daujourdhui.

Pour Dpart sur scne_4, se joignent aux danseurs actuels du Jeune Ballet du Qubec des anciennes diplmes de lEcole suprieure de ballet contemporain de Montral : Ingrid Proulx, Roxane Bouvrette, Leyla Theunissen, Genevive Bolla et milie Gratton. Depuis leur graduation, ces jeunes artistes ont dj us leurs souliers de danse. Ingrid sest balade du ct de lEurope, notamment en Hollande et en Espagne o elle a remport le prix du public pour son interprtation dans ELMER de Franois Chirpaz et Kristen Cere lors du Concours Masdanza. Roxanne, quant elle, a t stagiaire avec la compagnie Cas Public et a particip lvnement de danse contemporaine de Qubec, Symbiose. Enfin, Genevive Bolla et milie Gratton ont form leur propre compagnie de danse : volucidanse. Cette dernire a pour mission de promouvoir la danse contemporaine en crant des spectacles qui se dmarquent de la vague actuelle. Sous l'influence de la danse classique et tout en s'inspirant de la culture du Moyen-Orient, la compagnie prsente une philosophie chorgraphique riche et innovatrice. De plus, elle souhaite exploiter la polyvalence de ses danseurs afin de faire communier l'individu et l'artiste l'intrieur du mme corps.

Cest dailleurs volucidanse qui ouvrira la soire avec ROOTS, une chorgraphie de Genevive Bolla sur une composition musicale de lartiste NGABO. La chorgraphie ROOTS a dj sduit le public et la critique lors du festival LOLA (London Ontario Live Arts).

Tous ces danseurs polyvalents, forms lcole suprieure, possdent une excellente technique qui leur permet dvoluer dans tous les styles de danse. Avec Le Jeune Ballet du Qubec, ils ont travaill sous la direction de chorgraphes dhorizons artistiques varis comme Mario Radacovsky (ancien premier danseur au Grands ballets canadiens de Montral) et Hlne Blackburn (directrice artistique de la compagnie Cas Public), interprtant des uvres tout autant no-classiques que contemporaines.

Avec Dpart sur scne_4, les danseurs mettent profit leurs expriences dinterprtes et passent de lautre ct du miroir en devenant chorgraphes. Une soire de danse clectique qui promet dtre des plus divertissantes en compagnie de ces talents de la relve.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:00 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

News from Calgary Reggae Festival Society

Calgary International Reggae Festival

Calgary Reggae Festival Society




REGGAEFEST 5 LINE UP ANNOUNCED

CALGARY, Alberta Saturday, May 10, 2008..... REGGAEFEST 5 - Best of the Fest

The Calgary Reggae Festival Society today announces its line up for the 2008 Calgary International Reggae Festival. Now in its 5th year, ReggaeFest 5 - Best of the Fest - will see the return of selected performers from past festivals and a line up of new and exciting ones. "Many people have been asking to see artistes from the past again and we figured that the celebration of this milestone was the right time to fill their requests," says Leo Cripps, the producer of the festival.

ReggaeFest 5 will see the return of Steele, Souljah Fyah, Brinsley Forde, Jason Wilson and Tabarruk, Aktivate, JFK and the Conspirators, Michael St. George, Bianca, Tinga Stewart and Sugar Minott. Making their first appearance at ReggaeFest will be Culture Brown, 2008 Juno nominee LJX, 2008 Juno winner Mikey Dangerous, Oral Fuentes Reggae Band, Michael Thompson aka the Visionary, Spirit of World Drumming, La Comuna, Lynn Olagundoye and Guerrilla Funk Monster, Queen Ifrica and Tony Rebel.

"We are extremely ecstatic to have this line up of artistes for this year," says Cripps. "We believe it is our most ambitious effort to date and we believe Calgary will be as excited about it as we are."

ReggaeFest 5 runs this year from August 14 - 16 and will feature Red, White and Dread - Canadian Reggae Music Summit and Showcase. Tickets for the Main Event go on sale May 15 online at www.ticketweb.ca and June 2 at all Calgary Coop food stores.

More information on the Main Event and Red, White and Dread as part of ReggaeFest 5 can be found at www.CalgaryReggaeFestival.com

The CRFS is a 100% volunteer group and it is diligently working to ensure that REGGAEFEST 5 - Best of the Fest is the best family friendly summer festival in Calgary this year.
REGGAEFEST 5 is sponsored in part by: Global Calgary, Vibe 98.5 fm Radio, CJSW 90.9 fm, Big Rock Brewery.

Calgary Reggae Festival Society
ReggaeFest 5 - Best of the Fest ~ August 14 - 16, 2008
T: 403.355.5696
On The Web
W: www.CalgaryReggaeFestival.com
W: www.myspace.com/CalgaryReggaeFestival

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:50 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Dilettantes

Be part of the global classical music uprising - upload your music online now!


Dilettantemusic.com, the first online classical music community, has launched an mp3 uploads tool and Events Calendar, offering its growing network of composers, musicians, orchestras and ensembles the opportunity to showcase their music and publicise their concerts.

mp3 Uploads
Now Dilettantes can enhance their user profiles by uploading mp3s of their own performances or compositions. The upload function gives emerging musicians and composers an opportunity to make themselves and their music heard by listeners and potential collaborators. Those looking to hire musicians for a wedding or other event have a portfolio of talent at their fingertips.

Mp3s are linked to Dilettantemusic.coms extensive classical music data. This means that users searching for a work in the sites Music Pages will find members mp3s on the page describing that work.

Juliana Farha, the companys founder says For a musician or composer, the most effective CV is the music itself. Were looking forward to seeing Dilettantes use this tool to show off their skills and passion.

Events Calendar
The user-generated Events Calendar provides a unique online diary that brings together a range of classical music events from full orchestral concerts to intimate student recitals.

Dilettantes can upload details of any classical music event that they are organising, participating in or attending, with those events linked to the profiles of Dilettantes who created them. Dilettante calendars are organised by city, although users can switch calendars to search events anywhere they like.

The Dilettante Site
At the heart of the Dilettantemusic.com site is an unprecedented level of integration between the Members network and Music pages.

Web 2.0 tools enable classical music lovers and novices alike to harness the power of the Internet for covert exploration and discovery. Members of the Dilettante community create online profiles that showcase their musical lives, from favourite composers to works in their repertoire. They can share news and views in blogs, small talk and through private messages.

The Dilettante Music catalogue is enhanced by the webs most comprehensive data about classical performers, composers and their works, supplied by All Media Guide.

Dilettante Launch
Since its launch in January 2008, the Dilettante community has attracted users from as far afield as China, Argentina and Iceland, joining professionals and organisations such as Tasmin Little and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Rising Stars Webcast Series
The series continues with Matthew Schellhorn performing Chopins Scherzo No.4 in E. Musicians are welcome to submit webcasts for broadcast on the Dilettante site.

Classical Club Night Collaboration
Dilettante is launching a collaborative club night series with Blank Canvas, which takes place at 93 Feet East in Londons Brick Lane on Wednesday 9 July 2008. More details can be found at www.dilettantemusic.com/member/blankcanvas.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:45 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

La scne alternative l'vnement Nuit Blanche sur Tableau Noir

LE MLANGE DES GENRES
Provoquer les rencontres entre artistes, mlanger les genres, favoriser l'mergence de nouveaux axes de cration, c'est ce que proposera La Scne alternative du Parc des Compagnons de Saint-Laurent. Chaque spectacle runira un artiste issu de la scne musicale alternative et un illustrateur qui proposeront des spectacles qui sortent des sentiers battus. Les duos forms pour l'occasion seront les suivants :
 Webster + Monk-e, jeudi 5 juin 19 h 30
 Skip Jensen + Caro Caron, vendredi 6 juin 19 h 30
 Garbanzo + Sara Fortier, samedi 7 juin 15 h
 Jean-Franois Lessard + Richard Suicide, samedi 7 juin 19 h 30
 Nala + Genevive Gunette, dimanche 8 juin 15 h

Toujours sur le thme des rencontres artistiques, les Apros-rsidence proposeront au public de dcouvrir la naissance et l'volution pendant quatre jours d'une oeuvre ralise conjointement pendant toute la dure de l'vnement par le compositeur-interprte lectronique Ben Shemie et par l'artiste en arts visuels Janicke Morissette. Chaque jour l'heure de l'apro, l'exploration sera donc au rendez-vous au parc des Compagnons de Saint-Laurent. Une activit prsente en collaboration avec Mutek.
Jeudi 5, vendredi 6 et samedi 7 juin 17 h
Vernissage de l'oeuvre, dimanche 8 juin 13 h

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:34 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Canadians Rally to Save Their CBC Radio 2!

May 14, 2008, Toronto, ON - Canadians of all ages are coming together on Saturday May 24 to save their CBC Radio 2. The Toronto Committee of Stand on Guard for CBC Radio, a nationwide coalition protesting the impending evisceration of our nations public broadcaster, is meeting at 1 pm in Simcoe Park, adjacent to the CBC Broadcast Centre in downtown Toronto. Similar demonstrations will take place in Vancouver and Calgary.

CBC Radio, throughout its existence, has acted as a partner to the classical music community through nurturing, developing and broadcasting emerging and established talent throughout this country and abroad. This is how classical music artists have been able to establish their profile and to distribute their music. Suddenly without serious and meaningful consultation (aside from an extremely limited stakeholder study) CBC management has pulled the plug on this well-established partnership. Sadly, no mutual and collective solution-based discussion of how the classical music community could continue successfully in a partnership with CBC Radio took place.

The new CBC Radio 2 will no longer provide quality classical programming during morning or evening prime time. The new CBC Radio 2 plans to eliminate vital longstanding initiatives, including the Young Performers and Young Composers Competitions, and the CBC Radio Orchestra. Many of the services most important and popular programmes are being cancelled. Money for commissioning and performance of new works is being severely curtailed. CBC Records will cease to produce classical recordings.

CBC is aspiring to target its new Radio 2 to the 35 to 49 year old demographic and has made an assumption that classical programming cannot be geared to this age group. Instead of creating innovative classical programming that is appropriate for this age group, CBC has decided to reduce classical music programming from 120 to 25 hours per week. Canadians of all ages will be affected by this decision.

With the assumption that classical music programming cannot be geared to working Canadians driving to and from their work place, CBC has cancelled classical programming from 7 am to 10 am and during the afternoon rush hour. Many working Canadians will no longer have weekday access to classical programming.

With the assumption that classical music programming cannot be geared to parents and children driving to and from school, CBC has scheduled classical music when Canadas children and youth are at school. CBC Radios classical programming, broadcasts of live Canadian orchestras, ensembles and soloists, and broadcasts of original Canadian classical compositions will no longer be regularly heard by an entire generation of listeners.

Many Canadian commercial broadcasters play a wide variety of genres. However, there currently is no other radio broadcaster dedicated to reaching all regions of Canada to champion the music and originality of Canadas contemporary classical composers. There is no other broadcaster that reaches all regions of Canada that champions classical music and the music-making of Canadas orchestras and classical musicians. This is the unique function of our national public broadcaster to bring music not played on other commercial stations to people in all regions of Canada.

The purpose of a publicly funded broadcaster is to enlighten, educate and inspire.

Its purpose must be different than a commercial broadcaster. CBC Radio 2 has the opportunity to be fuelled by the greatest accomplishments civilization has and is producing, and to differentiate itself from its commercial counterparts. It is not an appropriate paradigm for a public broadcaster to be almost singularly focused on ratings and specific audience demographics.

CBC, with its plans for the new CBC Radio 2, will be negligent in the fulfillment of its mandate as a public broadcaster.

Composers, conductors, singers, instrumentalists, arts administrators, colleagues from other artistic disciplines and concerned citizens of every description will convene at the Broadcast Centre on May 24 in a concerted effort to defend and protect our national legacy.

Come and join us to help save our CBC Radio 2!

What: Save Our CBC Radio 2 Rally

When: Saturday, May 24 1:00pm

Where: Simcoe Park, Toronto (adjacent to the CBC Broadcast Centre)

For more information view our website, www.standonguardforcbcradio.ca.

---

TIME SPEAKER
MUSIC: Brass Fanfares
1:00 *Walter Pitman
*Alain Trudel
*Jean Ashworth Bartle
Michael Saunders
Wayne Strongman
Chan Ka Nin
MUSIC: Bach Chorale
1:30 *Victor Feldbrill
Albert Greer
Chris Thornborrow
*William Littler
Larry Beckwith
*Lawrence Cherney
*RH Thomson
MUSIC: Ode to Joy
2:00 *Mario Bernardi
* James Somerville
Eugene Astapov
*Carl Morey
Lydia Adams
Ruth Watson Henderson
MUSIC: TBA
2:30 Francine Shutzman (Kathleen)
*Dr. Richard Wells (Olena)
*Jamie Parker (Lydia)
Ezra Schabas (Jessie)
*John Oliver (Ivars)
*Catherine Robbin (Ivars)
MUSIC: Missens Round
3:00 *James Rolfe (Neil Gardiner)
Mary Willan Mason (Olena)
Robert Anderson (Olena)
Zimfira Poloz (Lydia)
*Ivars Taurins
*Rosario Marchese (Ivars)
MUSIC:Hallelujah Chorus
3:30 Theresa Rudolph Koczo (Kathleen)
Glen James (Robert)
Heidi Mackenzie (Robert)
*Sam Bulte (Ann La Plante)
*Russell Smith (Kathleen)
MUSIC: O Canada


Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 8:32 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Friday, May 23, 2008

France, Nouvelle-France. Naissance d'un peuple franais en Amrique

Pointe--Callire prsente
FRANCE, NOUVELLE-FRANCE
NAISSANCE DUN PEUPLE FRANAIS EN AMRIQUE

Une exposition qui pose un nouveau regard sur la grande aventure du peuplement franais sur le continent

Du 21 mai au 12 octobre 2008

Lexposition France, Nouvelle-France. Naissance dun peuple franais en Amrique rappelle les jours historiques de la fondation des premiers tablissements franais en Amrique du Nord et la nature du peuplement franais sur le continent.

Lexposition est une coproduction de Pointe--Callire, muse d'archologie et d'histoire de Montral et du Muse dhistoire de Nantes/Chteau des ducs de Bretagne, deux muses situs de part et dautre de lAtlantique qui ont ralis un fructueux partenariat pour explorer cette fascinante aventure.

Par des objets mouvants et des moyens originaux, lexposition prsente les tapes mouvementes au fil desquelles la prsence francophone sest ancre en Amrique du Nord, avant mme la venue de Jacques Cartier en Amrique, en 1534: tentatives dabord infructueuses, premiers tablissements l'le Sainte-Croix et Port-Royal en 1604 et 1605, Qubec en 1608, Montral en 1642 , expansion de la Nouvelle-France, dchirures et dfis nouveaux...

Mais lexposition se distingue par le fait quelle pose un nouveau regard sur la nature du peuplement en Nouvelle-France, ce qui permet de lever le voile sur le caractre singulier et unique du peuplement colonial en terre dAmrique. Quelque 150 objets documents anciens, ethnographiques et dautres provenant de lieux fondateurs vont ponctuer ce parcours original.

Loriginalit du peuplement : un apport fminin remarquable

Le regard diffrent que porte France, Nouvelle France sur le caractre singulier du peuplement du continent repose sur un fait inusit : dans lhistoire de limmigration et de la colonisation europennes en Amrique du Nord, jamais limmigration familiale initiale venue de France naura t aussi pauvre.

Ainsi, sur une priode de 100 ans environ, compter de 1608, la majorit des quelque 3200 unions pionnires la base du peuplement sont plus de 90% de jeunes couples forms en sol laurentien et non de mnages dj constitus. Cela mnera une canadianisation rapide de la population et ds le dbut des annes 1700, on pourra parler de lexistence dune socit canadienne.

La formation systmatique de couples couples qui savreront trs fconds, notamment cause de leur jeunesse repose sur trois apports fminins remarquables :

* Lenvoi massif dpouseuses les Filles du roi , surtout entre 1663 et 1673 afin de retenir en colonie les clibataires masculins, des soldats et des engags venus au dpart travailler en Amrique et non pour sy tablir de faon permanente;

* Le mariage en trs bas ge des premires Filles du pays, entre 1680 et 1700, aux clibataires masculins, toujours en surnombre, qui continuent de venir en Nouvelle-France sur une base temporaire;

* La contribution des Amrindiennes des Pays dEn Haut la Nouvelle-France amrindienne qui deviennent les pouses des Canadiens de la valle du Saint-Laurent impliqus dans le commerce des fourrures.

Une colonie lavenir incertain

On pourra aussi dcouvrir, dans lexposition, les motivations des monarques franais, de Franois 1er Louis XIV, vouloir coloniser et revendiquer les territoires du Nouveau Monde. On verra ce qui incitait les sujets franais quitter leur mre patrie pour choisir une colonie l'avenir incertain : recherche d'une vie meilleure, contrat de travail de courte dure, service militaire, dpart plus ou moins volontaire d'orphelines... ou simple besoin d'aventure.

Les fondations de Trois-Rivires (1634) et de Montral (1642) en plus de quelques-uns des centres nvralgiques de France et de lAmrique franaise comme Nantes, La Rochelle, lAcadie, la valle du Saint-Laurent, la rgion des Grands Lacs et enfin la Louisiane font aussi partie du propos de lexposition.

Une attention toute particulire est accorde aux Amrindiens. La survie des colons, lexpansion politique et conomique et la connaissance mme du territoire de la Nouvelle-France reposent dans une large mesure sur la contribution incontournable, mais combien mconnue, des nations amrindiennes. La Nouvelle-France, 20 fois moins peuple que la Nouvelle-Angleterre, a russi se maintenir en position de force grce ses allis amrindiens.

Cinq priodes cruciales

Par une approche humaine et intimiste plutt quvnementielle de lhistoire, lexposition couvre cinq priodes majeures de limplantation franaise en Nouvelle-France, compter des annes 1500, depuis larrive de pcheurs et explorateurs dans les terres neuves du Nord-Est, jusque sur les chauds rivages de la Louisiane.

1500 1600 : Tentatives
Le 16e sicle voit les premires explorations de Jacques Cartier, en 1534 et 1535, et l'afflux de pcheurs europens attirs par la richesse des eaux des terres neuves et de l'estuaire du Saint-Laurent. Des millions d'Amrindiens tant prsents depuis longtemps sur le continent nord-amricain, leurs premiers contacts avec des Europens constituent un propos majeur.

1600 1650 : Ancrages
Le 17e sicle savre la priode la plus dcisive de l'implantation franaise en Amrique du Nord. Aux tentatives prcdentes succdent les fondations qui se veulent permanentes, vritables coups denvois la colonisation : le Sainte-Croix et Port-Royal (Acadie) en 1604-1605 ; Qubec en 1608 ; Trois-Rivires en 1634 ; Montral en 1642.

1650 - 1700 : Assises
Il sagit de la partie la plus importante de lexposition, celle o lon comprend en quoi consiste loriginalit du peuplement. Nous observerons en particulier le rle des Canadiennes comme pionnires, un aspect assez peu trait dans lhistoire de la Nouvelle-France. En 1663, la France adopte une vritable politique coloniale, par le biais de mesures visant peupler de Franais les territoires explors par ses ressortissants et sur lesquels elle entend exercer sa prdominance. Louis XIV envoie, par centaines, des filles marier, les filles du roi . Ces mesures, et la fcondit des unions ainsi formes, tablissent de manire irrversible une population franaise sur le continent.

1700 1750 : Expansions
Les personnes nes en Nouvelle-France constituent dsormais la majorit de la population. Lapport de limmigration mtropolitaine nest plus dominant, mais garde son importance par le type dimmigrants qui arrivent au pays. Il y a aussi des mouvements migratoires intrieurs, alors que les enfants du pays sen vont coloniser dautres territoires de la Nouvelle-France, dont la Louisiane.

1750 1800 : FinĶ et suite!
La Guerre de Sept Ans, au cours de laquelle France et Angleterre s'affrontent par colonies interposes, donne lieu d'importants mouvements migratoires entre la Nouvelle-France et l'Europe. La dportation des Acadiens (1755) constitue l'un des plus importants dplacements de population de cette priode agite. Des hommes, femmes et enfants dbarqus de force dans les colonies britanniques ou en Europe, certains reviendront en Acadie, alors que d'autres s'installeront en Louisiane, l o des Cajuns se sont tablis.

Mais si la Conqute britannique a mis un terme la Nouvelle-France, colonie franaise d'Amrique du Nord, elle n'a pas pour autant effac une prsence franaise dsormais solidement ancre en terre d'Amrique. Acadiens, Qubcois, francophones du reste du Canada ou des tats-Unis... ils sont 15 millions, aujourd'hui, continuer de parler franais en Amrique du Nord.

Programmation thmatique

En marge de cette exposition, Pointe--Callire prsente tout au long de lanne 2008 une importante programmation dactivits sous la thmatique France, Nouvelle-France. Cette programmation comprend des expositions, des confrences, des activits culturelles, des animations, des circuits guids et des visites virtuelles. Voir document ci-joint. (Prog_FN-F.pdf)

Une lecture indispensable

Complment idal lexposition, un ouvrage accessible et magnifiquement illustr prsente laventure du peuplement franais en Amrique. On y dcouvre le rle crucial des alliances franco-amrindiennes dans lessor de la Nouvelle-France, et lapport croissant de larchologie dans la comprhension du mtissage des communauts. Louvrage ponyme est une coproduction de Pointe--Callire et du Muse dhistoire de Nantes/Chteau des ducs de Bretagne.

Lexposition a t prsente Halifax en 2004, puis Moncton en 2005. La tourne franaise a dbut au Muse dhistoire de Nantes/Chteau des ducs de Bretagne en 2007. Elle a ensuite t accueillie par la maison Champlain Brouage et par le Chteau-muse de Dieppe; elle a finalement fait un arrt au dbut 2008 la Maison de lmigration franaise au Canada de Tourouve avant de revenir Pointe--Callire o elle sera prsente compter du 21 mai dans une version revue et augmente.

L'exposition France, Nouvelle-France. Naissance dun peuple franais en Amrique est ralise en coproduction par Pointe--Callire, muse d'archologie et d'histoire de Montral et le Muse dhistoire de Nantes/Chteau des ducs de Bretagne.

Cette exposition bnficie du soutien du ministre du Patrimoine canadien pour les programmes suivants : Aide aux muses, Partenariat culturel et conomique du Canada atlantique de l'Agence de promotion conomique du Canada atlantique et l'Accord Canada-France pour la coopration et les changes dans le domaine des muses. Le ministre des Affaires trangres et du Commerce international du Canada a aussi apport son soutien par son Programme Canada-France 2004.

Pointe--Callire remercie ses prcieux partenaires : le Ministre de la culture et de la communication de France, la Direction des muses de France, la Mairie de Nantes, Air Canada, Tourisme Montral, Historia, Le Centre Sheraton Montral, La Presse et The Gazette. Cette activit est accrdite par la Socit du 400e anniversaire de Qubec.

Le Muse est subventionn par la Ville de Montral

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:22 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Variations sur Pellas

Lcole suprieure de thtre,
en collaboration avec lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral
prsente
Variations sur Pellas
Mise en scne dOriol Tomas

Les lundi 26 et mardi 27 mai 2008 20 h
Studio-dessai Claude-Gauvreau
UQAM, Pavillon Judith Jasmin (local J-2020)
405, rue Ste-Catherine Est, Montral, Mtro Berri-UQAM
Billetterie de lUQAM (5$)
Renseignements et rservation : 514-987-3456

Montral, mardi 20 mai 2008 Oriol Tomas figure parmi les premiers jeunes de la relve artistique montralaise form pour devenir metteur en scne dOpra. En 2007, tout en compltant sa matrise en mise en scne dopra lcole suprieure de thtre de lUQM, dirige par Frdric Maurin, auteur du livre Robert Wilson : le temps pour voir, lespace pour couter (Actes Sud), Oriol Tomas dbute un stage de formation lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral, titre de metteur en scne.

Dans le cadre de sa matrise en thtre, Oriol Tomas prsente (pour son mmoire-cration), Variations sur Pellas, quatre tableaux extraits du drame lyrique franais Pellas et Mlisande de Claude Debussy, daprs le livret de Maurice Maeterlinck. Il a choisi de mettre en scne les premiers tableaux de lacte I (Une fort), II (Une fontaine dans le parc) et III (Une des tours du chteau dominant un chemin de ronde) et le troisime tableau de lacte III (Les souterrains du chteau), selon une esthtique diffrente. Quatre propositions scniques - no-ralisme, constructivisme des motions, formalisme, no-expressionnisme - seront ainsi prsentes.

Quatre artistes issus de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral, la soprano Charlotte Corwin (Mlisande), le tnor Thomas Macleay (Pellas), le baryton-basse Alexandre Sylvestre (Golaud) et la pianiste Marie-ve Scarfone, ainsi que trois danseuses contemporaines Judith Allen, Caroline Sirois et Lucie Vigneault se partageront la scne. La chorgraphie est de Jolle Charest, les dcors et costumes de Pierrick Frchette, les clairages de Dominique Gauthier. Barbara Therrien et Ludevie Lepage sont aux maquillages et coiffures. Une production de lcole suprieure de thtre de lUQM en collaboration avec lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral.

Rendre visible linvisible et donner entendre linaudible : cest ce quont cherch faire le librettiste Maurice Maeterlinck et le compositeur Claude Debussy dans Pellas et Mlisande. Ptri de symbolisme, cet opra transforme lespace physique, rigoureux et mathmatique, en un paysage sensoriel et potique qui confre une me aux silences, aux mots, limmobilit. Jouer, rejouer, remettre toujours en jeu : Pellas et Mlisande devient ici le terrain de cet exercice, prtant quatre de ses scnes une exploration de la varit stylistique qui se dcline en autant de types de gestuelle un pour chacune. La scne devient alors le lieu privilgi de la variation. Oriol Tomas

Laction se droule dans le royaume dAllemonde, en des temps lgendaires. Golaud prend pour pouse, dans son chteau, une crature nigmatique, du nom de Mlisande. Son frre Pellas veut quitter le chteau, mais il reste se sentant attir par Mlisande, et rciproquement. Golaud assassine Pellas. Mlisande met au monde un enfant de Golaud et meurt. Dans lunivers dramatique de cette uvre thtrale dans laquelle les personnages voluent dans un monde onirique, laction extrieure ne progresse que par allusions, la musique et limagination compltant ce qui nest pas montr sur scne.

Debussy (1862-1918), compositeur li limpressionnisme autant quau symbolisme, cherchait une expression libre et accordait une signification particulire la couleur sonore.

MDIAS : MARIE MARAIS, attache de presse
514-845-2821 marais@cooptel.qc.ca

BIOGRAPHIES


Oriol Tomas, metteur en scne
Oriol Tomas suit actuellement une formation LAtelier lyrique de Montral. En plus davoir interprt quelques rles sur la scne artistique de Montral et notamment lOpra de Montral, Oriol Tomas dirige des chanteurs lyriques depuis 2001. Il fait du coaching dinterprtation auprs de la soprano Marianne Lambert pour lenregistrement audio de luvre Hozro, de Michel Gonneville et auprs de plusieurs autres chanteurs dont les sopranos Monique Pag et Kimy Mc Laren, dans le cadre du dmo vido et de lenregistrement dun extrait de lopra fantastique, Le Quatrime Enfant-Lune, dont il en est lauteur et qui a t mis en musique par Gabriel Thibaudeau. Il fait galement la mise en scne des spectacles de divers groupes de musique populaire, dont celle du groupe Eden 106, dans le cadre des Coups de cur francophones de 2005.

Oriol Tomas a assist Gilbert Turp la mise en scne de L'heure espagnole et de Il segreto di Susanna, production double prsente par Latelier lyrique dans le cadre de la 28e saison de lOpra de Montral. Aux cts de la metteure en scne Marie-Lou Dion, il a galement effectu la tourne du spectacle Trois sopranosĶ et leurs divos produit par le Conseil des Arts de Montral dans les Maisons de la Culture de l'le de Montral et a assist la directrice de scne lors des opras Romo et Juliette et Le barbier de Sville prsents par lOpra de Montral.

Il assistera Renaud Doucet dans la mise en en scne de lopra Thas qui sera prsent au Pacific Opera Victoria (BC), et sera assistant la mise en scne du Cosi fan tutte, la prochaine production de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral et collaborera Macbeth, qui sera mis en scne par Ren-Richard Cyr lors de la 29e saison de lOpra de Montral.

Charlotte Corwin (Mlisande)
Charlotte Corwin a obtenu son baccalaurat et sa matrise en interprtation vocale et opra l'Universit McGill Montral. McGill, elle a particip aux productions Les Contes dHoffmann, Six Characters in Search of an Author, Semele, The Turn of the Screw, Christopher Sly et Dialogues des Carmlites. Charlotte a t engage titre de soliste par plusieurs orchestres montralais, notamment l'Ensemble Contemporain de McGill et I Medici di McGill. En mai 2005, elle a t invite chanter le Requiem de Brahms avec le Civic Orchestra of Victoria. Depuis 2005, elle est membre de l'Atelier lyrique de l'Opra de Montral o elle a eu le plaisir d'interprter les rles de la Deuxime Sorcire (Didon et ne), la Gouvernante (The Turn of the Screw) et Flaminia (Le monde de la lune), ainsi que Asphodle (L'toile) et Suor Genovieffa (Suor Angelica) avec lOpra de Montral. En mai 2007, elle a fait ses dbuts l'Opra de Qubec dans le rle de Juliette (Romo et Juliette). Cette anne, elle a chant lors des concerts du Palm Court Light Orchestra de Victoria en Colombie-Britannique (fvrier 2008) et du Green Bay Civic Symphony (mars 2008).

Alexandre Sylvestre (Golaud)
Natif de Lanaudire, Alexandre a tudi au Conservatoire de musique de Montral qui lui a dcern, en mai 2005, un Premier Prix avec Grande distinction. Il en est sa troisime anne avec lAtelier Lyrique de lOpra de Montral. Au Conservatoire, il a chant diffrents rles dont le Comte Almaviva (Les Noces de Figaro), Paquiro (Les Goyescas) et Gianni Schicchi dans lopra du mme nom. Avec lOrchestre du Conservatoire, on la entendu dans la Messa di Requiem de Verdi, ainsi que le Magnificat et le Messie de Handel. Il a interprt le rle de Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola) au Centre darts Orford et a galement chant avec La Sinfonia de Lanaudire, La Nouvelle Sinfonie, la Sinfonia de Montral et le chur Polymnie. Il a particip diffrentes classes de matre avec Roger Vignoles, Grace Bumbry, Martin Isepp et Carlo Bergonzi. En novembre 2005, Alexandre a fait ses dbuts lOpra de Montral dans les rles de Zalzal et du chef de police (Ltoile) et il a t invit au Gala de lOpra de Montral en dcembre 2006. Il a reu des bourses de lARAM, de la Fondation Wilfrid Pelletier et des Jeunesses Musicales du Canada et a remport, en fvrier 2006, les auditions du New Discoveries Ottawa. En novembre de la mme anne, il a remport le Deuxime Prix ex aequo dans la catgorie chant, au Concours OSM. Au cours de lt 2007, il a chant les rles de Figaro (Les Noces de Figaro) avec le Centre dopra Sulmona en Italie et de Pausanias (Une ducation manque) avec lInstitut Canadien dArt Vocal. Durant la saison 2007-2008, il est, entre autres, le duc de Vrone (Romo et Juliette) et le prince Yamadori (Madame Butterfly) lOpra de Montral et participe la cration dune uvre sur des crits de Jacques Cartier dans le cadre du 400e anniversaire de Qubec.

Thomas Macleay (Pellas)
Thomas Macleay a fait ses tudes en musique et art dramatique lUniversit dAlberta, lUniversit McGill, au CNIPAL Marseille et au Centre darts de Banff. Il est prsentement membre de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral pour une troisime saison. Rcemment, il a interprt Michael (Frobisher) au Centre Banff et Azal (Lenfant prodigue) avec lInstitut canadien dart vocal. Il a chant dans plusieurs productions lOpra de Montral incluant Norma, Il tabarro et Lakm, ainsi que dans The Turn of the Screw et Il mondo della luna avec lAtelier lyrique. Il a aussi chant le Jeune Matelot (Tristan und Isolde) avec lOrchestre symphonique de Montral sous la direction de Kent Nagano. Il a collabor avec dautres chefs dorchestre, notamment Jean-Marie Zeitouni, Bernard Labadie, Paul Nadler, Alexander Platt, Patric Davin, Dominique Trottein, Franois-Xavier Bilger et Evelino Pido. Son rpertoire de concert inclut le Messie, Elijah et le Requiem de Mozart. Durant la saison 2007-2008, il fait partie de la production Carmen avec Edmonton Opera et de Lheure espagnole avec lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral.

Marie-ve Scarfone (Pianiste)
Jeune artiste au sein de l'Atelier lyrique de l'Opra de Montral pour une troisime saison, la pianiste Marie-ve Scarfone aborde avec gal bonheur le rpertoire d'opra, de lied et de mlodie. Diplme de la Manhattan School of Music o elle a travaill avec Warren Jones, elle dtient aussi une matrise en interprtation de l'Universit de Montral.
lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral, on la entendue au continuo dans Le monde de la lune et elle fut rptitrice pour The Turn of the Screw. On la aussi retrouve rcemment comme accompagnatrice au Concours Musical International de Montral et au Concours OSM.
Marie-ve Scarforne s'est distingue titre de collaboratrice en remportant le prix de piano de la Marilyn Horne Foundation Song Competition, le prix de la Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation et la bourse des directeurs de l'Opra de Montral. Elle est aussi boursire de nombreux organismes dont la Music Academy of the West (Santa Barbara) et les Jeunesses Musicales du Canada.
Elle collabore depuis 2004 avec l'International Vocal Arts Institute (Montral, Puerto Rico, Tel Aviv) ainsi que la Marilyn Horne Foundation qui l'a invite deux reprises jouer lors du Festival The Song Continues Carnegie Hall.
Au cours de la saison 2007-2008, Marie-ve Scarforne a t la rptitrice pour la production Lheure espagnole et Il segreto di Susanna de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral. Elle a accompagn galement la soprano Marianne Fiset sur un enregistrement pour Analekta.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:13 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

McGill Chamber Orchestra


THE McGILL CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

Presents an All-Beethoven Program

Featuring celebrated pianist

SARA DAVIS BUECHNER



The MCO performs its last concert of the season Monday, May 26, 2008 at 7:30 pm, in Pollack Hall. Boris Brott, the MCO's Artistic Director, will conduct an all-Beethoven program: Coriolan Overture, Concerto for piano and orchestra No. 3 in C minor, Opus 37, and Symphony No. 4 in B-flat major, Opus 60.

The featured guest for the evening is Sara Davis Buechner. Celebrated as a pianist of noteworthy accomplishment, virtuosic mastery, artistic sensitivity and extraordinary versatility; a major prizewinner of many of the world's most prestigious international piano competitions, she established her early career by winning the Gold Medal of the 1984 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition in Salt Lake City, Utah, and a Bronze Medal at the 1986 Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition in Moscow.

With an active repertoire of nearly 100 piano concertos ranging from Bach to Wuorinen, she has appeared as soloist with America's most prominent orchestras. She was a featured artist at the "Piano 2000" Gala Concerts in the Kennedy Center with the National Symphony, and made her debut at Lincoln Center's "Mostly Mozart" Festival. In addition to her frequent North American concert appearances and radio broadcasts, she tours widely throughout the Far East on a yearly basis.

Sara Davis Buechner has toured as a soloist throughout Canada. She has given premires of important new music and film scores by Larry Bell, Pierre Charvet, Richard Danielpour, Dick Hyman and Henry Martin. She appears regularly with the Film Society of Lincoln Center, as one of the few pianists to actively perform piano scores to silent movies.

In 2003, Ms. Buechner was appointed Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of British Columbia Vancouver. She is a former faculty member of New York University, and has presented lectures and masterclasses worldwide, from the Royal Academy in London, to the Juilliard School, to the Kobe-Yamate Gakuen in Osaka, Japan. Sara Davis Buechner plays the Yamaha Piano exclusively.


Tickets are $38 |$30 | $25 |$10/Students

For more information: Susan McKinnon Bell, Executive Director

5459 Earnscliffe Avenue, Montral, Qubec H3X 2P8

514-487-5190 | 514-487-7390 (fax) |514-830-6033 (cell)
www.ocm-mco.org

sbell@ocm-mco.org

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:05 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Orchestre de Chambre de McGill


L'ORCHESTRE DE CHAMBRE McGILL

prsente un programme tout Beethoven

En vedette : la clbre pianiste

SARA DAVIS BUECHNER


L'OCM prsente son dernier concert de la saison, le lundi 26 mai 2008 19 h 30 la salle Pollack. Sous la direction de son directeur artistique Boris Brott, l'OCM prsente un programme entirement consacr aux uvres de Beethoven : l'Ouverture Coriolan, le Concerto pour piano et orchestre no 3 in do mineur, opus 37, et la Symphonie no 4 en si bmol majeur, opus 60.

La soliste invite Sara Davis Buechner, dote d'une virtuosit, d'une sensibilit artistique et d'une polyvalence hors du commun, mrite largement sa rputation d'excellence. Plusieurs fois prime lors de prestigieux concours internationaux de piano, elle a entam sa carrire professionnelle en remportant la mdaille d'or de la Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition de Salt Lake City, Utah, en 1984, puis la mdaille de bronze au Concours international de piano Tchakovski de Moscou en 1986.

Son rpertoire comprend prs de cent concertos de Bach Wuorinen. Elle a t la soliste invite avec la plupart des grands orchestres amricains. Elle a t l'artiste invite lors des concerts gala Piano 2000 au Kennedy Center avec le National Symphony, et elle a fait ses dbuts au Festival Mostly Mozart du Lincoln Center. En plus de ses nombreuses apparitions et radiodiffusions sur la scne nord-amricaine, elle participe chaque anne d'importantes tournes en Extrme Orient.

La popularit de Sara Davis Buechner au Canada ne cesse de crotre. Elle a cr d'importantes nouvelles uvres et des trames sonores cinmatographiques composes par Larry Bell, Pierre Charvet, Richard Danielpour, Dick Hyman et Henry Martin. Elle se produit rgulirement avec la Film Society of Lincoln Center, l'une des seules pianistes interprter des partitions pour piano accompagnant les films muets.

En 2003, madame Buechner a t nomme assistante-professeure de piano l'universit de la Colombie-Britannique Vancouver. Elle a t membre de la facult de la New York University et prsente des confrences et des classes de matre l'chelle mondiale au Royal Academy de Londres, l'cole Juilliard de New York, en passant par le Kobe-Yamate Gakuen d'Osaka, au Japon. Madame Buechner joue exclusivement sur les pianos Yamaha.


Les billets sont aux prix de 38 $ |30 $ | 25 $ |10 $/tudiants

Pour plus de renseignements : Susan McKinnon Bell, directrice administrative, 5459, avenue Earnscliffe, Montral, Qubec H3X 2P8

514-487-5190 | 514-487-7390 (fax) |514-830-6033 (cellulaire)
www.ocm-mco.org

sbell@ocm-mco.org

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:00 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Mathieu Lipp 30 mai au Studio-Thtre de la Place-des-Arts


Un spectacle dans le cadre des Weekends de la chanson Quebecor

Au Studio-thtre de La Place des Arts de Montral

Vendredi le 30 mai, Mathieu Lipp vous invite clbrer en musique, mots et histoires l'merveillement tant face au quotidien qu' l'patant! Qu'il emprunte le chemin du conte, de la chanson ou du slam, la magie est au rendez-vous. Vous avez l'me dansante, le cur bondissant et les neurones gigotantes? Parfait car Mathieu Lipp propose non seulement de vous faire danser avec les pieds mais aussi avec l'esprit, par sa posie ludique et son imaginaire narratif contagieux.

Vritable artisan de l'oralit, Mathieu Lipp marque la scne depuis plusieurs annes avec des spectacles hors du commun. L'artiste fait volu sur scne une forme de chansons thtrales vers une forme de chansons groovy et lumineuses en les ponctuant de textes potiques et de contes surralistes. Inusit, mais rafrachissant! Le rythme des mots est accompagn par le rythme irrsistible d'une musique d'inspiration world, performe par d'excellents musiciens : Nicholas Williams (piano, fltes, accordon), Sbastien Hinse (batterie), David Da Castello (basse), Rmi Gigure (guitare), Shawn Mativetsky (tabla) et Nathalie Cora (cora). L'ensemble du spectacle dgage une nergie profondment positive et inspirante!


C'est avec fiert que cette performance s'inscrit dans la programmation des Weekends de la chanson Quebecor au Studio-Thtre de La Place des Arts. Un lieu idal pour l'aventure que propose Mathieu Lipp : un chemin de paroles mlodieuses qui vont L o le cur mne

Vendredi 30 mai 20h

Studio-Thtre de La Place des Arts, 175 rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest,

Billet en vente ds maintenant la billeterie de La Place des Arts 514-842-2112

Ou matlip77@hotmail.com

et le soir mme la porte

20$

Pour toutes demandes d'informations, billets de presse et entrevues

Relationniste : Marie-Paule Grimaldi communications@mathieulippe.com

514-570-2263

www.mathieulippe.com

www.myspace.com/mathieulippe

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:50 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The Rhythms of the Sea with Canadian pianist Marc-Andr Hamelin

Extraordinary Canadian pianist Marc-Andr Hamelin performs

Mozart and Messiaen

Vancouver BC The final Accenture Masterworks Gold series concert of the season features French-Canadian pianist Marc-Andr Hamelin and takes place on Saturday & Monday, May 31st & June 2nd at the Orpheum Theatre. Maestro Bramwell Tovey conducts.

This concert is an Impressionist canvass. The fascinating exploration of the sounds of various exotic birdsong that is Messiaens Oiseaux exotiques (Exotic Birds) is utterly unique and entirely characteristic of Messiaen. The piece explores the sounds of over forty species of birds, but not in a literal manner; rather, the music is a sonic fantasy on the inspiration provided to Messiaen by the songs of those birds, telling a story rather than imitating the birds or painting a literal picture. Impressionism at its finest!

One of Messiaens great muses was Claude Debussy, that giant of the time who single-handedly provided much of the transition from the late-Romantic era to modernism. A lover of the arcane and mysterious, and a deep appreciator of visual art, his body of work speaks of impressionism and mystery, flavoured with an elusiveness uniquely his own. Similar to the Oiseaux exotiques, Debussys La Mer creates an emotional soundscape rather than telling a literal and detailed story. La Mer is like an Impressionistic sonic mosaic, rich in colour, motifs and evocation of feelings as opposed to direct description. Deeply felt and powerful music, Debussys La Mer is one of the greatest of Impressionistic works.

Montral native Marc-Andr Hamelin is internationally renowned for his musical virtuosity and refined pianism. The 2008 JUNO Award Winner (for Classical Album of the Year: Solo or Chamber Ensemble) collaborates with the JUNO and GRAMMY winning VSO to perform the type of exotic and adventurous repertoire that has made him famous, including Messiaens Oiseaux exotiques and Mozarts Rondo in D Major.

"Hamelin's legend will grow - right now there is no one like him"
~ The New Yorker

"One of the most adventurous and certainly the most courageous pianists of recent times..."
~ International Piano Quarterly

Ultimate Perfection.

~ The Times

In special recognition of his body of work, Mr. Hamelin was made a Chevalier de lOrdre national du Qubec and an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2005. In 2006, he was elected to the Royal Society of Canada. A distinguished recording artist, Marc-Andr Hamelins Grammy-nominated recording of Haydns Piano Sonatas was on the Best of 2007 lists of the Boston Globe, the New York Times, and the New Yorker Magazine.

Both evenings of this concert will include a pre-concert talk by VSO Principal Percussion Vern Griffiths, at 7:05pm. The pre-concert talk is free to ticket holders.

CONCERT INFO

Accenture Masterworks Gold Series

The Rhythms of the Sea

Saturday, May 31, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Monday, June 2, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Bramwell Tovey conductor

Marc-Andr Hamelin piano

Vern Griffiths percussion

Brahms Variations on a Theme of Haydn

Messiaen Oiseaux exotiques

Mozart Rondo in D Major

Debussy La Mer

Ticket prices: $25 - $78 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets Available at VSO Customer Service, 604.876.3434; Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone, 604.280.3311; online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Series Generously Sponsored By:

Accenture

Radio Sponsor:

CKNW AM 980

BIOGRAPHIES

Bramwell Tovey, conductor

A musician of striking versatility, Bramwell Tovey is acknowledged around the world for his artistic depth and warm, charismatic personality on the podium. Toveys career as a conductor is uniquely enhanced by his work as a composer and pianist, lending him a remarkable musical perspective.

His tenures as Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony, Luxembourg Philharmonic and Winnipeg Symphony Orchestras have been characterized by his expertise in the opera, choral, and British repertoire. Tovey recently garnered a 2007 Grammy Award and a 2007 Juno Award for his recording with violinist James Ehnes and the Vancouver Symphony. Recently named Principal Guest Conductor for the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, he works frequently with the Toronto Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Royal Philharmonic and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestras, among many others. He has presided as host and conductor of the New York Philharmonics Summertime Classics series at Avery Fisher Hall since its founding in 2004.

A champion of contemporary music, Tovey developed the highly regarded New Music Festival in Winnipeg, during his tenure as Music Director. As a composer, he was honored with the Best Canadian Classical Composition Juno Award in 2003 for his Requiem for a Charred Skull. Upcoming new works include a co-commission for the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics respective 2008 summer seasons as well as a full-length opera for the Calgary Opera, The Inventor, to premiere in January of 2011.

Tovey has been awarded honorary degrees, including a Fellowship from the Royal Academy of Music in London, honorary Doctorates of Law from the universities of Winnipeg and Manitoba, and Kwantlen University College, as well as a Royal Conservatory of Music Fellowship in Toronto. In 1999, he received the M. Joan Chalmers National Award for Artistic Direction, a Canadian prize awarded to artists for outstanding contributions in the performing arts.

Marc-Andr Hamelin, piano


Marc-Andr Hamelin began the 2007/08 season in debuts with the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood for Beethoven "Emperor" Piano Concerto No. 5 led by Jens Georg Bachmann, and at the Mostly Mozart Festival performing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major, K. 453 with Louis Langre. In recital this season, Mr. Hamelin debuts with Great Performers Series at Lincoln Center, with Chicago Symphony Presents, at the Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, at Mostly Mozart, and with the Celebrity Series of Boston. He performs in chamber concerts with Midori at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and at the Kennedy Center, returns to San Francisco Performances for a two-recital series, and performs recitals throughout Europe and North America.

Recent highlights include the world premiere of Kevin Volans' Piano Concerto for his debut with the San Francisco Symphony, led by Michael Tilson Thomas; Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 for a return to the Detroit Symphony with Kwame Ryan; Mendelssohn Piano Concerto No. 1 with Sir Neville Marriner and the Montreal Symphony; Messiaen's "Turangalila" with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Sir Andrew Davis; Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 with the Vancouver Symphony led by Tania Miller, and Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 to close the Kansas City Symphony's season with Michael Stern.

Under exclusive contract with Hyperion Records, Mr. Hamelin's recent two-disc set of Haydn Piano Sonatas was named on "Best of 2007" lists in the Boston Globe, the New York Times, and the New Yorker magazine, and is nominated for a "Best Solo Instrumental" Grammy. In 2001, with a double nomination for the epic Busoni Concerto with the CBSO under Mark Elder and the Chopin-Godowsky, Mr. Hamelin was the only classical artist to play live at the Grammy Awards. He received another Grammy nomination in 2002 for his recording featuring the works of Alkan. His double album of the complete Chopin-Godowsky Etudes won the 2000 Gramophone Instrumental Award, and in December 2006, he was awarded the Preis der Deutsche Schallplattenkritik, in special acknowledgement of his complete body of recorded works.

In 2005 Mr. Hamelin was honoured to be made an Officer of the Order of Canada and a Chevalier de l'Ordre national du Qubec.

Vern Griffiths, percussion

Vern Griffiths quickly established himself as a respected performer, educator and collaborator after joining the Vancouver Symphony as Principal Percussionist in 1997. He also currently plays with the CBC Radio Orchestra and two new music chamber groups: Standing Wave and the Turning Point Ensemble. Vern can be heard on recordings with all of these groups, as well as on soundtracks for Disney, ABC, IMAX, NFB, EA Sports, and DreamWorks. Other recent performances include Festival Vancouver, Music on Main, FUSE, the John Cage Festival, Music in the Morning, and substituting as timpanist with the Victoria Symphony.

Born and raised in North Vancouver, Vern has degrees in both Commerce and Music from the University of British Columbia, studying percussion with John Rudolph who was the VSOs Principal Percussionist at the time. Vern then moved to New York and earned his Master of Music degree in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music, as a scholarship student of Chris Lamb of the New York Philharmonic and Duncan Patton of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Other studies include the Aspen Music Festival, National Youth Orchestra of Canada, the National Orchestral Institute (Maryland), the Altenberg Music Festival (Germany), and the Leigh Stevens Marimba Seminar.

A committed educator, Vern has been teaching at UBC since 1997, becoming head of the percussion department and director of the Percussion Ensemble in 2005. Students of his have gone on to study with Alan Abel, Russell Hartenberger, John Rudolph, Don Liuzzi, Jack Van Geem, and Nancy Zeltsman; and have participated in the Aspen Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute, and National Youth Orchestra of Canada. One former student is now the Principal Percussionist of the Chicago Symphony.

Vern has been featured as a soloist on numerous occasions with the VSO and is proud to be a part of the VSOs Kids Koncert series this season with a very fun show he wrote called Wall to Wall Percussion. It features all the musicianship, zaniness and creativity that go into being a percussionist. The show takes place "at Verns house", and thus the stage will be full literally from wall to wall with instruments, a kitchen, an instrument-making workshop, living room, and more. There is plenty of audience participation (think "boom-chagalagalaga") and fun for everyone!

Vern takes an active role in other facets of the VSO family, including being the Chair of the Artistic Advisory Committee, a member of the Programming Committee, and one of the musician representatives on the VSOs Board of Directors. He has also become acquainted with many of the Patrons and Volunteers of the VSO, and is extremely grateful to these generous members of our community who support symphonic music in Vancouver.

Vern is very proud that the Principal Percussion chair is endowed by his friend and generous patron of the arts, Martha Lou Henley.

-VSO-

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:45 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest Tickets Now on Sale

TICKETS ON SALE FOR 4th ANNUAL RENO-TAHOE BLUES FEST

Gladys Knight, The Whispers and Jonny Lang Headline the Festival

RENO, Nev. Named Festival of the Year by the Bay Area Blues Society in 2005, the Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest continues to earn the title by bringing in some of the biggest names in the business including 2008 headliners Gladys Knight, The Whispers and Jonny Lang to celebrate the history, culture and spirit of the blues. Tickets are available online at www.RenoTahoeBluesFest.com for the 4th annual festival scheduled for Aug. 16-17, 2008 at Rancho San Rafael Park in Reno, Nev.

Each year the Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest continues to grow, showcasing different artists, more amenities and exciting new opportunities for blues fans to really immerse themselves in music, said Charles McNeely, president of the Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest and Reno City Manager. This year, as in years past, were continuing to provide one of the best blues experiences on the West Coast bringing both veteran musicians as well as relative newcomers to entertain and delight Reno-Tahoe audiences.

The festivals closes on Sunday with headliner Gladys Knight who has more than four decades of chart-topping hits and is a six-time Grammy Award winner. Critics applaud Knights smooth vocals and heartfelt emotion which lend to a variety of musical styles from rhythm and blues to soul, gospel to Motown and beyond. Originally singing with her brother and cousins as Gladys Knight and the Pips, Knight earned a level of superstardom with the smash hit Midnight Train to Georgia. Recent album releases highlight her amazing diversity, with ballads, jazz standards and gospel songs all touched on in albums including At Last and Before Me.

Veteran R&B group The Whispers co-headline Saturdays performances bringing more than four decades of hits to the stage including Rock Steady, Lady, Lets Go All the Way and their biggest hit And The Beat Goes On. Jonny Lang also co-headlines the Saturday festival schedule. Releasing his solo debut Lie to Me at just 15, Jonny Lang shot into the limelight of blues music with what U.S. News and World Report calls the voice of a grizzled blues veteran. The Grammy-nominated Lang has polished his skills alongside blues heavyweights B.B. King and Buddy Guy and continues to churn out searing blues and rock and roll including 2006s Turn Around, his fifth album.

In addition to the daily headline performers, the 2008 Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest line-up features Delta-bluesman Bobby Rush, soul and gospel legend Mavis Staples and others including Mel Waiters, Latimore, E.C. Scott, Betty Wright, Ernie Johnson and more. Daily tickets include access to all performances and VIP packages are available to attend both days.

Annually the festival draws more than 10,000 attendees to Renos Rancho San Rafael Park for two days of musical performances beginning at 12 p.m. and continuing into the twilight. The ongoing entertainment is complemented by a variety of dining options including classic Southern specialties and ice-cold beverages that combine to provide a first-class blues experience.

Tickets for the Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest are on sale now, with one-day tickets starting at just $58 and two-day value tickets from $106. VIP passes, valid for both days of the Festival, are just $210 and offer premium seating for the entire event. Tickets purchased prior to June 15, 2008 qualify for a 10 percent early bird discount. Group pricing and Platinum and Blues Cabana ticket packages are also available.

For more information, visit the Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest online at www.RenoTahoeBluesFest.com or call 775-857-3378. Tickets are on sale now, online at www.Ticketmaster.com, or by phone at 775-787-8497.

The Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest, founded in 2005, was created to bring world-class blues to the Reno-Tahoe region and to celebrate the history, culture and spirit of the blues. Staged annually at Renos Rancho San Rafael Park, the two-day festival attracts audiences from around the country to hear some of the biggest names in blues including Etta James, Clarence Carter, Buddy Guy, Bobby Rush, Keb Mo, Bobby Blue Band and others. Established as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, the Reno-Tahoe Blues Fest supports music education for youth in the Reno-Tahoe area through a scholarship program and ongoing assistance for school music equipment purchases and jazz band programs. Funds for the festival are raised through corporate sponsorships and ticket sales.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:38 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Ensemble KORE 10me anniversaire / 10th anniversary

Ensemble KORE prsente
10 ans !

Concert du 10e anniversaire


lundi 26 mai, 20h

La Sala Rossa

4848, boul. Saint-Laurent

10 $


Marie-Annick Bliveau, mezzo-soprano

Jonathan Barriault, guitare

Isabelle Bozzini, violoncelle

Xavier Brossard-Mnard, clarinette

Isabelle Choquette, saxophone

John Corban, violon

Marc Couroux, piano

Genevive Draspe, flte

Mathieu Gaulin, saxophone

D'Arcy Gray, percussions

Philip Hornsey, percussions

Claire Marchand, flte

Clemens Merkel, violon

Pemi Paull, alto

Steve Raegele, guitare

Michiel Schrey, tnor

Mark Simons, clarinette


Kore clbrera son 10e anniversaire en mettant en lumire l'un des nos plus grands atouts, les musiciens de membres l'ensemble. Quinze performances solo et duo dmontreront la profondeur du talent de nos interprtes. Le rpertoire au programme comprendra plusieurs grands moments de nos dix premires saisons, et quelques premires de pices composes en l'honneur de cette occasion.


Oeuvres de Martin Arnold, Allison Cameron, Laurence Crane, Christopher Fox, Anthony Genge, Scott Godin, Peter Hatch, Tom Johnson, Nicole Lize, Gyorgy Ligeti, Marco Perez Ramirez, Gerhard Staebler.





Ensemble Kore presents

10 ans !

Concert 10th anniversary


Monday, May 26, 8pm

La Sala Rossa

4848 Saint-Laurent

$10


Marie-Annick Bliveau, mezzo-soprano

Jonathan Barriault, guitar

Isabelle Bozzini, cello

Xavier Brossard-Mnard, clarinet

Isabelle Choquette, saxophone

John Corban, violin

Marc Couroux, piano

Genevive Draspe, flute

Mathieu Gaulin, saxophone

D'Arcy Gray, percussion

Philip Hornsey, percussion

Claire Marchand, flute

Clemens Merkel, violin

Pemi Paull, viola

Steve Raegele, guitar

Michiel Schrey, tenor

Mark Simons, clarinet


Kore will celebrate its 10th Anniversary by putting the spotlight on one of our greatest assets, the musicians who make up the ensemble. Fifteen solo and duo performances will demonstrate the depth of talent of our performing artists. The repertoire will include some of the highlights of our first ten seasons, and several premires of pieces by composers who have written short tributes to help us mark this occasion.


Works by Martin Arnold, Allison Cameron, Laurence Crane, Christopher Fox, Anthony Genge, Scott Godin, Peter Hatch, Tom Johnson, Nicole Lize, Gyorgy Ligeti, Marco Perez Ramirez, Gerhard Staebler.


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:16 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Moments sacrs

Le Choeur de la montagne prsentera son concert MOMENTS SACRS Mozart - Handel - Mendelssohn les 24 mai 20 heures et 25 mai 14h30 l'glise Saint-Matthieu, 1014, rue Richelieu Beloeil.

La soprano Karine Michon est la soliste-invite. Les laurats du Concours de musique assureront la premire partie : les pianistes Lysandre Mnard (14 ans, 1er prix catgorie 7 14 ans) et Aude St-Pierre (19 ans, 1er prix catgorie 15 21 ans) joueront le 24 mai tandis que le Trio Ouater (violon, violoncelle et piano) et le grand laurat Thierry Bgin-Lamontagne, guitariste de 21 ans, joueront le 25 mai.

Billets en vente au Muse des beaux-arts de Mont-Saint Hilaire (450.536.3033) et chez Multi lectronique Beloeil (450.467.8273)

Labels: , , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:05 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Of Stage and Screen: Favourites from Movies and Musicals

Of Stage and Screen: Favourites from Movies and Musicals

In their 16th season, Cumberland Community Singers present their 2008 Spring Concert entitled "Of Stage and Screen".

The Orleans-based choir will present a fun evening of music, ranging from Plaisir d'Amour, from the 1949 Academy Award winning film The Heiress, and The Lion Sleeps Tonight, featured in over 100 films, to Medlies from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dreamcoat and Les Miserables, both accompanied by a band. Also featured in the concert will be the Orleans and Alta Vista based Cross Town Youth Chorus.

A fun evening for all, says Cumberland Community Singers Director Kurt Ala-Kantti. We always look forward to having the children's choir involved, and the chance to hear the choir accompanied by the band shouldn't be missed!

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and students and free for children and youth. Tickets are available at the door.

More information is available on the choir's website: www.CumberlandCommunitySingers.com

"Of Stage and Screen: Favourites from Movies and Musicals
performed by the Cumberland Community Singers
with guests Cross Town Youth Chorus
Saturday, May 24th, 7:30 pm
Orleans United Church, 1111 Orleans Blvd.
Featuring medleys from Les Miserables and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Tickets available at the door
$15 adults; $10 seniors and students; children and youth free

www.CumberlandCommunitySingers.com

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:53 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

I Musici Repentigny !


LAssociation de Repentigny pour lAvancement de la Musique
Prsente

I MUSICI

Avec la grande gagnante du
Concours de Musique de Repentigny dition 2008 :

Marjolaine Lambert, violon

Samedi 24 mai 2008, 19 h 30

Billets : 30 $ (rgulier), 25 $ (an-tudiant)


Monsieur Georges Nicholson, animateur bien connu des mlomanes canadiens,
animera une causerie portant sur les uvres au programme
45 minutes avant le concert.


glise de la Purification
445, rue Notre-Dame, Repentigny
Information : 450.582.6714
www.aramrepentigny.ca


Pour clore la saison 2007-2008 en beaut, lARAM prsente le rput ensemble I Musici pour un concert qui sannonce dores et dj mmorable avec, en premire partie, la violoniste Marjolaine Lambert, grande gagnante du Concours de Musique de Repentigny dition 2008, volet provincial.
Ce concert aura lieu le samedi 24 mai, 19 h 30, lglise de la Purification de Repentigny.

Programme de concert :
Mozart
Divertimento K 136

Mozart
Concerto pour violon no 3
Marjolaine Lambert, violon

Tchakovski
Srnade opus 48
I. Pice de forme Sonatine : Andante non troppo Allegro moderato
II. Valse : Moderato, tempo di valse
III. Elgie : Larghetto elegiaco
IV. Finale : Thme russe : Andante Allegro con spirito


Marjolaine Lambert, violon
Aprs avoir complt son DEC au Conservatoire de musique de Montral sous lenseignement de Johanne Arel, Marjolaine Lambert sest mrit le Prix du Lieutenant-Gouverneur. Elle vient tout juste de complter son baccalaurat en performance musicale lcole de musique Schulich de lUniversit McGill, dans la classe de Denise Lupien. Pendant ces annes dtudes suprieures, elle fut rcipiendaire des Bourses James McGill, Mary H Beatty et Bridgestone Firestone, en plus dtre invite faire partie de la Golden Key International Honnour Society. Elle sest produite comme concertmaster dans de nombreux projets, sous la direction de Julian Wachner, Alexis Hauser et Yaniv Attar. Elle eut lhonneur de jouer entre autres pour Igor Oistrakh et Martin Beaver.. Son inclinaison pour les tudes lamne faire une mineure en Culture Asiatique, en apprenant les rudiments du mandarin. Elle a dailleurs particip la Tourne 2007 en Chine de lOrchestre de la Francophonie Canadienne, sous la direction de Jean-Philippe Tremblay. Marjolaine dbutera en Septembre 2008 sa Matrise lUniversit Yale dans la classe de Ani Kavafian.

I Musici
Fond et dirig par le violoncelliste Yuli Turovsky, I Musici de Montral est un orchestre de chambre permanent de 15 musiciens dont le vaste rpertoire s'tend de la musique baroque la musique contemporaine. Ensemble prolifique, le rayonnement dI Musici de Montral ltranger est remarquable, avec plus de 100 concerts par anne de par le monde. Une impressionnante feuille de route qui classe I Musici parmi les plus importants orchestres de chambre des Amriques. Depuis ses dbuts en 1983, I Musici de Montral a enregistr plus de 40 disques compacts pour les tiquettes Chandos et Analekta, disques qui sont distribus dans plus de 50 pays.

On a attribu l'orchestre montralais de nombreuses et prestigieuses distinctions dont un Diapason d'or pour son enregistrement de la Symphonie n 14 de Chostakovitch en 1988 et une Rosette du Penguin Guide to Compact Discs and Cassettes en 1992 pour celui des Concerti grossi, opus 6, de Haendel, consacrant cette version comme l'enregistrement de rfrence. En dcembre 1998, le Conseil qubcois de la musique dcernait l'Orchestre deux Prix Opus
vnement discographique de l'anne et Meilleur enregistrement, musique contemporaine pour le disque regroupant des uvres de Gorecki, de Prt et de Schnittke. En aot 2001, le BBC Music Magazine saluait le quarantime disque compact de l'Orchestre, compos d'uvres de Miaskovsky, de Schnittke et de Denisov, en le slectionnant comme Pick of the Month . En 2007, le dernier enregistrement dI Musici sous tiquette Analekta, Autour de Chostakovitch, a reu le Prix Opus du Disque de lanne, musiques moderne, contemporaine , en plus de recevoir une nomination aux prix Juno.

Sous la direction fougueuse et inspire de Yuli Turovsky, comme chef ou comme soliste, I Musici de Montral a jou dans les grandes salles du monde : le Lincoln Center New York, le Palais des Beaux-Arts Bruxelles, le Seiji Ozawa Hall Tanglewood, la Gewandhaus Leipzig, le Kioi Hall Tokyo, la Tonhalle Zrich, la Sala Mozart Zaragoza et la Philharmonie de Luxembourg, entre autres. L'loge de la critique qui souligne la prcision, la virtuosit et le haut niveau dexcellence de l'Orchestre et lenthousiasme du public confirment la place considrable qu'occupe I Musici de Montral, autant sur la scne musicale nationale qu'internationale.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:30 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Peurs bleues / Here Be Monsters


Peurs bleues

Quand la mer cre les lgendesĶ


MONTRAL, le 14 mai 2008 Dans le cadre des festivits de 2008 entourant l'tablissement de la colonie franaise en Amrique, le Muse du Chteau RamezayPeurs Bleues, une exposition qui aborde la relation de l'homme la mer, depuis le 15e sicle jusqu' nos jours. prsente, du 21 mai au 19 octobre,

Peurs bleues, une adaptation de l'exposition conue par La Corderie Royale Centre International de la Mer Rochefort, en

Collection Nelson Cazeils
France, propose un voyage au cur de l'univers marin. Que pouvait reprsenter la mer pour ceux qui s'y aventuraient? Un monde sans repre, peupl de monstres, frapp par les temptes, la maladie et la piraterie.

Premire preuve surmonter pour s'tablir en Amrique, la mer a faonn l'identit qubcoise. De l'Europe aux rives du Saint-Laurent, sabre d'abordage, figure de proue, cartes anciennes et autres objets inusits rvlent les secrets de cet univers hostile.

Embarquez-vousĶ la mer vous attend!

Le Muse du Chteau Ramezay est situ en plein cur du Vieux-Montral, deux pas de la Place Jacques-Cartier et du mtro Champ-de-Mars, face l'Htel de Ville de Montral.


Here be Monsters

When the Sea spawns LegendsĶ

MONTRAL, May 14, 2008. The love-hate relationship between people and the sea, from the 15th century to today, is the fascinating subject of the exhibition "Here be Monsters" presented by the Chteau Ramezay Museum, from May 21 to October 19, 2008, as a contribution to the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the founding of the first French colony in the New World.

Adapted from an exhibition created by La Corderie Royale- Centre international de la Mer in Rochefort, France, "Here be Monsters" takes you on a voyage that plumbs the depths of human imagination and the deep blue sea. To early explorers, the sea was a world without landmarks, inhabited by monsters, threatening tempest, sickness and piracy.

As the first obstacle to be overcome when venturing to settle in the Americas, the sea put its stamp on the cultural identity of Quebec. From the shores of Europe to the barks of the St. Lawrence, maps, charts, travel accounts, cutlass, figurehead and much else reveal the secrets of this hostile universe.

Set your sailĶ. the sea is calling you!

The Chteau Ramezay Museum is located in the heart of historical Old Montreal, just east of Place Jacques-Cartier and across from the Montreal City Hall.


Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:20 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

CD launch: Whirlwind at Jello Bar, Fri. May 23, 5pm

Nilia Berkin releases Whirlwind, her debut CD,

with a record launch party:

Friday, May 23 @ 5pm

Jello Bar -151 Ontario East

(Martinis and goodies will be served!)

And at midnight, when you're chasing sheep across the sky and aching for a lullaby,

Let me be, please let me be, let me be the one to sing to you,

To you, to sing to you, to you, to sing to you, to you, to you. -Dusty White Moon

Nilia Berkin's debut show at the Sala Rossa on May 2 was a great success with Matt Lipscombe and Subcollisions playing after her set to a packed crowd and glowing reviews. She is thrilled to launch her debut CD, Whirlwind, on Friday, May 23 at Jello Bar at 5pm.

Nilia is a singer/songwriter based in NDG. She grew up in Sherbrooke, Quebec and came to the big city to realize her musical aspirations studying classical piano at Vanier College and Concordia University.

Nilia has also studied jazz under the tutelage of Lorraine Desmarais and has been performing in a jazz duo with her partner, TJ Plenty (ex-Asexuals) since 1998.

In early 2000, after a musical contract in a hotel in Japan, Nilia returned to Montreal and started writing the 12 songs for her debut CD.

Whirlwind is Nilia's first album and an intensely intimate work. "The songs are mostly musings of the world and question what happens in the spaces we can't see. Where do we go when we fall asleep, when we die, when we daydream? I've always been interested in symbols and coincidences. Sometimes when you're perfectly still, the world starts to reveal itself in ways you can't pick up on when you're distracted by all this living."

Whirlwind was recorded at the church where she sang as a soloist for over a decade and in her home. TJ Plenty produced and played guitars. The CD is available online from Nilia's website as well as www.CDBaby.com which describes Whirlwind as 'Indie pop creations that are a blend of pop, jazz and classical with a sprinkle of punk-rock. The music is sultry, mysterious, retro.' It is also available at independent record stores around the city.

Nilia will be playing songs from this album on May 23rd with help from backup singers Stefanie Buxton and Danielle Desormeaux as well as guitarist TJ Plenty at Jello Bar, 151 Ontario East (between Saint- Laurent and Saint- Denis).

Come early and get a good seat- martinis and goodies will be served.

For more information and to hear clips from Whirlwind: www.niliaberkin.com


Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:15 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Emerging Artist Series

BLACK BOX FIRE presents THE EMERGING ARTISTS SERIES

"Every year we produce a series of plays put on by
local, up-and-coming theatre artists. This year's
line-up is amazing and includes eight productions
performed over the course of four weeks beginning May
15, 2008," says Stephanie Yantsis, Black Box Fire's
Co-Founder. "Some shows are comedies. Some are dramas.
Some border on the absurd. Some take a serious look at
issues in the media today. Some were written by
published authors. Some were written by emerging
playwrights here in the city. There's something for
everyone and lots of opportunities to explore
different styles of theatre while supporting our local
arts community."

WHAT: Black Box Fire's Emerging Artists Series
WHERE: Hamilton Theatre Inc. Studio Theatre - 140
MacNab Street North, Hamilton, Ontario
WHEN: May 15 to June 7, 2008 every Thursday, Friday,
at 7pm and Saturdays at 2 and 7pm
TICKETS: $10 evening entrance. Cash Only. Pay at the
door. Make reservations at www.blackboxfire.com
CONCESSIONS: Available between shows and at
intermissions.

WEEK ONE (Thursday May 15 to Saturday, May 17, 2008)
DOUBLE BILL: 2 ONE-ACTS

THE CARDBOARD BOX
Written and Directed by Jason Lamb
Starring Dave Disher, Krista Janke, Bryan Gauer and
Michael Herman

The Cardboard Box is the tale of four people (an
average Joe, a theatre/film critic, a fool and a
scientist) stuck in a cardboard box in the middle of
the ocean. They're not quite sure how they got there,
what they'll do, why they'll do it, or how they'll get
out of their predicament.

ALICE: THE TEA PARTY
Written by Warren Graves
Directed by Tim Mauch
Starring Jessica Perkins, Sally Panavas, Geoff Hymers,
Kathleen McGrath, Kim Staffleiner, Nerlind Sheshi and
Cary Ferguson

Alice, a young girl, left with the responsibility of
watching a treat covered table at an afternoon garden
fete falls asleep with a head full of her friends
story-time characters and suddenly finds herself on a
ridiculous ride filled with nonsense and silliness.

WEEK TWO (Thursday May 22 to Saturday, May 24, 2008)
SINGLE SHOW: 1 TWO-ACT

THE GOOD BODY
Written by Eve Ensler
Directed by Meg Banks and Laura Pomeroy
Starring Mohini Bhavsar, Carlyn Christian, Graham
Jenner, Sophie Mancini, Alicia Micallef, Amanda
Nesbitt, Alison Nicholson, Michelle Urbano and Allison
Warwick

The author of 'The Vagina Monologues' attempts to come
to peace with her own body. Through monologue, the
play explores the stories of many individuals. Often
humorous, and always poignant, 'The Good Body'
explores the concept of body within our culture,
through our own eyes. (Includes a 15 minute
intermission)

WEEK THREE (Thursday May 29 to Saturday, May 31, 2008)
TRIPLE BILL: 3 ONE-ACTS

PROMISE YOU WON'T MARRY ME
Written and Directed by Ellen S. Jaffe
Starring Meredith Heyland, Dan Sanderson, Michelle
Lahaise and Eric Delmer Millen

Two characters, named only One and Two, who have had
an on-and-off relationship for several years, meet
again and drive along a country road, finally talking
about their feelings, hopes, and longings - past,
present, and perhaps future.

CHESHIRE CATS
Written and Directed by Anjie Schwartz
Starring Tanya Sitko, Michael Anania, Kayla Deverson
and Jim Molloy

Alice is a failed artist and barely functioning
alcoholic. Her husband James is a successful
businessman who has just closed an important deal.
Their once happy relationship is in the midst of
falling spectacularly apart as each realizes they no
longer know who the other is and wonder if they ever
really knew each other to begin with?

WASP
Written by Steve Martin
Directed by Andrew Hadden
Starring Jason Dick, Lauren MacKinlay, Jessica
Pannetta, Matthew Dyck, Courtney Hamara and Nick Kozij

The title of Steve Martin's one-act piece, WASP, is an
acronym for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant. The play
explores and critiques the values of this particular
North American ethnicity and culture. Set in a 1950's
household it focuses on a family of four: Dad, Mom,
Sister and Brother.

WEEK FOUR (Thursday, June 5 to Saturday, June 7, 2008)
DOUBLE BILL: 2 ONE-ACTS

LOW LIFES
Written by Brent Purvis.
Directed by Andrew Noble.
Starring Matt Szpirglas, Erik Canaria, Caroline
Concordia, Parker Martin, Aaron Middlemiss, David
Spring and Joe Gull

Benny and Dante, two twenty-something small-time drug
dealers, thought they had it made until they have to
flush their stash. Now Benny and Dante have two days
to come up with $10,000 or else... But they've got a
plan.

TWO ROOMS
Written by Lee Blessing.
Directed by Lauren Repei.
Starring Graham Jenner, Rahkee Sapra, Alex Holbrook
and Jaclyn Scobie

Michael Wells is being held hostage in Beirut,
blindfolded, handcuffed and alone. Half a world away
his wife Lainie has made a prisoner of herself in her
husband's empty study. As months turn into years,
Lainie and Michael find strength in their love, which
allow them to speak and see one another in a
dream-like place.

BLACK BOX FIRE & THE EMERGING ARTISTS SERIES:

Sponsors: CopyDog, Hamilton Theatre Inc., McMaster
Theatre & Film Society, My Dog Joe Coffee House,
Staircase Cafe and Theatre, Tailgate Charlie's, QQs
Teashop, and The Vine

Black Box Fire: Based in Hamilton, Ontario Black Box
Fire is an independent theatre company that was formed
in 2006. Its members believe in the principles of
cooperative development and necessary theatre. The
company treats the development and performance of
theatre as a collaborative, holistic process. It seeks
to develop production methods and performances which
are innovative, challenging and effective.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:10 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

La symphonie des vents de Montral: 10e anniversaire

10E ANNIVERSAIRE !

LA SYMPHONIE DES VENTS DE MONTRAL EN CONCERT LE 24 MAI 2008

Anim par Christopher Hall

C'est le samedi 24 mai, ds 20 h la salle Claude-Champagne de l'Universit de Montral qu'aura lieu le concert soulignant le dixime anniversaire de la SYMPHONIE DES VENTS DE MONTRAL (SVM). Le concert sera anim par Christopher Hall, animateur humoristique et clarinettiste de formation.

L'ensemble, compos d'instruments vent et percussion, offrira un programme trs vari et relev, invitant les mlomanes explorer la musique dans toute sa splendeur et sa complexit. Dans le cadre des clbrations de son dixime anniversaire, la SVM interprtera Telegram-Winds, une uvre indite que le compositeur Tim Brady a crite exclusivement pour l'ensemble. Pour cette pice, les musiciens auront la chance d'tre accompagns par le groupe de saxophones Quasar de renomme internationale. Parmi les autres pices choisies pour souligner l'vnement, la SVM interprtera aussi Une nuit sur le mont-chauve de Modeste Moussorgski, transcription de Mario Chauss.

Les billets seront en vente ds 19 h 15 l'entre de la Salle Claude-Champagne au cot de 15 $ pour tous et de 10 $ pour les tudiants. La salle est accessible par la station de mtro douard-Montpetit et le stationnement est gratuit.

La SYMPHONIE DES VENTS DE MONTRAL est un organisme sans but lucratif, fond en 1998 par son actuel chef et directeur musical, Monsieur ric Levasseur. La SVM a pour mission de rpondre aux besoins des jeunes musiciens de talent, d'entretenir leur passion et de rendre la musique plus accessible au grand public. L'ensemble permet aux musiciens d'aborder plusieurs genres musicaux et de perfectionner et d'acqurir une importante exprience de scne.

Parmi ses ralisations, la SVM a gagn plusieurs prix prestigieux dont le trophe Performance instrumentale exceptionnelle lors du Heritage Festival de New York en 2002 et a lanc son premier album studio en dcembre 2004.

Concert de la SVM

Samedi, 24 mai 2008, 20 h

Salle Claude Champagne (Universit de Montral)

220, avenue Vincent-d'Indy, Outremont, Montral

Station de mtro douard-Montpetit

Stationnement gratuit

Prix pour une entre - 15 $

Prix pour les tudiants (sur prsentation d'une pice d'identit) - 10 $

Renseignements :
Gilles Dupuis prsident du CA de la SVM
(514) 833-7834
dupuis.gilles@uqam.ca


Isabelle D'Amico - administratrice de la SVM
(514) 494-0353
isabelle.damico@videotron.ca


www.symphoniedesvents.com

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:08 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

4th Annual WAWA (We Are Women Artists) Show

www.thewawashow.com

The Beautiful People Association and CKUT 90.3FM are pleased to present the 4th edition of the WAWA Show, an evening of women's performance by Montreal singers, dancers, comediennes and artists. The event will take place on Thursday, May 29 at 8:30 p.m. at Sala Rossa (4848 blvd. Saint Laurent). Tickets are $10 and available at the door.

Participants include:

Music & Performance
Empire Isis (SOBA award-winning hip hop reggae star)
Amanda Mabro (Cabaret pop noir vocalist)
Briga Brigitte Dajczer (Eastern European folk violin & vocals)
Annabelle Chvostek (Songwriter, multi-instrumentalist folk chanteuse)
Jordi Rosen (Singer/songwriter and accordionist)
Raylene Campbell (Accordionist and electro acoustic performer)
DJ Amyl Nitrate
Erica Ruth Kelly (Poet)

Burlesque/Comedy
Miss Sugarpuss, Emcee (Actress, singer & burlesque dancer)
DeAnne Smith (Just for Laughs comedienne)

Art/Film/Dance/Writers/Designers
Amy Arnott for Black Sheep Betty (Design), Celine Vautour for WA'OU creations (Design), Eva Blue (Photography), Mary Jane Caro (Photography), Nadia Nespeca (Photography), Caroline Jean (Painting), Adrianna Coluccio (Multimedia), Catherine Rizzetto (Crafts) Amanda Rhodenizer (Painting), Amanda Schurman (Painting), Anita Abbasi (Film), Brigitte Dajczer (Film), Andrea Fryett (Dance), Tony Elias (Magic), Jill Murray (author), Erica Ruth Kelly (poet), Four Minutes to Midnight (zine), Hannah Byrne and Shayl Prisk for SNAP! Magazine
The following night, Friday May 30, 8:30 p.m, WAWA will host a second event showcasing Montreal's women designers at an interactive fashion show at Black Sheep Betty, an art and fashion gallery in Montreal's Mile End district (4816b Avenue du Parc). Admission is $5.

The WAWA show's creator, Amanda Mabro, took partial inspiration from comedienne Gilda Radner's Legendary "Baba Wawa" sketch when creating this annual event. WAWA is about fostering community among female artists in all fields and is proud to bring women together in a positive and inspiring forum.

For more information visit the website at www.thewawashow.com

Labels: , , , , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:00 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Vpres de Rachmaninoff

Dirig par Marika Kuzma, chef du choeur de l'OSM, le choeur Saint-Laurent donnera en concert les Vpres de Rachmaninoff. Ce chef-d'oeuvre - un vrai dlice pour les basses qui descendront jusqu' au si-bmol sous la porte des basses - sera execute dans son contexte liturgique avec des chantres de l'Eglise orthodoxe de Montral.

Samedi 31 mai, 2008 19 h 30
Eglise Notre-Dame-de-Grce
5333, av. Notre-Dame-de-Grce, Montral
Adulte: $20 Age d'or: $15 Etudiant: $10

Au plaisir de vous y voir !

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 10:43 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Trioxyde au Quai des Brumes

TRIOXYDE sera au Quai des Brumes, au 4481 St-Denis (coin Mt-Royal),
lundi le 26 mai prochain 21h; entre: 6$.

www.myspace.com/quaidesbrumes

Le guitariste et compositeur Jean-Franois Girard est entour des
musiciens Guillaume Dostaler au piano, Michel Mergaerts la basse et
Charles Beauregard la batterie.

Le CD de Trioxyde est en vente chez tous les bons disquaires.

www.trioxyde.biz
www.myspace.com/trioxyde

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 10:12 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, May 22, 2008

L'Ensemble Masques, samedi le 24

L'Ensemble Masques vous invite son prochain concert, samedi le 24 mai 17h (dure du concert environ 1h) l'glise St. John the Evangelist (l'glise au toit rouge, situe ct de la Place des Arts).

Venez prendre l'apro en musique alors que l'ensemble montralais Masques prsentera un concert intitul Florilge Musical mettant au programme un ventail printanier de compositeurs baroques tels Vivaldi, Purcell, Telemann et J.-S. Bach. Ne manquez pas cette rare occasion d'entendre Montral l'exceptionnelle violoniste australienne Sophie GENT. De plus, les non-moins clatantes Mlisande CORRIVEAU la flte bec et Anne THIVIERGE au traverso seront accompagnes par leurs complices Stephen Freeman, Margaret Little, Nicolas Lessard et Olivier Fortin. Un verre de vin sera offert avant le concert (ouverture des portes de l'glise 16h30).

Rservez ds maintenant au 514.279.0074

Admission gnrale : 10$

Ensemble MASQUES
7140 St- La urent, Montral, Qc, H2S 3E2
www.ensemblemasques.org

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:53 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

L'lite montante de la scne musicale internationale en concert

Les luard-Poulenc, Hugo-Faur et Mallarm-Ravel se joignent au Chur de la
Radio de Radio-Canada (CRRC) pour vous inviter venir passer un moment en
leur compagnie dans le cadre de la soire inaugurale de la neuvime dition
du March de la posie de Montral.

Montral, le 20 mai 2008 Dans le cadre de la soire inaugurale de la
neuvime dition du March de la posie de Montral, le Chur de la Radio de
Radio-Canada, en association avec la Maison de la posie de Montral,
prsente en concert

LES MOTS ENCHANTS
le jeudi 29 mai 2008 19 h 30 glise de l'Immacule-Conception 1855
rue Rachel Est, coin Papineau

Nous vous convions assister la remarquable union de la musique avec
celle de l'esprit. Ravissement assur chez ces potes l'me de musicien et
musiciens au cur de pote !

Au programme notamment : Les Chansons madcasses (Parny Ravel)
Trois pomes de Stphane Mallarm (Ravel)
Sept chansons (Apollinaire luard Poulenc)
Deux pomes d'Anne Hbert (Jean Lesage)

Le Chur est particulirement heureux de recevoir cette occasion madame
Julie Boulianne, jeune toile de la scne lyrique dont la carrire
internationale est en plein essor. Madame Boulianne s'est fait remarquer
rcemment dans le rle de Rosine (Le Barbier de Sville) l'Opra de
Montral et tait de la distribution de la premire new-yorkaise du clbre
Our Town prsent en avril dernier au Juilliard Opera Center.

Le concert est plac sous la direction de Jean-Michal Lavoie, directeur
artistique adjoint du CRRC et chef adjoint dsign de l'Ensemble
intercontemporain de Paris, premier Canadien remporter cet honneur.

Le Chur de la Radio de Radio-Canada est fier de s'associer l'lite
montante de la scne musicale internationale.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:41 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Shaw Festival Set to Open 47th Season

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, May 21, 2008 . . . The Shaw Festivals 47th season officially opens tonight with J.B. Priestleys compelling and mysterious drama An Inspector Calls at the Festival Theatre. Four other productions also open this week: Bernard Shaws provocative comedy Getting Married; the North American premiere of Githa Sowerbys undiscovered gem The Stepmother; Lillian Hellmans timeless tale of family and greed, The Little Foxes; and Leonard Bernsteins musical adventure Wonderful Town.

The Shaw Festivals Artistic Director Jackie Maxwell, who joins The Shaws Board of Governors Chair Richard D. Falconer and the rest of the Company in celebrating the launch of the season, says of the weeks events: We head into Opening week with a sense of celebration and pride. The five fine productions were about to present are a testament to the talent and spirit of The Shaws artists, both on and off the stage. Ive been thrilled with the audience response to these shows during the preview period and thank everyone involved for their dedication and enthusiasm in bringing these stories to life on stage. In commemoration of the achievements of The Shaws creative team, gala dinners attended by dignitaries from all levels of government and Canadas artistic and business communities, and by Shaw supporters, are held throughout Niagara-on-the-Lake prior to the opening night performances.

Government of Canada officials attending will include: The Honourable Jose Verner, Minister of Canadian Heritage; The Honourable Art Eggleton P.C., Senator; Mr. Stephen Brereton, Canadian Consul General Buffalo; Mr. Robert Noble, Canadian Consul General Detroit; Dr. Carolyn Bennett P.C., MP St. Pauls; and Mr. John Maloney, MP Welland. Foreign dignitaries attending will include: His Excellency H.E. William Fisher, Australian High Commissioner and Mr. Nicholas Armour, British Consul General Toronto. Provincial government officials attending will include: The Honourable David Onley, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario; The Honourable Aileen Carroll, Minister of Culture; Ms. Marguerite Rappolt, Deputy Minister of Culture; The Honourable Donna Cansfield, Minister of Natural Resources, MPP Etobicoke Centre; The Honourable John Wilkinson, Minister of Research and Innovation; Ms. Julia Munro, MPP North York, PC Culture Critic; Ms. Joyce Savoline, MPP Burlington; and Mr. Greg Sorbara, MPP Vaughan. Municipal government officials attending will include: Lord Mayor Gary Burroughs, Mayor of the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake; Mr. Dennis Parass, Chair, Niagara Economic Development Corporation; Mr. Patrick Gedge, CEO, Niagara Economic Development Corporation; and Mr. Peter Partington, Regional Chair, Regional Municipality of Niagara.

Arts community members attending will include: Martin Bragg, Executive Producer, The Canadian Stage Company; John Brotman, Executive Director, Ontario Arts Council; Antoni Cimolino, General Director, Stratford Shakespeare Festival; Martha Durdin, Chair, Ontario Arts Council; Julia Foster, Chair, Board of Trustees, National Arts Centre; John Goddard, Executive Director, Theatre Ontario; Peter Herrndorf, President & CEO, National Arts Centre; Jack Lightstone, President, Brock University; Dan Patterson, President, Niagara College; Richard Rose, Artistic Director, Tarragon Theatre; Robert Sirman, Director, Canada Council; Janet Stubbs, Director, Ontario Arts Foundation; and Nancy Webster, President, Professional Association of Canadian Theatres.

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

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:04 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Gabrielle Maes' A Farewell Concert- May 31



Gabrielle Maes'

A Farewell Recital

-One night only-

Saturday, May 31, 8pm


Gabrielle Maes, last seen in the show-stopping role of Lady Doyle in Houdini at the Segal, is excited to present A Farewell Recital before moving to Malaysia. The concert will be on Saturday, May 31, at the Westmount Baptist Church, which, according to Gabrielle, has the best-damned piano in the city. Accompanying her will be pianist extraordinaire, Amy Zanrosso.


Though singing is her main love, Gabrielle also acts. Performing everything from musical theatre to opera, she has come to understand that it takes more than someone with a pretty voice to draw an audience into a song or aria.


For A Farewell Recital, Gabrielle will be singing a wide range of musical styles and composers. The first half of the evening will include opera arias, Spanish folksongs and a little Purcell and Caccini. For the second half, she turns to her other love, songs from the musical theatre canon. Gabrielle explains the eclectic mix; "This concert has all my favourite songs in it. That's why it is sort of a mishmash of various styles." She continues, "I love the voice as an instrument, and seeing as I am going away, I wanted to have the chance to compile all the songs I have wanted to sing into one night." Gabrielle will be moving to Malaysia, starting a totally different life. She will still be singing, but being in a foreign land will give her the chance to have a different musical perspective. She plans on continuing her career.


About Gabrielle Maes


An acclaimed Canadian singer, Gabrielle grew up in Montreal and Holland. After many years of studying piano with famed Israeli teacher Shoshana Cohen, Ms Maes decided to focus on her second instrument and complete a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Advanced Vocal training from Concordia University in Montreal. While attending Concordia, Ms Maes won the coveted Mills Purchase Prize for Best Performing Artist. She went on to win three consecutive scholarships at the prestigious Abingdon School of Music in England.


Gabrielle is a versatile musician singing everything from classical opera and choral works to 20th century music and American song. In her career she has debuted pieces written specifically for her including works by the avant-garde French director Pierre Carniaux. While in Paris she wrote and performed a three-person cabaret, which she since adapted to the one-woman Bedraggled, which enjoyed two Montreal runs. She was nominated for a MECCA award as best actress for her performance in Bedraggled. Gabrielle continues to sing as a soloist for leading orchestras as well as with ensembles throughout France and Canada. She toured Europe in the summer of 2007. Gabrielle received great reviews for her role as Lady Doyle in the Leanor and Alvin Segal Theatre production of Houdini. Ms Maes was the winner of Le Spotlight Musical Theatre Challenge 2007 and sat as a judge for the Le Spotlight 2008 edition.


She will sorely miss the changing of the seasons, but feels sure she will be back to see it again and again.


Amy Zanrosso received a Master's Degree in piano performance from McGill University in 2001. She has since been freelancing in Montreal as a chamber musician and collaborative pianist.


Where and When

Westmount Baptist Church, May 31, 8pm

411 Roslyn

For tickets and information: (514) 277-2359

$20-Regular, $10- Students/Seniors

-30-

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 5:00 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Madame Butterfly, guichets ferm - Autre chance de voir l'opra 7 juin retransmission en direct sur grand cran

LOpra de Montral annonce que toutes les reprsentations de Madame Butterfly de Puccini sont guichets ferms.
Une autre chance sajoute de voir lopra : la reprsentation du jeudi 7 juin 2008 20 h, sera retransmise en direct sur grand cran gant, install sur lesplanade de la Place des Arts. En prime, midi, au mme endroit, trois jeunes sopranos de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral interprteront de grands airs dopras. Ces deux vnements sont gratuits.
Voir le communiqu ci-dessous

Marie Marais, attache de presse
(514) 845-2821 | marais@cooptel.qc.ca

COMMUNIQU POUR DIFFUSION IMMDIATE - MERCI


Du znith aux toiles !
samedi 7 juin 2008
Esplanade de la Place des Arts Entre libre

Midi : Concert des trois sopranos
20 h : Madame Butterfly sous les toiles,
projection en direct de lopra sur cran gant extrieur

UNE PRSENTATION DE



Pour clore en beaut sa 28e saison, lOpra de Montral, avec le co-partenariat du Mouvement des caisses Desjardins et du ministre des Affaires municipales et des Rgions, est particulirement heureux de pouvoir offrir gratuitement deux vnements lyriques en plein air qui se drouleront sur lEsplanade de la Place des Arts (coin Ste-Catherine et Jeanne-Mance), le samedi 7 juin 2008, du znith lheure des toiles. Apportez vos chaises pliantes, les vnements auront lieu beau temps, mauvais temps.

AU ZNITH, DE MIDI MIDI 45, place trois jeunes sopranos de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral, Caroline Bleau, Leticia Brewer et Marianne Lambert, qui interprteront en solo, duo et trio des extraits dairs dopras connus et de comdies musicales [La Wally, Lakm, Porgy and Bess, Les contes dHoffmann, La fille du rgiment, My fair Lady, des airs napolitainsĶ]. Un coup de chapeau au talent des jeunes chanteurs de lAtelier lyrique qui forment, depuis 1984, une relve canadienne de chanteurs dopra, dont plusieurs dentre eux font aujourdhui carrire sur la scne nationale et internationale.

SOUS LES TOILES, 20 H, la dernire reprsentation de lopra Madame Butterfly de Puccini, prsent la salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, sera retransmise en direct sur grand cran gant, install sur lEsplanade de la Place des Arts. Lopra est prsent en italien avec surtitres franais et anglais. Pendant lentracte, les spectateurs pourront dcouvrir sur grand cran lactivit fbrile de larrire-scne et faire connaissance avec les artistes, concepteurs et techniciens qui ont donn vie cette production. La visite guide des coulisses sera mene par le musicologue Pierre Vachon, directeur des communications et du marketing lOpra de Montral. Tout ce que vous avez voulu savoir sur les coulisses de lopra, sans jamais avoir os le demander, vous sera enfin dvoil!

Cet vnement en plein air sinscrit dans la mission de dmocratisation, sociale et communautaire que sest fixe lOpra de Montral. Sous les toiles a t initi en juin 2005, avec la retransmission en direct de Carmen de Bizet et clturait avec clat la 25e saison de la compagnie, puis en juin 2006 avec Ada de Verdi. Pour chacun des deux vnements, plus de 10 000 spectateurs avaient alors afflu vers lEsplanade de la Place des Arts et avaient assist, envots la projection en direct de lopra sur grand cran. Du znith aux toiles se rajoute aux activits satellites que lOpra de Montral a mis en place, avec le soutien de ses partenaires (prOpra, coOpra, mtrOpra, gnrales ouvertes aux tudiantsĶ), pour permettre une plus grande accessibilit de lart lyrique au plus grand nombre.

Madame Butterfly, grand classique de lmotion lyrique du grand Puccini, se droule au pays du soleil levant. La jeune geisha Cio-Cio-San surnomme Madame Butterfly dshonore la religion de ses anctres par amour pour le lieutenant amricain Pinkerton. peine mari, il repart sur les mersĶ Trois ans ont pass avant quil ne revienne auprs de Cio-Cio-San pour reprendre lenfant n de leur passionĶ une trahison qui sera fatale Cio-Cio-San.
Dans les rles principaux, la soprano japonaise la voix dor Hiromi Omura (Butterfly), le tnor amricain Richard Troxell (le lieutenant Pinkerton de Frdric Mitterrand), la mezzo-soprano canadienne Annamaria Popescu (Susuki, rle dont elle est dtentrice la Scala), le baryton canadien James Westman (Sharpless) et le tnor amricain Jon Kolbet (Goro).

Madame Butterfly, cest 13 solistes, 67 musiciens de lOrchestre Mtropolitain du Grand Montral dirigs par leur chef Yannick Nzet-Sguin, 30 choristes du Chur de lOpra de Montral, 10 figurants (dont un enfant), dans une production dOpera Australia.

- 30 -


MDIAS : Marie Marais, relations de presse
T (514) 845-2821 | marais@cooptel.qc.ca

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:47 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

En juin, La SCENA / La Scena Musicale en distribution nationale

(English version)

Nous sommes fiers dannoncer que pour la premire fois La SCENA sera en distribution nationale. Larticle-vedette du numro de juin de La SCENA portera sur la gouverneure gnrale du Canada, Michalle Jean. Dans une entrevue spciale, Son Excellence et son mari Jean-Daniel Lafond parlent de leur amour des arts et de la signification de lart dans leurs vies. Ce numro comprendra galement des articles sur la gravure et lart de lencadrement. Notre dossier spcial, Destination Qubec , prsentera les activits culturelles de la rgion de la capitale, dont notre choix parmi les clbrations du 400e anniversaire de la ville. Nous honorons galement lagent artistique et producteur Michel Buruiana, actif depuis 25 ans dans le domaine des arts.

Imprim en combinaison avec son cousin trimestriel La SCENA, le numro de juin de La Scena Musicale mettra en vedette le baryton canadien Jean-Franois Lapointe. On y trouvera galement une entrevue avec le fondateur et prsident dAnalekta, Mario Labb, pour souligner le 20e anniversaire de sa maison de disques, ainsi quun article sur le Festival international dorgue de Montral. Bien entendu, nous continuons de suivre les changements CBC Radio 2 et la situation de la radio classique au Canada.

Et ce ne serait pas un numro de juin sans notre 12e Guide annuel des festivals dt ! Le Guide dresse une liste complte des festivals de musique classique et les arts dans lensemble du pays.

On trouvera enfin les autres sections rgulires de La Scena Musicale sur le jazz et les musiques du monde, les critiques de disques et de DVD et, bien sr, le calendrier rgional de musique de juin.

Nous publierons galement un rpertoire des compagnies qui offrent des abonnements de saison 2008-2009. Pour de plus amples informations, veuillez consulter :

La SCENA t 2008
La Scena Musicale : juin 2008
dition nationale 50,000 copies (100,000 lecteurs)

dition Qubec

  • Qubec : 2 500
  • Montral : 18,500
  • En kiosque : 2,000
  • Abonnements : 2,000

dition Canada anglais

  • Vancouver : 4,500
  • Victoria : 2,500
  • Calgary : 2,500
  • Edmonton : 2,500
  • Ottawa : 3,000
  • Toronto : 10,000

Sortie : le 2 juin
Tombe publicitaire : le 23 mai
Maquettes : le 26 mai

Information sur la vente : http://ads.scena.org


La Scena Musicale : juillet/aot 2008

50 000 lecteurs
Distribution : 25 000

  • Montral : 20 500
  • Qubec : 500
  • En kiosque : 2000
  • Abonnements : 2000

Sortie : le 1 juillet
Tombe publicitaire : le 16 juilllet
Maquettes : le 18 juillet

Festivals
Au sujet des festivals de musique et des arts, La Scena Musicale, La SCENA et The Music Scene sont les ressources consulter pour trouver les festivals de musique et des arts internationaux et canadiens en 2008 (en imprim et en ligne). Les numros suivants couvriront tous les festivals de 2008 :

  • Festivals internationaux de musique et des arts : numro de printemps 2008 de The Music Scene et numro de printemps 2008 de La SCENA (comprenant le numro davril de La Scena Musicale).
  • Festivals canadiens de jazz, de musique du monde et folk : numro de mai 2008 de La Scena Musicale. Cest un numro national (distribution double 50 000 exemplaires) et les tarifs publicitaires sont 1,5 fois les tarifs habituels.
  • Festivals canadiens de musique classique et des arts : numro dt 2008 de La SCENA (comprenant le numro de juin de La Scena Musicale). Cest un numro national (distribution double 50 000 exemplaires) et les tarifs publicitaires sont 1,5 fois les tarifs habituels.
  • Voir http://ads.scena.org pour plus dinformation.

Nouveauts chez www.scena.org: blogue et fil de presse!

Nous sommes fiers de prsenter le blogue de La Scena Musicale (www.scena.org/blog), idal pour trouver les commentaires et les nouvelles de la musique et des arts au Canada et travers le monde. Nos journalistes affichent trs rgulirement les actualits en musique. Nous vous invitons galement dcouvrir notre blogue de fil de presse, www.scena.org/blog/newswire, un nouveau service pour les organisations des arts qui veulent afficher leurs communiqus. Les dtails des concerts, les diffusions la radio et la tlvision, les vnements des arts en ligne... vous y trouverez tout cela !

Pourquoi passer une annonce dans La SCENA/La Scena Musicale ? Trouvez les consommateurs canadiens les plus friands de culture

Vous dsirez trouver des lecteurs de 35 ans et plus avertis et plus l'aise financirement que la moyenne ? Ou bien des musiciens/artistes professionnels et les tudiants ?

La Scena Musicale vous invite chez 100 000 Canadiens duqus, mlomanes, passionns de culture. Nos lecteurs s'intressent la musique, la danse, le thtre, le cinma, les arts visuels, la cuisine et la mode.

Nos revues renommes La Scena Musicale, La SCENA et The Music Scene publient des articles et critiques qui font rflchir. La Scena Musicale et La SCENA sont les seules publications bilingues Montral consacres la musique de concert (classique, jazz et musiques du monde) et aux arts et la culture (la musique, la danse, le thtre, le cinma et les arts visuels). En plus, le calendrier culturel le plus complet au Canada assure que la lecture sera rpte (plus que 225 000 par mois).

Pour plus d'information sur les tarifs de publicit et la production, veuillez visiter http://ads.scena.org ou contacter notre service des ventes au 514-948-2520 ou sales@scena.org.

Don La Scena Musicale

La Scena Musicale est la recherche de deux ordinateurs PC usags (vieux de 3 5 ans) qu'on serait prt donner pour son personnel. LSM est prte mettre un reu d'impt pour ce don.
 Contact : 514-948-2520 ou info@scena.org
(no. 14199 6579 RR0001)

----

Prochain activit bnfice de La Scena Musicale

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:57 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

CMIM Piano 2008: ltape quart de finale / Quarter Finals

For English, see below

Piano 2008: Aujourd'hui !

C'est aujourd'hui que dbute l'tape quart de finale du 7e Concours Musical International de Montral (CMIM), consacr cette anne au piano. Suite au dsistement d'Eun-Shik Park de la Core-du Sud, c'est 23 pianistes (11 hommes et 12 femmes) de 12 pays qui prendront part cette premire portion de la comptition.


Photo: Gunther Gamper

Voici l'ordre de passage, dtermin par tirage au sort :

Salle Pierre-Mercure
Centre Pierre-Pladeau
300, boul. de Maisonneuve Est
Montral
Rservations : 514-987-6919
Rseau Admission : 514-790-1245
www.admission.com

Mardi 20 mai

13 h Chun-Chieh YEN - Taiwan
13 h 50 Andrejs OSOKINS - Lettonie
15 h Wei-Jen YUAN - tats-Unis
15 h 50 Irina SHKURINDINA - Russie
19 h Marie-Hlne TREMPE - Canada
19 h 50 Vladimir MILOSEVIC - Serbie
21 h Sara DANESHPOUR - tats-Unis
21 h 50 Alexandre MOUTOUZKINE - Russie


Mercredi 21 mai

13 h Lang Ning LIU - Canada
13 h 50 Kotaro NAGANO - Japon
15 h Sanja BIZJAK - Serbie
15 h 50 Michelle NAM - Canada
19 h Yu-Lin SHEN - Taiwan
19 h 50 Sergei SARATOVSKY - Canada
21 h Dorel GOLAN - Isral
21 h 50 Piotr Tomasz SZCZEPANIK - Pologne

Jeudi 22 mai

13 h Gintaras JANUSEVICIUS - Lituanie
13 h 50 Aiko YAJIMA - Japon
15 h Elizabeth SCHUMANN - tats-Unis
15 h 50 Masataka TAKADA - Japon
19 h Jiny CHOI - Core du Sud
19 h 50 Carlos AVILA - tats-Unis
21 h Nareh ARGHAMANYAN - Armnie

L'identit des 12 candidats qui seront retenus pour l'tape demi-finale sera dvoile l'issue de la dernire session du jeudi 22 mai. Rappelons que l'preuve quart de finale est diffuse en direct, en son et en images, sur le site Internet de Radio-Canada au www.radio-canada.ca/cmim De plus, toujours en direct sur ce mme site web et l'issue de chaque session, l'animatrice Franoise Davoine recueillera les commentaires du pianiste franais Bruno Rigutto. Notons par ailleurs que CBC Radio Two, 93,5 FM Montral, diffusera les meilleurs moments du quart de finale et de la demi-finale, lors d'une mission spciale, le dimanche 25 mai 15 h 30. L'animateur Kelly Rice sera alors entour du pianiste canadien David Jalbert et de la ralisatrice Martha de Francisco.

Horaire complet

Tous les dtails du CMIM 2008 au www.concoursmontreal.ca


Piano 2008 : Today !

The Quarter Final round of the 7th Montreal International Musical Competition, dedicated to piano, begins today. Following South Korean Eun-Shik Park's withdrawal, 23 pianists (11 men and 12 women) will take part in this first part of the Competition.



Photo: Gunther Gamper

Here is the candidates' order of appearance, determined by random draw:

Salle Pierre-Mercure
Centre Pierre-Pladeau
300, Maisonneuve East Bwd
Montral
Berri-UQAM Subway
Rservations : 514-987-6919
Rseau Admission : 514-790-1245
www.admission.com

Tuesday, May 20

1 p.m. Chun-Chieh YEN - Taiwan
1:50 p.m. Andrejs OSOKINS - Latvia
3 p.m. Wei-Jen YUAN - United States
3:50 p.m. Irina SHKURINDINA - Russia
7 p.m. Marie-Hlne TREMPE - Canada
7:50 p.m. Vladimir MILOSEVIC - Serbia
9 p.m. Sara DANESHPOUR - United States
9:50 p.m. Alexandre MOUTOUZKINE - Russia



Wednesday, May 21

1 p.m. Lang Ning LIU - Canada
1:50 p.m. Kotaro NAGANO - Japan
3 p.m. Sanja BIZJAK - Serbia
3:50 p.m. Michelle NAM - Canada
7 p.m. Yu-Lin SHEN - Taiwan
7:50 p.m. Sergei SARATOVSKY - Canada
9 p.m. Dorel GOLAN - Israel
9:50 p.m. Piotr Tomasz SZCZEPANIK - Poland


Thursday, May 22

1 p.m. Gintaras JANUSEVICIUS - Lithuania
1:50 p.m. Aiko YAJIMA - Japan
3 p.m. Elizabeth SCHUMANN - United States
3:50 p.m. Masataka TAKADA - Japan
7 p.m. Jiny CHOI - South Korea
7:50 p.m. Carlos AVILA - United States
9 p.m. Nareh ARGHAMANYAN - Armenia

The names of the 12 candidates who will move to the Semi-final round will be announced following the outcome of the last Quarter Final session on Thursday, May 22. Remember that video and audio of the Quarter Final round is broadcast live on Radio-Canada's website at www.radio-canada.ca/cmim. In addition, also live on the same website at the end of each session, host Franoise Davoine will take comments from French pianist Bruno Rigutto. Please note that CBC Radio Two, 93.5 FM in Montreal, will broadcast highlights of the Quarter Final and Semi-final rounds on a special show on Sunday, May 25 at 3:30 p.m. Host Kelly Rice will welcome Canadian pianist David Jalbert and producer Martha de Francisco to the studio.

Complete schedule

Complete MIMC 2008 details can be found at www.concoursmontreal.ca

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:05 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Let It Be: The Beatles songs of Lennon & McCartney

Roy Thomson Hall, Saturday, October 4, 2008 at 8 p.m.

Tickets on sale to FriendsFirst on Thursday, May 22, at 10 am

Tickets on sale to the GENERAL PUBLIC on Saturday, May 24, at noon

Tickets: $74.50 $94.50

National Arts Centre, Wednesday, October 8, 2008 at 8 p.m.

Tickets on sale to the GENERAL PUBLIC on Friday, May 23, at 10 am

Tickets: $79.50 $89.50

Lennon. McCartney. Rescuers of rock n roll. Leaders of a generation. No songwriting duo ever or since has made such an indelible imprint not only on people around the world but also across generations. This October, Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee Rik Emmett, mesmerizing singer/songwriter Damhnait Doyle, Prairie Oysters celebrated frontman Russell deCarle and renowned multi-instrumentalist Andrew Craig come together for Let it Be, a once-in-a-lifetime concert celebrating the legacy of Lennon and McCartney.

Let it Be marks the first time these four talented vocalists will take the stage together. They will be accompanied by the 9-piece Day Tripper Band, which includes the exceptional musicianship of Canadas best touring and studio artists: Tim Bovaconti (lead guitar), Kevin Fox (cello), Blake Manning (drums), Maury LeFoy (bass), Kevin Adamson (keyboards), and Marcus Ali (saxophone). Musical Director Fergus Hambleton, best known as Sattalites front man, lends his own talents on rhythm guitar and vocals.

Let it Be features a cadre of outstanding vocalists representing a wide spectrum of musical backgrounds from gospel, and jazz to pop, rock and country. Canada is one of the richest and most diverse musical communities the world over and this unique collection of artists have touched every corner of that spectrum. The fact that each of these accomplished musicians has been influenced by what Lennon and McCartney gave to the world is a testament to the power of this music, Hambleton, a life-long Beatles fan, explains. We are all excited about putting on a show that honours the history of this songwriting phenomenon.

John Lennon and Paul McCartney comprised the most important songwriting partnerships of the 20th century. In total, the duo co-wrote an astonishing 23 No. 1 singles, and changed the voice of popular music forever. Some of these hits will be featured in Let it Be, including Yesterday, In My Life, Eleanor Rigby, Let It Be, Hey Jude and Magical Mystery Tour.

Produced by Phil Bathols and Andrew McKinnon, Let it Be was an unprecedented hit in their native Australia. Featuring a lineup of some of their countrys beloved vocalists, including the legendary Leo Sayer, Let it Be: Australia gave audiences a unique chance to re-live the Beatles music with the help of multitalented artists who lent their style and vocal ability to some of the most famous lyrics, and who shared their own personal and captivating connections to the music of Lennon and McCartney, creating an unforgettable concert event.

Let it Be features:

Rik Emmett

One of the most proficient and eclectic guitarists of his generation, Rik Emmett is best known as a rocker with an approach that incorporates blues, jazz and classical styles. Rik is a founding member of the Canadian Hall of Fame rock band Triumph, who are heading back out on their first tour dates since '88 later this year. A versatile vocalist and recording artist he also has two new projects in the works: a follow up to the melodic-rock hit Airtime, with Mike Shotton, as well as a new follow-up CD to Strung-Out Troubadours, a duo with Dave Dunlop, which earned the 2006 Canadian Smooth Jazz Album and Group Of The Year honours.

Damhnait Doyle

An award winning artist, Damhnait Doyle has just released a new solo cd Lights Down Low which is getting rave reviews across the country. A hit-making songwriter with covers by numerous Canadian artists and placements in film and television, Damhnait is also a member of Shaye. Damhnait has toured Canada extensively, opening for legends such as Willie Nelson and sharing the stage as special guest with Nelly Furtado, Dido and Jann Arden, among others.

Russell deCarle

Lead singer, bass player, and founding member of Prairie Oyster, one of Canada's most enduring and celebrated country groups, Russell has received the Canadian Country Music Associations All-Star Band Bass player of the year citation nine times, has earned numerous CCMA, Juno and SOCAN awards. deCarles latest project is Under The Big Big Sky, a solo album slated for release later this year. The album is produced by John Sheard and engineered by Juno Award winning L. Stu Young, known for his work on Prince's album Musicology among others.

Andrew Craig

Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, producer, director, composer, broadcaster and impresario, whose work in jazz, world music, R & B, gospel and classical music has won him acclaim in North America and abroad. He has worked with a diverse range of musical artists, including Molly Johnson, Jackie Richardson, Measha Brueggergosman, Ashley MacIsaac and Wynton Marsalis.

LET IT BE

Roy Thomson Hall, Saturday, October 4, 2008 at 8 p.m.
Tickets on sale to FriendsFirst on Thursday, May 22, at 10 am
Tickets on sale to the GENERAL PUBLIC on Saturday, May 24, at noon
Tickets $74.50 - $94.50
National Arts Centre, Wednesday, October 8, 2008 at 8 p.m.
Tickets on sale to NAC Members on Thursday, May 22, at 10 am
Tickets on sale to the GENERAL PUBLIC on Friday, May 23, at 10 am
Tickets $79.50 - $89.50
For tickets and information

Roy Thomson Hall National Arts Centre
60 Simcoe Street, Toronto 53 Elgin Street, Ottawa
(416) 872-4255 (613) 755-1111
www.roythomson.com www.ticketmaster.ca


posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:39 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

La SCENA / La Scena Musicale goes National for the Summer

(Version franaise)

In June La SCENA goes national for the first time with a doubling of the normal print run distributed in English Canada; the Summer 2008 issue features a cover story on the Governor General of Canada, Michalle Jean. In a special interview, Her Excellency and her husband Jean-Daniel Lafond discuss their love of the arts and the meaning of art in their lives. This issue will also feature articles on printmaking and the art of framing. Our special feature "Destination Qubec" explores the Quebec City region's cultural offerings, including our favourite picks of its 400th anniversary celebrations. We also profile arts agent and producer Michel Buruiana in honour of his 25 years on the arts scene.

Printed in combination with its arts quarterly cousin La SCENA, the June issue of La Scena Musicale features a cover interview with Canadian baritone Jean-Franois Lapointe. Inside, we also interview Analekta's founder and president Mario Labb on the occasion of his label's 20th anniversary. Of course, we continue our coverage of the changes at CBC Radio 2 and the future of classical radio in Canada. And it wouldn't be a June issue without our annual Summer Festival Guide! The Guide will offer comprehensive listings for classical music festivals, plus a look at Arts festivals across Canada.

Our other regular La Scena Musicale features include the Jazz and World music sections, CD and DVD reviews, and of course, the June regional music calendar.

June will also feature a guide to subscriptions for the 2008-09 season. Keep an eye out for our summer classical festival guide in June. For more information on these guides, please consult:

---

La SCENA: Summer 2008 National Edition
La Scena Musicale: June 2008 National Edition

  • Guides to classical music and arts festivals
  • Subscription Guide

50,000 copies (100,000 readers)

Quebec Edition (25,000 copies)

  • Qubec City: 2 500
  • Montreal: 18,500
  • Newsstands: 2,000
  • Mailing: 2,000

English Canada Edition (25,000 copies)

  • Vancouver: 4,500
  • Victoria: 2,500
  • Calgary: 2,500
  • Edmonton: 2,500
  • Ottawa: 3,000
  • Toronto: 10,000

Distribution date: June 2, 2008
Advertising Deadline: May 23
Materials: May 26

La Scena Musicale: July/August 2008

50,000 readers

Quebec circulation: 25,000 copies

  • Montreal: 20,500
  • Qubec City: 500
  • Newsstands: 2,000
  • Mailing: 2,000

Distribution date: July 1
Advertising deadline: June 16
Materials deadline: June 18

Festivals:

Talking about music and arts festivals. La Scena Musicale, La SCENA and The Music Scene are the place to find International and Canadian music and arts festivals in 2008 (in print and online). The following three issues will cover all the 2008 festivals:

  • International Music and Arts Festivals: Spring 2008 issue of The Music Scene and the Spring 2008 issue of La SCENA (including the April issue of La Scena Musicale).
  • Canadian Jazz, World and Folk Festivals: May 2008 issue of La Scena Musicale. This is a national issue (double distribution to 50,000 copies) and the ad rates are 1.5 times the regular rates.
  • Canadian Classical Music and Arts Festivals: Summer 2008 issue of La SCENA (including the June issue of La Scena Musicale). This is a national issue (double distribution to 50,000 copies) and the ad rates are 1.5 times the regular rates.

To register your festival, visit the info page .

New LSM Online Features: Blog and Newswire (over 400 posts in 4 months)

We are proud to unveil the LSM Blog (www.scena.org/blog), which is the ideal place to check out commentary and news on music and the arts in Canada and around the world. Our writers will be posting regularly to keep you up to date on the latest developments throughout the musical world.

We would also like to tell you about our new free service called LSM Newswire. E-mail your press release to newswiresubsmit@scena.org. The text must be in the body of the e-mail. We will post it in our newswire page http://www.scena.org/blog/newswire. We will also put a direct link to your press release in the "LSM Newswire" section at the bottom of our home page http://en.scena.org

. Please note that this service will not work with if the info is in a file attachment (PDF, Word, etc.). The text must be in the body of the e-mail.

Advantages:

  • Get your press release seen by a larger audience
  • Searchable by Google: SCENA.org is indexed by Google daily
  • It's FREE

Why advertise in La SCENA/La Scena Musicale? Reach Canada's most cultured consumers

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

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

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

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

Donations Requested

La Scena Musicale is looking for the donation of two used PCs (3 to 5 years old) for our office staff. We would be gratefully issue a tax receipt for the donation. Cash donations are also appreciated.
Please contact 514-948-2520 or info@scena.org

Charitable tax no. 14199 6579 RR0001

-----

Next LSM Benefit Event

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:45 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Monday, May 19, 2008

C4: the Choral Composer/Conductor Collective Concert Press Release

For Immediate Release
May 13, 2008
Contact: Jonathan David, (917) 596-9931
info@c4ensemble.org

C4 Presents Hit It!
New Yorks Premier New Music Chorus Offers up Voices + Crotales, Lions Roar, Tam-tam, Spatulae, Marimba, Coffee Grinders, and a Plethora of Other Percussion

Saturday, June 7, 2008
St. Josephs Church
404 East 87th Street between 1st and York Avenues, NYC
8 PM
$10
Closest Subway: 4, 5 or 6 to 86th St. Station

C4: the Choral Composer/Conductor Collective will present the third concert of its season on Saturday, June 7, offering a wide range of music by living composers in collaboration with percussionists Levy Lorenzo and Dennis Sullivan.

The concert will include five world premieres, by C4 composers Jonathan David, Asia Mei, Ian Moss, Malina Rauschenfels, and Karen Siegel. Davids Kallyope Yell sets the ecstaticly deranged words of eccentric Amercian poet Nicholas Vachel Lindsay, complete with a whip-snapping reciter/ringmaster and a battery of circus percussion. Eine kleine morning music captures Rauschenfelss morning routine, from that first cup of coffee to her daily fried eggs. Siegels Hellgate Beach, a mini-concerto for two percussionists and choral obbligato, is inspired by a moment in time at the deserted Queens beach. In Remember Eternity, Mei offers a sumptuous treatment of a mystical poem by Andres D.S. Wilson. Mosss She Didnt Mean To Do It represents a departure from his usual intricate and thickly-textured style, racing through a tale of deception with a cynical, hard-edged sheen.

The evening will also feature the East Coast premiere and second performance of Lisa Bielawas The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. In this multi-movement work for chorus and percussion, commissioned and premiered by the Dale Warland Singers, Bielawa sets excerpts from William Blakes monumental, Dante-inspired guidebook to Hell. She draws on musical techniques from the ancient to the modern to illuminate the texts that Blake himself illustrated with his remarkable copper-plate etchings. The concert will also include favorite choral works by Veljo Tormis and Eric Whitacre, both of which include prominent roles for percussion.

C4 is a unique chorus that is directed and operated collectively by its singing members, functioning not only as a presenting ensemble in its own right but also as an ongoing workshop and recital chorus for the emerging composers and conductors who form the core of the group. The ensemble exists in both 16-voice chamber choir and larger symphonic chorus formats, allowing for flexibility in presentation depending on the needs of each work. It is the first organization of its kind and one of the few choral groups in the nation to focus exclusively on the music of our time.

For booking, interviews and complimentary tickets for reviews, please contact:
Jonathan David, (917) 596-9931
info@c4ensemble.org
www.c4ensemble.org


Samuel D. McCoy
Litigation Paralegal
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
590 Madison Avenue
New York, New York 10022
212-407-3142


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:35 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Kotzschmar Organ Summer Series Opens June 17



For Immediate Release
Contact: Kathleen Grammer, 207-883-4234

Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ Summer Season 2008

All concerts begin at 7:30 pm

Pre-concert talks begin at 6:30 pm

Admission: $12.00 suggested at the door; under 21, free, unless otherwise noted.

All performances at Merrill Auditorium, City Hall, Portland, Maine

June 17 Ray Cornils, Portland Municipal Organist Classical with Kotzschmar Festival Brass

June 24 Felix Hell - Classical

July 1 Geroen Krahfoerst, Germany, improvisation - Classical

July 8 John Schwandt, Oklahoma - Classical/Pops

July 15 Frederick Hohman - Classical

July 29 Silent film - Tom Trenney featuring Buster Keaton Silent film in The General

August 5 Classical -Ken Cowan (John Weaver Celebratory Concert)

August 12 Dave Wickerham, Boca Raton, FL - Pops

August 19 Peter Conte Wanamaker - Classical

August 26 James Vivian Temple Church, London - Classical

Summer Demonstration-tour concerts - please check www.foko.org for detailed schedule, dates to be determined.

About the Kotzschmar Organ:
The Kotzschmar Memorial Organ, built in 1912 by the Austin Organ Company of Hartford, Connecticut, was given to the City of Portland by Cyrus H. K. Curtis. It is this nation's oldest working municipal organ. With 5 manuals (keyboards) for the hands, a 32-note pedal board for the feet, over 6800 pipes from inch to 32 feet in length, over 100 miles of wiring and weighing more than 50 tons, it is truly one of this nation's musical treasures.

In addition to the concerts listed above, FOKO presents an annual education program, "Meet the King of Instruments," in May and has commissioned the design and construction of the Kotzschmar, Jr., a small, portable, working organ intended for demonstration and educational outreach in school classrooms.

About the Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ (FOKO):
The Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ (FOKO) was founded as a non-profit organization in 1981 to relieve the City of Portland of the tasks of raising funds for the organ's care and repairs. FOKO present a wide variety of concerts including a summer classics and pops organ series, a silent film series and Music from the World's Great Cathedrals series.

For more information about the Kotzschmar Organ and the Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ, visit www.foko.org.

# # #

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 9:00 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Le Spotlight- Montreal's Musical Theatre Challenge, May 21 at Salle du Gesu

Le Spotlight: Montreal's Musical Theatre Challenge 2008

Wednesday, May 21, 8:00pm

See the Le Spotlight 2008 Finals at the Gesu!

Le Spotlight: Montreal's Musical Theatre Challenge 2008 is proud to invite you to the second annual edition of this exciting musical extravaganza. The ten finalists are ready to show off their skills in competition at Salle du Gesu on Wednesday, May 21 accompanied by an eight-piece orchestra in front of a live audience.

Le Spotlight 2008 will also feature guest performances by Frayne McCarthy, formerly of Les Misrables and soon to be in the Canadian national tour of The Sound of Music, Yanick Lanthier, who toured Asia with Rent and is about to star in the Canadian premiere of Altar Boyz and Patrick Olafson, whose one-man tribute to the music of Michel Legrand plays at Place des Arts two days after his appearance in Le Spotlight.

Le Spotlight audience members will be treated to excerpts from such varied musicals as Bajour and Funny Girl. As usual, the emphasis will be on dramatic interpretation rather than vocal performance alone. The winner of Le Spotlight will earn the right to have a featured performance in August at The Next Wave Festival of New Musicals to be held at the Gesu and the McCord Museum.

As a unique event designed to showcase the combined power of music and theatre by Montreal artists, Le Spotlight will be a full evening of heartfelt emotion and exceptional thrills.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:34 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Friday, May 16, 2008

Je me souviens 3&4 _NFB

Here is the communiqu for Je me souviens event. dedicated to sound creation at the National Film Board of Canada

contact : Eric Mattson oral@videotron.ca , tel : 514 598-8605

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Communiqu :


Je me souviens, a series of exploratory music events presented over two more days: 22 and 23 May 2008. La Sala Rossa, 4848, boulevard Saint-Laurent 10$



Introduction
Each Je me souviens evening is made up of two parts. The first will enable the audience to listen to archival recordings of exploratory music (electro-acoustic, electronic and experimental). The second part will present four new works by innovative Quebec composers. To my mind, these composers, all of whom are stimulated by experimenting with sound and by the unexpected things that can arise from improvisation and collaboration, are the worthy heirs of those who, in the 1970s, forged the basis of today's work.

Experiments in electro-acoustic and electronic composition from 1950 until the late 1980s in Quebec were carried out for the most part in universities. McGill University and, more precisely, its Electronic Music Studio, the Universit de Montral, Universit Laval and later Concordia University were places where knowledge went hand in hand with experimentation. At the same time, at the National Film Board of Canada, Norman McLaren carried out sound experiments by working directly on the film's optical sound track. Maurice Blackburn followed in his footsteps a little later and established the Atelier de conception et de ralisations sonores at the NFB, which was short-lived but of great importance. These institutions were the only places where professors, students, scholars and composers on the look-out for discoveries could analyze developments in electric and later electronic music using modern instruments and to employ them in musical compositions. With the advent of miniaturisation and personal computers, these practices underwent radical changes.

Je me souviens invites you to experience a few fragments of this past and to plunge into an exploration of bygone days in order to better hear and understand what is going on today.

Eric Mattson : curator oral@videotron.ca www.oral.qc.ca
Thanks: Conseil des arts et des lettres du Qubec, Carol Faucher, National Film Board of Canada, La Sala Rossa, all the participants.



Je me souviens 3. NFB

Part 1: an introduction by Mario Gauthier and Ral La Rochelle to the Atelier de conception et de ralisations sonores at the National Film Board (NFB). Audio listening of soundtracks and projection of cinematic extracts from the years 1970-1980.
Program 1940 to 1960 : Experimentations and birth of an idea..

Screenings and hearings :
Norman McLaren - L'animateur musicien - 2005
Norman McLaren: exprimentations indites de musique synthtiques faites sur pellicules C. 1950
McLaren et Maurice Blackburn - Blinkity Blank - 1955Maurice Blackburn extr du film : L'Homme orchestre 2005 Jour aprs jour, bande-son de M. Blackburn: 1962
Pierre Mercure: Manipulations (Musique de danse ralis pour Franoise Riopelle) - 1964 -
McLaren: Synchromie - 1971
++++


Part 2: four unique live sets, four unreleased works by today's composers.

 Alexandre St-Onge (Et Sans)
Eric Normand (p.o.w.e.r)
Ricardo (Ghost Limbs)
skoltz_kolgen
La Sala Rossa, 4848, boulevard Saint-Laurent 10$
Thursday May, 22 . 2008
Doors open at 7:30 pm - Concert starts in time: 8:30 pm

Je me souviens 4. NFB

Part 1: continuation of the program by Mario Gauthier and Ral La Rochelle dedicated to the Atelier de conception et de ralisations sonores at the National Film Board of Canada.

Program L'Atelier de conception sonore: breaks and continuity

Screenings and hearings :

Gilles Tremblay vs Maurice Blackburn, 1967, L'eau
Gilles Tremblay - Dimension soleil 1970
Alain Clavier: l'atelier
Alain Clavier - Mtadata - 1971
Jacques Leduc /musique de Yves Daoust - Le Plan sentimental (extrL'ge de chaise (extrait de la bande son du film)
Yves Daoust -Quatuor
+++

Part 2: four unique live sets, four unreleased works by today's composers.

 Aun
 Steve Bates
Erin Sexton
 Martin Ttreault + Michel Langevin (Voivod)
La Sala Rossa, 4848, boulevard Saint-Laurent 10$
Friday May, 23 . 2008
Doors open at 7:30 pm - Concert starts in time: 8:30 pm



Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:34 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Jacques Marquis honor par UQAM / honoured by UQAM

For English see below


Jacques Marquis honor

M. Jacques Marquis, directeur gnral et artistique des Jeunesses Musicales du Canada (JMC), et du Concours Musical International de Montral (CMIM), recevait le mercredi 7 mai dernier, le Prix Reconnaissance 2008 de l'cole des sciences de la gestion de l'Universit du Qubec Montral (UQAM). Le prix, remis devant de nombreuses personnalits montralaises et qubcoises, souligne la qualit exceptionnelle du cheminement de carrire de ce diplm en administration de l'UQAM et sa contribution au rayonnement et l'essor, non seulement des JMC et du CMIM, mais de l'ensemble de la collectivit.

Je suis particulirement touch et remercie bien sincrement mon alma mater pour cet honneur prestigieux; une carrire se construit force de travail et de persvrance; elle repose cependant sur une quipe formidable qui, chaque jour, contribue de faon incroyable la russite de nos ambitions dclarait M. Marquis au moment de recevoir son prix.

Symbole par excellence de la russite, le Prix Reconnaissance UQAM est une rcompense annuelle qui souligne la qualit exceptionnelle du parcours de ses diplms qui, par leurs ralisations et leurs engagements, contribuent au dveloppement de leur secteur d'tudes et de leur sphre d'activit professionnelle.

Jacques Marquis est le directeur gnral et artistique des Jeunesses Musicales du Canada depuis 2002. Sous sa gouverne et grce son dynamisme et ses qualits professionnelles, les JMC connaissent prsentement une forte expansion, tant par le nombre des concerts donns que par le public rejoint. Mentionnons aussi que ds sa premire anne la barre des JMC, il a contribu mettre sur pied le Concours Musical International de Montral, considr aujourd'hui comme l'une des grandes manifestations culturelles au Canada, et dont il dirige depuis les destines. La prochaine dition du CMIM, consacre au piano, se droulera du 19 au 29 mai 2008.

M. Marquis sige aussi plusieurs conseils d'administrations. Il vient d'ailleurs d'tre nomm membre du CA de la Fdration Mondiale des Concours Internationaux de Musique, lors de l'assemble gnrale tenue tout rcemment Tbilissi, en Gorgie. Fonde en 1957, cette fdration sise Genve entretient un rseau universel d'organisations musicales reconnues mondialement. Seuls les concours satisfaisant des normes musicales et organisationnelles leves peuvent y adhrer.

---------------------
Jacques Marquis honoured

Mr. Jacques Marquis, Executive and Artistic Director of Jeunesses Musicales of Canada (JMC) and the Montreal International Musical Competition (MIMC), received the 2008 Award of Recognition (Prix Reconnaissance) from the School of Management Sciences (cole des sciences de la gestion) at the Universit du Qubec Montral (UQAM) this past May 7. This award, presented before a crowd of many Montreal and Quebec personalities, highlights the exceptional career path of this UQAM Administration graduate, and his contribution to the reach and reputation of not only JMC and the MIMC but the community as a whole.

"I am especially touched and I sincerely thank my alma mater for this prestigious honour; a career is built on hard work and perseverance; however, it relies on an extraordinary team that, each day, contributes in an incredible way to the realization of our ambitions," stated Mr. Marquis upon receiving his award.

A symbol of success par excellence, UQAM's Award of Recognition is an annual award that highlights the exceptional quality of the career paths of its graduates who, through their accomplishments and commitments, contribute to the development of their field of study and their sphere of professional activity.

Jacques Marquis has been the Executive and Artistic Director of Jeunesses Musicales of Canada since 2002. Under his leadership, and thanks to his vitality and his professional attributes, JMC is currently undergoing a major expansion, in terms of the number of concerts it presents, as well as the number of spectators it reaches. It should also be mentioned that as of his first year at the helm of the JMC, he contributed to the establishment of the Montreal International Musical Competition today considered to be one of Canada's major cultural events whose destiny he has since guided. The next edition of the MIMC, dedicated to piano, will take place from May 19 to 29, 2008.

Mr. Marquis also sits on several boards of directors. He was appointed to the board of directors of the World Federation of International Music Competitions at their general assembly, held recently in Tbilisi, Georgia. Founded in 1957, this federation, whose home office is in Geneva, represents a worldwide network of internationally recognized musical organizations. Membership in the Federation is open exclusively to competitions that meet its high musical and organizational standards.


-30-


Photo: Franois Delagrave, UQAM

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 7:04 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Monday, May 12, 2008

[Montreal] May 17, 2008 Benefit Concert for Theatre of Early Music Young Artists Program

Le THEATRE OF EARLY MUSIC et la compagnie de danse COLEMAN LEMIEUX ET COMPAGNIE
Vous invitent :


CONCERT BNFICE

BENEFIT CONCERT

Date : samedi 17 mai 2008

Heure : 20:00 - 21:00

Lieu : Chapelle Notre-Dame-De-Bon-Secours

Adresse : 400 Saint-Paul Est (vieux Montral)

Ville : Montreal, QC

Coordonnes www.theatreofearlmusic.com

Tlphone : 514-982-2535

Adresse e-mail :temadmin@hotmail.com

Description : le 17 mai 2008 20 heures

vnement bnfice en collaboration avec la compagnie de danse Coleman Lemieux & Compagnie, dans le cadre du nouveau programme JEUNES ARTISTES du Theatre of Early Music. Les sommes recueillies lors de l'vnement serviront la cration de bourses d'tudes qui seront distribues ds l't 2008.

Programme d'oeuvres chorales (a cappella) et de danse.
Entre libre. Don suggr de 20$.

Pour les dons plus levs, un reu pour fins d'impt sera mis.
www.theatreofearlymusic.com /rservations: 514 982 2535

Saturday may 17th at 8 p.m.

Benefit concert in collaboration with the dance company Coleman Lemieux & Compagnie, as part of the new program YOUNG ARTISTS of the Theatre of Early Music. Sums gathered during event will be used for the creation of grants of studies which will be distributed in the summer of 2008.

Choir (a capella) and dance.
Free admission. Suggested donation of 20$.

For more substantial donations, an income tax receipt will be issued.

www.theatreofearlymusic.com/ reservations: 514 982 2535


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 5:05 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

HDtracks, iTrax & Gimell Partner with IODA to Make High Definition Recordings Available to Audiophiles Worldwide

San Francisco, Calif., May 13, 2008 IODA, the global leader in digital distribution, marketing, and technology solutions for the independent music industry, today announced partnerships with HDtracks. iTrax and Gimell, three digital retailers that continue to set the standard for the digital high definition marketplace. Under the terms of the partnership, IODA will make its rich catalog of high definition recordings available on HDtracks, iTrax and Gimell retail sites, providing its labels access to the important audiophile market.

"HDtracks offers an alternative to those music enthusiasts who will not compromise and accept recorded music that is compressed, flat, lifeless, and represents a mere fraction of the original performance," said David Chesky, co-founder of HDtracks.

HDtracks is a high-quality music download service offering a diverse catalog of independent music from around the world. In an age when there is a computer in every home, HDtracks makes world-class music, unrivaled sound, and files that play in any environment. In addition to a thriving download business, HDtracks has lossless audio files of works from Ringo Starr, Joan Baez and Jerry Garcia.

"IODA and iTrax.com offers independent labels and distributors that have produced real High Definition tracks the ability to offer them through the web...in the quality that they were captured and in stereo or surround," said Mark Waldrep Ph.D., founder of iTrax and AIX Records. "Our partnership enables IODA's impressive roster of labels to connect with their audiophile fans around the world."

iTrax was the first and is the world's only online retailer of exclusively high definition, surround music offering discriminating music consumers the opportunity to acquire new music tracks that were actually recorded, mixed and mastered using high definition digital production equipment. iTrax offers new HD recordings of works by Willie Nelson, Paul Williams, Albert Lee, John Gorka and Ernest Ranglin.

Gimell Records was set up in 1981 to make and sell recordings by The Tallis Scholars. In 1987 it became the first independent label to win the prestigious Gramophone Record of the Year Award. Gimell has recently developed a successful Studio Master Download platform for its award-winning catalogue and is the first commercial store to offer 5.1 Surround Sound Downloads in the FLAC format. Gimell now plans to offer High Definition recordings from a select group of guest artists and labels.

"Previously, high definition recordings were only available on disc, and audiophiles had no way to truly enjoy the growing digital music scene," said Kevin Arnold, founder and CEO of IODA. "Now, companies like Harmonia Mundi and NAXOS are bringing a catalog of high definition recordings including classical, jazz, world and folk music, to the digital marketplace. We are delighted to partner with high end online retailers like HDtracks, iTrax and Gimell to connect this music with the fans that are eager to buy it."

About IODA

IODA, the Independent Online Distribution Alliance, is the industry- leading digital distribution company for the global independent music community. IODA provides comprehensive services to record labels, physical distributors, and artists, including license negotiations; media encoding and metadata management; and royalty payment administration and reporting. The company also offers promotional support through a dedicated marketing division and through the IODA Promonet (http://www.iodapromonet.com/), a promotional distribution network that provides qualified podcasts, blogs, and other promotional sites with access to pre-cleared, legal music and other promotional assets from IODA's labels. Founded in 2003, IODA represents a rapidly expanding roster of over a million tracks from thousands of independent labels around the globe. IODA was named one of FORTUNE magazine's 25 Breakout Companies for 2005. The company's website is

http://www.iodalliance.com/.

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:39 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Prsentation publique de la Messe musicale du 400e

Qubec, le 12 mai 2008 - FideArt vous convie la prsentation publique de la Messe musicale du 400e , composition originale et du coup, prsent offert la Ville pour son 400me anniversaire, par FideArt, Centre-Dieu de la foi et de la culture. L'vnement aura lieu l'glise St-Charles-Garnier, sise sur le boulevard Laurier Sillery (coin Chanoine Morel) le dimanche 18 mai prochain, 11:00.

Rappelons qu'au printemps 2006, souhaitant s'inscrire aux activits religieuses des Ftes, FideArt avait lanc auprs des coles de musique du Qubec, un concours visant la cration de la Messe musicale du 400e . Notre appel a t entendu, neuf (9) propositions ont t inscrites la comptition.

En ce prochain dimanche de la Pentecte, nous prsenterons l'uvre de monsieur Jocelyn Lafond, sous l'interprtation de la Chorale de madame Danielle Par, de Drummondville. M. Lafond est le laurat du Premier prix au concours FideArt, ex-aequo avec madame dith Beaulieu. Rappelons que la Messe de madame Beaulieu avait t prsente dans le cadre de la Messe des Artistes de FideArt, la Chapelle historique du Bon Pasteur et ce, avant sa fermeture.

La Messe sera prside par le Pre Grard Blais, marianiste, et par le cur Michel Fortin, de la paroisse St-Charles-Garnier. Monsieur Denis Angers, directeur de la promotion et des communications la Commission de la capitale nationale du Qubec sera lecteur du jour. Le manuscrit des oeuvres laurates sera remis de faon officielle aux autorits de la Ville.

Notons qu'au rpertoire actuel, il n'existe qu'une seule Messe qubcoise, soit celle du compositeur Pierrick Houdy. Bien plus, cette dernire est davantage assimile la province qu' la ville elle-mme. Pour la prsidente du conseil d'administration, Dominique Fortin, les festivits du 400e constituaient sans conteste aux yeux de FideArt une occasion unique d'ajouter la trop courte liste de ce catalogue, avec des uvres totalement originales et spcifiquement destines enrichir le patrimoine culturel de la Vieille capitale .

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:29 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Le mtro vous fait une scneĶ lyrique

Montral, lundi 12 mai 2008 Le dernier mtrOpra de la 28e saison de lOpra de Montral se droulera les 20, 21, 22 mai 2008, autour de Madame Butterfly de Puccini, dans trois stations du rseau de la STM. Les usagers du mtro de Montral pourront ainsi entendre les plus grands airs dopra chants par les jeunes artistes de lAtelier lyrique de lOpra de Montral. Cet vnement urbain est conu par lOpra de Montral et la Socit de transport de Montral.

Mardi 20 mai 2008, de 16 h 16 h30 station Berri-UQAM
Mercredi 21 mai 2008, de 16 h 16 h30 station Atwater
Jeudi 22 mai 2008, de 16 h 16 h30 station Berri-UQAM
Au programme : des airs de Puccini et de lopra Madame Butterfly.

------

Madame Butterfly (Madama Butterfly)
Tragdie japonaise en trois actes de Giacomo Puccini
En italien, avec surtitres franais et anglais
Une production de Opera Australia, prsente par lOpra de Montral
 la salle Wilfrid-Pelletier de la Place des Arts
les 24, 28 mai, 2, 5, 7 juin 2008 20 h + 31 mai 2008 14 h

PrOpra - Prsentation de luvre par Pierre Vachon : 18 h 30 / 12 h 30 (matine)
avant chaque reprsentation, au Piano Nobile de la PDA.

Aprs lblouissant Lakm, lOpra de Montral prsente, pour clore sa 28e saison, une seconde production lumineuse dOpera Australia : Madame Butterfly (Madama Butterfly), tragdie japonaise en trois actes du grand Giacomo Puccini, le matre de lmotion musicale. Dans le rle-titre, la soprano japonaise la voix dor Hiromi Omura qui fait ses dbuts nord-amricains la compagnie, aprs avoir chant le rle au Deutsche Oper de Berlin. ses cts, le tnor amricain Richard Troxell, en lieutenant Pinkerton, rle quil interprtait dans le film ponyme de Frdric Mitterand. Pour complter la distribution, le baryton canadien James Westman - que lon a pu entendre dans le rle de Frdric (Lakm) - sera Sharpless, le consul amricain Nagasaki, Annamaria Popescu, mezzo-soprano canadienne au timbre soyeux, revient la compagnie en Suzuki, la servante de Cio-Cio-San, rle dont elle est la dtentrice La Scala de Milan, et le tnor amricain Jon Kolbet sera Goro, et Le Bonze, la basse amricaine Young-Bok Kim.

Yannick Nzet-Sguin dirigera cette uvre pour la premire fois et sera la tte de son ensemble, lOrchestre Mtropolitain du Grand Montral, et du Chur de lOpra de Montral tous les soirs de reprsentations, except le 31 mai qui sera sous la baguette de Giuseppe Pietraroia. La mise en scne est de lAustralien Moffatt Oxenbould, aux cts dune quipe de concepteurs dOpera Australia : Peter England (dcors) ; Russell Cohen (costumes) ; Robert Bryan (clairages).

La jeune geisha Cio-Cio-San, surnomme Madame Butterfly, tombe follement amoureuse dun lieutenant amricain, Pinkerton. Elle est prte tout abandonner de ses racines pour lui. Mais pour lui, ce nest l quun caprice exotique et passager; il repart sur les mersĶ Trois ans ont pass avant que ne revienne Pinkerton auprs de Cio-Cio-San pour reprendre lenfant n de leur passionĶ une trahison qui sera fatale Cio-Cio-San.

Gnrale ouverte - aux groupes dlves des coles secondaires et Cegeps, jeudi 22 mai, 19 h

infOpra : operademontreal.com
billetterie : PdA (514) 842-2112 / 1 866 842-2112
Billets la pice partir de 44 $.

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:09 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

NACO, May 18: Music for a Sunday Afternoon celebrates music and art

Ottawa, Canada The next Music for a Sunday Afternoon concert has been especially programmed to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the opening of the National Gallery of Canada with three works inspired by art two solos and one ensemble piece on Sunday, May 18 at 14:00 in the Auditorium of the National Gallery of Canada, where the series has been taking place since the Gallery opened in 1988. The concert will include a talk on the relationship between music and art by the NAC Orchestras longtime programme annotator Robert Markow.

Stephen Chatmans Varley Suite for solo violin was inspired by six paintings by Frederick Horsman Varley, one of the famous Group of Seven, renowned for both his landscapes and his portraits. Chatman, an American-born composer who has lived in Canada since 1976, wrote each movement based on one of Varleys paintings, three of which (Maud, Green Wings and Vera) hang in the National Gallery of Canada. (A touring exhibition of Varleys works is due to open in Ottawa on May 23.) The Varley Suite will be performed by NACO violinist Jessica Linnebach.

The renowned American composer John Harbison began Six American Painters as a musical description of six paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, though when the work was finished, he titled the movements after the artists rather than the paintings. The artists he chose rank among the greatest America produced in the 19th and 20th centuries, four realists and two Abstract Expressionists. This piece will be performed by Charles Hamann, oboe; Jessica Linnebach, violin; David Thies-Thompson, viola; and Leah Wyber, cello.

The final work is Mussorgskys famous Pictures at an Exhibition which the NAC Orchestra performed in its orchestral setting for the first time in 2002. Here it will be heard in its original version for solo piano performed by Vancouver pianist Ian Parker. Mussorgsky composed the piece as a tribute to his close friend Viktor Hartmann, an artist, designer and sculptor, whose death had devastated the composer. Ian Parker (a cousin of Jon Kimura and James Parker), was First Prize winner at the 2001 CBC National Radio Competition, and also won the Grand Prize at the Canadian National Music Festival, among others.

Tickets for Music for a Sunday Afternoon on May 18 are on sale now at $29.00 (GST and Facility Fee included) at the NAC Box Office (Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 21:00), and through Ticketmaster (with surcharges) at 613-755-1111. Ticketmaster may also be accessed through the NACs website at http://www.nac-cna.ca/. They may also be purchased at the National Gallery one hour before the concert.

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:20 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Qubec en hritage

Qubec, le 12 mai 2008 Le samedi 17 mai prochain, 20 h, au Palais Montcalm, le Chur Les Rhapsodes prsente Qubec en hritage. Sous la direction de David Rompr, le Chur Les Rhapsodes prsente des musiques des temps et des continents, pour clbrer le 400e anniversaire de Qubec. Le Corps de cornemuses et tambours du 78e Fraser's Highlanders se joindra la chanteuse Tess Leblanc et un ensemble instrumental pour accompagner les choristes dans cette vocation musicale de ceux qui ont bti Qubec. Les billets sont disponibles au Palais Montcalm (418 641-6040) et sur l'ensemble du rseau Billetech.

Le Palais Montcalm rsonnera tour tour des chansons de marins qui ont franchi l'Atlantique, des chants de bienvenue des Hurons, des musiques amenes des provinces franaises et des sonorits et chants celtiques transports depuis l'cosse et l'Irlande. Avec Qubec en hritage, le Chur Les Rhapsodes propose une vritable traverse dans le temps et l'espace, depuis le dpart des marins de Honfleur jusqu' l'arrive des cossais et des Irlandais.

Le concert Qubec en hritage comprendra notamment la cration de Totem, l'uvre compose pour le Chur par Martin Gravel partir des chants de bienvenue des Hurons. Cette uvre sera reprise par le Chur Les Rhapsodes le 18 juillet prochain, lors du grand concert Et si Qubec m'tait chante... , qui rassemblera plus de 2 000 choristes de France et du Qubec. Les Rhapsodes ont en effet t invits en tant que chur soliste cette manifestation majeure du 400e anniversaire de la fondation de Qubec.

Avec Qubec en hritage, David Rompr et le Chur Les Rhapsodes poursuivent le cycle des concerts imagins afin d'accompagner le 400e anniversaire de la fondation de Qubec. Le 29 mars dernier, le Chur Les Rhapsodes entamait ce cycle avec la Cour de France , consacr aux joyaux de la musique baroque franaise, dont le clbre Te Deum de Charpentier.
Ce concert est commandit par STEAMATIC. L'ensemble de la saison est ralis en partenariat avec INDUSTRIELLE ALLIANCE valeurs mobilires.

L'ensemble de la saison 2007-2008 est commandit par PLACEMENTS IA CLARINGTON, VOYAGES FUNTASTIQUE, l'INSTITUT CANADIEN DES PRODUITS PTROLIERS et le MOUVEMENT DESJARDINS. Le Chur Les Rhapsodes bnficie de l'appui du Conseil des arts et des lettres du Qubec, du Service de la culture de la Ville de Qubec, de Patrimoine canadien et de la Facult de Musique de l'Universit Laval.

propos du Chur Les Rhapsodes

Le Chur Les Rhapsodes prsente en 2007-2008 sa 46e saison. Il compte prs de soixante-dix choristes placs sous la direction musicale et artistique de David Rompr depuis 2000. Le Chur Les Rhapsodes est reconnu comme l'un des organismes musicaux majeurs de la Capitale nationale. Il a pour mission de promouvoir l'art 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 d'information, visitez le site Internet du Chur, www.lesrhapsodes.com

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 9:53 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Friday, May 9, 2008

[Mai 2008] Mise jour au site Web de La Scena Musicale

[English version]

Le site internet de La Scena Musicale : http://www.scena.org, vient d'tre remis jour avec les informations suivantes :
  • Le numro de mai 2008 de La Scena Musicale mettant en vedette l'orchestre Big Band de Lincoln Centre et les festivals jazz, monde et folklorique, est maintenant disponible en version PDF. Voir l'ditorial ci-dessous pour plus de renseignement. La revue imprime est dj en circulation et sera en kiosque le 16 mai 2008.
  • Notre blogue : http://blog.scena.org, est frquemment enrichi de nouvelles, de commentaires et d'informations diverses, telles que les anniversaires des musiciens clbres.
  • Section newswire (http://newswire.scena.org) : maintenant plus de 280 communiqus publis.
  • Nouveau blogue de jazz qui couvre les festivals d't : http://jazzblog.scena.org
  • Offres d'emploi : La Scena Musicale a reu des subventions d'Emplois d't Canada et peut offrir des postes d'tudiant en marketing, vente et rdaction. La Scena Musicale cherche un infographist, exp. avec Quark, PS, Illus., pigiste, t-partial, cv@scena.org, 514 948-2520. Voir http://jobs.scena.org


Ide cadeaux fte des Mres, DVD gratuit
La prochain collecte de fonds pour le magazine est le 24 mai prochain.
Vous pourrez obtenir des billets pour aller voir l'opra de Puccini : Madame Butterfly l'Opra de Montral. Pour plus d'information.

Prochainement dans La Scena Musicale:
Le mois prochain, notre numro national de juin sera consacr plus de 90 festivals de musique classique et comprendra en outre un Guide des festivals d'arts au Canada.

Publicit
Visitez http://ads.scena.org

-----

ditorial
Quelle meilleure faon d'oublier le long hiver que de passer les mois du printemps et de l't respirer le grand air au son de la musique des nombreux festivals tenus au Canada. Pour la douzime anne conscutive, La Scena Musicale clbrera la belle saison en musique. Notre couverture des festivals a commenc le mois dernier avec notre premier Guide international des festivals. Ce mois-ci, nous prsentons notre Guide national annuel comprenant plus de 120 festivals de jazz, de musique du monde et de musique folklorique (plus douze festivals de musique classique prcdemment mentionns). Le mois prochain, notre numro national de juin sera consacr plus de 90 festivals de musique classique et comprendra en outre un Guide des festivals d'arts au Canada.

Nous avons lanc l'anne dernire notre numro spcial sur le jazz pour attirer l'attention des lecteurs sur la richesse des festivals de jazz d't tenus partout au pays. Ce mois-ci, le responsable de la section jazz Marc Chnard et son quipe prsentent un dossier sur les orchestres de jazz. Aprs un article sur le Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra de Paul Serralheiro et un autre de Chnard sur les grands ensembles du swing, nos rdacteurs y vont de leurs choix personnels en festivals de jazz (voir p. 17). Vous trouverez galement des critiques de disques de formations qui se produiront l'un ou l'autre des plus de 40 festivals de jazz au Canada (voir plus loin notre calendrier complet des festivals de jazz).

Les bouleversements touchant le rle de la musique classique la SRC-CBC inquitent l'ensemble de la communaut artistique au Canada. Partout, des gens ont manifest leur mcontentement face l'avenir incertain de la maison de disques de la SRC, la soudaine disparition de l'Orchestre de la Radio CBC de Vancouver, fond il y a 70 ans, et aux changements radicaux de la programmation de Radio Two. Michael Vincent aborde ces questions la p. 16 et parle des suites de ces dcisions regrettables.

Ce mois-ci, nous avons galement demand certains des chefs les plus en vue du Canada de nous faire part de leurs impressions sur l'hritage de Herbert von Karajan, sujet qui a suscit beaucoup d'intrt en cette anne centenaire de sa naissance. Si l'influence de Karajan sur le monde orchestral et sur l'industrie de la musique classique enregistre demeure unique dans l'histoire, ses liens avec le parti nazi aux dbuts de sa carrire continuent de faire sourciller et ont soulev de vives controverses.

Laurier Rajotte prsente la prochaine dition du prestigieux Concours Musical International de Montral, consacr cette anne au piano. Le concours ayant par le pass couronn de nombreux artistes aujourd'hui mondialement reconnus, nous pouvons certainement nous attendre de grands moments de musique. Enfin, Ren Bricault s'entretient avec le metteur en scne Michel Lemieux et le chef/orchestrateur Simon Leclerc sur les dfis et les joies de la transposition d'un opra rock lgendaire, Starmania, prsent en version classique l'occasion des clbrations du 400e anniversaire de la ville de Qubec.

l'approche de la fte des Mres, soulignons la prsentation prochaine de l'mouvant opra de Puccini Madama Butterfly par l'Opra de Montral. L'histoire raconte bien sr l'une des grandes tragdies du canon de l'opra, mais aussi l'ultime sacrifice d'une mre. La prochaine collecte de fonds de LSM se tiendra le 24 mai, la premire de Madama Butterfly. Appeler au 514-948-2520 pour des billets ou plus d'information au sujet de cet vnement.

Wah Keung Chan,

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

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:47 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

[May 2008] Updates at La Scena Musicale's website

[Version franaise]

La Scena Musicale's website (http://www.scena.org) has been updated for May 2008:
  • La Scena Musicale May 2008 National Issue, focused on Jazz with our annual Guide to Jazz, World and Folk Festivals is now online in PDF format. See the Editorial below for more contents. Note the print magazine has been in circulation at selected points including targeting residences in Montreal, and will be in the newsstands as of May 16.
  • Our blog (http://blog.scena.org) has been very active with news, reviews, commentary and birthdays. Come back often for updates!
  • Our newswire service (http://newswire.scena.org) continues to publish music and arts press releases. Over 280 published since December 2007.
  • We have started a new Jazz blog to cover Summer Jazz Festivals. See http://jazzblog.scena.org
  • Jobs: La Scena Musicale has received funding for summer students in marketing, sales and editorial. La Scena Musicale seeks a part-time freelance graphist. See http://jobs.scena.org for more details.

Makes a great Mother's Day Gift. FREE DVD.
Upcoming May 24 fundraiser for La Scena Musicale. Tickets to Madama Butterfly in Montreal. More information at: http://www.scena.org/blog/newswire/2008/02/next-fundraising-activity-la-scena.html

Upcoming in La Scena Musicale: Summer Classical music and Arts Festivals.
La Scena Musicale continues its leading coverage of festivals in Canada.

For more info on advertising, visit http://ads.scena.org

-------

May 2008 Editorial

What better way to forget the long winter than to spend the spring and summer months combining fresh outdoor air with beautiful tunes offered by Canada's many music festivals. For the twelfth straight year, La Scena Musicale, Canada's most wide-reaching and well-respected classical music and jazz magazines, will once again celebrate the summer season in music. Our festival coverage began last month with our first International Festival Guide. This month, we feature our annual national focus on over 120 Canadian jazz, world and folk music festivals (plus twelve of the earlier classical music festivals). Next month, our June national issue will be dedicated to over 90 classical music festivals, plus for the first time a Guide to Canadian arts festivals.

It was last year that we launched our special jazz focus issue as a means of drawing our readers' attention to the wealth of Canadian summer jazz festivals staged across the land. This month, our resident jazz editor Marc Chnard and his team have put together a feature on jazz orchestras. Starting with our lead story on the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra by Paul Serralheiro and a companion piece by Chnard on other groundbreaking ensembles, our writers have also chipped in with some personal top jazz festivals picks (see p. 17). You'll also find record reviews of bands playing at one or the other of the 40-plus jazz festivals hosted in our country (see our extensive jazz festival calendar listings in these pages).

The sweeping changes to the role of classical music at the CBC are cause for concern to everyone in Canada's artistic community. An outpouring of general dissatisfaction has come from across the country to protest the bleak future of CBC's record label, the sudden dissolution of the 70-year old Vancouver-based CBC Radio Orchestra, as well as the radical changes to Radio Two programming. Michael Vincent examines these issues in-depth on p. 16 and tracks the fallout of these most unfortunate developments.

Also this month, we have asked some of Canada's most esteemed conductors to share their thoughts on the legacy of Herbert von Karajan, a subject that has garnered a great deal of attention this year, the centenary of his birth. While his influence on the world of orchestral performance and the classical music recording industry is practically unchallenged throughout history, his ties to the Nazi party during the early part of his career has raised some eyebrows and heated a debate on the issue.

Laurier Rajotte investigates this year's edition of the highly prestigious Montreal International Musical Competition, which focuses on piano. Given the competition's track record of producing internationally acclaimed artists, we can certainly expect to hear some extraordinary performances. Ren Bricault catches up with director Michel Lemieux and conductor/arranger Simon Leclerc as they discuss the challenges and rewards of converting Starmania, a well-established rock opera, into a classical setting for Quebec City's 400th anniversary celebrations.

As Mother's Day approaches, we celebrate this special time by featuring Giacomo Puccini and his timeless opera, Madama Butterfly, presented this month by Opra de Montral. The story is, of course, one of the great tragedies of the operatic canon, but also tells of a mother's ultimate sacrifice. Don't forget that LSM's next fundraiser is opening night of Butterfly on the 24th! Call 514-948-2520 for tickets and more information about this great event.



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

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:27 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Alain Trudel remporte le prix Heinz Unger


Communiqu

Pour diffusion immdiate


Alain Trudel remporte le prix Heinz Unger


Toronto, le 9 mai 2008 Alain Trudel vient de recevoir le prix Heinz Unger.


FAITS

Alain Trudel est chef titulaire et directeur musical de l'Orchestre symphonique de Laval, chef titulaire du CBC Radio Orchestra et chef du Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra.

Ce prix a comme objectif d'encourager et de mettre en valeur un chef d'orchestre canadien professionnel en dbut ou en milieu de carrire. C'est le seul prix canadien pour les chefs d'orchestre.

Ce prix national d'une valeur de 9 000 $, attribu tous les deux ans, est administr par le CAO.


CITATIONS

Dans sa dcision unanime, le jury du prix Heinz Unger a salu la vision artistique d'Alain Trudel et son engagement manifeste l'endroit de la vie et de la musique orchestrale au Canada. Comme en tmoignent ses relations avec le milieu dans lequel voluent les chefs d'orchestre, ses activits de rayonnement et son incroyable capacit de toucher l'auditoire, Alain Trudel fait uvre exemplaire. Il collabore dans le pays entier des initiatives artistiques uniques en leur genre, notamment des programmes ducatifs qui ont su intresser les jeunes. Le jury estime que Trudel ne manquera pas de devenir une figure de proue du milieu de la musique orchestrale canadienne.


Je suis profondment honor de recevoir le prix Heinz Unger, a dclar Alain Trudel. En tant que chefs d'orchestre, c'est nous qu'il incombe de communiquer le plaisir de l'interprtation musicale, d'amener nos collgues donner le meilleur d'eux-mmes et de faire de chaque concert une fte tout en respectant la volont du compositeur. C'est vraiment rassurant de savoir qu'il y a dans notre pays un prix qui reconnat le travail que nous faisons.


POUR EN SAVOIR PLUS

Visitez le site web d'Alain Trudel, de l'Orchestre Symphonique de Laval, du CBC Radio Orchestra et du Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra.

Renseignez-vous sur le Prix Heinz Unger, administr par le Conseil des arts de l'Ontario, et les laurats des annes prcdentes.

Heinz Unger : notice biographique.

- 30 -

RENSEIGNEMENTS MDIAS

Hamal Docter, coordonnateur des communications, Conseil des arts de l'Ontario

416-969-7434 / 1-800-387-0058, poste 7434

hdocter@arts.on.ca


Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:12 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, May 8, 2008

[Toronto] Internationally renowned British bass-baritone Pavlo Hunka hosts preview evening of Ukrainian composer Mykola Lysenkos Art Songs

Internationally renowned British bass-baritone Pavlo Hunka hosts preview evening of Ukrainian composer Mykola Lysenkos Art Songs

Monday, May 26, 2008

Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre

Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts

For Immediate Release For Media Information:

May 5, 2008

Toronto, OntĶ Internationally renowned British bass-baritone Pavlo Hunka and the Ukrainian Art Song Project present an evening reception to introduce classical music lovers to Ukrainian composer Mykola Lysenkos art songs. This event will be held on Monday, May 26, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre in the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.

Hosted by CBC Radio personality Catherine Belyea, the evening includes presentations by Russell Braun, Pavlo Hunka, and Lesia Babiak, coordinator of the Mykola Lysenko Art Song Project. Live musical performances of Lysenkos repertoire will be performed by Hunka, soprano Monica Whicher and mezzo-soprano Krisztina Szab.

Mykola Lysenko The Art Songs is the second CD in The Ukrainian Art Song Series. This six CD collection will feature 124 songs, performed by 14 of Canadas, acclaimed classical vocalists and instrumentalists, including: Hunka, Whicher, Szab, as well as Isabel Bayrakdarian, soprano; Allyson McHardy, mezzo-soprano; Elizabeth Turnbull, contralto; Benjamin Butterfield, tenor; Michael Colvin, tenor; Russell Braun, baritone; Robert Gleadow, bass; Doug Stewart, Principal Flute, Canadian Opera Company Orchestra; Roman Borys, cello; Serouj Kradjian, piano; Mia Bach, piano, and Albert Krywolt, piano.

On September 14, 2006, the Ukrainian Art Song Project under the auspices of the Canadian Ukrainian Opera Association launched the critically acclaimed Kyrylo Stetsenko The Art Songs, the debut CD in the Ukrainian Art Song Series. This project was founded by Hunka to preserve the multitude of glorious repertoire by Ukrainian composers, as well as introduce it to the world some of which has never been heard.

Born in England to a Ukrainian father and an English mother, Pavlo Hunka embarked on a music career following his studies in Modern Languages and a reputable career as a lawyer. He has performed in more than 70 operas, including 45 major operatic roles in the worlds leading opera houses; and with many of the worlds most renowned conductors. He made his Toronto debut with the Canadian Opera Company in 2004, and did so to great acclaim singing the title role of Verdis Falstaff and in the role of Hunding in Wagners Die Walkre. In the COCs 2007 2008 season Hunka performed in Leo Janeks From the House of the Dead and Debussys Pelleas et Mlisande.

Tickets for the Mykola Lysenko The Art Songs preview event are $75 and can be purchased by calling 416-769-5757.Mykola Lysenko The Art Songs CD will be on sale in 2009 at classical music stores, as well as online at www.musicaleopolis.com.

The Ukrainian Art Song Project is a project of the Canadian Ukrainian Opera Association.

-30-

Vince J. Ciarlo

Ciarlo Communications

Tel: 416-763-3783

Cell: 416-458-5090

Email: vciarlo@idirect.com

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:36 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

OSM Program Change - May 13, 2008

Program changes

Air Canada Concert Legendary Couples

Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, May 13, 8 PM

Montral, May 7 2008 The Orchestre symphonique de Montral regrets to inform you that conductor Emmanuel Villaume has withdrawn from the May 13 Air Canada concert because of an uncontrollable situation . He will be replaced on this occasion by OSM Conductor-in-Residence Jean-Franois Rivest.

The revised program is:

Mozart: Overture from Cosi fan tutte

Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet, Suite no 2

Wagner : Tristan und Isolde, Prelude and Liebestod

Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet, Fantasy-Overture

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:55 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

News Release - Measha Brueggergosman at Stratford Summer Music, August 7-10, 2008

Stratford, OntĶ John A. Miller, Artistic Producer of Stratford Summer Music, has announced that renowned Canadian soprano and Deutsche Grammophon recording artist Measha Brueggergosman returns to Stratford Summer Music to perform four recitals accompanied by German collaborative pianist Justus Zeyen from August 7 10, 2008 at St. Andrews Church, 25 St. Andrew Street, Stratford. Repertoire for the recitals will be drawn from the works of Benjamin Britten, Arnold Schoenberg, Francis Poulenc, William Bolcom and Erik Satie.

In 2005 Ms. Brueggergosman made her Stratford Summer Music debut, performing four exclusive concerts as well as a joint appearance with Detroits Brazeal Dennard Chorale in the festivals closing night gala.

Award-winning soprano Measha Brueggergosman is in great demand as an opera and concert artist. Originally from Fredericton, New Brunswick, she has performed with some of the worlds most prestigious symphony orchestras and in many of the worlds renowned concert halls. In April the Canadian soprano made her Mozart opera debut as Elettra in Opera Ateliers production of Idomeneo; critics and the public were unanimous in their praise for her work in this sold-out production. Her other operatic roles have included Madame Lidoine in Poulenes The Dialogues of the Carmelites for the Vancouver Opera; Juno in Aeneas in Karthago at the Staatsoper Stuttgart and both Liu in Turnadot and Sister Rose in Dead Man Walking for the Cincinnati Opera.

Measha, as she is fondly known by her fans, signed an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon and released her debut recording Surprise with the label in North America in autumn 2007; she is also featured on the labels recording of Beethovens Symphony No. 9 recorded by The Cleveland Orchestra, conducted by music director Franz Wesler-Mst. She has two recordings with CBC Records: So Much to Tell which includes works by Copland, Barber and Gershwin, and Extase which features music by Massenet and Berlioz.

Brueggergosmans Stratford Summer Music recitals will be performed at 11:15 a.m. on August 7, 8 and 9 and at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 10. Tickets are $35 and are available on line at www.stratfordsummermusic.ca or by calling the box office at 1-800-567-1600. Stratford Summer Music runs from July 21 to August 17, 2008.

For complete concert information log on to the website or call 519-271-2101.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:53 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Richard Desjardins et Kathia Rock Prsence autochtone 2008

Pour sa 18e dition, Prsence autochtone offre un spectacle gratuit :
Richard Gutare Desjardins et lartiste innue Kathia Rock en scne


Montral, le 6 mai 2008. Le festival Prsence autochtone revient en 2008 du 12 au 22 juin avec, au cur de lvnement, un grand concert public gratuit avec Richard Desjardins, alias Richard Gutare, et lauteur-compositeur-interprte innue Kathia Rock. Le spectacle aura lieu samedi le 21 juin, Jour national de solidarit avec les peuples autochtones sur la place milie-Gamelin o se droulent les activits extrieures du festival.

Kathia Rock sera accompagne de Jean-Frdric Messier qui troquera, pour loccasion, son rle de metteur en scne et dramaturge pour celui de guitariste.

Le spectacle dbute 19 h 30 et sera suivi dune projection en plein air du documentaire, Le Peuple Invisible de Richard Desjardins et Robert Monderie, le film qui aura t diffus New York lors de la septime session de l'Instance permanente des Nations unies sur la question autochtone.

Le festival multidisciplinaire Prsence autochtone offre tous les ans pendant 10 jours le meilleur de la crativit des peuples premiers des trois Amriques avec un programme dactivits varis couvrant les arts visuels, le cinma, la vido, la littrature et les arts de la scne.

Terres en vues tient exprimer sa reconnaissance aux commanditaires et partenaires qui soutiennent le festival : CALQ, CAM, CAC, LOTO QUBEC, Tlfilm Canada, Sodec, BaNQ; ONF; Cinmathque qubcoise ; Muse McCord; Cercle des Premires Nations de lUQAM; Guilde canadienne des mtiers dart; INIS; Wapikoni mobile; Pointe--Callires; Muse Stewart

Merci aux mdias : APTN; Le Devoir; CBC radio ONE; CBC tlvision; CIBL; Canal D; Tl-Qubec.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:08 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Stratford Summer Music After-Theatre Cabarets

Stratford, OntĶ Some of Canadas most highly-acclaimed musical artists will take the stage of Stratfords Church Restaurant to present a variety of musical styles in Stratford Summer Musics annual After-Theatre Cabaret series. Cabarets are performed Thursdays through Saturdays, beginning at 11:30 p.m, during the four-week festival.

The series opens with Stratford Festival stars Dayna Tekatch and Laird Mackintosh in their new song and dance tribute to two of the last centurys most famous stars from movie musicals: Cheek to Cheek: The Music of Astaire & Rogers. July 24 26. Week 1.

Dora award-winning actor and singer Jackie Richardson, known as the first lady of gospel, jazz and blues in Canada, appears in her one-woman show about American jazz legend, Mabel Mercer. Mercer had a successful career in the mid-1960s, performing in the U.S., Britain and Europe with the greats of jazz and cabaret. July 31 August 2. Week 2.

Juno award-winning and Grammy-nominated soprano saxophonist, flutist and bandleader Jane Bunnett returns to The Church Restaurant with her Spirits of Havana Jazz Band. Since she released Spirits of Havana, her first Cuban influenced album, she has continued touring inter-nationally and recording a string of critically lauded albums. August 7 9. Week 3.

Dora award-winning actor, singer and writer Paula Wolfson closes the series with her one-woman show, Between Engagements, with piano accompanied by Jonathan Monro. Between Engage-ments brings audiences behind-the-scenes in pursuit of a career in show business, where the search for love and the search for work in the theatre are paralleled in more ways than one.

August 14 - 16. Week 4.

Cabaret performances begin at 11:30 p.m. Single tickets are $35; all four cabarets can be pur-chased for the special price of $115. Tickets on sale April 15 at 1-800-567-1600.

Stratford Summer Music runs from July 21 to August 17. Complete concert information will be available at www.stratfordsummermusic.ca.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:58 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

SAISON 2008-2009 DE L'ORCHESTRE SYMPHONIQUE DE LAVAL


Classiques, nouveauts et un compositeur en rsidence pour une

saison 2008-2009 du tonnerre lOSL !

Laval, le 5 mai 2008 Alors que sachve avec faste une saison couronne de succs, Alain Trudel vous invite dcouvrir la programmation 2008-2009 de lOSL qui sannonce, elle aussi, tout simplement exceptionnelle ! Au cur de cette programmation, cinq grands concerts o se ctoieront chefs-duvre et nouveauts : la clbre Symphonie no 5 et la Symphonie pastorale de Beethoven, les non moins clbres Quatre Saisons de Vivaldi, en passant par une soire dopra litalienne avec le tnor qubcois Marc Hervieux et une prsentation toute spciale du Songe d'une nuit d't de Mendelssohn en compagnie du talentueux comdien Guy Nadon, sans oublier le traditionnel concert de Nol. LOSL aura galement le bonheur daccueillir Dan Bigras, le temps dun concert prsent hors srie et consacr la musique amricaine. Un second concert hors srie proposera, quant lui, des uvres majeures du rpertoire classique pour instruments vent, soit la Gran Partita de Mozart et les opus 4 et 7 de Richard Strauss. Alain Trudel assumera la direction de tous les concerts, mais cdera sa place au pupitre Mark Fewer, le temps pour ce dernier de jouer et de diriger les Quatre Saisons de Vivaldi.

La prochaine saison marquera aussi les dbuts de Tim Brady titre de compositeur en rsidence, un apport inestimable et une grande premire pour lOSL ! Compositeur et guitariste lectrique mrite, ce dernier sinvestira auprs de lOSL, du public et des jeunes non seulement en crant des uvres pour lorchestre, mais aussi par le biais de confrences et dateliers. Il veillera aussi seconder Alain Trudel et lOSL dans leur dialogue musical avec les diverses communauts lavalloises.

Encore cette anne, les Lavallois iront la rencontre de leur orchestre lors des trs attendus rendez-vous champtres, dont lun rendra hommage Harmonium. LOSL poursuivra galement sa mission pdagogique en offrant au jeune public Plante Boabab de lArsenal musique, un spectacle multimdia inspir du Petit Prince dAntoine de Saint-Exupry, sur une musique originale de Denis Gougeon et Yves Daoust. LOSL, Alain Trudel et Tim Brady proposeront aussi une matine interactive des lves de la Commission scolaire de Laval.

La saison 2008-2009 sera encore une fois loccasion de mettre en lumire des artistes dici dont le tnor Marc Hervieux, lun des artistes lyriques canadiens le plus en demande sur la scne nationale et internationale, Mark Fewer, violon solo de lorchestre de Vancouver et chambriste extrmement pris travers le continent, et Lise Beauchamp, la superbe hautbois solo de lOSL. Autre temps fort venir, la cration dune uvre de Tim Brady compose spcialement pour lOSL et qui inaugurera la nouvelle saison !

Cest donc avec grande fiert quAlain Trudel et lOrchestre symphonique de Laval vous convient vivre une vritable odysse symphonique !

LES GRANDS CONCERTS : BEETHOVEN V ET VI

17 septembre 2008 20 h - Salle Andr-Mathieu

Chef : Alain Trudel

LOSL inaugure sa nouvelle saison avec clat ! Au programme, la clbre Symphonie no 5 et la Symphonie pastorale de Beethoven, ainsi quune toute nouvelle uvre du compositeur en rsidence, Tim Brady. Son scherzo mettra en relief les qualits rythmiques de lensemble et en valeur la section des cuivres.

Au programme : L. V. Beethoven - Symphonie no 5 et Symphonie no 6 / Tim Brady - Cration

LES CLASSIQUES DE LOSL : GRANDE FTE BAROQUE

5 novembre 2008 20 h - Salle Andr-Mathieu

Solistes : Mark Fewer, violon Lise Beauchamp, hautbois

Chef : Mark Fewer

LOSL vous propose une fte haute en couleur pour clbrer le gnie de Bach et leffervescence des Quatre Saisons de Vivaldi.

Au programme : A. Vivaldi Les Quatre Saisons / A. Marcello - Concerto pour hautbois / J.-S. Bach - Concerto pour violon et hautbois

NOL TRAVERS LE MONDE

14 dcembre 2008 14 h - Salle Andr-Mathieu

16 dcembre 2008 20 h - Salle Andr-Mathieu

Chef : Alain Trudel

Un chur denfants, des airs traditionnels dici et dailleurs, et pour poursuivre la tradition, nous chanterons Nol ensemble!

Au programme : E. Humperdinck - Hnsel et Gretel (extraits) / Airs de J.-S. Bach, G. Bizet et L. Anderson

LES GRANDS CONCERTS : OPERA ITALIA!

3 mars 2009 20 h Concert-bnfice Salle Andr-Mathieu

4 mars 2009 20 h Salle Andr-Mathieu

Soliste : Marc Hervieux, tnor

Chef : Alain Trudel

Une soire en compagnie de Marc Hervieux, un des plus grands tnors de sa gnration, que lon peut entendre au Metropolitan Opera de New York, notamment, et qui fait sensation lOpra de Montral.

Au programme : musiques de G. Verdi, G. Puccini, G. Rossini et J. Estacio

LES GRANDS CONCERTS : HOMMAGE AU GNIE CRATEUR

5 mai 2009 20 h - Salle Andr-Mathieu

Invit : Guy Nadon - Soliste : le laurat du Concours international de musique de Montral, piano

Chef : Alain Trudel

LOSL vous offre une prsentation toute spciale du Songe dune nuit dt de Shakespeare, lue par le comdien Guy Nadon sur la musique de Mendelssohn. En premire partie de programme, le fabuleux deuxime Concerto pour piano de Rachmaninov.

Au programme : S. Rachmaninov - Concerto pour piano no 2 / F. Mendelssohn - Songe dune nuit dt (extraits)

HORS SRIE - DAN BIGRAS : DE NEW YORK HOLLYWOOD

28 janvier 2009 20 h - Salle Andr-Mathieu

Soliste : Dan Bigras

Chef : Alain Trudel

LOSL vous convie une soire musicale toute nord-amricaine, en compagnie du chanteur Dan Bigras. Noublions pas que cest en chantant du blues que ce dernier a appris son mtier !

Au programme : Bernstein, Copland et Dan Bigras

HORS SRIE - MOZART TOUT VENT

25 mars 2009 20 h - glise Sainte-Rose-de-Lima - Concert comment

Chef : Alain Trudel

Les treize musiciens de la section des vents de lOSL interprtent lune des plus grandes compositions de Mozart, ainsi que luvre qui lana la carrire de Richard Strauss.

Au programme : W. A. Mozart Gran Partita K.361 / R. Strauss Srnade opus 7 et Suite opus 4

CONCERT JEUNE PUBLIC : PLANTE BAOBAB 6 10 ANS

Cration de lArsenal musique

Spectacle multimdia inspir du Petit Prince dAntoine de Saint-Exupry

Chef : Alain Trudel / Maison des arts de Laval

19, 20 et 21 novembre 2008 - Reprsentations scolaires

23 novembre 2008 15h - Reprsentation familiale

CONCERT JEUNE PUBLIC : MUSIQUE ET IMAGES - 10 14 ANS

Matine interactive en compagnie de lOSL, Alain Trudel et Tim Brady

Participation dlves en concentration musique de la Commission scolaire de Laval

Chef : Alain Trudel / Maison des arts de Laval

16 et 17 fvrier 2009 - Reprsentations scolaires

VNEMENTS CHAMPTRES

Mondial Choral : Le Pique-Nique Symphonique, Centre de la nature de Laval 22 juin 2008 17h

Mondial Choral : Harmonium lHeptade, Centre de la nature de Laval 23 juin 2008 21 h

Les Grandes Ftes de Sainte-Rose, face lglise - 10 aot 2008 16 h

Les chambristes de lOSL, Centre de la nature 31 aot 2008 de 12 h 17 h

Abonnez-vous ds maintenant !
Billetterie : 450-667-2040

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 9:02 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Monday, May 5, 2008

The VSO Presents the World's Greatest Percussionist, Dame Evelyn Glennie!

Vancouver BC The VSO proudly presents Dame Evelyn Glennie, the worlds greatest percussionist, in The Power of Percussion on Saturday and Monday, May 24th and May 26th at the Orpheum Theatre. This concert features De Fallas Three-Cornered Hat, Tchaikovskys Symphony No. 2, and the world premiere of Christos Hatziss Tongues of Fire for Percussion and Orchestra (which was written for Ms. Glennie and Beverley Johnston). Maestro Bramwell Tovey conducts.

Dame Evelyn Glennie is the first person to attain an international career as a solo percussionist. Considered a pioneer of the solo percussion genre, she has paved the path for the many musicians after her. With her international career stronger than ever, Glennie performs more than 100 concerts per year with the worlds finest orchestras.

Evelyn Glennie is simply a phenomenon of a performer.

- New York Times

A champion of new compositions, such as Christos Hatziss Tongues of Fire for Percussion and Orchestra premiering at this concert, Glennie has commissioned over 150 new works for solo percussion from some of the worlds most distinguished composers. She began commissioning new music while still a student at the Academy of Music in London, asking composers from the British music yearbook to write small pieces for her. A composer herself, she enjoys creating and recording music for film and television.

Although Glennie is profoundly deaf, she encourages her audience to learn the difference between hearing and listening. She believes the experience of music is like a conversation, meaning there should be a one-on-one relationship between performer and listener. Ms. Glennies music challenges listeners to ask where music comes from and how it is we interpret it. Her expertise with such a wide range of instruments combined with a deep appreciation for visual performance creates a truly unique concert experience. Forbes Magazine stated Watching [Glennie] is like watching a high-wire act over the Grand Canyon. Dame Evelyn Glennies performances are always inspiring, challenging, thought-provoking thrill rides buckle up for an extraordinary orchestral experience!

CONCERT INFO

Price Waterhouse Coopers Horizons Series

The Power of Percussion, Featuring Dame Evelyn Glennie

Saturday & Monday, May 24 & 26, 8pm, Orpheum Theatre

Bramwell Tovey conductor

Dame Evelyn Glennie percussion

De Falla Three-Cornered Hat: Suite No.2

Hatzis Tongues of Fire for Percussion and Orchestra

Tchaikovsky Symphony No.2

Ticket prices: $25 - $78 (Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets Available at VSO Customer Service, 604.876.3434; Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone, 604.280.3311; online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Series Generously Sponsored By:

Price Waterhouse Coopers

Concert Sponsor:

William Switzer

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 7:54 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Le Concours international d'orgue du Canada : Une premire Montral !

Le nouvel vnement majeur prend son envol avec l'annonce de
16 concurrents

MONTREAL, le 5 mai /CNW Telbec/ - Cet automne, Montral accueillera du 8 au 19 octobre 16 organistes virtuoses dans le cadre de la premire dition du Concours d'orgue international du Canada (CIOC). "Ce Concours est une vitrine extraordinaire pour l'imposant patrimoine culturel montralais, notamment, pour les magnifiques orgues de ses nombreuses glises, a dclar Kent Nagano, directeur musical de l'Orchestre Symphonique de Montral et patron d'honneur du Concours. Je salue les efforts investis dans la dmystification de la musique d'orgue, et je suis fier d'offrir mon soutien en vue de cet vnement musical de premier plan." Seul concours international d'orgue des Amriques en 2008, l'vnement triennal misera sur la qualit pour offrir au public un nouveau rendez-vous musical de classe internationale.


Montral, berceau de l'orgue

Ville aux cent clochers, Montral possde une collection d'orgues de grande envergure d'une valeur inestimable. Les professeurs d'orgue des universits et conservatoires du Qubec sont reconnus et le talent des facteurs d'orgues d'ici rayonne l'tranger. "Avec autant d'lments jouant en faveur de Montral, la cration d'un concours international d'orgue devenait incontournable. Octobre 2008 sera mmorable dans l'histoire de l'orgue au pays !", a dclar M. John Grew, organiste de l'Universit McGill et directeur artistique du CIOC.

Avec l'arrive du Concours, un nouveau rendez-vous est maintenant inscrit l'agenda culturel des Montralaises et des Montralais et celui des visiteurs. "Je me rjouis de la tenue de ce concours d'envergure internationale dans la mtropole, a dclar madame Catherine Svigny, conseillre associe la culture et au centre-ville la Ville de Montral. Indniablement, ce nouvel vnement est source de fiert et contribue au rayonnement de Montral comme mtropole culturelle."


Un concours international prestigieux

Mene auprs de 1500 facults de musique et conservatoires autour du monde, la campagne de recrutement du CIOC a permis de recevoir 60 candidatures de 17 pays. Outre le nombre important d'inscriptions pour un nouvel vnement, le niveau trs relev des musiciens ressort de faon claire.

Des 16 organistes retenus par un jury prliminaire, 13 sont laurats de concours d'orgue tablis. Reprsentant 11 pays, cette slection de trs haut calibre regroupe six femmes et dix hommes d'une moyenne d'ge de 28 ans. Pendant le concours un jury de neuf minents spcialistes de sept pays dterminera les laurats et leur remettra 65 000 $ en bourses et de nombreux prix spciaux. "C'est la fois grce au jury international et avec les prix les plus importants de tous les concours d'orgue que le Concours international d'orgue du Canada a attir 16 des meilleurs jeunes organistes au monde", a dclar M. Grew, qui prsidera le jury en octobre prochain.

Le volet comptitif du concours se droulera en trois preuves, entre le 8 et 17 octobre, et se clturera par un concert gala des laurats le 19 octobre. La premire preuve se tiendra l'Eglise Immacule-Conception, la deuxime l'Eglise Saint-Jean-Baptiste et la finale la Basilique Notre-Dame. John Grew, directeur artistique du CIOC, promet aussi des concerts et des activits de formation dont l'annonce se fera en septembre prochain.

"Le CIOC ancrera le statut de Montral comme capitale nord-amricaine de l'orgue. Ds la premire dition, nous souhaitons positionner notre Concours parmi les meilleurs au monde", a fait remarquer M. E. Noel Spinelli, C.M., le prsident du conseil d'administration du CIOC.

Partenaires et visionnaires

C'est grce aux efforts et l'engagement des membres du conseil d'administration du Concours que des appuis financiers importants ont t obtenus. Comme diffuseur officiel, Radio-Canada contribuera la dcouverte. Avec les intervenants du milieu de l'orgue, ses donateurs et ses partenaires fondateurs soit RBC, Equipe Spinelli, Financire Sun Life et Hydro Qubec, le Concours international d'orgue du Canada jouera un rle de premier plan pour faire connatre de nouveaux talents qui mettront en valeur ces instruments spectaculaires, souvent inconnus du public. Mentionnons aussi la participation du Ministre de la culture, des communications et de la condition fminine, du Ministre du tourisme et de la Ville de Montral. Fort de l'appui de ses partenaires, le CIOC poursuit les dmarches de recherches de fonds afin de garantir le succs de sa premire dition et d'assurer sa continuit.

A propos du CIOC

Le Concours international d'orgue du Canada (CIOC) accueille au pays de jeunes organistes recruts travers le monde. L'organisme effectue un travail annuel pour promouvoir l'orgue comme instrument majeur dans la culture musicale au pays en plus de contribuer au dveloppement de la carrire de jeunes organistes. Prsent sur des instruments de qualit dans des lieux d'une grande beaut architecturale, le CIOC jouera un rle important dans la mise en valeur du patrimoine qui a fait de Montral une rfrence nord-amricaine dans le domaine de l'orgue. Vous pouvez consulter le site Web du CIOC au www.ciocm.org.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:23 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Canadian International Organ Competition: A "First" in Montreal!

Major new event launches, 16 international competitors revealed

MONTREAL, May 5 /CNW Telbec/ - This Fall, between October 8 and 19, Montreal will welcome 16 brilliant young organists from around the world under the auspices of the first edition of the Canadian International Organ Competition (CIOC). "This Competition will showcase Montreal's diverse heritage, notably through the exceptional collection of instruments held in churches throughout the city," commented Kent Nagano, Music Director of the Orchestre symphonique de Montral and Honorary Patron of the competition. "I salute the efforts made in demystifying the organ and its music, and I am proud to offer my support in preparation for this major musical happening." The only international organ competition in the Americas in 2008, this triennial event is of such high quality that it offers the public a new musical experience of international calibre.

Montreal, cradle of the organ

City of a hundred churches, Montreal possesses an extraordinary collection of priceless organs. Professors of organ music at Quebec universities and conservatories are well renowned and the talent of our organ builders is recognized all over the world. "With all these elements playing in favour of Montreal, the creation of an international organ competition here was inevitable. October 2008 will be memorable in Canada's history of the organ!" so said Mr. John Grew, Organist at McGill University and Artistic Director of the CIOC.

With the arrival of this competition, a new rendezvous is now written in the cultural agenda of all Montrealers and all visitors to Montreal. "I am thrilled that we are holding this international competition in the heart of the city," declared Ms. Catherine Svigny, associate councillor for culture and downtown, City of Montreal. "This new event is without a doubt a source of great pride, and contributes to the influence of Montreal as a cultural centre."

A prestigious international competition

After a major launch in 1500 faculties and conservatories of music around the world, the CIOC recruitment campaign brought forward 60 candidates from 17 countries. In addition to this important number of entries for a new event, the high level of talent in the musicians became rapidly obvious.

Of the 16 organists chosen by a preliminary jury, 13 are already prize winners in well-established international organ competitions. Representing 11 countries, this selection of very high calibre talent includes six women and ten men with an average age of 28 years. For the Competition, a jury of nine eminent specialists from seven countries will determine the winners, and who will ultimately receive the $65,000 in prizes and other special awards. "It is thanks to the quality of this international jury and the appeal of the Competition's generous prizes, which are greater than any other organ competition in the world, that the Canadian International Organ Competition has attracted 16 of the finest young organists from across the globe," declared Mr. Grew, who will preside over the jury next October.

The competitive part of the event will take part in three rounds, between October 8 and 17, and will close with a Gala Concert showcasing the winners on October 19. The first round will take place at the Immaculate Conception Church, the second at the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church and the final round at the Notre-Dame Basilica. Artistic Director John Grew promises that a number of concerts and educational activities will be held conjointly. The exact place and time of these will be announced in September.

"The CIOC will confirm Montreal's status as North America's pipe organ capital. And for its first edition, we want the CIOC to position itself as one of the most prestigious organ competitions in the world," commented Mr. E. Noel Spinelli, C.M., Chairman of CIOC's Board of Directors.

Partners and visionaries

It is thanks to the generous efforts and the commitment of the members of the Competition's Board of Directors that important financial support has been obtained. Radio-Canada will contribute to the experience as the contest's official broadcaster. The support of the pipe organ world, private sponsors, and founding partners, such as RBC, Team Spinelli, Sun Life Financial and Hydro Qubec, will allow the CIOC to play a leading role in highlighting those new talents that are able to bring out the spectacular, and often unknown, nature of these instruments. The event is also being bolstered by the participation of the Quebec Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Tourism and the City of Montreal. Greatly encouraged by this support, CIOC is actively seeking other sources of funding to ensure the success of this first edition of the Competition and guarantee its continuance.

About CIOC

The Canadian International Organ Competition (CIOC) welcomes young organists to Montreal from around the world. Each year, the organization works to promote the organ as a major instrument in the world of music, and also contributes to the development of the careers of the young organists. The Competition, by showcasing these impressive instruments in their historically beautiful settings, plays an important role in emphasizing the value of our heritage, and recognizing Montreal as a major North American centre for pipe organ music. Please visit the CIOC's website at www.ciocm.org.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 4:14 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Nightwood Theatre announces Ga-la-licious 2008 with headliners Mary Walsh and Women Fully Clothed!

Satire is a national sport and Mary Walsh has a wicked slapshot. Macleans Magazine

The five funniest women in Canada. Eugene Levy (on Women Fully Clothed)

Ga-la-licious 2008

Tuesday May 20th, 7 p.m.

Tickets: Early Bird $75 (before April 27th), $100 (After April 27th)

416.944.1740 x 5 or www.nightwoodtheatre.net

at the Courthouse Lounge, 57 Adelaide Street East

Toronto, ONĶ Get ready for a night at the Carnival! Ga-la-licious - Nightwoods annual fundraiser, returns for its second year complete with the rock stars of Canadian comedy...Mary Walsh (from This Hour Has 22 Minutes) and comedy team Women Fully Clothed. Stand-up whiz-kid Kathleen Phillips keeps the evening trotting along as the Ring-Mistress, making sure the crazy magicians, stilt walkers, fortune tellers and other buskers are on their best behaviour.

Get ready to chow down on culinary delights from some of Torontos greatest restaurants and cooking schools: Mangia & Bevi Resto Bar, Aphrodite Cooks and Sasi/Mangrai Thai. And thanks to GQ Spa for their generous in-kind sponsorship of Ga-la-licious 2008.

As for the auction Nightwoods guests expect more than costly emollients and paper weights. This year co-star in your own version of My Dinner with Andre by making the winning bid on exclusive, unique dinners and experiences with fascinating luminaries like Deepa Mehta, Stephen Lewis and Anna Maria Tremonti. Other goodies include: trips, spa packages, an electric scooter, unique adventures and much, much more. All proceeds from Ga-la-licious 2008 will go towards enhancing Nightwood Theatres production and training programming.


Selected Bios:

Mary Walsh

Founded the award-winning CODCO comedy troupe of Newfoundland (1987 to 1992, CBC Television) and starred in This Hour Has 22 Minutes (CBC). In 1993 Mary Walsh was chosen to deliver the prestigious Graham Spry Lecture which was broadcast nationally on CBC Radio. In 1994, Walsh addressed the United Nations Global Conference on Development in New York. She won Best Supporting Actress at the Atlantic Film Festival in 1992 for her performance in Mike Jones' Secret Nation. She has won several Gemini Awards for writing and performing during the CODCO years on CBC Television. She was awarded the C.M. (Member of the Order of Canada) on April 27, 2000 for her services to broadcasting and performing arts in Canada.

On November 4, 2006 Mary Walsh and Ed MacDonald picked up a Gemini Award for the best writing in a comedy or variety program for their work in Hatching, Matching and Dispatching.

Women Fully Clothed

Women Fully Clothed stars Kathryn Greenwood from Whose Line Is It Anyway/This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Robin Duke from Saturday Night Live/SCTV, Debra McGrath from Getting Along Famously/Little Mosque on the Prairie, Jayne Eastwood from My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Chicago and Billable Hours, and Teresa Pavlinek from History Bites/The Jane Show.

Kathleen Phillips

Kathleen Phillips is a character monologist who has been featured on radio including CBC, television including the Comedy Network and on the web on goodmorningworld.com and YouTube. She was nominated for the 2005 Tim Sims Encouragement Award. She has performed in Toronto, Montreal, New York, Los Angeles, and the U.K. Kathleen Phillips is a founding member of The Laugh Sabbath Comedy Series at the Rivoli.

ABOUT NIGHTWOOD THEATRE

Nightwood Theatre Artistic Director Kelly Thornton and Producer Monica Esteves.

For 28 years, Nightwood Theatre has developed, produced and toured landmark, award-winning plays by and about women. The companys tremendous work in play creation bore fruit to many renowned and acclaimed plays that are now part of the Canadian theatre canon. These include Good Night Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald, The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God by Djanet Sears, The Danish Play by Sonja Mills and over 50 other new Canadian plays by women.

Nightwood plays have won Canadas highest literary and performing arts honours, including Governor General, Chalmers, Dora Mavor Moore and Trillium Awards. Nightwood is a valued member of various communities, at a local, regional and national level. Through our youth initiatives and mentorship programs, our various festivals, productions, events, colourful history, an important mandate and an exciting fundraisers and collaborations with other organizations, Nightwood is a growing, thriving success story with an important mandate and an exciting future.


Check out these exciting shows:

An Italian Straw Hat

By Eugne Labiche and Marc Michel

Translated by Lynn and Theodore Hoffmann

Directed and Designed by L. Garth Allen

May 1 to 17, 2008

Fairview Public Library Theatre, 35 Fairview Mall Drive

To order tickets call or click 416.299.5557 or http://www.stagecentreproductions.com/SCP_SingleTickets.htm

Dancemakers Presents: Les Angles Morts

Choreography by Mlanie Demers

May 22-24, 2008

Dancemakers

Dancemakers Centre for Creation, The Distillery District, 55 Mill Street, The Cannery, Bldg. 58, Studio 313

Call or Click 416.367.1800 or info@dancemakers.org; www.dancemakers.org

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:52 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The Little Foxes Previews at the Shaw Festival

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, May 5, 2008 Ķ Previews began on Saturday in the Royal George Theatre for the Shaw Festivals production of Lillian Hellmans most celebrated play The Little Foxes, a timeless story of family, money, treachery and greed.

When the Hubbard siblings decide to invest in a cotton mill, the struggle for the biggest slice of the pie begins. Brothers Ben (Ric Reid) and Oscar (Peter Krantz) connive and scheme, but it is their powerful sister Regina (Laurie Paton) who will seemingly stop at nothing to get what she wants.

The deliciously treacherous Regina Giddens has been played by some of theatre and films most commanding women. New York Times reviewer Ben Brantley wrote of the role, Few heroines of American theatre are half as much fun as Regina Giddens, an abiding testament to what's so good about being bad in the world of fiction.

American playwright Lillian Hellman was a leading voice in the American theatre and was active in the political arena, linked throughout her life with left-wing causes. The Little Foxes was one of Hellmans most successful plays. The title of the play comes from the Bible, Take us the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. After producing Hellmans The Autumn Garden in 2005, The Shaws Artistic Director Jackie Maxwell was eager to explore the equally complex but more gothic world of The Little Foxes.

The cast of The Little Foxes also includes Sharry Flett as Birdie Hubbard, Lisa Codrington as Addie, Krista Colosimo as Alexandra Giddens, David Jansen as Horace Giddens, and Gray Powell as Leo Hubbard, as well as Norman Browning and Richard Stewart.

The Little Foxes is directed by Eda Holmes, with design by Cameron Porteous, lighting design by Kevin Lamotte, and original music and sound design by John Gzowski. The stage management team includes Stage Manager Allan Teichman and Assistant Stage Manager Dora Tomassi.

The Little Foxes begins preview performances Saturday, May 3; opens Saturday, May 24; and plays in repertory until Saturday, November 1.

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

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:39 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Le RocketĶ lance et compte!

MONTRAL, le 5 mai 2008 Du 18 dcembre 2007 au 20 avril 2008, le Muse du Chteau Ramezay a prsent avec succs l'exposition Rocket Richard Une lgende, un hritage, ralise par le Muse canadien des civilisations et commandite par Postes Canada. Petits et grands ont eu la chance de dcouvrir -ou de redcouvrir- le grand hros national que fut Maurice Richard.

Encore une fois, ce hockeyeur mythique a dmontr que sa lgende transcende les poques et les gnrations. En effet, durant toute la dure de l'exposition, le Muse a connu d'une hausse de frquentation de 32%. Les familles taient aussi au rendez-vous puisque leur prsence a augment de 73%. Sans oublier la hausse de 100% des amateurs de hockey qui se sont prsents au Muse en arborant firement leur chandail des Canadiens!

Madame Marie-Claude Savard, journaliste sportive TVA et porte-parole de l'exposition, ainsi que Monsieur Rjean Houle, prsident de l'Association des anciens Canadiens, ont largement contribu au succs de l'vnement par leur grande implication.

Le Muse du Chteau Ramezay est situ en plein cur du Vieux-Montral, deux pas de la Place Jacques-Cartier et du mtro Champ-de-Mars, face l'Htel de Ville de Montral.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 1:36 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Sunday, May 4, 2008

NAC announces winners of 2008 NAC Orchestra Bursary Competition


Ottawa, Canada The National Arts Centre (NAC) has announced the winners of the 2008 NAC Orchestra Bursary Competition following the finals held on Sunday, May 4 in the NAC Studio. Eight finalists had been chosen from the 26 contestants heard in preliminary auditions held on April 30 and May 1. The grand prize-winner of the 2008 NACO Bursary ($7,000) is flutist Amelia Lyon (age 22). In 2007, Amelia was the winner of both the Harold Crabtree Foundation Award and the Special Prize for Orchestral Excerpts.

This years winner of the Harold Crabtree Foundation Award of $5,000 is cellist Brian Jangho Yoon (age 21). The Friends of the NAC Orchestra Award ($3,000) went to percussionist Krystina Marcoux (age 18), while violinist Yolanda Bruno (age 18) won the NAC Vic Pomer Award ($2,000). The Piccolo Prix ($1,000) went to flutist Lara Deutsch (age 16).

The NACO Special Prize for the best performance of prescribed orchestral excerpts was not awarded this year.

Honourable mentions of $150 went to violinist Won-Hee Lee (age 19); oboist Marc Gibbons (age 22), and violinist Justin Lamy (age 18).

The Bursary Committee and Jury were chaired by Vernon G. Turner, Canadas former Ambassador to the USSR and to Israel, and an active volunteer at the National Arts Centre. Mr. Turner said: The dedication of these young artists is admirable. It makes me feel very optimistic about their prospects.

The 2008 Bursary Committee and Jury consisted of NAC Orchestra concertmaster Yosuke Kawasaki, assistant principal second violin Winston Webber (upper strings), bassist Murielle Bruneau (lower strings), flutist Emily Smethurst (winds), French horn Flix Acevedo (brass and percussion), and Ross Francis, (Friends of NACO representative). The Committee included Kelly Abercrombie as the NAC Music representative. The Jury included Turner and Francis (non-voting members), and also included special guests Jean-Guy Brault (former NACO flutist) and Rosalind Sartori (former NACO cellist), and special advisor Ian Bernard (non-voting member).

The National Arts Centre Orchestra (NACO) Bursary Competition was first held in 1981. The NACO Bursary was created by the musicians of the NAC Orchestra as a gesture of appreciation to the audiences who had been so supportive to the Orchestra during its first decade. It is meant to provide recognition and financial support to help further the development of young Canadian orchestral musicians who have connections to the National Capital Region (NCR). In subsequent years thanks to the generosity of additional organizations and individuals, other prizes have been added for a total in 2008 of $18,500. These prizes, in addition to the NACO Bursary, are the Harold Crabtree Foundation Award, created in 2003 by this Foundation which strongly believes in the importance of helping young people; the Friends of the NAC Orchestra (formerly NACOA) Award created in 1993 to celebrate the Orchestras 25th anniversary season; the NAC Vic Pomer Award commemorating one of the founding violinists of NACO and a dedicated teacher who died in 2001 at age 70; the Piccolo Prix provided to encourage and support our young artists by NAC volunteer and Donors Circle member Cav. Pasqualina Pat Adamo, and the NACO Special Prize of $500 for the best performance of prescribed orchestral excerpts.

All prizes are intended for music students aged 16 to 24 whose principal or family residence is in the National Capital Region, or who have been following a recognized course of music study in the NCR in the previous year in preparation for careers as professional orchestral musicians. Each year, a jury identifies deserving recipients through audition and selection.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 10:36 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Friday, May 2, 2008

Inspector Tovey Investigates Composing on May 18th

Vancouver BC Intrepid sleuth Inspector Tovey examines the art of composing on Sunday, May 18th, 2pm at the Orpheum Theatre. VSO Music Director Bramwell Tovey reprises his role of Inspector Tovey in the final concert in the 2007/2008 Spectra Energy Kids Koncerts series. The Inspector has already investigated the hidden treasures of an orchestra, the nature of rhythm and the importance of harmony in past seasons. This year the Inspector takes children on a journey to discover the critical role of composing in music-making.

The Spectra Energy Kids Koncerts series is a 5-concert series held in the Orpheum on Sundays at 2pm. This enormously successful concert series has its philosophical roots in Leonard Bernsteins Young Peoples Concerts series: the programs are fun and educational, each one taking children on a musical journey that teaches them important musical concepts through participation, audience interaction, and the performance of great classical music by the full symphony orchestra. The Kids Koncerts series presents some of the best childrens entertainers around; next seasons series features Al Simmons, Magic Circle Mime Co., Dandi Productions, Platypus Theatre, and of course, Inspector Tovey.

The hugely popular VSO Instrument Fair will be held from 1pm to 2pm in the Westcoast Energy Hall lobby of the Orpheum Theatre lobby. The VSO Instrument Fair allows music lovers of all ages (but especially the kids!) to touch and play real orchestra instruments. An array of instruments will be featured throughout the season, one family at a time. Music students and members of the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra are on hand to help the kids get a handle on the instrument they choose to try. There is also the Composition Table, where kids can write their own musicand have it played by a member of the VSO! All instruments are generously provided by Tom Lee Music.

CONCERT INFO

Spectra Energy Kids Koncerts Series

Inspector Tovey Investigates Composing

Sunday, May 18, 2pm, Orpheum Theatre

Bramwell Tovey conductor/inspector

Ticket prices: $26 (Kids $18; Student, Senior and Subscriber discounts available)

Tickets Available at VSO Customer Service, 604.876.3434; Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone, 604.280.3311; online at www.vancouversymphony.ca

Series Generously Sponsored By:

Spectra Energy

BIOGRAPHIES

Bramwell Tovey, conductor

A musician of striking versatility, Bramwell Tovey is acknowledged around the world for his artistic depth and warm, charismatic personality on the podium. Toveys career as a conductor is uniquely enhanced by his work as a composer and pianist, lending him a remarkable musical perspective.

His tenures as Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony, Luxembourg Philharmonic and Winnipeg Symphony Orchestras have been characterized by his expertise in the opera, choral, and British repertoire. Tovey recently garnered a 2007 Grammy Award and a 2007 Juno Award for his recording with violinist James Ehnes and the Vancouver Symphony. Recently named Principal Guest Conductor for the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, he works frequently with the Toronto Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Royal Philharmonic and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestras, among many others. He has presided as host and conductor of the New York Philharmonics Summertime Classics series at Avery Fisher Hall since its founding in 2004.

A champion of contemporary music, Tovey developed the highly regarded New Music Festival in Winnipeg, during his tenure as Music Director. As a composer, he was honored with the Best Canadian Classical Composition Juno Award in 2003 for his Requiem for a Charred Skull. Upcoming new works include a co-commission for the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics respective 2008 summer seasons as well as a full-length opera for the Calgary Opera, The Inventor, to premiere in January of 2011.

Tovey has been awarded honorary degrees, including a Fellowship from the Royal Academy of Music in London, honorary Doctorates of Law from the universities of Winnipeg and Manitoba, and Kwantlen University College, as well as a Royal Conservatory of Music Fellowship in Toronto. In 1999, he received the M. Joan Chalmers National Award for Artistic Direction, a Canadian prize awarded to artists for outstanding contributions in the performing arts.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 6:04 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

CBC Radio One & The Quebec Writers' Federation Announce The Winners Of The 2007 Quebec Writing Competition

And a New Book Of Winning Stories From Vehicule Press


Montreal, May 4, 2008


Creative non-fiction by Joel Yanofsky wins the 2007 Quebec Writing Competition.


CBC Radio One and the Quebec Writing Federation are pleased to announce that Joel Yanofsky has won the top prize in the 2007 Quebec Writing Competition with a moving piece about being the father of a child with autism.

We're also celebrating the launch of a new book of winning stories from the last 3 years of the competition: In Other Words (Vehicule Press).

For 9 years the Quebec Writing Competition (formerly the Quebec Short Story Competition) has supported new writing in Quebec by offering authors a chance to create pieces for broadcast on CBC Radio as well as for publication by Maisonneuve Magazine + Vehicule Press. Two years ago, the competition was opened up to include creative non-fiction as well as short stories.

The awards ceremony took place at the Blue Metropolis Literary Festival on May 4, 2008 and was hosted by CBC Radio One's Jeanette Kelly. The 2007 QWC Jurors were Lee Maracle, Sherry Simon + Matthew Fox.

About the 2007 QWC Winners:

GRAND PRIZE WINNER

Joel Yanofsky for 'What You Need'

Jurors' Comments: In a story that describes an adulthood of thoughts in a single drive home, readers will find the sobriety of an essay, the honesty of a memoir and the truth of narrative fiction. Crisp sentences roll smoothly yet surprisingly along, showing us that parenthood is a journey of unpredictable emotions.

Joel Yanofsky is the author of Mordecai & Me: An Appreciation of a Kind. His most recent work is Love U: The Grad School Musical.

Other 2 winners of 2007 QWC:

Jessica Block for 'Common Gull'

Jurors' comments: Nostalgia and violence conspire here to offer a quiet and understated story. "Common Gull" uses simple dialogue to show us the complexity of childhood, and how even the earliest parts of our life can offer surprising depths of both compassion and curiosity.

Author Bio: Jessica Block works as a subtitle editor in Montreal. She is also completing an MFA in creative writing through UBC's Optional Residency program.

Jennifer Neri for 'The Mistake'

Jurors' Comments: [This story] brings to life the hypocrisy and racism that exist under the veneer of everyday life, even in a multicultural society. The author shrewdly embeds her social observations in the history of both the central character and her cityMontreal.

Author Bio: Before she could read, she told stories. Once she began reading, she was never without a book. It is this fascination with the unknown, and the known, that led her to do Masters degree in Biochemistry at McGill University. She has recently completed her first novel, and is eager to embark on a second.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:13 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

NACO, May 12: Grammy winning violinist James Ehnes performs in recital

Ottawa, Canada Canadian violinist James Ehnes (pronounced ENN-is), who has won both a Grammy Award and his fifth Juno Award this year, returns to the National Arts Centres Southam Hall to perform in recital on Monday, May 12 at 20:00 as part of the Bombardier Great Performers Series. His recital partner is pianist Andrew Armstrong.

Ehnes and Armstrong will perform Leclairs Sonata in D major, Brahms Sonata No. 1 in G major, Bartks Rhapsody No. 2 for Violin and Piano, and R. Strausss Sonata in E-flat major.

Violinist James Ehnes is widely considered one of classical musics brightest talents. He has performed in over 20 countries on five continents with many of the worlds most renowned orchestras and conductors. He first performed at the NAC in recital on the NAC Debut Series in 1993 at age 16 and a few months later made his NAC Orchestra debut at the CBC Young Performers Competition which he won. He has returned a number of times since, most recently performing on both violin and viola with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra this past November. He will return to the National Arts Centre Orchestra next season to perform the Korngold Violin Concerto, his recording of which (along with concertos by Barber and Walton) earned him his recent Grammy and Juno Awards. The recording joins an already impressive and internationally multi-award winning discography of over 20 recordings featuring repertoire ranging from Bach violin sonatas to John Adamss Road Movies. His 250th Mozart anniversary double-disc of the composers complete works for violin and orchestra won the 2007 Juno.

Born in Brandon, Manitoba in 1976, James Ehnes began violin studies at the age of four, and at nine became a protg of Canadian violinist Francis Chaplin. He continued his studies with Sally Thomas at The Juilliard School, winning the Peter Mennin Prize for Outstanding Achievement and Leadership in Music upon his graduation in 1997. In 2007 he became the youngest person ever elected as a Fellow to the Royal Society of Canada. James Ehnes plays the Ex Marsick Stradivarius of 1715 and gratefully acknowledges its extended loan from the Fulton Collection.

Pianist Andrew Armstrong has been praised by critics for his passionate expression and dazzling technique, delighting audiences around the world. He has performed solo recitals and appeared with orchestras in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States, including performances at Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, and Warsaws National Philharmonic. Having performed over 35 concertos, Armstrong has impressed his international audiences with a large repertoire ranging from Bach to Babbit and beyond. In 1996, he was named Gilmore Young Artist, and at the 1993 Van Cliburn Competition, where he was the youngest pianist entered, he received the Jury Discretionary Award.

Tickets for this Bombardier Great Performers recital on Monday, May 12 at 20:00 are on sale now at $19.00, $29.00, $39.00, $45.00, $49.00, and $59.00 with box seats at $69.00 (GST and Facility Fee included) at the NAC Box Office (Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 21:00), and through Ticketmaster (with surcharges) at 613-755-1111. Ticketmaster may also be accessed through the NACs website at www.nac-cna.ca. Subscriptions are also still available by calling the Subscription Office at 613-947-7000, ext. 620.

Half-price tickets for students in all sections of the hall are on sale in person at the NAC Box Office upon presentation of a valid student ID card. Same-day Live Rush tickets (subject to availability) for full-time students (aged 13 to 29) are $10 at the NAC Box Office between 14:00 and 18:00 on the day of performance only, upon presentation of a valid Live Rush card.

Groups of 10 and more save 15% to 20% off the regular price of tickets to NAC Music, Theatre and Dance performances. To reserve your seats call 613-947-7000 ext. 384 or email grp@nac-cna.ca.

Labels: , , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:52 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

3rd Annual Montreal Sketch Comedy Festival - May 20-25, 2008

Join us for a third year of sketch comedy featuring groups from:
Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, New York, Toronto and New Zealand!

Shows Nightly @ 8pm, All Tickets $12.

For More Information Contact Eric: Theatre Ste-Catherine 264 Ste. Catherine E. (514) 284 3939

*****
The 2008 Montreal Sketch Festival Schedule

TUESDAY - Opening Night Short Films and Special Event @ 8pm
BAD PUBLICITY - Rodney Ramsey (MONTREAL)
ADAM SUSSER (MONTREAL)
SOFT AND MANLY (CALGARY)
BOOYA PICTURES (MONTREAL)
DDP (TORONTO)
SEAN DWEN (NEW ZEALAND)

WEDNESDAY - Best of Montreal Sketch @ 8pm
TERENCE BOWMAN (MONTREAL)
UNCALLED FOR (MONTREAL)
VANGUARD PRODUCTIONS (MONTREAL)

THURSDAY - Best of Montreal Sketch @ 8pm
LAUGHBAG (MONTREAL)
BEST FRIENDS CLUB (MONTREAL)
THE GREAT ROBOT INVASION (MONTREAL)

FRIDAY - Best of Toronto Sketch @ 8pm
MORBIO (TORONTO)
FRENZY (TORONTO)
PRESS, RELEASE, REPEAT. (TORONTO)
ACCIDENTAL COMPANY (TORONTO)
7 MINUTES IN HEAVEN (TORONTO)

SATURDAY - Best of the Rest @ 8pm
BLEAK (NEW YORK)
JON LAJOIE (MONTREAL)
SOFT AND MANLY (CALGARY)
THE BOOM (TORONTO)

SUNDAY - Celebrity Improv @ 8pm
THE BEST OF THE FEST IN AN IMPROV CHALLENGE!
--
The Montreal Sketch Comedy Festival
www.montrealsketchfest.com
www.theatrestecatherine.com

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:17 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Spectacle "Sweet Factory" le 30 mai

Parc des Princes
5293 avenue du Parc

Montral, le 1er mai - Sous la bannire du projet de musique lectronique Ne, Ingried Boussaroque prsente son nouveau spectacle multidisciplinaire "Sweet Factory". Le quatrime de cette srie de 6 8 aura lieu vendredi le 30 mai au bistro Le Parc des Princes, 5293 avenue du Parc.

Mme Boussaroque compose et interprte les pices du spectacle "Sweet Factory". Le 30 mai, elle sera accompagne par la danseuse contemporaine Grace Kozah et par le compositeur et musicien Grgoire Jeay, alias Rooj.

Ingried Boussaroque se produit comme chanteuse et musicienne sur la scne montralaise depuis bien des annes. Elle dirige entre autre l'ensemble de musique mdivale Les Jongleurs de la Mandragore.

Elle a tudi le chant en France et en Allemagne, mais a aussi t en Serbie apprendre la musique gitane, s'est perfectionne en technique de chant flamenco, grgorien, gorgien et participe rgulirement au festival Klez Kanada pour la chanson yiddish.

Toutes ces influences et une prdilection pour la musique lectronique ont amen Mme Boussaroque dmarrer le projet Ne. Celui-ci est prsentement subventionn par une bourse Jeune Volontaire. "Sweet Factory" est le premier spectacle du projet Ne.

Il s'agit d'un quatrime rendez-vous pour dcouvrir la musique de Ne. Laissez-vous transporter dans l'univers de la Sweet Factory le vendredi 30 mai 18h, au Parc des Princes, 5293 du Parc. Le prix d'entre est de 4$. Pour plus d'information, on peut se rfrer au site web du projet : www.theneaproject.com ou www.myspace.com/theneaproject.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 5:27 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

The Festival criss-crosses the continentĶall the way to Mexico!



Le Festival International de Jazz de Montral

Montreal, Thursday, May 1, 2008 First, ParisĶ then Mexico! In an unprecedented promotional coup, the Festival International de Jazz de Montral opened a global press tour in Paris this past March, held a series of press conferences in major American markets, and completed its cross-continental sweep with a first-ever stop in the Mexican capital. Last night, the Festival not only hosted a press conference with Mexico's major media outlets, but also presented a concert by one of our musical ambassadresses, Susie Arioli, which was broadcast live by Mexican radio's Horizonte.

For this important promotional tour, the world's largest Festival was represented by senior director of media relations, MarieEve Boisvert, artistic director and co-founder Andr Mnard on the east coast, and vice-president of programming Laurent Saulnier on the west coast. These latter two Festival ambassadors met journalists from Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Boston, Chicago and Miami, promoting the city of Montreal and its preeminent Festival, as well as jazz and its related musics, and our own local artists. The promotional tour wound up in Mexico City with a press conference addressing the issue of facilitating cross-border traffic for our musicians and artists. This effort followed on the heels by visiting the Toronto and London media and even treated journalists from Paris to a concert from Susie Arioli accompanied by Ghislain Poirier, as part of the Bose Blue Note Festival.

It is important to underline the efforts of Normand Paquette, consultant for tourism development and promotion, and Hugo Leclerc for international and travel media relations, as well as the press and publicity agencies which represent the Festival in their respective cities.

Start with a team this impressivethen add in the considerable media potential generated by brilliant names on this year's Festival marquee, from Leonard Cohen and Woody Allen to Aretha Franklin, James Taylor, Steely Dan and Return To Forever; as well as the burgeoning popularity of the Montreal Musical Instrument Show (SIMM) and the Montreal Guitar Show (SGM)and it's small wonder the tour was so warmly received, as is made clear by a slew of articles in North America's major newspapers. All this can only generate positive spinoffs and superb media coverage for Montreal. In fact, we can easily forecast a significant increase in the number of accredited journalists flocking here from the four corners of the globe this summer, a genuine coup for Montreal when it must rely more than ever on major events to consolidate its position as the City of Festivals.

These press initiatives are accompanied by a publicity campaign that enhances the Festival's tourist trade, attracting the multitude of foreign tourists who pump an annual $100 million into our economy. On that note, Festival organizers thank Canada Economic Development, the ministre du Tourisme, the ministre des Affaires municipales et des Rgions and Tourisme Montral, whose support made such a promotional tour possible.

The complete indoor program of this 29h edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montral will be unveiled on May 6. The program of free outdoor concerts will be released on June 3. To stay in tune with all the necessary info, please visit montrealjazzfest.com

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 3:16 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Festival MMM- Des Musiques et du Monde (Laurats des Prix MMM / toiles Galaxie)


LE PRIX MMM/TOILES GALAXIE 2008
FESTIVAL MMM - DES MUSIQUES ET DU MONDE
Deux laurats se partagent le prix


Le PRIX MMM/TOILES GALAXIE de Radio-Canada a t dcern Celso Machado (Vancouver) et Small World Project (Montral) dans le cadre du 18e Festival MMM - Des Musiques ET du Monde.

Le jury, form de quatre personnes issues du milieu des arts de la scne, a dcern le prix Celso Machado (Rvlation 2008 pour lest du pays) et Small World Project (Groupe des plus prometteur) pour la qualit et loriginalit de leur cration, leur potentiel indniable et leur contribution au rpertoire.

CELSO MACHADO (Rvlation pour lest du pays)
Compositeur, guitariste virtuose, percussionniste et musicien prolifique, Celso Machado est une cole de samba brsilienne lui seul. Sa contagieuse joie de vivre font de lui un excellent communicateur dautant plus quil sexprime en cinq langues; franais, anglais, portugais, espagnol et italien. Assister lun de ses spectacles, cest simprgner de lesprit et de la richesse musicale du Brsil avec la diversit des styles; samba, chro, baio, frvo, quil conjugue avec finesse aux beauts musicales de toute la plante. Reconnu dans lOuest du pays mais mconnu de lEst, Celso Machado compte plusieurs albums solo, dont Jogo da vida, son plus rcent, paru en juillet 2007.

SMALL WORLD PROJECT (Groupe des plus prometteur)
Puisant son inspiration aux quatre coins du globe, la musique du Small World Project vibre aux rythmes de la samba brsilienne, du folklore chilien, du flamenco andalou, des airs des les dHawa, des musiques du Maroc, du Sngal et de lIndeĶ et mme au rythme du bluegrass amricain. Constitue en majeure partie des compositions de son leader Sbastien Dufour, la musique du Small World Project favorise le dcloisonnement des styles en intgrant travers les uvres des lments provenant aussi bien de la tradition pure, que du classique ou du jazz.

Galaxie, le rseau de musique continue de Radio-Canada, innove en matire de dveloppement et de promotion des nouveaux artistes dici. Accompagn dune bourse de 1 000 $, ce programme rcompense le talent dun crateur dont la proposition artistique repose sur la qualit, laudace et loriginalit. ce jour, plus de 650 artistes et groupes ont bnfici du programme Prix toiles Galaxie de Radio-Canada.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 2:27 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

News Release - Janet Cardiff's Forty-Part Motet to be featured at Stratford Summer Music 2008

Stratford, Ont - Forty-Part Motet, a sublime interweaving of ancient music, cutting-edge modern technology and artistic sensibility, will be the centerpiece of the eighth season of Stratford Summer Music.

Created by Canadian artist Janet Cardiff as a sculptural reworking of Thomas Tallis 1575 choral work Spem in Alium, this sculpturally-conceived sound piece has been lauded by international audiences at Londons Tate Museum, New Yorks Museum of Modern Art and Ottawas National Gallery of Canada.

Forty-Part Motet will be presented daily during Stratford Summer Music at half-hour intervals from 10am to 4:30pm in the downtown City Hall Auditorium, July 22 to August 17, 2008. Admission is by donation.

In this installation, each of the 40 choir voices has been recorded separately and now is played back through one of 40 speakers placed as a circle of sound around the auditorium. Listeners inside the circle can approach each of the singers individually or, by standing in the middle of the room, hear all of them together.

As Ms. Cardiff explains: Most people would experience this music in their living room in front of only two speakers, so the spatial construction is lost in the mix. Even in a live concert, the audience is separated from the individual voices. Only the performers are able to hear the person standing next to them singing a different harmony. I wanted to be able to climb inside the music, connecting with the separate voices. I am also interested in how sound may construct a space in a sculptural way and how the audience may choose a path through this physical yet virtual space.

Forty-Part Motet was originally commissioned by the Salisbury Festival and performed by the Salisbury Cathedral Choir in 2001. Thomas Tallis, one of the most influential British composers of the 16th century, wrote Spem in Alium to mark the 40th birthday of Queen Elizabeth I. The music, composed for eight choirs of five voices each, deals with transcendence and humility, two important issues to a Catholic composer during a time when his faith was suppressed by the state.

Janet Cardiff, who was born in Brussels, Ontario, not far from Stratford, is best known for her numerous audio works and films, often created in collaboration with her partner George Bures Miller. She has gained international recognition for her audio and video Walks in which visitors, while listening to a CD walkman or watching the screen of a camcorder, follow the artists directions through a site, and become involved in stories embedded in Cardiffs recorded instructions and suggestions.

This tour of Forty-Part Motet is organized by the National Gallery of Canada. When it is not on tour, the work is usually displayed in the Gallerys restored Rideau Chapel in Ottawa.

Stratford Summer Music runs from July 21 to August 17.

Complete concert information at www.stratfordsummermusic.ca. All other tickets: 1-800-567-1600.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 12:51 PM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Politiquement incorrect


Lundi le 7 avril 2008 - Le Thtre le Patriote prsentera le vendredi 6 juin 2008 20h00 un spectacle du spcialiste en motivation Jean-Marc Chaput Politiquement incorrect au profit de la Fondation mdicale des Laurentides et des Pays-den-Haut.


Jean-Marc Chaput, maintenant g de 77 ans, aborde sa faon divers thmes de la socit en ne ratant pas l'occasion de dnoncer un certain conformisme. Il parle notamment de son aversion pour certaines tendances et mots populaires utiliss toutes les sauces, comme quilibr ou structure, et relve des inepties de politiciens.


M. Chaput estime que les Qubcois ne doivent pas hsiter prendre des risques. Selon lui, la vie, c'est faire sa propre rvolution. Jean-Marc Chaput a vendu plus de 50 000 billets de son dernier spectacle-confrence, l'affiche depuis l'automne 2003.


Le gros bon sens triomph Pierre O. Nadeau Journal de Qubec, Motivant et rafraichissant Gino Chouinard Salut Bonjour Week-End, Son spectacle est une sonnette dalarme Louise Maude Rioux Soucis Le Devoir !

Vous pouvez vous procurer des billets aux prix suivants : Section Or : 50,00 $, Section Argent : 30,00 $, Section Bronze : 25,00 $. Vous pouvez utiliser les modalits de paiement suivantes afin dacclrer la rservation de vos billets. (Visa et Mastercard). Rservez ds maintenant : Thtre le Patriote : (819) 326-3655 / Fondation mdicale : (819) 323-4565

Bon spectacle tous et merci de soutenir votre Fondation !

Labels:

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 11:43 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Angle Dubeau & La Piet en concert Montral

Montral, 1er mai 2008. peine de retour dune tourne qui a conduit lensemble a travers tout le Canada, au Mexique, au Guatemala et aux tats-Unis, Angle Dubeau & La Piet donnera un dernier concert Montral en clture de la tourne qui a soulign le 10e anniversaire de lensemble. Les spectateurs des concerts, tant ici qu ltranger, ont rserv un accueil extraordinaire ce programme qui est peut-tre le plus beau de leur carrire ! Les salles ont t remplies, le public enthousiaste comme jamais et jestime que plus de 50 000 personnes en Amrique ont apprci la virtuosit des musiciennes a dclar Mario Labb, prsident dANALEKTA qui a produit la tourne.

Partout les critiques ont salu les performances : Rigoureusement festifĶ Une vraie partie de plaisir. selon Richard Boisvert du journal Le Soleil de Qubec tandis que le journaliste mexicain Ricardo Solis crit : Cest la passion et lallgresse dAngle Dubeau et La Piet qui nous ont sduit lors de ce concert . Le programme de ce concert de Montral est compos entre autres de pices de Camille SAINT-SANS, Jean FRANAIX, Manuel DE FALLA, Astor PIAZZOLLA, Ennio MORRICONE, Aram KHACHATURIAN, Simon LECLERC, Linda BOUCHARD.

Rappelons quANALEKTA clbre la 10e saison dAngle Dubeau & La Piet en ditant Un conte de Fes, un disque somptueux qui est une vocation inspire par le monde magique des contes de fes. Certaines des pices enregistres ont t spcialement crites, ou arranges, pour Angle Dubeau et son ensemble. Tirant leur origine de mythes trs anciens, les contes de fes ont inspir depuis des sicles et inspirent encore aujourdhui un grand nombre de compositeurs, envotant toujours notre imaginaire musical. Ce disque, vendu plus de 25 000 copies, trne toujours au sommet des ventes de musique classique au Canada.

Concert de clture de la tourne 10e anniversaire
Angle Dubeau & La Piet
Le 8 mai 2008 au Monument National 20 h
(1182 boul. Saint-Laurent, Montral)

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 10:03 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

I Musici de Montral saison 2008-2009

Communiqu - Press release

Saison 2008-2009

25e anniversaire

de l'Orchetre de chambre

I Musici de Montral

Montral, le 1 mai 2008 Fantaisiste et ludique, la 25e saison des Musici se drape de couleurs clatantes et daudacieuses dcouvertes : Les bufs envahissent Paris! en collaboration avec le Festival MONTRAL EN LUMIRE et Les Inestimables chroniques du bon gant Gargantua du compositeur Jean Franaix. Au cours de cette saison 2008-2009, les mlomanes pourront apprcier des premires mondiales, des nouvelles crations de Paul Desenne, de Vania Angelova et dEgberto Gismonti. Pour cette saison festive, le chef dorchestre, Yuli Turovsky, souligne dagrable faon lenthousiasme de son auditoire : au public de programmer la soire du concert du 7 mai 2009! Participez cette saison commmorative et votez pour votre uvre favorite en prvision de La dmocratie au travail, un concert de clture irrsistible pour la srie Centre-ville.

Abonnement 2008-2009
Participez aux clbrations du 25e anniversaire de lOrchestre de chambre I Musici de Montral. Abonnez-vous la saison 2008-2009 ds aujourdhui et profitez de nombreux privilges. Joignez-vous la grande famille des Musici et recevez en cadeau un disque de lOrchestre de chambre I Musici de Montral enregistr sous la direction de Yuli Turovsky. Abonnez-vous et courez la chance de gagner une longue fin de semaine New York.

Pour de plus amples renseignements visiter le www.imusici.com .

Vous pouvez aussi nous contacter directement par courriel info@imusici.com ou par tlphone 514 982.6038

- 30 -


2008-2009 Season

25th Anniversary

Orchestre de chambre

I Musici de Montral

Montral, May 1 , 2008 With fantasy and playfulness, color and audacity, the 25th season of I Musici de Montral will see: Oxen invade Paris! in collaboration with the MONTRAL HIGH LIGHTS Festival and the Incredible Chronicles of the Good Giant Gargantua by Jean Franaix. During the 2008-2009 season, music lovers will hear world premires of new works by Paul Desenne, Vania Angelova and Egberto Gismonti. And to pay an enthusiastic homage to concert goers, Yuli Turovsky will ask the public to program the May 7 concert in 2009 themselves! Participate in this commemorative season and vote for your favorite work and contribute to Democracy at Work, the irresistible final concert of the Downtown series.

Subscriptions 2008-2009
Participate in the celebrations of the 25th Anniversary of lOrchestre de chambre I Musici de Montral. Subscribe to the 2008-2009 season starting today and enjoy several privileges. Join the I Musici family and receive a free CD of the orchestra recorded under the direction of Yuli Turovsky. Subscribe and have a chance to win a long weekend in New York.

For further informations please visit us at www.imusici.com

You can also contact us directly at info@imusici.com or by phone at 514 982.6038.


- 30 -
Partenaires de la Saison - Season Partners
Si vous avez de la difficult visualiser, visionner ce courriel dans votre fureteur.
Vous n'tes plus intress ? Dsabonnez-vous l'instant.
Ce courriel a t propuls par l'outil de marketing relationnel mem.ca.

Labels: ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 9:36 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post

Clavecin en concert

Luc Beausjour, directeur artistique
En collaboration avec Espace Musique de Radio-Canada
Prsente

La musique du bonheur, le malheur de Lucrezia

Avec
Martha Guth, soprano
Matthew Jennejohn, cornet et flte bec
Amanda Keesmaat, violoncelle
Sylvain Bergeron, thorbe et guitare baroque
Luc Beausjour, clavecin et orgue

Le vendredi 23 mai, 20 h
 la chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours,
400, rue Saint-Paul Est, Vieux-Montral.
Prix des billets : 28 $ (tarif rgulier) et 10 $ (tudiants, temps plein, 25 ans et moins)
Renseignements et rservations : 514-748-8625 ou www.clavecinenconcert.org


Montral, le 29 avril 2008 Clavecin en concert vous invite venir entendre de la musique italienne baroque et Lucrezia, une cantate compose par Handel alors qu'il sjournait en Italie. Les principales uvres vocales du concert (Lamento, Lucrezia) revtent des couleurs sombres tandis que la musique instrumentale traduit, la plupart du temps, la joie et le bonheur.

Parmi les interprtes invits, soulignons la venue de la soprano Martha Guth (nationalits canadienne et amricaine) qui a remport, en septembre 2007, le Premier Prix du prestigieux Wigmore Hall/Kohn Foundation International Song Competition Londres. Tous les spcialistes reconnaissent chez Martha Guth un trs grand contrle de la voix de mme qu'une puret absolue du timbre.

Lors du concert, vous entendrez le cornet bouquin, un instrument assez rarement jou sur les scnes montralaises. Il s'agit d'un instrument en bois, perc de trous, dont l'embouchure - galement en bois - s'apparente celle de la trompette, d'o son appartenance la famille des cuivres. Matthew Jennejohn, pour qui cet instrument n'a aucun secret, nous fera partager son art.

Programme du concert

Girolamo Dalla Casa
Frais et gaillard (sur la chanson de Thomas Crecquillon) pour cornet et basse continue
Andrea Gabrieli
Canzona francese (sur la chanson Pour un Plaisir)
Giovanni Battista Fontana
Sonate no 2 pour flte bec et basse continue
Tarquino Merula
Aria di Ciaconna Su la cetra amorosa pour soprano, cornetto et basse continue
Girolamo Frescobaldi
Canzon prima pour canto, basso et basse continue
Dario Castello
Sesta Sonata pour cornet, violoncelle, et basse continue
Giovanni Battista Bovicelli - G.P. Palestrina
Io son ferito, cornet muet et basse
Barbara Strozzi
Lamento Lagrime mie, a che vi trattenete pour soprano et basse continue
-------------------
Giovanni Picchi
Canzon Seconda pour cornet, violoncelle et basse continue (Venise 1625)
Bernardo Pasquini
Toccata (clavecin)
Canzone francese (clavecin)
Domenico Zipoli
Pastorale (orgue)
George Frideric Handel
Cantate Lucrezia pour soprano et basse continue, HWV 145


Clavecin en concert remercie le Conseil des arts et des lettres du Qubec,
le Conseil des Arts du Canada et le Conseil des arts de Montral pour leur soutien.
Clavecin en concert est membre du Conseil qubcois de la musique.

Labels: , ,

posted by Wah Keung Chan at 8:38 AM | 0 Comments Links to this post