2010: The Concert announces hosts for Celebration of Culture

Winnipeg, MB ’Äì December 12, 2009 ’ÄìWinnipeg Symphony Orchestra (WSO), Winnipeg Cultural Capital of Canada 2010, and Manitoba Homecoming 2010 are pleased to announce that Monique LaCoste and Wab Kinew will be the hosts for 2010: The Concert. The event, which was announced earlier, will feature a diverse and impressive array of seventeen performances that will dazzle and awe the audience!

Bios on the hosts and featured guest artists are detailed below:

Hosts:

Monique LaCoste: A seasoned TV and radio host, Monique LaCoste is best known for her many years with Radio-Canada Manitoba. Fluently bilingual, this veteran voice over artist and Master of Ceremonies has lent her voice to hundreds of commercials, documentaries, and corporate projects worldwide. In February, she will realize her Olympic dream by taking part in the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, as an announcer for the team welcome ceremonies as well as the curling venue.

Wab Kinew: Wab Kinew (pron: WOB ka-NOO) is a one-of-a-kind musical talent, becoming one of the artists ’Äúto watch for’Äù emerging from the Prairie Provinces. He is a hip-hop artist and CBC radio producer/host based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Wab exemplifies what it means to be multicultural in Canada today, holding both a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and training in the traditional Medicine ways of his Anishinaabe people.

Guest Artists:

Monica Huisman: Touted as the ’Äònext great voice on the Canadian Opera scene exuding dramatic flair with a resonant voice as rich as melted chocolate’Äô (Winnipeg Free Press), lyric soprano Monica Huisman has already made her mark in the musical world. Born and raised in Winnipeg, Ms. Huisman received her operatic training at the University of Toronto in the studio of Mary Morrison. Ms. Huisman continued on to the International Opera Centre of the Netherlands, where she made her European debut at the famous Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. She has sung with Pacific Opera Victoria, Vancouver Opera, Edmonton and Calgary Opera and Opera Hamilton and, of course, Manitoba Opera.

School of Contemporary Dancers: is recognized as a leading national centre for professional contemporary dance training in Canada whose mandate is to prepare students for careers in contemporary dance performance. The Professional Program of The School of Contemporary Dancers is a four-year professional training program for dancers seeking a career in contemporary dance performance. The Fourth-Year of the Program is a special bridging year from the professional student to the professional emerging artist level. Fourth-Year dancers are given opportunities to connect with the professional community and to undertake professional projects. The School of Contemporary Dancers is co-directed by Odette Heyn-Penner and Faye Thomson.

Steve Bell: Singer, song writer, story teller, Steve Bell’Äôs music offers an astonishing combination of familiar and fresh, provocative and comforting, exuberant and reflective, salty and sweet. Immediately attractive, it rewards repeated listening: the genuine beauty on the surface gives away to treasures in the depths. In a normal year of touring, Steve Bell performs about one hundred concerts. Steve’Äôs concerts feature his award winning songwriting and evocative tenor vocals, as well as his scintillating finger style acoustic guitar artistry and his captivating story telling.

D.Rangers: From where else but Winnipeg could come an operation like the D.Rangers? Their brand of music is simultaneously dangerous-as-hell and brilliantly inventive. Blending bluegrass, western swing, punk rock, and just about anything else, the D.Rangers are one of a kind. Described as ’Äúmutant bluegrass,’Äù un-country, and ’Äúarm-swinging hillbilly-stomp,’Äù their live shows are an engaging mix of originals, traditional classics and off-the-wall covers.

Fred Penner: At a recent keynote address to an early childhood education conference, acclaimed family entertainer, singer/songwriter, composer, actor, writer, author, TV host and keynote speaker Fred Penner delivered a simple, yet powerful message. "Never underestimate your ability to make a difference in the life of a child." A gentle giant with kind eyes and an undeniable ability to make you feel good about yourself, this musical master brings 25 years of commitment, consistency and depth to a career that skillfully blends the many genres of performing and communication. Dubbed "Mr. Multi-Media" by Billboard Magazine, his diverse repertoire includes a prolific 12 Children’Äôs albums and countless energetically packed live shows for throngs of eager audiences across North America.

Fubuki Daiko: Audiences everywhere are energized by Fubuki Daiko's (Blizzard Drums) high-powered style of Japanese drumming. The group's North American roots push the envelope of tradition to create a truly eclectic experience that is part martial arts, part meditation and all rhythm. For Hiroshi Koshiyama, Naomi Guilbert, and Bruce Robertson, taiko is not just a performance art form but a way of life. Performing, training, and teaching year-round, each member has over ten years of taiko experience including four years of traditional Japanese apprenticeship under the watchful and highly critical eye of Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka, founder of the San Francisco Taiko Dojo and the father of North American taiko. After performing at Carnegie Hall and leaving with their Sensei's blessing, the three core members relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba where they expanded into the five member professional touring ensemble that is Fubuki Daiko. The group has since gone on to electrify audiences in festivals, rodeos, bars, temples, schools, legions, hockey arenas, land fills and concert halls from San Francisco to Prince Edward Island with their innovative brand of taiko.

Camerata Nova: Camerata Nova was founded in Winnipeg in 1996 as a choral ensemble dedicated to the exploration and performance of a cappella Renaissance music. As the group has evolved, it has branched out well beyond this period to medieval and early Baroque works as well as 20th-century repertoire, including compositions by Andrew Balfour, the group’Äôs Artistic Director. Camerata Nova takes an increasingly innovative approach to performance, experimenting with unusual venues and exploring the use of unconventional sounds, including throat and overtone singing, and instruments such as crystal bowls, sackbut, and didgeridoo, in contemporary compositions and in arrangements of traditional works.

Sierra Noble: Best known as a fiddle virtuoso who breezes through Celtic, Bluegrass, Jazz, World beat and other styles of music with stunning ease, Sierra's breadth of experience is impressive. Her talent has taken her around the world where she has visited countries in Asia, Europe and North America. She amazes audiences with compelling contemporary performances which feature exceptional instrumentals, beautiful innovative vocals, and her infectious down to earth charm. Sierra dedicates much of her time to various causes, from her involvement with the global fight to ban landmines, her work with welcoming war-affected refugee families to Canada, as well as programs for inner-city youth in Winnipeg, all in an effort to make the world a better place.

Anna-Lisa Kirby: Before moving to Winnipeg in 2003, Anna-Lisa Kirby established her professional career as a jazz vocalist in New York City. She has had the privilege of sharing the stage with many world-class jazz artists. Some of these include Steve Kirby, Wynton Marsalis, Cyrus Chestnut, Ted Nash, Stefon Harris and Xavier Davis. Anna-Lisa is featured on the Larry Roy and Steve Kirby 2008 CD-release Wicked Grin and is the vocalist for Steve Kirby’Äôs acclaimed Oceanic Jazz Orchestra.

Steve Kirby’Äôs career as a jazz musician spans over 25 years of performance collaboration with many of the finest artists in the field, both in North America and abroad. Throughout these years, his role as an educator has been a fundamental and vital part of his commitment to music. Steve has performed extensively and recorded with some of the most high profile jazz artists on the scene today. He spent two years as bassist for Elvin Jones and Jazz Machine and four years with Cyrus Chestnut Trio. He is the bass player on two of Mr. Chestnuts Atlantic Recordings: the critically acclaimed Dark Before the Dawn and Earth Stories. He has also performed in club and/or concert hall settings with Wynton Marsalis and Jazz @ Lincoln Center, opera star Kathleen Battle, legendary Jazz vocalist Abbey Lincoln, Jazz violinist Regina Carter and The Joanne Brackeen Trio featuring Horatio "El Negro" Hernandez. In the summer of 2003, Steve Kirby accepted the position as the Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Manitoba. Since then, Steve has overseen a full-fledged rejuvenation of the jazz scene in Winnipeg.

Momentum Aerial: Momentum is comprised of performers who share a background of dance, gymnastics, and the aerial arts. The performance group is dedicated to bringing dance, acrobatics, and the circus arts of aerial fabric, hoop, and trapeze together in the spirit of exploration to create exciting new works for Winnipeg audiences in both indoor and outdoor venues. Troupe members have studied and performed across Canada, the United States and Europe. Locally, members have performed during the 1999 Pan Am Games, The Festival of the Arts at The Forks, The Festival of Trees & Lights at The Winnipeg Convention Centre, The MTS Opening, The Junos held at MTS Centre, and various school and sporting events throughout Winnipeg.

Rusalka Ukrainian Dance Ensemble: For nearly half a century Rusalka has been capturing the imagination of audiences around the world with its often fiery, always colourful presentation of Ukrainian dance. Tours of North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia, combined with performances for heads of state, religious figures and royalty, have placed Rusalka among the most widely recognized Ukrainian dance groups in the world. The Ensemble embarks on a new era as it begins preparing for its 50th Anniversary in 2012 under the Artistic Directorship of Marijka Stanowych, a former Rusalka dancer/instructor and professional Ballet teacher with Canada’Äôs Royal Winnipeg Ballet Schools, who studied at the Choreographic School of the Ukrainian Folk Dance Ensemble named after Pavlo Virsky. Deep within each dancer burns a passion to showcase the power and beauty of Ukrainian dance and they are eager to enchant audiences with the experience that is, Rusalka!

James Keelaghan: "I love touching people with my music as a performer," James Keelaghan says. "Putting a song across so that people get inside the story. I love the immediacy of it, the feedback.’Äù James is one of Canada's greatest songwriters, and he's written songs recorded by the likes of Cry,Cry,Cry. But he can sing too, you know. Like, really sing. In a resonant baritone voice that has been called everything from sweet and smooth, to coffee-rich, to glorious. "Keelaghan's voice is so easy to listen to that the thorns in his lyrics can catch the listeners unawares," comments Dirty Linen. "I am not just a pen," James points out wryly. "I am a voice as well."

Daniel ROA: Daniel ROA = francophone pop with a worldly twist and a unique blend of socially aware, witty and intelligent lyrics, touching matters of the heart and of everyday life. Daniel ROA's fiery musical universe is rich in flavor, overflowing with humor, candor and intelligence. In love with life, song and poetry, Daniel presents an alternative pop woven with original sounds in a style like no other. With an ear consistently attuned to new sounds, and an eye forever gazing on the human condition, the leader of the highly-acclaimed Johnny Cajun performs music that will have you dancing to a Rio swing before exploding into modern pop, with stops from spacious all the way to funky.

Stacey Nattrass: Stacey Nattrass is a versatile vocalist known to musical theatre, jazz and classical audiences alike. In addition to performing with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, she has appeared with the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra, Winnipeg’Äôs Classical Guitar Society, and Winnipeg’Äôs Contemporary Dancers. Stacey’Äôs stage credits include The Full Monty, The Sound of Music, The Wizard Of Oz, Miss Saigon, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Footloose (Rainbow Stage), My Fair Lady (MTC), and Strike!

Royal Winnipeg Ballet: Versatility, technical excellence, and a captivating style are the trademarks of Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet; qualities that have garnered both critical and audience acclaim. These qualities keep the RWB in demand as it presents more than 100 performances every season. Founded in 1939, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet holds the double distinction of being Canada's premier ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America. In 1953, the Company received its royal title, the first granted under the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. In 1958, Arnold Spohr was appointed artistic director, and under his direction, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet grew and developed to take its place among the world's internationally renowned companies.

Eagle & Hawk: One listen to Eagle & Hawk’Äôs distinctive sound and you’Äôll be hooked. By blending inspired vision with musical talent, Eagle & Hawk have created a progressive style of ’Äòrock’Äô steeped in roots, fusion, and solid songwriting that continues to earn fans ’Äì and loads of fanfare ’Äì worldwide. Eagle & Hawk’Äôs music takes the lead in defining the genre of contemporary Indigenous music. Envisioning a sound that fused modern rock with traditional elements, guitarist and bandleader Vince Fontaine founded Eagle & Hawk in 1994. The journey took the band from Winnipeg, Manitoba to stages in European capitals where they blasted onto the scene with a powerful live show. While their effervescent performances won over international and national audiences, their talent and determination quietly garnered respect from fans and critics alike.

Tickets to 2010: The Concert are affordably priced at $20.10 in order to be accessible to all Winnipeggers. The faster you buy tickets the better chance you have at choice seating.

To purchase tickets, please call the WSO Box Office at 949-3999; go to www.wso.ca; call Ticketmaster at 780-3333 or go to www.ticketmaster.ca.

Winnipeg, MB ’Äì December 12, 2009 ’ÄìWinnipeg Symphony Orchestra (WSO), Winnipeg Cultural Capital of Canada 2010, and Manitoba Homecoming 2010 are pleased to announce that Monique LaCoste and Wab Kinew will be the hosts for 2010: The Concert. The event, which was announced earlier, will feature a diverse and impressive array of seventeen performances that will dazzle and awe the audience!

Bios on the hosts and featured guest artists are detailed below:

Hosts:

Monique LaCoste: A seasoned TV and radio host, Monique LaCoste is best known for her many years with Radio-Canada Manitoba. Fluently bilingual, this veteran voice over artist and Master of Ceremonies has lent her voice to hundreds of commercials, documentaries, and corporate projects worldwide. In February, she will realize her Olympic dream by taking part in the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, as an announcer for the team welcome ceremonies as well as the curling venue.

Wab Kinew: Wab Kinew (pron: WOB ka-NOO) is a one-of-a-kind musical talent, becoming one of the artists ’Äúto watch for’Äù emerging from the Prairie Provinces. He is a hip-hop artist and CBC radio producer/host based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Wab exemplifies what it means to be multicultural in Canada today, holding both a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and training in the traditional Medicine ways of his Anishinaabe people.

Guest Artists:

Monica Huisman: Touted as the ’Äònext great voice on the Canadian Opera scene exuding dramatic flair with a resonant voice as rich as melted chocolate’Äô (Winnipeg Free Press), lyric soprano Monica Huisman has already made her mark in the musical world. Born and raised in Winnipeg, Ms. Huisman received her operatic training at the University of Toronto in the studio of Mary Morrison. Ms. Huisman continued on to the International Opera Centre of the Netherlands, where she made her European debut at the famous Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. She has sung with Pacific Opera Victoria, Vancouver Opera, Edmonton and Calgary Opera and Opera Hamilton and, of course, Manitoba Opera.

School of Contemporary Dancers: is recognized as a leading national centre for professional contemporary dance training in Canada whose mandate is to prepare students for careers in contemporary dance performance. The Professional Program of The School of Contemporary Dancers is a four-year professional training program for dancers seeking a career in contemporary dance performance. The Fourth-Year of the Program is a special bridging year from the professional student to the professional emerging artist level. Fourth-Year dancers are given opportunities to connect with the professional community and to undertake professional projects. The School of Contemporary Dancers is co-directed by Odette Heyn-Penner and Faye Thomson.

Steve Bell: Singer, song writer, story teller, Steve Bell’Äôs music offers an astonishing combination of familiar and fresh, provocative and comforting, exuberant and reflective, salty and sweet. Immediately attractive, it rewards repeated listening: the genuine beauty on the surface gives away to treasures in the depths. In a normal year of touring, Steve Bell performs about one hundred concerts. Steve’Äôs concerts feature his award winning songwriting and evocative tenor vocals, as well as his scintillating finger style acoustic guitar artistry and his captivating story telling.

D.Rangers: From where else but Winnipeg could come an operation like the D.Rangers? Their brand of music is simultaneously dangerous-as-hell and brilliantly inventive. Blending bluegrass, western swing, punk rock, and just about anything else, the D.Rangers are one of a kind. Described as ’Äúmutant bluegrass,’Äù un-country, and ’Äúarm-swinging hillbilly-stomp,’Äù their live shows are an engaging mix of originals, traditional classics and off-the-wall covers.

Fred Penner: At a recent keynote address to an early childhood education conference, acclaimed family entertainer, singer/songwriter, composer, actor, writer, author, TV host and keynote speaker Fred Penner delivered a simple, yet powerful message. "Never underestimate your ability to make a difference in the life of a child." A gentle giant with kind eyes and an undeniable ability to make you feel good about yourself, this musical master brings 25 years of commitment, consistency and depth to a career that skillfully blends the many genres of performing and communication. Dubbed "Mr. Multi-Media" by Billboard Magazine, his diverse repertoire includes a prolific 12 Children’Äôs albums and countless energetically packed live shows for throngs of eager audiences across North America.

Fubuki Daiko: Audiences everywhere are energized by Fubuki Daiko's (Blizzard Drums) high-powered style of Japanese drumming. The group's North American roots push the envelope of tradition to create a truly eclectic experience that is part martial arts, part meditation and all rhythm. For Hiroshi Koshiyama, Naomi Guilbert, and Bruce Robertson, taiko is not just a performance art form but a way of life. Performing, training, and teaching year-round, each member has over ten years of taiko experience including four years of traditional Japanese apprenticeship under the watchful and highly critical eye of Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka, founder of the San Francisco Taiko Dojo and the father of North American taiko. After performing at Carnegie Hall and leaving with their Sensei's blessing, the three core members relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba where they expanded into the five member professional touring ensemble that is Fubuki Daiko. The group has since gone on to electrify audiences in festivals, rodeos, bars, temples, schools, legions, hockey arenas, land fills and concert halls from San Francisco to Prince Edward Island with their innovative brand of taiko.

Camerata Nova: Camerata Nova was founded in Winnipeg in 1996 as a choral ensemble dedicated to the exploration and performance of a cappella Renaissance music. As the group has evolved, it has branched out well beyond this period to medieval and early Baroque works as well as 20th-century repertoire, including compositions by Andrew Balfour, the group’Äôs Artistic Director. Camerata Nova takes an increasingly innovative approach to performance, experimenting with unusual venues and exploring the use of unconventional sounds, including throat and overtone singing, and instruments such as crystal bowls, sackbut, and didgeridoo, in contemporary compositions and in arrangements of traditional works.

Sierra Noble: Best known as a fiddle virtuoso who breezes through Celtic, Bluegrass, Jazz, World beat and other styles of music with stunning ease, Sierra's breadth of experience is impressive. Her talent has taken her around the world where she has visited countries in Asia, Europe and North America. She amazes audiences with compelling contemporary performances which feature exceptional instrumentals, beautiful innovative vocals, and her infectious down to earth charm. Sierra dedicates much of her time to various causes, from her involvement with the global fight to ban landmines, her work with welcoming war-affected refugee families to Canada, as well as programs for inner-city youth in Winnipeg, all in an effort to make the world a better place.

Anna-Lisa Kirby: Before moving to Winnipeg in 2003, Anna-Lisa Kirby established her professional career as a jazz vocalist in New York City. She has had the privilege of sharing the stage with many world-class jazz artists. Some of these include Steve Kirby, Wynton Marsalis, Cyrus Chestnut, Ted Nash, Stefon Harris and Xavier Davis. Anna-Lisa is featured on the Larry Roy and Steve Kirby 2008 CD-release Wicked Grin and is the vocalist for Steve Kirby’Äôs acclaimed Oceanic Jazz Orchestra.

Steve Kirby’Äôs career as a jazz musician spans over 25 years of performance collaboration with many of the finest artists in the field, both in North America and abroad. Throughout these years, his role as an educator has been a fundamental and vital part of his commitment to music. Steve has performed extensively and recorded with some of the most high profile jazz artists on the scene today. He spent two years as bassist for Elvin Jones and Jazz Machine and four years with Cyrus Chestnut Trio. He is the bass player on two of Mr. Chestnuts Atlantic Recordings: the critically acclaimed Dark Before the Dawn and Earth Stories. He has also performed in club and/or concert hall settings with Wynton Marsalis and Jazz @ Lincoln Center, opera star Kathleen Battle, legendary Jazz vocalist Abbey Lincoln, Jazz violinist Regina Carter and The Joanne Brackeen Trio featuring Horatio "El Negro" Hernandez. In the summer of 2003, Steve Kirby accepted the position as the Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Manitoba. Since then, Steve has overseen a full-fledged rejuvenation of the jazz scene in Winnipeg.

Momentum Aerial: Momentum is comprised of performers who share a background of dance, gymnastics, and the aerial arts. The performance group is dedicated to bringing dance, acrobatics, and the circus arts of aerial fabric, hoop, and trapeze together in the spirit of exploration to create exciting new works for Winnipeg audiences in both indoor and outdoor venues. Troupe members have studied and performed across Canada, the United States and Europe. Locally, members have performed during the 1999 Pan Am Games, The Festival of the Arts at The Forks, The Festival of Trees & Lights at The Winnipeg Convention Centre, The MTS Opening, The Junos held at MTS Centre, and various school and sporting events throughout Winnipeg.

Rusalka Ukrainian Dance Ensemble: For nearly half a century Rusalka has been capturing the imagination of audiences around the world with its often fiery, always colourful presentation of Ukrainian dance. Tours of North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia, combined with performances for heads of state, religious figures and royalty, have placed Rusalka among the most widely recognized Ukrainian dance groups in the world. The Ensemble embarks on a new era as it begins preparing for its 50th Anniversary in 2012 under the Artistic Directorship of Marijka Stanowych, a former Rusalka dancer/instructor and professional Ballet teacher with Canada’Äôs Royal Winnipeg Ballet Schools, who studied at the Choreographic School of the Ukrainian Folk Dance Ensemble named after Pavlo Virsky. Deep within each dancer burns a passion to showcase the power and beauty of Ukrainian dance and they are eager to enchant audiences with the experience that is, Rusalka!

James Keelaghan: "I love touching people with my music as a performer," James Keelaghan says. "Putting a song across so that people get inside the story. I love the immediacy of it, the feedback.’Äù James is one of Canada's greatest songwriters, and he's written songs recorded by the likes of Cry,Cry,Cry. But he can sing too, you know. Like, really sing. In a resonant baritone voice that has been called everything from sweet and smooth, to coffee-rich, to glorious. "Keelaghan's voice is so easy to listen to that the thorns in his lyrics can catch the listeners unawares," comments Dirty Linen. "I am not just a pen," James points out wryly. "I am a voice as well."

Daniel ROA: Daniel ROA = francophone pop with a worldly twist and a unique blend of socially aware, witty and intelligent lyrics, touching matters of the heart and of everyday life. Daniel ROA's fiery musical universe is rich in flavor, overflowing with humor, candor and intelligence. In love with life, song and poetry, Daniel presents an alternative pop woven with original sounds in a style like no other. With an ear consistently attuned to new sounds, and an eye forever gazing on the human condition, the leader of the highly-acclaimed Johnny Cajun performs music that will have you dancing to a Rio swing before exploding into modern pop, with stops from spacious all the way to funky.

Stacey Nattrass: Stacey Nattrass is a versatile vocalist known to musical theatre, jazz and classical audiences alike. In addition to performing with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, she has appeared with the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra, Winnipeg’Äôs Classical Guitar Society, and Winnipeg’Äôs Contemporary Dancers. Stacey’Äôs stage credits include The Full Monty, The Sound of Music, The Wizard Of Oz, Miss Saigon, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Footloose (Rainbow Stage), My Fair Lady (MTC), and Strike!

Royal Winnipeg Ballet: Versatility, technical excellence, and a captivating style are the trademarks of Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet; qualities that have garnered both critical and audience acclaim. These qualities keep the RWB in demand as it presents more than 100 performances every season. Founded in 1939, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet holds the double distinction of being Canada's premier ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America. In 1953, the Company received its royal title, the first granted under the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. In 1958, Arnold Spohr was appointed artistic director, and under his direction, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet grew and developed to take its place among the world's internationally renowned companies.

Eagle & Hawk: One listen to Eagle & Hawk’Äôs distinctive sound and you’Äôll be hooked. By blending inspired vision with musical talent, Eagle & Hawk have created a progressive style of ’Äòrock’Äô steeped in roots, fusion, and solid songwriting that continues to earn fans ’Äì and loads of fanfare ’Äì worldwide. Eagle & Hawk’Äôs music takes the lead in defining the genre of contemporary Indigenous music. Envisioning a sound that fused modern rock with traditional elements, guitarist and bandleader Vince Fontaine founded Eagle & Hawk in 1994. The journey took the band from Winnipeg, Manitoba to stages in European capitals where they blasted onto the scene with a powerful live show. While their effervescent performances won over international and national audiences, their talent and determination quietly garnered respect from fans and critics alike.

Tickets to 2010: The Concert are affordably priced at $20.10 in order to be accessible to all Winnipeggers. The faster you buy tickets the better chance you have at choice seating.

To purchase tickets, please call the WSO Box Office at 949-3999; go to www.wso.ca; call Ticketmaster at 780-3333 or go to www.ticketmaster.ca.