OSM / Free concerts in the Parks

THE OSM IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD!

Three OSM / Loto-Québec Concerts in the Parks hosted by André Robitaille

· Granby, Parc Daniel-Johnson, July 21

· Montreal, Ahuntsic Park, July 23

· Repentigny, Parc de l’île Lebel, July 28

Montreal, July 6, 2009 – The summer season of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal opens on July 21 with the popular free series OSM / Loto-Québec Concerts in the Parks, hosted for a third straight year by André Robitaille. The Orchestra, led by first assistant conductor Stéphane Laforest, will be visiting Granby, Repentigny and Ahuntsic Park in Montreal to perform some of the works audiences love best. After each of the concerts, representatives of the Montreal Planetarium will be on hand for a stargazing session as part of the International Year of Astronomy.

A program for the entire family

The OSM / Loto-Québec Concerts in the Parks are a unique opportunity to take advantage of beautiful summer evenings while enjoying symphonic repertoire in a family setting. And this summer the program is offering a tour of the world in music. The repertoire includes the “Farandole” from Bizet’s L’Arlésienne, the Radetzky March by Johann Strauss and the famous overture to Rossini’s William Tell. Lovers of movie music have not been forgotten, with a movement from the symphonic suite assembled by John Williams from his Star Wars soundtrack figuring in the programming, as well as the “Mambo” from Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story. Stéphane Laforest, first assistant conductor with the OSM, will also conduct Louis Bernier’s Fantaisie sur des airs de Félix Leclerc.

Three free concerts will be offered to the public. The first will take place on July 21 at 7:30 p.m. at Parc Daniel-Johnson in Granby. The concert will mark the OSM’s first visit to this Eastern Townships municipality. The second will be held at Ahuntsic Park in Montreal on July 23 at 7:30 p.m., while the last concert will take place at Parc de l’Île Lebel in Repentigny on July 28 at 7:30 p.m.

The sky’s the show

Four hundred years ago this summer, the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei pointed his refracting telescope at the starry heavens. To call attention to his discoveries, 2009 has been designated the “International Year of Astronomy,” and in association with the Montreal Planetarium each of the three OSM / Loto-Québec Concerts in the Parks will be followed by a free stargazing session. Amateur astronomers will be making a number of telescopes available to the public, allowing them to relive Galileo’s experience when he looked for the first time through his rudimentary apparatus.

A rendezvous not to be missed

Over the years, the OSM / Loto-Québec Concerts in the Parks have become an essential part of the summer season. Begun at the Mount Royal chalet in 1938 by Wilfrid Pelletier, the free open-air concerts remain a wonderful tradition of the OSM’s, faithfully supported by Loto-Québec for a good number of years now. These popular concerts enable our orchestra to forge links with its community. The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal wishes to thank the cities of Montreal, Repentigny and Granby for their invaluable collaboration.

Detailed program of the OSM / Loto-Québec Concerts in the Parks.

Tchaikovsky Capriccio Italien, Op.45

Bizet Excerpt from Carmen

Rossini William Tell Overture

Mascagni Intermezzo from Cavalleria rusticana

Bizet Farandole from L’Arlésienne

Toyama Dance of Celestials from the ballet Yugen

Stéphane Laforest La fête celtique

Bernstein Mambo from West Side Story

Leclerc / Bernier Fantaisie sur des airs de Félix Leclerc

Williams Excerpts from Star Wars

The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal is presented by Hydro-Québec

TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival Announces Free Concert Series

What is better than listening to jazz on a sunny afternoon? Listening to FREE jazz! The TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival goes easy on the wallet this year with an exceptional line-up of free concerts. Look no further than Nathan Phillips Square for the Festival's Lunchtime Concerts presented by Air France and Afterwork Concerts presented by Citytv.

Lunchtime Concert Series 12pm FREE – Mainstage Concert Theatre, Nathan Phillips Square
Saturday, June 27 – John Stetch TV Trio
Sunday, June 28 – Bill McBirnie & The 'Paco Paco' Band
Monday, June 29 – Dave Young Octet
Tuesday, June 30 – Jane Bunnett - Embracing Voices
Wednesday, July 1 – Rob McConnell & The Boss Brass
Thursday, July 2 – Humber College Faculty Big Band directed by Denny Christianson
Friday, July 3 – Kollage
Saturday, July 4 – Jim Galloway Swing Session
Sunday, July 5 – University of Toronto Gospel Choir



Afterwork Concert Series 5pm FREE - Primus Stage, Nathan Phillips Square
Friday, June 26 – Soul Stew
Saturday, June 27 – Dubmatix
Sunday, June 28 – Shakura S'Aida
Monday, June 29 – Jake Wilkinson Quintet
Tuesday, June 30 – Planet Earth
Wednesday, July 1 – Guinness World Record Event / Shuffle Demons
Thursday, July 2 – Robin Nolan Trio
Friday, July 3 – Gypsophilia
Saturday, July 4 – Bomba!
Sunday, July 5 – Five Alarm Funk / TENTEN Quartet (6:30pm)

Grab family and friends and come down to Nathan Phillips Square for concerts that will not break the bank! Whether lunchtime or after work, ride out the recession and enjoy the TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival's Free Concert Series.

Do not forget to check out the Festival's Club Series for some of the hottest (and cheapest) tickets in town! There is no cover charge at venues like The Gladstone Hotel, Whistler's Grille & Café Bar, Chick'N'Deli, Grossman's Tavern, Homesmith Bar at the Old Mill Inn, Tan Café and Quotes Bar & Grill. Ten Feet Tall, Commensal and C'est What offer guests a pay-what-you-can (PWYC) option en lieu of tough economic times. Mere dollars go a long way at this year's TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival, so come out and enjoy all that jazz has to offer!

For more information and complete club and festival listings, visit http://www.torontojazz.com/

Toronto Music Garden celebrates its 10th anniversary season with free concerts and dance performances and two world premieres

This year, the Toronto Music Garden celebrates its 10th anniversary of outstanding free performances in a unique setting, and popular garden tours. Summer Music in the Garden 2009 will see the return of many favourite Music Garden performers from the past 10 seasons, while more than 30 artists will make their Music Garden debut.

From June 28-September 20, Summer Music in the Garden presents 20 free outdoor concerts and dance performances involving more than 90 artists in total. This year's eclectic lineup includes five dance performances, ranging from Korean to Baroque to contemporary. Two dances will be world premieres: one by choreographer Carol Anderson featuring dancer Claudia Moore on Sept. 3, and another by Andrea Nann Dreamwalker Dance Company with multimedia composer Tom Kuo, on Sept. 10.

The concerts take place on Thursday evenings at 7pm and on most Sundays at 4pm. The free tours of the Toronto Music Garden, led by volunteers from the Toronto Botanical Garden, return for another season, taking place on Wednesdays at 11am, June 3-September 30, and on Thursdays before every concert at 5:30pm from July 2-September 10. Admission to the park and all its programming is free.

Both Summer Music in the Garden and the guided tours are produced by Harbourfront Centre in partnership with City of Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation, and with the generous support of Toronto Culture, Margaret & Jim Fleck, George Dembroski, David Graham, Sandra & Jim Pitblado and William & Phyllis Waters. Renowned Canadian composer Ann Southam has generously commissioned the new dance by Carol Anderson to music by J.S. Bach (Sept. 3); Harbourfront Centre has commissioned Leika, by Andrea Nann Dreamwalker Dance Company and multimedia artist Tom Kuo, which receives its world premiere on Sept. 10. Summer Music in the Garden is curated for Harbourfront Centre by Artistic Director Tamara Bernstein.

The Toronto Music Garden is a City of Toronto park, located on the waterfront at 475 Queens Quay West (on the water's edge side), between Bathurst Street and Spadina Avenue. The Garden is wheelchair-accessible and open year-round. For information on the Toronto Music Garden and its current programmes, the public can call Harbourfront Centre, 416-973-4000 or visit harbourfrontcentre.com/torontomusicgarden. For information on other City of Toronto parks and gardens, the public can call 416-338-0338 or visit toronto.ca/parks_gardens.

10TH ANNIVERSARY SUMMER MUSIC IN THE GARDEN SCHEDULE

All concerts are approximately one hour long (except where noted) and take place weather permitting. Concerts are cancelled in the event of inclement weather.

Sunday, June 28, 4pm
Shauna and Friends
Renowned Canadian cellist Shauna Rolston leads six outstanding student cellists from the University of Toronto's Faculty of Music in music by Elgar, Massenet, Kreisler and others, arranged for cello solo, duo, and ensemble. As a prelude, Barbara Croall (cedar flutes and First Nation drum) and Anita McAlister (trumpet and conch shell) perform Croall's Calling from Different Directions, which was composed for the Music Garden in summer 2008. Calling from Different Directions is a short, arresting piece that invokes the four sacred directions, bringing together instruments from different cultural "directions": trumpet, conch shell, traditional cedar flutes and First Nations hand drum.

Thursday, July 2, 7pm
Samulnori!
This exuberant Toronto ensemble returns with traditional Korean drumming and dance—rooted in nature; transplanted to Canada.

Sunday, July 5, 4pm
Orfea and the Golden Harp
Theatre Cotton Robes presents their delightful adaptation of the Orfeo myth for the whole family. A little girl shoulders her golden harp and journeys to the Underworld to bring her beloved grandfather back to life; along the way we hear music from 400 years of opera, including Monteverdi, Mozart and Offenbach. Performed by baritone Lawrence Cotton, soprano Brooke Dufton and pianist Rachad Feizoullaev. (For information about Theatre Cotton Robes, visit www.theatrecottonrobes.com.)

Thursday, July 9, 7pm
Quartets with a Past
The Kirby String Quartet presents four classical works that look back to earlier composers: Beethoven's Quartet Op. 74, Mendelssohn's Capriccio Op. 8, Brahms' Quartet Op. 67, third movement, and Stravinsky's neo-classical Concertino. Aisslinn Nosky and Julia Wedman (violins), Max Mandel (viola), Carina Reeves (cello).

Thursday, July 16, 7pm
Moonlight, Mountains and Flowing Streams: Voices of Ancient China

The China Court Trio performs music from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Wen Zhao, (pipa – Chinese lute), Yongli Xue, (zheng – Chinese zither), Yu Cheng Zhang (bowled clay flute and vertical flute). (For information about Wen Zhao, visit wendyzhao.com.)

Sunday, July 19, 4pm
Does This Drum Make My Brass Sound Big?
The brass and percussion sections of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada return with a delightful, varied programme that showcases outstanding young Canadian musicians. (For information about the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, visit nyoc.org.)

Thursday, July 23, 7pm
Another knock at the door
Toronto's Shiraz Ensemble presents a heady brew of Persian art music and original compositions. Yashar Salek (Daf/Dayereh), Nima Rahmani (Santoor), Saeed Kamjoo (Kamanche), Araz Salek (Tar), Shahin Fayaz (Rabab). A co-presentation with Small World Music.

Sunday, July 26, 4pm
Oiseaux Interurbains/Migratory Songflutes
Alison Melville performs acoustic and electronic music from the 12th to 21st centuries, for various flutes, recorders and recorded sound, including works by Bach, Telemann, Hildegard of Bingen, Jacob van Eyck, Peter Hannan, Linda C. Smith, Ben Grossman and the performer. (For information about Alison Melville, visit alisonmelville.com.)

Thursday, July 30, 7pm
Behind the Masques
The period musicians of Toronto Masque Theatre, with renowned Montreal dancer-choreographer Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière, reveal different faces of baroque dance—courtly, theatrical, grotesque. Lacoursière will also perform several baroque dances reflected in the design of the Music Garden. "[Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière] has set a new standard for historical dance in Toronto."—Robert Everett-Green, reviewing Toronto Masque Theatre in the Globe and Mail, April 25, 2009. (For information about Toronto Masque Theatre, visit torontomasquetheatre.ca.)

Thursday, August 6, 7pm
Strong and Free
True North Brass returns with a programme that will delight and dazzle. Raymond Tizzard and Richard Sandals (trumpets), Joan Watson (French horn), Alastair Kay (trombone) and Scott Irvine (tuba). (For information about True North Brass, visit truenorthbrass.com.)

Sunday, August 9, 4pm
Passage to India
Singer Bageshree Vaze and tabla virtuoso Vineet Viyas perform classical North Indian ragas, along with classically-based songs from early Bollywood. (For information about Bageshree Vaze, visit bageshree.com and for information about Vineet Viyas, visit vineetvyas.com.)

Thursday, August 13, 7pm
Coming out of Hayd'n
The Cecilia String Quartet performs the Quartet in C Major, Op. 74 No. 1, by the "father of the string quartet," Joseph Haydn, and the sparkling, newly discovered String Quartet No. 1 in E-flat Major by French composer Theodore Dubois (1837-1924). Sarah Nematallah and Min-Jeong Koh (violins), Caitlin Boyle (viola) and Rebecca Wenham (cello). (For information about the Cecilia String Quartet, visit ceciliastringquartet.com.)

Sunday, August 16, 4pm
Utopian Voices
In the early baroque, fans of the renaissance cornetto and the newly perfected violin duked it out over which instrument was closest to the human voice. Happily, we don't have to choose when the virtuosi of FOLIA—baroque violinist Linda Melsted and cornettist Kiri Tollaksen—perform glorious music by Castello, Frescobaldi, Gabrieli and others. With Borys Medicky, harpsichord.

Thursday, August 20, 7pm
"My Unrest": Yiddish Songs for a New Day
Grammy-nominated singer Adrienne Cooper (New York) and world-renowned pianist Marilyn Lerner (Toronto) perform music from their new CD: settings of Yiddish modernist poems on love, longing, war and migration by contemporary composers including Sarah Gordon, Frank London, Fima Chorny and the performers. (For information about Marilyn Lerner, visit marilynlerner.com.)

Sunday, August 23, 4pm
Accordions for a Weill
Four virtuoso accordionists—Ina Henning, Eugene Laskiewicz, Joseph Macerollo and Alexander Sevastien—perform a wide-ranging programme of music, from Bach to Piazzola. Mezzo-soprano Ali Garrison joins Henning in songs by Kurt Weill, and accompanies dancer-choreographer Claudia Moore in Moore's touching dance, For Heddy, to the Brecht/Weill song, Nana's Lied. "Heddy was my dear grandma from Germany who loved parties, was a fabulous cook and worked at the Broadway Market in Buffalo. She lived to be 97. Nana's Song makes me think of her and inspired me to make this dance."—Claudia Moore

Thursday, August 27, 7pm
Echoes of Ancient Boundaries
In ancient Japan, village boundaries extended as far as the sound of their taiko drums carried. The thrilling sounds of Toronto's outstanding taiko ensemble Nagata Shachu (formerly known as the Kiyoshi Nagata Ensemble) transcend the boundaries of East and West, past and present. (For information about Nagata Shachu, visit nagatashachu.com.)

Sunday, August 30, 4pm
Percussion from a Suitcase
Find out what happens when a percussionist—the spectacular Aiyun Huang of Montreal—creates a programme for which all the instruments fit into her suitcase! Music by Matthew Burtner, Alvin Lucier, Javier Alvarez, Roberto Sierra, Georges Aperghis and John Adams. (For information about Aiyun Huang, visit aiyunhuang.com.)

Thursday, September 3, 7pm
Bach at Dusk – With Claudia
Winona Zelenka continues her journey through Bach's six suites for solo cello. This summer, she performs the Suite No. 4 in E-flat Major for solo cello; for the last three movements of the piece (Sarabande, Bourree I and II, and Gigue), Ms. Zelenka is joined by dancer Claudia Moore in the world premiere of a new work by choreographer Carol Anderson. The dance has been generously commissioned by renowned Canadian composer Ann Southam.
Please note: This is a 30-minute concert due to early sunset. (For information about Winona Zelenka, visit winonazelenka.com. (For more information on Claudia Moore, visit danceumbrella.net/clients_moonhorse.htm.)

Thursday, September 10, 7pm
Leika
In a new work commissioned by Harbourfront Centre, Andrea Nann Dreamwalker Dance Company and multimedia composer Tom Kuo reveal hidden secrets of the Music Garden through music, dance and interactive play. Please note: This is a 30-minute concert due to early sunset. Pre-performance audience participation encouraged from 6:30-7pm. (For information about Andrea Nann, visit dreamwalkerdance.com.)

Sunday September 20, 4pm
The Sanssouci Quartet
This exciting new Boston-Toronto quartet on period instruments performs Boccherini's Quartet in D Major and Mozart's Quartet in D Minor, K. 421. Abigail Karr and Karina Fox (violins), Sarah Darling (viola), Kate Haynes (cello). And to close: a reprise of Barbara Croall's Calling from Different Directions, performed by Anita McAlister and the composer. (See June 28 concert.)

TORONTO MUSIC GARDEN TOURS
Guided tours begin at 11am on Wednesdays: June 3, 10, 17, 24; July 1, 8, 15, 22, 29; August 5, 12, 19, 26; September 2, 9, 16, 23, 30.
Pre-concert guided tours begin at 5:30pm on Thursdays: July 2, 9, 16, 23; August 6, 13, 30, 27; September 3, 10.
Visitors are invited to take a free 45-minute walking tour led by Toronto Botanical Garden tour guides. Tours start in the west end of the Garden in the Prelude section. Self-guided 70-minute audio tours (English only) hosted by Yo-Yo Ma and Julie Moir Messervy are also available for a rental fee of $5 (free rentals for children). Private group tours are also available ($5 per person). For reservations, call 416-397-1366 or visit torontobotanicalgarden.ca.

TORONTO MUSIC GARDEN BACKGROUND
The Toronto Music Garden is one of Toronto's most enchanted locations. The Garden was conceived by internationally renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma and designed by Boston-based landscape artist Julie Moir Messervy. Its design interprets Bach's Suite No. 1 in G Major for Unaccompanied Cello, with each dance movement within the suite corresponding to a different section of the Garden: Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Menuett and Gigue. A unique and magical venue, the Toronto Music Garden is the only garden/park in the world known to be directly inspired by a specific piece of music.

The Toronto Music Garden opened in 1999; concerts have been held there every summer since 2000. Since 2001, the concerts have been produced by Harbourfront Centre in partnership with City of Toronto, under the artistic direction of Tamara Bernstein. The Garden itself is lovingly maintained by City of Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation, as well as volunteers.

The Toronto Music Garden, located on Queens Quay West at the foot of Spadina Avenue, is easy to reach by public transit. From Spadina Station take the 510 (Union Station) streetcar south. From Union Station take the Harbourfront LRT (509 or 510 streetcar) going west from inside Union Station. Call the Toronto Transit Commission at 416-393-4636 for transit information.

FOCUS: Shift
Harbourfront Centre wants you to shift gears.

What does it mean to change your perspectives on idea, explore new ways of approaching an old notion or to literally shift gears? From June to September, Harbourfront Centre explores the idea of "shift" throughout its programming. How does an ever-changing culture influence the lives and experiences of artists? What happens when we view the world from a different vantage point? What can be learned from migration, relocation and transformation?

Harbourfront Centre: Change perspectives.

SHIFT is part of an ongoing focus in programming. Our Lens. Your View.

http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/torontomusicgarden

When WiIl the iPod Become Obsolete?

Toronto sound artist explores the ever-changing state of
music experience through sly exchange of human technologies

Walper Terrace Hotel ArtGallery in Kitchener, April 25^th-- May 3

(Toronto, ON) – What does it mean to be obsolete? This key question sparked sound artist Micheline Roi’s inspiration for Obsolescence, a sound installation that explores the ever-evolving manner in which music reaches us.

For Roi, the home piano stands as an icon and witness to vast changes in music technology. Over the last century, its function has shifted from being one of the main sources of home entertainment to nothing more than a piece of furniture. Displaced by electronic keyboards, hi-fidelity audio and home speaker systems, the home piano is reduced to a curiosity – an ornamental antique of music technology. Now the loudspeaker functions as the central audio interface in home entertainment, creating a radical shift in the sound of domesticity from a social, self-produced acoustic to a manufactured digital environment. The question now is: how much longer will the loudspeaker last before it is superseded by the next piece of technology?

In Obsolescence, which opens at the Walper Terrace Hotel Art Gallery in Kitchener on April 25^th, the roles of an antique upright piano and 52 loudspeakers are exchanged. In this whole-gallery installation, the loudspeaker is positioned as an antique ornament through which the voices of pianists are heard, and the piano evolves from an ornamental piece to a modern-day transducer by which other sounds are made – not by it, but on it and through it.

Obsolescence is just one of over thirty events in CMC’s 2008-2009 New Music in New Places festival series, designed to showcase the work of Canada’s talented composers outside of the concert hall and in the communities where they work and live. Obsolescence also appears as part of the Open Ears Festival of Music and Sound, running April 24 – May 3 in various locations throughout Kitchener, Ontario.

EVENT DETAILS

WHO: Composer and Sound Artist Micheline Roi

Canadian Music Centre – Ontario Region

Open Ears Festival of Music and Sound

WHAT: The Canadian Music Centre’s New Music in New Places festival series presents Obsolescence – a sound installation that explores the ever-evolving manner in which music reaches us. For more information, visit nmnp08.ning.com or www.openears.ca

WHEN: April 25 4 - 7 pm
April 26 12 - 5 pm
April 28 4 - 7 pm
April 29 4 - 7 pm

April 30 4 - 7 pm
May 1 4 - 7 pm
May 2 12 - 5 pm
May 3 12 - 5 pm

WHERE: Walper Terrace Hotel Art Gallery
1 King St. W, Kitchener, ON N2G 1A1
Take #401 to Highway 8. Highway 8 becomes King Street. Continue on King.
The Hotel is on the corner of King & Queen (Entrance off Queen).

HOW MUCH: FREE

New Music in New Places acknowledges the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Music Fund, administered by The SOCAN Foundation.

The complete New Music in New Places concert schedule is available online at nmnp08.ning.com.

Symphony Nova Scotia presents the 2009 Library Series

Symphony Nova Scotia presents the 2009 Library Series

Halifax, NS – Symphony Nova Scotia is once again back at the Halifax Public Library for a series of fun and informative chamber music performances. Please bring your lunch and join us for wonderful music and entertaining stories about the composers from host Max Kasper. All concerts are free of charge, and begin at 12:00 noon.

Still Movements

Wednesday, April 29 – Spring Garden Memorial Branch, Halifax

Friday, May 1 – Alderney Gate Branch, Dartmouth

In this concert, the Library Players explore the evolution of the "movements" of a piece of music. Most symphonies and quartets that we know all follow a familiar four-movement pattern. Using the music of Haydn, Mozart, Bach and Purcell, we will illustrate the differences and evolution of the string quartet movements.

The Library Players are:

Yi Lee – violin

Anita Gao-Lee – violin

Jane Levitt – viola

Max Kasper – bass

Christmas in May

Thursday, May 14 – Spring Garden Memorial Branch, Halifax

We're pleased to welcome back Halifax's own Réjouissance as they once again play at the Library. Join us for some festive Baroque music on period instruments. Though most of the music was written for the Christmas holidays, it's wonderful to hear anytime of the year (...and it's never too early to start preparing for Christmas!).

Réjouissance is:

Karen Langille – baroque violin
Ivor Rothwell – baroque bassoon, recorder
Shawn Whynot – harpsichord
Hilary Brown – baroque cello

The Best Music You've Never Heard of...

Thursday, May 28 – Spring Garden Memorial Branch, Halifax

Friday, May 29 – Alderney Gate Branch, Dartmouth

Most of us have only heard about 5% of the composers out there. Even the ones that were very famous in their time and wrote wonderful music have somehow become overshadowed by the "Greats." It's time to hear some of these composers again. The music is well worth it! Join the Gatto Dolce Duo as they perform music by Pleyel, Matthews, Aslan, Neher, Boismortier, Corrette and Romberg, to name a few!

The Gatto Dolce Duo is:

Colin Matthews – cello

Max Kasper – Bass

About Symphony Nova Scotia
Expect the Unexpected with Symphony Nova Scotia – from Baroque to Berlioz to bluegrass! Each year the 37-member ensemble performs for more than 40,000 audience members (including 14,000 young music lovers) in communities across Nova Scotia. Under the inspirational leadership of Bernhard Gueller, Symphony Nova Scotia is recognized as one of the finest orchestras in the country. Join the orchestra in celebrating its 25th anniversary this season!

U of T presents Grammy-winning composer Maria Schneider

University of Toronto Faculty of Music to present Grammy-winning composer Maria Schneider

"To call Schneider the most important woman in jazz is missing the point in two ways. She is a major composer - period." - TIME MAGAZINE

"...she puts together stories that speak with the clarity of Ernest Hemingway and the musical grace of Aaron Copland."
– PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW

TORONTO – The Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto presents Grammy Award-winning composer Maria Schneider in a lecture and a concert with the U of T Jazz Orchestras. On Thursday, April 2, the Roger D. Moore Distinguished Visitor in Composition will present a lecture in Walter Hall as part of the Thursdays at Noon Series, and on Saturday, April 4, she will join the Faculty of Music’s 10 O’Clock and 11 O’Clock Jazz Orchestras in a concert in MacMillan Theatre. Details of the events are as follows:

Thursday, April 2, 2009
LECTURE: MARIA SCHNEIDER
Roger D. Moore Distinguished Visitor in Composition
12:10 pm. Walter Hall, 80 Queen’s Park. Free

Saturday, April 4, 2009
CONCERT with the U of T Jazz Orchestras
Maria Schneider conducts her own music with the U of T Jazz Orchestras
7:30 pm. MacMillan Theatre, 80 Queen’s Park. Tickets: $14 ($8 seniors/students).
Box Office: 416-978-3744
Box office hours: 1 – 7 pm, Monday to Friday, with extended hours on performance nights.
Address: Lobby level, Edward Johnson Building, 80 Queen’s Park, Toronto ON M5S 2C5

Maria Schneider's music has been described as evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, and beyond categorization. Born in Windom, Minnesota, Schneider arrived in New York City in 1985 after studies at the University of Minnesota, the University of Miami and the Eastman School of Music. She immediately sought out Bob Brookmeyer to study composition, and at the same time became an assistant to Gil Evans, working on various projects with him.

The Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra came into being in 1993, appearing at Visiones in Greenwich Village every Monday night for a stretch of five years. Subsequently, her orchestra has performed at festivals and concert halls across Europe as well as in Brazil and Macau. She's received numerous commissions and invites with American and Europeans orchestras, guest conducting in Brazil, Italy, Portugal, France, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Slovenia, Austria, Canada, Scotland, Australia, Greenland and Iceland, as well as across the U.S. Commissions include the Norrbotten Big Band's and Danish Radio Orchestra's commission to arrange and conduct concerts with Toots Thielemans. Other commissioning organizations include the Metropole Orchestra, Stuttgart Jazz Orchestra, Orchestre National de Jazz (Recapitulation), Carnegie Hall Jazz Orchestra (El Viento), Monterey Jazz Festival (Scenes from Childhood), University of Miami Concert Jazz Band (Three Romances), Hunter College (Concert in the Garden and Sky Blue), Jazz at Lincoln Center (Bulería, Soleá y Rumba), Los Angeles Philharmonic Association (Aires de Lando) and Peter Sellars' New Crowned Hope Festival (Cerulean Skies). Maria was also the recipient of a Doris Duke award to compose a dance work (Dissolution) in collaboration with the Pilobolus dance group. It was performed with her orchestra at the American Dance Festival and Kennedy Center. Her latest major work, commissioned by The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, debuted in October of 2008 Written to feature soprano, Dawn Upshaw, it is entitled Carlos Drummond de Andrade Stories.

Schneider has had a distinguished recording career as well. Her debut recording Evanescence, was nominated for two 1995 Grammy Awards. Her second and third recordings Coming About and Allégresse were also nominated for Grammys. Her third album, Allégresse was chosen by both TIME and BILLBOARD in their Top Ten Recordings of 2000, inclusive of all genres of music.

Concert in the Garden, released only through her website (an ArtistShare® site), was a watershed in her career when she won the 2005 Grammy Award for 「Best Large Ensemble Album」 and became the first Grammy-winning recording with Internet-only sales. It also received「Jazz Album of the Year」 by the Jazz Journalists Awards and the DOWNBEAT Critics Poll. Both also awarded her 「Composer of the Year」 and「Arranger of the Year」 and the Jazz Journalists also named her group 「Large Jazz Ensemble of the Year」.

Her newest fan-funded ArtistShare® recording, Sky Blue, was released in July 2007 and received unanimous praise. It was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one in the category of 「Best Instrumental Composition」 (Cerulean Skies). The album received the honor of 「Jazz Album of the Year」 from the VILLAGE VOICE Critics Poll as well as a Choc Award in France and was one of only two albums to receive a five-star review from DOWNBEAT in 2007.

Artist website: www.mariaschneider.com

Free Event: The Timekeepers

Fringe Theatre Adventures

presents

Ocean of Sugar's

THE TIMEKEEPERS

A powerful production about friendship and hope in a time of horror, The Timekeepers, by Israel's Ocean of Sugar, returns to Edmonton for an exclusive Canadian engagement. In recognition of Holocaust Remembrance Day April 21, Fringe Theatre Adventures invites new and returning audiences to experience this important, internationally-acclaimed drama free of charge, by donation only. The Timekeepers plays the TransAlta Arts Barns' Westbury Theatre April 14 to 19.

When Hans, an outrageous gay German, and Benjamin, a conservative Jewish horologist, are thrown together in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, they appear to have little in common. As they work to repair watches for the Nazis under the Capo's tyrannical eye, their mutual prejudice and mistrust slowly give way to a touching friendship.

Addressing the Holocaust with a combination of humour and sorrow, The Timekeepers accentuates the prisoner's private experience amidst a tragedy of millions. An audience favourite and Hold-Over at 2006 Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival, this award-winning production has met with rave reviews in London, Tel Aviv, New York and Vancouver.

Written by American playwright Dan Clancy, The Timekeepers is performed by Israeli actors Victor Attar, Roy Horovitz and Omer Etzion. Daniel Salomon composed the original score, with set and lighting design by Uri Ofir, costume design by Inge Barba, and vocal coaching by Professor Hanna Hacohen.

The Timekeepers runs April 14 through 19 at 8pm nightly, with matinee performances April 18 and 19 at 2pm. For more information about Fringe Theatre Adventures' presentation of The Timekeepers, please call 780-409-1910 or visit www.fringetheatreadventures.ca.

Warning: The Timekeepers deals with mature subject matter. Discretion advised.

Edith Wiens Voice Masterclasses

Order of Canada soprano presents masterclasses at Faculty of Music

TORONTO – The Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto presents renowned soprano Edith Wiens in masterclasses with students of voice and opera. On Monday, March 23 and Tuesday, March 24, the soprano will coach students singing opera, oratorio, and Lieder repertoire. Other stops on Wiens' 2009 teaching tour include masterclasses at Juilliard and the Royal College of Music in London.

*Edith Wiens was born in Saskatoon and educated at Oberlin, making her debut with the Berlin Philharmonic in 1981. As a soprano in the concert field, Wiens has performed with such conductors as Daniel Barenboim, Colin Davis, Charles Dutoit, Sir Neville Marriner, and Sir Georg Solti, and appeared at many major music festivals. She has sung with many major London and North American orchestras, as well as the Israeli Philharmonic, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Munich Philharmonic, and the Dresden State Orchestra. In Canada Wiens has sung with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony, the Calgary Philharmonic, the CBC Vancouver Orchestra, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

Highlights of Wiens' busy recording career include Bach cantatas and the St. Matthew Passion with conductor Helmuth Rilling, multiple recordings of Mozart's Mass in C Minor, numerous discs of German song, and the album Ae Fond Kiss with CBC Records.

In recital, Wiens favoured works by Brahms, Schubert, Schumann, and Strauss, but her repertoire extended to Gershwin, Stephen Foster, and North American folksongs. She made her Toronto recital debut in 1994, a year in which she also gave masterclasses at the University of Toronto. She was inducted into the Order of Canada in 2000.

Monday, March 23, 12:10 pm, Walter Hall, and
Tuesday, March 24, 12:10 - 2:30pm, Geiger Torel Room
Edward Johnson Building, University of Toronto, 80 Queens Park. Free admission.

*with materials from www.edithwiens.com and the Encyclopedia of Music in Canada

Great Music for a Great City: World Water Day Musical Celebration - March 22

The Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College presents
Great Music for a Great City:
World Water Day Musical Celebration
Sunday, March 22, 2009 at 4pm

The Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College presentstheir classical music series Great Music for a Great City: World Water Day Musical Celebration on March 22, 2009 at 4pm at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, 899 Tenth Avenue, NYC. Admission is FREE, with reservations available at Ticket Central, 212-279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com.

The United Nations General Assembly has designated March 22 as World Day for Water. This narrated concert will call attention to our international water crisis. The program will feature musical works that celebrate water,including works by Schubert, Copland, Brahms, spirituals & world music.

Featuring Eli Wallach, narrator, with Mayim Water music by Israeli Ensemble Rafi Malkiel; the Harlem Vocal Arts Ensemble; and Metropolitan Opera soloists Camellia Johnson, soprano, Terry Cook, bass baritone, and Sirena Huang, violin.

"We must treat water as if it were the most precious thing in the world, the most valuable natural resource. Don't waste it! We still have time to do something about this problem before it is too late."

- Mikhail Gorbachev

Since opening its doors in 1988, the Gerald W. Lynch Theater has been an invaluable cultural resource for John Jay College and the larger New York City community. The Theater is dedicated to the creation and presentation of performing arts programming of all disciplines with a special focus on how the artistic imagination can shed light on the many perceptions of justice in our society.

About John Jay College of Criminal Justice: An international leader in educating for justice, John Jay College of Criminal Justice of The City University of New York offers a rich liberal arts and professional studies curriculum to upwards of 14,00 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 135 nations. In teaching, scholarship and research, the College approaches justice as an applied art and science in service to society and as an ongoing conversation about fundamental human desires for fairness, equality and the rule of law. For more information, visit www.jjay.cuny.edu.

Great Music for a Great City: World Water Day Musical Celebration will be performed on Sunday, March 22 at 4pm at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, 899 Tenth Avenue, NYC. Admission is FREE, with reservations available at Ticket Central, 212-279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com.

For more information, visit www.jjay.cuny.edu/theater.php.

Monterey Jazz Festival's Next Generation Festival, April 3 - 5, 2009 In Downtown Monterey

Monterey Jazz Festival's Next Generation Festival

Hosts Country's Top Young Jazz Musicians

April 3 – 5, 2009 In Downtown Monterey

57 Big Bands, Combos, And Vocal Ensembles

From 6 States Compete For Spot On MJF Stages

47 Bands From 14 Counties In California Are Finalists

Special Appearances By Student Groups From Japan and England

Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra Members Saxophonist Sherman Irby

And Trumpeter Sean Jones Are Artists-In-Residence During NGF

All Competition Events and Activities Open To The Public, Free Of Charge

March 11, 2009; Monterey, California; The Monterey Jazz Festival, a nonprofit leader in jazz education since its inception in 1958 and JazzTimes Readers’ Poll multi-year winner for world's Best Jazz Festival, is proud to announce the 5th Annual Next Generation Festival, April 3 - 5, 2009 in downtown Monterey. The weekend event, devoted to the future of jazz, includes the Next Generation Festival Jazz Competition with Big Bands, Combos, Vocal Ensembles, and individual musicians vying for a spot on the stages of the 52nd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival presented by Verizon.

A three-year grant from the Surdna Foundation supports the Next Generation Festival and the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra's international tours. The Surdna Foundation’s Arts Program is national in scope and supports the artistic advancement of teens, ages 12 - 18.

All Next Generation Festival competition events - from the Kick-Off Concert on Friday, April 3 to the exuberant and electric big band, vocal ensemble and combo competition on Saturday, April 4 and the College Big Band Vocal Jazz Ensemble finals on Sunday, April 5 - will be open to the public, free of charge. The Festival will also conduct clinics, workshops, jam sessions, and auditions in the heart of the historic Monterey, with music to be performed at the Monterey Conference Center, the host Portola Plaza Hotel, at Fisherman’s Wharf, Cannery Row, and at Monterey Live.

For a complete schedule of activities and competition times, visit www.montereyjazzfestival.org.

Attracting musicians from some of the most prestigious educational programs in the country, MJF's Next Generation Festival represents the largest gathering of young jazz talent on the Monterey Peninsula, outside of the Monterey Jazz Festival itself. Fifty-seven bands from six states, from Alaska to Texas, will participate in the prestigious event. California, one of the strongholds of music education, has schools from fourteen counties represented in the festival – including Alameda, Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Madera, Monterey, Orange, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, and Santa Clara Counties.

In addition, the Next Generation Festival will present special guest groups from England and Japan throughout the weekend.

The Next Generation Festival will officially start with the annual Kick-Off Concert at 8 p.m. on Friday, April 3 at the Monterey Conference Center. The opening night's activities will feature the Festival's annual Salute to Jazz Education, along with performances by the competition judges, including pianist George Duke, drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, trombonist Ron Westray, saxophonists Billy Harper and Paul Contos, bassist Ray Drummond, and vocalists Matt Falker, Jennifer Barnes, and Michele Weir. Entry to the Salute to Jazz Education and Kick-Off Concert is open to the public, free of charge.

Also featured during the evening concert will be the Monterey Jazz Festival Artists-In-Residence, members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra saxophonist Sherman Irby and trumpeter Sean Jones.

MJF's Next Generation Festival Jazz Competition starts at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 4 in downtown Monterey's Conference Center, with high-energy big bands, combos, and vocal ensembles creating an atmosphere of anticipation and excitement.

Throughout the day, participants in the High School Big Band, Vocal, and Combo divisions will put on their best performances before the judges, who will determine the top groups and outstanding soloists. The top groups of the day in the High School Vocal, Combo, and Big Band divisions will be announced at 6:15 p.m. Saturday evening from the Conference Center's Serra Ballroom stage. At 8 p.m. Saturday night, the top vocal ensembles, combo, and Big Band finalists will take the stage in the Next Generation Festival's Showcase Concert -- a preview of the bands to perform at MJF/52, a departure from the big band “play-off” in past years.

The Next Generation Festival will also host a variety of educational clinics on Saturday, April 4, including presentations by Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra members Sherman Irby and Sean Jones, as well as a vocal clinic with Matt Falker on Jazz Solo Singing & Melodic Styling.

The Next Generation Festival continues through Sunday, April 5 with the country's top middle school, college, conglomerate big bands, and college vocal ensembles performing in the Conference Center's Serra Ballroom and Steinbeck Forum. The top college big band, college vocal ensemble, and conglomerate big band (to be announced during the day) will also earn a performance slot at MJF/52. New for 2009 will be the College Vocal Ensemble Division, another expansion of performance opportunities at the Next Generation Festival.

Auditions will also be held throughout the Next Generation Festival weekend for the Jimmy Lyons Scholarship to Berklee College of Music, and for the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, MJF’s national all-star high school band, which now includes a vocalist spot.

The Next Generation Festival is introducing two new partnership elements this year: an Instrument Showcase and College Fair. The Instrument Showcase will allow musicians an opportunity to play various instruments from participating partners. The College Fair will allow students an opportunity to visit with several colleges offering jazz and other music programs. Both activities will be offered throughout the Next Generation Festival weekend.

All Next Generation Festival competition activities from April 3 - 5 are open to the public, free of charge. More information on all Next Generation Festival activities and events is available on the MJF website, www.montereyjazzfestival.org and by phone at 831-373-3366.

Next Generation Festival partners and supporters include the Surdna Foundation and longtime MJF partner Yamaha, providing instruments for Next Generation Festival stages. Additional support for the Next Generation Festival comes from generous individuals and organizations such the City of Monterey, the Colton Hall Museum and the Cultural Arts Commission, the Community Foundation for Monterey County's Communities Advocating the Arts Fund, the D’Addario Music Foundation for the Performing Arts with support from D’Addario Strings, Evans Drumheads, Remo Drumheads, Zildjian Cymbals, Planet Waves Accessories, and Rico Reeds.

More information on all Next Generation Festival activities and events is available on the MJF website, www.montereyjazzfestival.org and by phone at 831-373-3366.