HALFTONES #8
April 15, 2014
Welcome to issue #8 of HalfTones, The WholeNote’s mid-month e-newsletter with local music news, reader contests and extra listings. Here’s our update on what’s happening with Toronto musicmaking this month -- look for the next issue of The WholeNote’s print magazine at the beginning of May!
NOTEWORTHY
CONTESTS
LISTINGS UPDATE
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- NOTEWORTHY -
COMPOSER CONVERSATIONS
With spring’s (more-or-less) arrival and details about this year’s programming for Luminato Festival, the RCM’s 21C Festival and the like out on the web, composers’ new musical creations are having their fair share of the spotlight.
The Pax Christi Chorale has been championing new and recent music all year, with a 2013/14 season of works composed entirely in the 20th or 21st centuries. Their season closes in Toronto on Sunday, April 27 with “Passion & Peace” -- a program of 20th century interpretations of ancient texts. The concert features guest quintet True North Brass, and premieres a new piece by Pax Christi artistic director Stephanie Martin, called Now the Queen of Seasons. It’ll be quite the show -- and the chorale is offering a PAIR OF FREE TICKETS to an interested reader. Check out our “Special Offers” section for details!
For a pre-concert primer, click here for a Conversation@TheWholeNote with Stephanie Martin herself interviewed by The WholeNote publisher David Perlman. They talk composition, concertizing and the upcoming premiere -- and you’ll find the hints you need to win those free tickets! The video is online here.
For more info on the Pax Christi Chorale and their upcoming concert, take a look at http://www.paxchristichorale.org/.
Another “new music conversation” you can tune into this week is Paul Steenhuisen’s “The SOUNDLAB New Music Podcast” interview with clarinettist and composer Jörg Widmann. Widmann is the featured composer of the upcoming New Music Concerts show on April 18, which features six of his recent compositions (four of them Canadian premieres). The podcast is completely free of charge, and is available on iTunes here: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/soundlab-new-music-podcast/id438086263. For concert details about New Music Concerts’ “A Portrait of Jorg Widmann” on April 18, visit http://www.newmusicconcerts.com/2013-2014/widmann/widmann.html.
Finally, in the spirit of celebrating the musical 21st century, the RCM’s 21C Festival is looking for its 21st work to premiere in May. Young composers, take note: they’ve opened up the search with an online contest, and are accepting video submissions until April 21. The first stage of the selection process is public voting via YouTube, so those interested in having a say on which work is chosen should keep an eye out for videos on The Royal Conservatory’s YouTube channel in the coming days. Details about the contest (and the selection process) are available here: http://performance.rcmusic.ca/21stpremiere.
A COMMUNITY BENEFIT
Sistema Toronto, our city’s extension of the Venezuelan El Sistema music education program, is putting on its first-ever community fundraiser, with their April 27 Spring Symphony Gala Concert. Organized by the Sistema Parkdale Parents Committee, the event is family-friendly and will feature performances by guests as well as El Sistema students. Tickets can be purchased for the entire gala or for only the concert portion of the afternoon -- more info about the event and Sistema Toronto can be found at http://sistema-toronto.ca/.
- SPECIAL OFFERS -
Contest: From May 9 to 24, the COC presents Don Quichotte, Massenet’s 1910 operatic take on Cervantes’ classic novel Don Quixote. The opera will star bass Ferruccio Furlanetto in the title role of Cervantes’ imaginative hero.
We have TWO FREE TICKETS to the May 14 production of Don Quichotte available for interested readers -- just click here and answer the following question to enter the draw:
What is the name of Don Quichotte’s dutiful squire/sidekick? He’s played by Quinn Kelsey in the COC production!
For more info on the COC’s Don Quichotte, visit http://coc.ca/PerformancesAndTickets/1314Season/DonQuichotte.aspx.
Contest: If you’re looking to hear musical classics in concert, Clarkson Music Theatre is presenting “Ya Gotta Dream” at Eden United Church in Mississauga, May 9 at 7:30pm and May 10 at 2pm and 7:30pm. The show features numbers from the likes of Into the Woods, The Wizard of Oz and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, as well as songs with composers as diverse as Handel and Michael Jackson. The group is offering TWO FREE TICKETS, applicable for any of their three shows -- click here and answer for your chance to win:
In which year was Clarkson Music Theatre founded? (Hint: check out their website)
For more on the company, email info@clarksonmusictheatre.com or visit their website at http://www.clarksonmusictheatre.com/.
Contest: Continuum Contemporary Music closes off its 2013/14 season with “By other means” on May 4, a celebration of things experimental. The ensemble boasts a program comprising of “seismic resonance, raving beats and the unleashed voices of crude materials.” among other things, and will feature the world premiere of a work by Germany-based Canadian Thierry Tidrow. We have TWO FREE TICKETS for this show up for grabs! Take a look on our website here and answer the following:
Apart from Tidrow, who is the other Canadian composer featured on Continuum’s May 4 program?
Details on Continuum Contemporary Music and the upcoming concert are available at http://continuummusic.org/seasons/1314/by-other-means.php.
Contest: In preparation for the Pax Christi Chorale’s upcoming show “Passion & Peace”, The WholeNote has interviewed artistic director and composer Stephanie Martin as part of our series Conversations@TheWholeNote. We have TWO FREE TICKETS for the chorale’s Sunday, April 27 concert (3pm) up for grabs -- and you’ll find the clue you need to win by checking out the first few minutes of this video interview!
Just click here to answer the following question for your chance to win:
The concert features the premiere of a new work by Martin called Now the Queen of Seasons. From which century is the original hymn upon which the piece was composed? (hint: you’ll find your answer just after 1:20 minutes into the video!)
Watch the video here. For more info on the Pax Christi Chorale and their upcoming concert, check out the “Noteworthy” section of this newsletter, or take a look at http://www.paxchristichorale.org/.
- LISTINGS UPDATE -
Please find below additional listings for the rest of the month:
Thursday, April 17
Apr 17 8:00: Spectrum Music. Early Expressions. Braid: Chauvet; and other contemporary musical interpretations of early human art. David Braid and Florian Hoefner, pianos; Ton Beau String Quartet. Annex Theatre, 730 Bathurst St. 416-937-6180. $15; $10(sr/st/arts worker). 7:30: pre-concert chat.
Saturday, April 26
9:00am: Collective of Black Artists (COBA). Dance & Drum-a-thon. The annual fundraiser for the COBA's Children's Dance & Drum Program. Classes in hip hop, Caribbean, Bollywood, dance hall jazz, and African dancing, led by COBA dancers and guest artists. COBA Studio, Daniels Spectrum, 585 Dundas St. E. 416-658-3111. $5 per class; $25 for the day.
7:30: Coro San Marco. Singing Together. A celebration of cultural diversity through choral music. Cantabile Choir; Coro San Marco; CroArte Chorale; Joyful Singers; Levada & Orion Ukrainian Choirs Toronto; Nayiri Armenian Choir of Toronto; Schola Cantorum; Toronto Taiwanese Choir; TKPC GodStar Children's Choir; Bells of St. Matthew's. Toronto Korean Presbyterian Church, 67 Scarsdale Rd., North York. 416-399-8053 or 905-275-6880. $15.
7:30: Hamilton Children's Choir. Talento! A fundraiser event for the Hamilton Children's Choir Financial Award Fund, featuring HCC alumni, members and friends. Emma Bergin, soloist; Alex Fawcett-Riis, soloist; 'OREO' Vocal Ensemble; Kate Hoskin, soloist; Derek Shen, pianist; Lads & Gents HCC Boys Choir; HCC Ilumini Choir; and others. Cathedral Place, 252 James St N,Hamilton. 905-527-1618. $30; $25(sr); $20(st). Tickets include tea/coffee/dessert.
7:30: The Mississauga Big Band Jazz Ensemble. Big Band Open Mic. Bloor Street United Church, 300 Bloor St. W. 905-270-4757. $20.
Sunday, April 27
1:30: Sistema Toronto. Spring Symphony Gala Concert. An afternoon fundraiser for Sistema Toronto organized by the Sistema Parkdale Parents Committee. Bonar-Parkdale Presbyterian Church, 250 Dunn Ave. 416-545-0200. Gala and concert: $50; $10(under 12); Concert only: $10; free(under 12). Gala reception is 1:30-2:45pm; Concert begins at 3pm. A portion of each adult gala ticket is tax-receiptable.
7:00: Tranzac Club. Improv:Tranzaction. A daytime workshop and evening performance focused on improvised music. Lina Allemano; Victor Bateman; Anne Bourne; Ryan Driver; Nick Fraser; Tania Gill. 292 Brunswick Ave. 647-778-4555. $24 (incl. workshop). Workshop begins at 12:30pm. Concert at 7pm.
Sunday, May 4
11:00am: Gallery 345. The Complete Mozart Violin Sonatas. All 28 sonatas performed live on one day, divided into four concerts. Jacques Israelievitch, violin; Christina Petrowska Quilico, piano. 345 Sorauren Ave. 416-822-9781. $20; $10(st); all four concerts: $50/$25(st). Subsequent three concerts at: 1:00, 3:00, 5:00.
Friday, May 9
7:30: Clarkson Music Theatre. Ya Gotta Dream. A Concert to inspire, to dream, to celebrate. Works by Handel, Presley, O. Peterson, M. Jackson and others. Bob Hardinge, conductor. Eden United Church, 3051 Battleford, Mississauga. 905-615-4720. $20. Also May 10(mat/eve).
8:00: Show One Productions. Vladimir Spivakov and the Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra. 35th Anniversary Tour. Works by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Piazzolla. Roy Thomson Hall, 60 Simcoe St. 416-872-4255. $55-$125.
- DATES WITH HALFTONES -
That’s everything for the coming weeks -- for those who are wondering, here is a list of upcoming HalfTones publication dates:
Vol. 1 #9: Thursday May 15 2014
Vol. 1 #10: Tuesday June 17 2014
Vol. 1 #11: Monday July 7 2014
Vol. 1 #12: Tuesday August 12 2014
For all inquiries, including those members interested in submitting news items for HalfTones consideration, please contact halftones@thewholenote.com a minimum of one week prior to the appropriate publication date.
Be sure to look for The WholeNote Vol. 19 No. 8 at the beginning of May -- which includes our annual Canary Pages choral directory -- and for our next issue of HalfTones on May 15! Don't forget to 'Like' us on Facebook here or Follow us on Twitter here.
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HalfTones is compiled and edited by Sara Constant, Social Media Editor
