Orchestras Canada

AUDITIONS

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony
Concertmaster / Violon solo
Application deadline/Date limite : N/A

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony
Principal Bassoon / Basson solo
Application deadline/Date limite : March 9 mars 2012

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony
Assistant Principal 2nd Violin / Deuxième violon assistant solo
Application deadline/Date limite : April 20 avril 2012

ADMINISTRATIVE / ADMINISTRATIF

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony
Associate Director of Marketing & Audience Engagement
Application deadline/Date limite : October 21 octobre 2011

The Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony (KWS) has announced the release of From Here on Out, a new recording on Canada’s Analekta label. The recording, led by KWS music director Edwin Outwater, features recent works by Nico Muhly (From Here on Out and Wish You Were Here), Richard Reed Parry (For Heart, Breath and Orchestra), and Johnny Greenwood (Popcorn Superhet Receiver).

From Here on Out is available online through Analekta’s website and will be available for purchase at the Conrad Centre for the Performing Arts, as well as from kwsymphony.ca.

September 30, October 1 and 2 mark year 2 for Culture Days and the 15th anniversary of les Journées de la Culture. Here’s a quick round up – east to west, more or less – of the orchestral activity we were able to identify via media releases from member orchestras, as well as the user-friendly websites for the movement.
Culture Days : culturedays.ca
Alberta Arts Days : culture.alberta.ca
Journées de la culture : journeesdelaculture.qc.ca

Symphony Nova Scotia: open dress rehearsal, September 30; Musical Munchkins programs at local libraries, October 1; small ensembles in various venues including the Discovery Centre October 1 and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, October 2.

Orchestre symphonique de Longueuil : chamber concert, October 2.
Orchestre symphonique de Lévis : open rehearsal with on-stage seating, October 2.
Orchestre symphonique des Basses-laurentides: meet the musicians, October 2.
Orchestre métropolitain : Sing with the Choir of the Orchestre métropolitain, October 1.

National Arts Centre Orchestra: participating in a complete weekend of Culture Days events presented by the National Arts Centre
Kingston Symphony: instrument petting zoo and open rehearsal, October 1.
Peterborough Symphony: behind the scenes at Showplace Peterborough, October 1.
Toronto Symphony Orchestra: 2 lobby concerts by a small ensemble, featuring performance, story-telling and instrument demonstrations, October 1.
Kitchener Waterloo Symphony: open rehearsal, September 30.
Stratford Symphony Orchestra : orchestra petting zoo, October 1.

Winnipeg Symphony: open dress rehearsal, September 30; small ensembles at Nuit Blanche, as part of Musicians in Healthcare, and at Steinkopf Gardens, October 1.

Saskatoon Symphony: quintet performance at Flowers by Fred, September 30; musical petting zoo, October 2.
Regina Symphony: Chamber Players performance at the Mackenzie Gallery, October 2.

Edmonton Symphony: Open dress rehearsal and tours of the Francis Winspear Centre for Music, September 30; Symphony 101 with D.T. Baker, October 1.

Chilliwack Symphony Orchestra: assorted events at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre, October 1.
Victoria Symphony: instrument petting zoo, October 1 and 2

Congratulations to violinist Bénédicte Lauzière, the first-ever winner of the Canada Council Michael Measures Prize. Launched in September 2010, the prize – presented to Ms Lauziere at a concert by the National Youth Orchestra in Montréal last week – will provide Ms. Lauzière with $15,000 to help build her career. “Bénédicte was the clear and obvious choice for the inaugural Canada Council Michael Measures Prize,” said Barbara Smith, Executive Director of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada (NYOC). “She is one of the most promising string players in the country and we are certain she will make an impact on the world of classical music for many years to come. This first-time award is acknowledgement for all her years of hard work, both as a violinist and as student of NYOC’s Career Training Institute.”
Orchestra Toronto has announced the appointment of Wendy Limbertie, a long-time arts administrator and professional musician, as Executive Director. She succeeds Judy Mann, who recently retired from the role after 10 years. Previously, Limbertie served as executive director of the Aradia Baroque Ensemble and was executive director of the Amici Chamber Ensemble for eight years before that. As a professional classical French horn player, Limbertie performed and recorded in Europe with the Amsterdam Opera Company and in Canada with orchestras and chamber groups that included the East York Symphony, the precursor of Orchestra Toronto; the Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo symphonies and the Aradia and Amici ensembles.

AUDITIONS

Canadian Opera Company
Principal Viola / Alto solo
Application deadline/Date limite : September 6 septembre 2011

On Saturday, May 21, the Saskatoon Symphony will be marking the retirement of its long-time Principal Bassoonist, Peter Gravelin, stepping down after 36 years with the orchestra.

On Sunday, May 29, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony will be celebrating the contributions of long-time Principal Bassoonist, Cedric Coleman, who is retiring after an amazing 37 years in the position. He is the orchestra’s longest-serving member. According to the media release from the KWS, “among his fondest memories, Coleman recalls the many international tours he took with the Canadian Chamber Ensemble, in particular playing in Leipzig to sold out crowds complete with standing ovations. He also recalls the first orchestra rehearsal in the Centre In The Square. ‘From the first note the sound was just amazing and we looked at each other in astonishment. It has been an honour to be a member of this incredible orchestra through its tremendous years of growth.’” In his own tribute to Cedric Coleman, KWS Music Director Edwin Outwater said, “he is a shining example of how to be musician, and I know his elegant integrity will be a part of our orchestra forever.”

Earlier this week, the National Arts Centre Orchestra announced the winners of its annual bursary competition, designed to recognize National Capital region music students between 16 and 24 years of age who are studying for careers as orchestral musicians. Winners include violists Shasta Ellenbogen, Paul Casey and Jonah Poplove, flutists Christian Paquette and Lara Deutsch, bassoonist Darren Hicks, trombonist Riccardo Nazario del Castello, and clarinettist Nicholas Galuban. The Bursary Committee and Jury were chaired for the first year by Roderick Bell, passionate music lover, former Canadian Ambassador to Jordan and Saudi Arabia, and an active volunteer at the National Arts Centre.

ADMINISTRATIVE / ADMINISTRATIFS

The City of Kingston
Communications Officer (2)
Education & Community Engagement Manager
Application Deadline/Date limite : May 6 mai 2011

AUDITIONS

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony
Third Horn (National)
Application Deadline/Date limite : September 9 septembre 2011

Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra
Principal Viola (National)
Application Deadline/Date limite : May 13 mai 2011

The Victoria Symphony
Section Violin (rotating section) (National)
Application Deadline/Date limite : May 2 mai 2011

Our apologies to the Victoria Symphony, whose media release about the world premiere of a new violin concerto by former resident composer Rodney Sharman, featuring violinist Jonathan Crow, earlier this month didn’t reach us in time. Fortunately, the work was reviewed in the Globe and Mail and you can read about it here.

On April 1 and 2, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony will give the world premiere of Whirling Dervish by Canadian composer Brian Current. The new work features Raqib Brian Burke, a Canadian Sufi Mevlevi whirling dervish who began practicing this form of meditation through movement over forty years ago. He is the only Canadian to have toured with the Whirling Dervishes of Turkey.  kwsymphony.ca

The Vancouver Symphony has announced its 2011-12 season, its twelfth under the leadership of music director Bramwell Tovey. It’s a busy season that sees the orchestra performing in fourteen different venues in the Lower Mainland, including its home at the Orpheum. New or unusual works on the season include performances of Korngold’s violin concerto, a concert version of Bramwell Tovey and John Murrell’s new opera, The Inventor, and John Ireland’s Piano Concerto – along with a full array of standard orchestral classics, pops, family and educational programs. Featured soloists on the season include soprano Renee Fleming, pianists Lang Lang and Peter Serkin, and young Canadians Jan Lisiecki and Nicki Yanovsky. For more information, please visit www.vancouversymphony.ca.

Quebec’s intrepid Les Violons du Roy and La Chapelle de Quebec has launched its 2011-12 season under the leadership of music director Bernard Labadie and principal guest conductor Jean-Marie Zeitouni. The season features twenty-seven different programs, to be performed at home in Quebec and Montreal, nationally and internationally. Highlights include a performance of Bach’s St. John Passion, with Ian Bostridge as the Evangelist, a program featuring soprano Karina Gauvin in arias by Porpora and Mozart, and a visit by guest leader Jeanne Lamon, music director of Toronto’s Tafelmusik. In the fall, the orchestra will undertake a two week European tour, with performances in the Netherlands, Switzerland and France; in early 2012, they will perform a 10-concert North American tour with recorder virtuoso Maurice Steger, and in the spring, the orchestra and choir will travel to New York’s Carnegie Hall for a repeat performance of the St. John Passion. As well, the orchestra will release a pair of recordings – one with pianist Alexandre Tharaud (who is, not coincidentally, soloist for this year’s European tour), and the second with contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux. The latter recording represents the orchestra’s first collaboration with the Naïve label of France. www.violonsduroy.com

The Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony announced its 11-12 season recently, its fifth under the direction of Edwin Outwater. Highlights range from a Mozart Festival to the Canadian premiere of a co-commissioned work by Nico Muhly, and the program also includes creative collaborations with the Institute for Quantum Computing, such soloists as André Laplante, Sara Davis Buechner, the Canadian Brass, Gryphon Trio, and Sultans of String. As well, the orchestra will return to the SONY Centre for several performances next season, and will introduce a weekend Matinée Series which features repeat performances of outstanding classical and pops programs. kwsymphony.ca

The deluge has commenced!

The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra has announced its 2011-12 season, “guaranteed to charm, inspire and provide concert-goers with profound musical experiences from September to May.” The orchestra, led by music director Alexander Mickelthwate, will present seven unique concert series, two festivals, 33 concert programs and 57 concert dates. There really is something for almost everybody – a Masterworks series, a matinee series of one-hour concerts that includes an open rehearsal followed by a major symphonic work, a three-concert Soundbytes series containing short excerpts from familiar classical works and innovative presentation styles, entertaining pops programs, the Indigenous Festival, the New Music Festival, and the ever-popular Dinner and a Symphony series. For more information, please visit wso.ca.

The National Arts Centre Orchestra has announced its 2011-12 season, its 13th under the baton of music director Pinchas Zukerman. Highlights include a Russian festival, a swanky gala (this year featuring Sarah McLachlan), an Atlantic Canada tour with performances and educational activities in all four Atlantic provinces, a two-day Jacques Hétu Celebration showcasing the life and music of the prolific and influential Québec composer/educator on the second anniversary of his passing; a joint concert featuring the NAC Orchestra and London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performing Symphonie fantastique by Berlioz, and the NAC premieres of Sibelius’s Symphony No. 4 and Prokofiev’s epic Alexander Nevsky. www2.nac-cna.ca

The Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony announced its 11-12 season recently. Highlights range from a Mozart Festival to the Canadian premiere of a co-commissioned work by Nico Muhly, and the program also includes creative collaborations with the Institute for Quantum Computing, such soloists as André Laplante, Sara Davis Buechner; the Canadian Brass, Gryphon Trio, and Sultans of String. As well, the orchestra will return to the SONY Centre for several performances next season, and will introduce a weekend Matinée Series which features repeat performances of outstanding classical and pops programs.