Orchestras Canada

We send our very best wishes to Peter Herrndorf , CEO of the National Arts Centre, who is currently undergoing cancer treatment. Mr. Herrndorf will take a planned medical leave, starting in April. During that leave, long-time Managing Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Christopher Deacon, will serve as interim CEO.

Symphony Nova Scotia has announced that Janice Fuller will be serving as Interim Director of Communications and Marketing during Heidi MacPhee’s parental leave. Janice and Heidi will work together until the end of February, then Janice takes over.

The Saskatoon Symphony has announced that long-time principal cellist Linda Bardutz is returning to her position at the SSO. In their media release, the SSO notes, “as one of our most highly accomplished musicians, the Saskatoon Symphony looks forward to Linda resuming her role as a valued member of the SSO and Saskatoon’s musical community for many years to come.”

It’s been two years since the passing of French-Canadian composer and educator Jacques Hétu – and the National Arts Centre Orchestra is marking the occasion with a two-concert celebration of his work, February 8 and 9, and an exhibition chronicling his life and career, on display in the foyer of Southam Hall, February 7 to 17. Admission to both concerts is free, but tickets must be obtained in person at the NAC box office.

Hétu requires little to no introduction to Canadian orchestras: his catalogue includes some 80 works, including symphonies, opera, choral and chamber music, and concertos for numerous instruments. NACO’s programs this February include an orchestral concert on February 8, led by music director Pinchas Zukerman, and featuring soloists Alain Trudel (trombone) and Nathalie Paulin (soprano). The major work on the program is Hétu’s Symphony No. 3, originally commissioned by the CBC for the CBC Vancouver Chamber Orchestra. The concert on February 9 features chamber music by Hétu and his teachers, performed by leading players from NACO in assorted configurations.

For more information about the celebration, please visit nac-cna.ca.

There’s also a robust section devoted to Jacques Hétu on the NAC’s Music Timeline on-line feature, which you can access here.

The National Arts Centre has announced application deadlines and program details for this year’s Summer Music Institute. The programs take place in the month of June, are designed for outstanding instrumentalists (pre-college and senior level – strings, winds and piano) and conductors. A remarkable Canadian and international faculty has been assembled – and generous scholarship support is available. For more information about the program for instrumentalists, please visit nac-cna.ca.

For more information about the conducting programming (led by Kenneth Kiesler and Pinchas Zukerman, and featuring the Orchestre de la francophonie and the National Arts Centre Orchestra), please visit nac-cna.ca. (English)

The application deadline is February 6, 2012.

Again this week, we honour the programmers who successfully balance tradition and innovation in their seasonal concerts. Here’s a round-up of interesting-sounding programs from across the country:

December 15, 16 and 17, I Musici de Montreal (under the guest leadership of harpsichordist Joel Thiffault) presents a program of baroque and contemporary repertoire reflective of the season, as part of the orchestra’s series at Ogilvy’s. Among other delights, the program includes “Winter” from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, a recent work by Michael Oesterle, and William Boyce’s Ode for the New Year 1756.

This Friday (December 16), the National Arts Centre Orchestra partners with composer/broadcaster/performer Andrew Craig, the Faith Chorale, and an impressive array of soloists that includes Jackie Richardson to present a Gospel Christmas Celebration.

This Friday night and Saturday afternoon (December 16 and 17), the Orchestre symphonique de Québec (led by Stéphane Laforest) presents La Grande Virée de Noel, featuring Gregory Charles, Marie-Josée Lord, Nicolas Pellerin and les Grands Hurleurs, and seven choirs from the region. The youth-oriented performances take place at the Pavillon de la Jeunesse at ExpoCité, and features not only seasonal carols but also a giant Karaoke and dance party with DJ Adam Doubleyou.

Saturday night (December 17), the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra (led by music director James Sommerville) presents a pair of seasonal programs featuring the internationally-renowned Toronto Mass Choir. There’s a shorter 2 p.m. concert, designed for families, as well as a full-length evening concert intended for an older audience.

December 17, the Lethbridge Symphony presents a traditional Christmas program with a twist: this year’s guest performers include not only the Bridge Bells bell ringing ensemble, but also Lethbridge’s MP (and a former member of the LSO violin section) Jim Hillyer, who will re-join the violin section for the evening. Speaking about the experience, Mr. Hillyer said, “I am looking forward to playing with the symphony once again. Over the years when I performed with the LSO I felt privileged to be able to get an inside seat for some amazing world class performances,” noting Elgar’s Cello Concerto, Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, the Mozart Requiem, and Handel’s Messiah as particular highlights.

December 17 and 18, the Kamloops Symphony (led by Music Director Bruce Dunn) presents a pair of performances encapsulating what it describes as “a celebration of community that provides all the required ingredients for comfort and joy – stories, songs, young performers, warmth and fun!” Featured performers include soprano Carlene Wiebe (a member of the faculty of the Kamloops Symphony Music School), violist Madeleine Haynes (2011 winner of the Kamloops Symphony Award at the Kamloops Festival of the Performing Arts), baritone Aaron Durand, the KSO Chorus, and a number of students from the Kamloops Symphony Music School.

Both Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and the National Arts Centre Orchestra are on the road right now – and if you, like we, enjoy a bit of arm-chair travel, we’d invite you to follow these intrepid musicians via the blog postings they are filing from the road.

The National Arts Centre Orchestra is in the final stages of an Atlantic Canada tour, and you can stay current with their adventures here (postings in both English and French).

Tafelmusik is in the middle of a tour of the US, including a return visit to New York’s Carnegie Hall. You can find Tafel cellist Alan Whear’s occasional blog postings here.

The National Arts Centre Orchestra has just named Alain Trudel as its new Principal Youth and Family Conductor. In this role, Alain Trudel will work closely with the National Arts Centre Music Education team to develop the Orchestra’s Student Matinees and ‘TD Family Adventures with the NAC Orchestra’ concerts, and he will be the principal conductor of these concerts. He also participates in outreach, including orientation sessions with schoolteachers, community visits, school visits, and adult education programs. Maestro Trudel succeeds Boris Brott, who was recently appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Teatro Petruzzelli, in Bari, Italy.

Congratulations to Montreal composer-conductor Stewart Grant, whose new Concerto for Flute, Oboe and String Orchestra was premiered by the Israel Chamber Orchestra in Tel Aviv last weekend.

On Saturday, November 5, Orchestras Canada executive director Katherine Carleton presented the Betty Webster Awards for 2011 for regional contributions to cellist and musician leader Marsha Moffitt at a Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra main series concert at Hamilton Place. This follows the September 30 presentation of the Betty Webster Award for national contribution to Dr. David Leighton at a concert by the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, and completes the presentation cycle for 2011.

It’s humbling to be in the presence of people who have given so much for the cause of orchestras, and a true honour to be able to thank these people in the presence of their friends and fans. Orchestras Canada would like to thank our colleagues at the National Arts Centre and the Hamilton Philharmonic for their willingness to host the presentations, and for doing so with such impeccable style:

For the National Arts Centre Orchestra:
Christopher Deacon, Peter Herrndorf, Stefani Truant

For the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra:
Annelisa Pedersen, Robin Marritt, Kari Hueber

November 9 and 10, the National Arts Centre Orchestra – led by guest conductor Julian Kuerti, and featuring pianist Jan Lisiecki – will give the Ottawa performances of a program they’ll be repeating during their Atlantic Canada Tour, which runs from November 13-25. The program includes not only Mozart’s Piano Concerto #20 and Brahms’s Symphony #1, but also the world premiere of a NACO commission by John Estacio, entitled Brio: Toccata and Fantasy for Orchestra.

Both programs will be preceded by a pre-concert chat, featuring Maclean’s writer Paul Wells and composer John Estacio.