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March 22-24 | Tafelmusik presents “Staircases”
A pinnacle of Tafelmusik’s 45th anniversary season is the world premiere of Staircases by former Tafelmusik double bassist Alison Mackay, whose award-winning multimedia programs have enhanced the orchestra’s reputation for artistic innovation. Designed in collaboration with the acclaimed American bass-baritone and composer Jonathan Woody, and with music direction by Julia Wedman, this program explores the remarkable cultural symbolism of staircases through words, images, and music. Tickets are available at tafelmusik.org.
March 16 | Toronto Mendelssohn Choir presents “Winterreise”
Delve into the beauty and emotion of Franz Schubert’s Winterreise, performed by the TMChoir, renowned Canadian baritone Brett Polegato, and Juno Award-winning pianist Philip Chiu. Presented in a new adaptation for choir, baritone, and piano, this stunning vocal masterpiece recounts the story of a wanderer’s heartbreak and despair as they travel through a frozen world.
February 23-25 | Tafelmusik presents "Passions Revealed"
“If a concert was a dinner party,” reads the tagline for Tafelmusik’s forthcoming Passions Revealed concert, “this one would have a big long table, lots of food, wonderful conversation, and just the right amount of chaos.” Balancing the discourse between the rational and the chaotic seems to be one of the underlying motifs throughout Tafelmusik’s 45th anniversary season, replete with programs of contrasting ingredients such as Bohemian Rhapsody: Haydn & Benda and Transformations: Bach & Rameau. Passions Revealed ─ onstage February 23–25 at Jeanne Lamon Hall ─ is emblematic of this programmatic juxtaposition of contrasting elements.
Pavel Steidl, Classical Guitar | Feb 22 | Waterloo — Pavel Steidl was born in Rakovnik (Czech Republic). Since he won first prize at the Radio France International Competition in Paris in 1982, he has become one of the most widely celebrated soloists of his generation. Keffer Memorial Chapel
Side by Side | Feb 23 | Toronto — A coming together of young artists working side-by-side to create unexpected collaborations. Heliconian Hall
Ghosts of the Ether | Feb 24 | South River — Conjuring mysterious presences out of the ether - everything from pulsars to numbered stations to cultural ghosts of the past. Deep Wireless 18 Radio Art Compilation by Cláudio de Pina, Bekah Simms and Keith de Mendonca and other works. Kelly Ruth, modified loom & live electronics. NAISA North Media Arts Centre
Dance to the Abyss | Feb 23–25 | Toronto — This program features music celebrated in the 1920s and later dismissed as “degenerate” by the Third Reich, including excerpts from The Threepenny Opera Suite by Kurt Weill and music by Mischa Spoliansky, Erwin Schulhoff, and other artists whose names are largely lost to history. Harbourfront Centre Theatre
Showcasing Our Own | Feb 25 | Kingston — Strauss’s Horn Concerto with Cory van Allen; Vaughan-Williams’ English Folk Song Suite; music by Bizet, Sibelius, Warlock, and McConachie’s Righle. The Spire/Sydenham Street United Church
Patterns in a Chromatic Field | Feb 29 | Toronto — Freesound members Amahl Arulanandam and Wesley Shen perform Morton Feldman's 1-hour long work Patterns in a Chromatic Field for cello and piano. Array Space
Misa criolla | March 2 | Toronto — Works of Ariel Ramirez, Carlos Guastavino, Miguel Matamoros, Xavier Montsalvatge, and more. Christ Church Deer Park
Voices of the Harp: A Poetic Symphony | March 3 | Hamilton — Discover harpist Matt Dupont’s favorite pieces during this performance filled with gentle melodies that will stir the imagination. Poetry and music converge in brilliant dialogue throughout this historical journey. Come along on a musical voyage punctuated by literary masterpieces recited by actor Jérémie Roy. HCA Dance Theatre
David Fung, Piano | March 5 | Toronto — Works by Schubert, Missy Mazzioli, Schumann, Rachmaninov, Liszt, and others. Jane Mallett Theatre
Magisterra at the Museum: Masterworks | March 9 | London — Award-winning pianist Medhi Ghazi will be once again returning to Museum London with Magisterra Soloists to play a selection of chamber music delights. Museum London
Mak Grgic, Classical Guitar | March 10 | Waterloo — 2-time Grammy-nominated artist Mak Grgicis a star on the worldwide stage. An expansive and adventurous repertoire attests to his versatility and wide-ranging interests. Keffer Memorial Chapel
One of the most underutilised assets of a corporate orchestra, is the ability to think like a start-up but act like a Fortune 500. Yes, the business end of a fully-fledged ensemble is indispensable, but the clunky bureaucracy of corporate culture often fumbles the necessary spontaneity and effervescent reactivity that a music-making enterprise needs in order to keep some blood in its cheeks. The hurdles and advantages to being able to think with the same creative dexterity of a small huddle of musicians, but actualize this vision with the robust considerations and multi-faceted deployment of a large performance hub, is the perpetual investigative mission of this Hubs and Huddles series. —Keep reading
“I haven’t discovered the feeling of boredom yet,” chuckles Mischa Maisky. “Bach is never boring at all!” This continuing musical curiosity has no doubt served to cement Maisky’s position as one of the foremost cellists of the 20th and 21st centuries. After formative studies with industry legends Mstislav Rostropovich and Gregor Piatigorsky, he forged a career in collaboration with the highest-profile names in classical music, championing robust, personal interpretations of the core cello repertoire and beyond. Speaking with Cannopy Magazine Editor in Chief Michael Zarathus-Cook, Maisky considers his lifelong relationship with Bach’s cello suites and weighs in on the state of contemporary cello performance. —Listen to the interview
The advent of TikTok was perhaps the decisive blow to the old way of getting a big break as an artist. It used to be that an artist simply had to broadcast their talent in the general vicinity of an enthusiastic producer, and that alone was enough to start the slow ramp-up towards broader social relevance. Increasingly, young artists are building their audience first — usually through algorithmically driven platforms like TikTok — before enlisting the services of the industry’s gatekeepers. —Keep reading
Ask Houck and he’d tell you that “Revelator”, which opens the album, is probably the best song he’s ever written. Long-time listeners of Phosphorescent might bristle at the thought that anything new could top the sprawling list of songs that feature Houck singing with this spleen in that jaded and frayed tenor he’s perfected over the last twenty years. First-time listeners might hear in Revelator a hint of the “sad dad rock” that’s become the fashionable detour for once-raging troubadours now climbing gently into their forties. —Keep reading