Category Archives: Toronto opera news and views

TSMF begins

Posted on by
Reply

Emerson-Quartet-300x200The Toronto Summer Music Festival kicked off last night with a concert by the venerable and renowned Emerson Quartet.  The theme for the festival is “The Modern Age”; explained to us by the festival director as meaning the many threads and styles that emerged in the opening years of the 20th century.  It might seem a bit odd then that the Emersons chose a programme of Beethoven, Britten and Schubert but in fact the rest of the programming doesn’t seem much closer to the tree with Bach, Haydn and Brahms all featured in upcoming concerts.

Continue reading →

Ben out, Tracy in

Posted on by
Reply

0640 - Cosi - Ferrando_Despina_Guglielmo - credit Michael CooperIf you have been wondering who would replace recently retired Ben Heppner in Westben’s annual Sunday Afternoon at the Opera, to be held this year on July 20th at 2:00 pm, the wait is over. It will be veteran coloratura soprano Tracy Dahl, last seen in Toronto as Despina. She’ll be accompanied by Ensemble Studio head honcho Liz Upchurch. Tickets available at www.westben.ca

TSM Festival Insiders events

Posted on by
Reply

Toronto Summer Music has announced details details for its Festival Insiders events starting July 23rd.  The events include film screenings, interviews, guest lectures, and masterclasses. The events take place at Walter Hall and Boyd Neel Room in the Edward Johnson Building, Faculty of Music, University of Toronto (80 Queen’s Park).  Here’s the line up:

Continue reading →

Tapestry LibLab participants announced

Posted on by
1

Tapestry’s LibLab is a collaborative that brings together composers and librettists to create new work.  It provides participants with the opportunity to work with several partners in a short period of time. Throughout the week-long program, writers and composers are partnered with one another for one day each. With input from music and stage directors, each pair writes a short piece of music theatre and investigates the collaborative process. Their work is performed at the end of each day by a resident ensemble of singers and repetiteurs, and then constructively critiqued by the group.  The best of the works are polished up for a show later in the year (review of last year’s show) and some go on for further development.

Continue reading →

Bicycle Opera Project

Posted on by
2

The Bicycle Opera Project has announced dates and rep for their 2014 Ontario tour which will take seven contemporary Canadian operas to 14 towns and cities across Ontario. The singers are soprano Larissa Koniuk (founder of the Bicycle Opera Project), mezzo Stephanie Tritchew (newest member of Calgary Opera’s young artist program), tenor Christopher Enns  and baritone Geoffrey Sirett. They will be joined by instrumentalists: Wesley Shen (music director/piano), Chelsea Shanoff (saxophone) and Tristan Durie (flute). Liza Balkan will direct.

bicycleopera Continue reading →

Summer Opera Lyric Theatre 2014

Posted on by
Reply

Summer Opera Lyric Theatre is a summer study and performance programme for young artists directed by Guillermo Silva Marin.  This season they will present (in English) three fully staged works with piano accompaniment.  The offerings are Mozart’s The Magic Flute (August 1st, 3 rd(mat), 6th (mat) and 9th), Puccini’s Madame Butterfly (August 2nd (mat), 5th, 7th and 9th (mat)) and Barber’s Vanessa (August 2, 6th, 8th and 10th (mat).  All performances are at the Robert Gill Theatre, University of Toronto, 214 College St. (entrance on St. George). Single tickets are $28, students and seniors are $22. For tickets, call 416-366-7723 (Mondays to Fridays 12 to 6 pm).

The secret ingredient is Otter

Posted on by
Reply

Before heading over to the Daniels Spectrum last night I dropped in on the 2014/15 Royal Conservatory season announcement at Koerner Hall.  The line up of 100 concerts is eclectic; chamber and orchestral, world music and jazz and a small number of vocal concerts which are probably the ones of most interest to readers of this blog.

ann1_1573285c Continue reading →

Nothing says Shostakovich like all-you-can-eat poutine

Posted on by
Reply

smokes-poutineSo along with the late night (10pm start) June 14th Roy Thomson Hall concert of Mason Bates’ Garages of the Valley (a Canadian première/TSO Co-Comission) and Shostakovich’s Symphony No.5 there’s a tailgate party at 7.30pm in the car park and an after party in the lobby.  The former features all you can eat food from Kaplansky’s and Smokes Poutinerie with the after party featuring food from Big Daddy’s.Those of us over 40 are not encouraged to attend; a line will probably be endorsed by local cardiologists.  Full details here.

More out of town stuff in June

Posted on by
Reply

There are a couple of Essential Opera shows scheduled for the KW area in June.  On June 7th at 2pm they are presenting a double bill of Haydn’s L’isola disabitata and Donizetti’s Il campanello at the New Hamburg Festival of the Arts.  Singers include Maureen Batt, Erin Bardua,Stefan Fehr and Giovanni Spanu.  Tickets are $20 (free for students) and available here.

essopera Continue reading →

Opera in June

Posted on by
Reply

icarus-concert-imageThere are a few operatic events coming up in June although, as usual things are slowing down a bit.

On June 1st at 7pm, Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky has a recital at Koerner Hall singing works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Medtner and Liszt. Ivari Ilja will accompany on piano.

Brian Current’s new opera Airline Icarus will open at 8pm on June 3rd at Ada Slaight Hall in the Daniels Spectrum complex.  The piece stars Krisztina Szabó and Alexander Dobson, among others.  Tim Albery directs.  The show runs until June 8th. Tickets are $20-$75 and are available here.

Continue reading →