U of A Department of Music Welcomes New Continuo Organ to Con Hall

From Sound and Noise · University of Alberta Music Students on Music

Dr. Marnie Giesbrecht, Professor of Organ and Early Music at the University of Alberta, welcomed the Department of Music’s new continuo organ to Convocation Hall at the October 24th Monday Noon Music concert. She and several graduate students presented a concert of organ works on both the new organ and Con Hall’s Casavant pipe organ.

A continuo organ, or ‘orgue positif’ in French, is nothing like the pipe organ you have seen in your local church. This instrument is no more than 5-feet tall, 5-feet wide and 2-feet deep. The manual has 50 keys and the organist tends to play these notes while standing. The pipes are within the instrument itself, compared to your standard organ whose pipes are located throughout the hall.

Though the Department gave the instrument its official welcome earlier in October, the intimate Monday Noon Music setting provided Dr. Giebrecht another opportunity to show it off. She played short pieces by Frescobaldi and Cynthia Luk played a Verso by Pachelbel. The rest of the works, which were mostly no later than Mendelssohn, came from Con Hall’s pipe organ. Hyejin Lee, Wendy Niewenhuis, Somang Lam and, once again, Cynthia Luk all played beautifully. Dr. Giesbrecht’s engaging comments on both the instruments and the repertoire were a great addition.

Future events involving organ students at the University of Alberta can be found at the Department of Music’s website: http://www.music.ualberta.ca/.

-Mark Wilkinson

http://thesoundandnoise.com/2011/11/01/u-of-a-department-of-music-welcomes-new-continuo-organ-to-con-hall/

Review-Immaginare un nuovo “Pinocchio”: Alberta Opera takes on the classic tale

From Sound and Noise · University of Alberta Music Students on Music

What: Pinocchio

Date & Venue: Running Oct 27-November 4 at the Transalta Arts Barns, tickets and further info here.

Directed by Farren Timoteo

Music by Jeff Unger

Starring Madeline Knight, Byron Martin and Christopher Scot

This is not the Disney version of Pinocchio. While the main theme may still be there, the story itself varies from what one may be used to. Pinocchio is still a children’s show—for the most part at least—but it also is a show for, well, everyone else. In three words, this play is creative, entertaining and engaging.

The actors were impressive. Madeline Knight (Pinocchio), Byron Martin (Geppetto) and Christopher Scot (Vincenzo) did an excellent job with each and every character they represented. The three of them carried out the 60 minutes of play flawlessly, and not only with their acting but also with their amazing voices—and I must say I particularly enjoyed the Italian accents.

The costumes were fascinating, and they had a very important role—with only three actors and at least 15 different characters, the costumes were crucial. Not only must they fit every character’s personality, they also had to be so different and distracting that the audience could easily ignore the familiarity that, as the play evolved, one started to feel with each actor. In this play, there was seldom a time in which was I taken out of the fantasy world that the play presented me with and thought “this is the same actor as before.” That, in my opinion, is quite an unusual reaction—especially since the actors were, in fact, easy to recognize.

It was the costumes, the setting and the amazing acting and singing the reason why this play was so entertaining—that, and the smart dialogues. When going to a kid’s show, it is easy to get bored by the simplicity in which some jokes and situations are presented, but this is not the case. While there’s still that playful aspect to the play, which seems to target mostly children, the dialogues were elaborated to be appealing to all audiences.

Another thing that made Pinocchio so interesting was the scenography. It is not very complex, but complexity, the play shows, is not always ideal. With only a couple of circus curtains, 3 buckets, 4 poles, and a wooden trunk, the narrative takes you from Italy to the bottom of the ocean (among other unique places). Of course, it was with the aid of the lightning and sound effects that such an outcome was easily achieved, but without a doubt, the creative use of the objects was impressive.

It is refreshing to see a play that does such a good job in exploring the power that imagination can have, and while it is nice to see exactly what the writers and directors want you to see, there is nothing better than what you can imagine for yourself. Nothing can top what is perfect for you.

All in all, going to Pinocchio is a great way to spend any 60 minutes of the day.

by Ana Osorio

http://thesoundandnoise.com/2011/10/29/immaginare-un-nuovo-pinocchio-alberta-opera-takes-on-the-classic-tale/

Chicago - October 28 to November 4, 2011

Review - Edmonton Opera's Season Opener Speaks the Truth

From Sound and Noise, University of Alberta Music Students on Music, October 22, 2011:

Verismo operas serve to depict the truth in everyday life. To this day, audiences connect to the enduringly real quality of Puccini’s classic love story, La Bohème. Pietro Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana defined Italian verismo opera when it opened in 1890. Edmonton Opera begins its season on Saturday evening with Mascagni’s definitive masterpiece in combination with another verismo favourite, Ruggero Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci (as a duo, these two shows often receive the nickname “Cav/Pag”). If truth is the name of the game in verismo opera, Edmonton Opera’s dress rehearsal on Thursday evening did not tell a word of lie.

Although headlined by legendary tenor Richard Margison in the role of Turiddu, the story of Cavalleria Rusticana belongs to Santuzza—the unrequited lover of Turiddu. Santuzza is a notoriously difficult role that requires a mezzo-soprano or a soprano to have both a full-throated lower register and soaring high notes.

As Santuzza, Dana Beth Miller proved herself a fine actress, capturing the dramatic intensity the role requires. Her voice was equally dramatic and plenty beautiful, but I fear the difficult acoustic in the Jubilee Auditorium caused her to up her breath pressure and squeeze her high notes to compensate. Though she needed to trust that her powerful voice would carry just fine, her performance was captivating. Mia Lennox Williams was loveably annoying as Lola, the woman who steals Turiddu away from Santuzza, and Lynne McMurtry’s Mama Lucia was beautifully sung. Gregory Dahl, who has charisma for days, was a powerfully jealous Alfio. I am going to be honest: Richard Margison is, quite simply, Richard Margison. His voice is still working. That is all you need to know. Go see him.

Gregory Dahl transitioned the evening into Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci with some wonderfully timed comedy as Tonio the clown. The entrance of the villagers to see the company putting on the theatrics marked the entrance of one of our great sopranos, Laura Whalen. Her Nedda was stunning. Her voice was beautiful, as always, her dramatic intentions were clear, as always, and her glistening presence made it hard to focus on anyone else. Tonio had no chance at love with Whalen’s Nedda.

Nedda’s husband, Canio, was Mr. Margison. Again in fine form, he sang the famous “Vesti la giubba” as beautifully as ever. Aaron St. Clair Nicholson was formidable as Nedda’s lover, Silvio, and Robert Clark was quite funny as Beppe the clown.

Meastro Tyrone Paterson led the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and Edmonton Opera Chorus through the undeniably gorgeous music of both of these verismo greats. The chorus was particularly busy in the Leoncavallo, and each member remained engaging throughout. Peter J. Hall’s beautifully simple sets added to the search for emotional truth by not overdoing anything and letting the performers tell the story.

Kudos are in order for director Valerie Kuinka. She went for truth rather than fireworks, and this allowed the music to shine through. The tragic nature of these two operas, in turn, became so beautiful that you accepted the stories for exactly what they were.

This is an evening of opera not to be missed.

Edmonton Opera’s production runs on October 22, 25 and 27 at 7:30pm at the Jubilee Auditorium.

-Mark Wilkinson

http://thesoundandnoise.com/2011/10/22/edmonton-operas-season-opener-speaks-the-truth/

Review - Raga Mala Features the heARTbeat Ensemble at the Museum

From Sound and Noise, University of Alberta Music Students on Music, October 24, 2011:

On Friday night, Raga Mala showcased a spectacular improvisational event. Raga Mala, a local society that educates and promotes the variation and excellence found in Indian music and dance, has a reputation of bringing magnificent talent, and the heARTbeat ensemble did not disappoint.

It being my first time seeing a concert at the Royal Alberta Museum theater, I was struck by the acoustic clarity of the space. The live sound engineer was a true artist in his ability to create such a luscious and balanced mix with such a dense sound. From a sound space perspective, the show was fantastic. Thank you, Mike.

Upon entering the theater, I was interested in the arrangement of the instruments on the stage. On one side was the acoustic instruments: Ghatam (a percussive clay pot), Mridangam (a double-sided percussive folk drum), and a Kanjira (a similar instrument to a tambourine), mediating the space was a silent violin (which was later anything but silent), and on the other side, the electronic instruments: a micro Korg synth, a midi Drum pad (programmed with a multitude of sounds, percussive and instrumental), an electronic keyboard, drone box, and a nature/animal sound loop. Having been to a few Raga Mala shows before, this set up was quite unique and even a little bizarre. I am a skeptic when it comes to fusing acoustic and electronic instruments in a live setting because often it morphs into something more resembling a battle or showdown of acoustic versus electronic, and it hurts my ears (and soul) a little. In any case, the heARTbeat ensemble was a rare event that shattered my expectations and not my eardrums.

From the first note, the virtuosity of each player was apparent. The concert began with a piece featuring an eighteen beats per cycle rhythmic structure, which may not phase you, but the speed and accuracy with which they played was so tight and complex as an ensemble that I was holding my breath, waiting for it to get derailed. But of course, that never happened. The third selection was called “Pulse” and it was played at 72 beats/min, the resting pulse of the average person. This piece was a lesson in the effectiveness and beauty of the pentatonic scale, and my personal favourite of the evening. The silent violin was effortlessly expressive and moving. The Korg wound itself between the violins melodic space, manipulating the pitch using such precise pitch bending functions, it became as natural a sound as any acoustic instrument. Maya (meaning illusion) was the last piece played before intermission, highlighting the heARTbeat ensemble’s essence: a series of improvisational percussive solos, getting increasingly more intricate and faster as the piece progressed. This piece showcased the marriage of classical Indian music, free form jazz and improvisation, to a degree that would be educational to all Edmonton’s percussionists of all levels. After tea, the second half consisted of two pieces: a free form, percussive improvisational virtuosity and a medley of Indian and Canadian sounds of the folk and classical lineages, flawlessly performed and executed.

The virtuosity of the players of the heARTbeat ensemble left me stunned. Their ability to mold and shape complex traditional carnatic rhythms and scales and tonalities was achieved with ease and excellence. Seamlessly, they blended improvisation, experimental free form jazz, rock, folk, western classical and Indian classical music, creating a mature fusion of acoustic and electronic, and traditional and contemporary sound. Dr ‘Ghatam’ Karthick, founder of the ensemble, integrated the right amount of story telling, humour, audience participation and education within this performance, in a way that left the audience hanging off every note, every beat and every bend. The heARTbeat ensemble is an extraordinary group of extremely talented musicians who have conceptualized a brilliant improvisational platform, creating a new sound niche nestled between tradition and experimental improvisation.

For more information on the heARTbeat ensemble click here

For Raga Mala information and upcoming performances click here

- Allison Sokil

http://thesoundandnoise.com/2011/10/24/raga-mala-features-the-heartbeat-ensemble-at-the-museum/

Review - Daniel Taylor, countertenor - "unplugged"

Daniel Taylor visited Sherwood Park's Festival Place for an intimate concert of early music and Handel arias to a small but enthusiastic crowd (by the way Edmonton, where were you?)

Joined by Agnes Zsigovics, soprano and Jordan de Souza, piano, Daniel wowed the audience with not only his vocal talent but also his natural comedic wit as he told stories and described some of the music.

For anyone new to the world of countertenors, Daniel put everyone at ease by describing the countertenor voice and telling a story of a performance in Victoria where a woman in the audience remarked, "What the hell was that?!" and thought that a young countertenor student was mouthing along with a recording. If you have never heard a countertenor before, run out and buy one of Daniel Taylor's many CDs for Sony Classical - you won't be sorry.

The first half of the concert included some early music standards and folk song favourites such as “I will Give My Love an Apple” and “Down by the Sally Gardens”. It is wonderful and rare to hear these well known simple tunes receive such care and sensitivity by a seasoned artist.

Daniel Taylor shared the music with Agnes Zsigovics who supplemented the program with solos and duets with Daniel. Agnes is a promising soprano with a haunting early music style and I hope to hear much more from her in the future. In particular, the ornamentation in Agnes’ “Lascia ch’io pianga” from Handel’s Rinaldo was beautifully understated and authentic.

The second half of the performance was devoted to the music of Handel and Jordan de Souza was allowed to shine on the piano with the rousing Harmonious Blacksmith Variations. The highlights of the second half were the infrequently performed “The Pilgrim’s Home” from the oratorio Theodora which was lovingly sung by Agnes Zsigovics, Daniel Taylor’s always stellar singing of Cara Sposa (Rinaldo) which I would argue is his best role, and finally, the encore.

Daniel Taylor brought the house down (and his hair!) with the passionate and unhinged singing of one of Tolomeo’s arias from Giulio Cesare satisfyingly unleashing the full power of both his countertenor and baritone voice in the final aria of the concert.

In order to ensure that classical music remains part of Festival Place in Sherwood Park, Daniel offered that any money donated to his Theatre of Early Music would be doubled and provided to Festival Place to allow more classical music concerts to be performed. Thank you to Daniel (the philanthropist!), Agnes and Jordan for venturing out to the suburbs of Edmonton and I wish there were more people there to appreciate your work.

Daniel Taylor returns to Edmonton on Monday February 13th with the Theatre of Early Music in Dido and Aeneas at Convocation Hall at the University of Alberta.

Jordan de Souza returns to Edmonton in the spring to conduct Berlioz’s Béatrice et Bénédict at Opera Nuova’s Vocal Arts Festival.

Concert Listings Oct 24-30

Monday October 24, 2011 FREE UofA Monday Noon Music  45 min, student concerts from western classical to world music. Don’t forget to bring your lunch! Convocation Hall, UofA.

Monday, October 24, 2011 12pm FREE Location? Noon Hour Organ Concert at the U of A sponsored by the RCCO Edmonton. Featuring works by Bruhns, Couperin, Mendelssohn and others on the gallery organ and the new Krapf Memorial Positive Organ in its first public performance with works by Frescobaldi and Zipoli.

Tuesday October 25, 2011 7:30pm Edmonton Opera Cavalleria Rusticana (Mascagni) and I Pagliacci (Leoncavallo). Jubilee Auditorium.

Wednesday October 26, 2011 12:10-12:50pm FREE McDougall Concert Association, Hiromi Takahashi, oboe and Jeremy Spurgeon, piano. McDougall United Church, banquet hall, 101 street and one block south of Jasper Avenue (use Macdonald Drive entrance, faces the river). Bring your friends and your bag lunch – coffee and tea are also available.

Thursday October 27 - Friday November 4, 2011 Pinocchio - Alberta Opera Musical Theatre for Young People. Fringe Festival, Westbury Theatre. Contact the theatre for showtimes.

Thursday October 27, 2011 7:30pm Edmonton Opera Cavalleria Rusticana (Mascagni) and I Pagliacci (Leoncavallo). Jubilee Auditorium.

Saturday October 29, 2011 6pm Annual fundraising dinner for the Anne Burrows Music Foundation. Performance by Michelle Yelin Nam, piano. Faculty Club.

Saturday, October 29, 2011 7pm The Contempo New Music ensemble presents works by Godin, Hannah, Csapo, Levy & Xenaxis. Featuring a special performance by professor Roger Admiral, piano. Admission by donation. Convocation Hall, UofA.

Sunday October 30, 2011 7:30pm Edmonton Recital Society, Ivan Zenaty, violin. Sponsored by the Czech and Slovak Society of Arts and Sciences of Alberta. Muttart Hall, Alberta College. Contact Tix on the Square.

Sunday October 30, 2011 7:30pm Sacred Music Festival – Concordia School of Music ensembles. Winspear Centre.

Review - Brilliant Conductor Meets Delightful Pianist

From Sound and Noise - University of Alberta Popular-Music Students on Music

Brilliant Conductor Meets Delightful Pianist

César Franck’s first and only symphony is an undeniably passionate piece, built on an intense interplay of thematic material. It was performed last weekend by the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, alongside a seemingly similar work by Mendelssohn. However, the two pieces are almost opposite in temperament: where Franck contrasts between the melancholy and the brash, Mendelssohn’s first piano concerto is cheerful and civilized. Mendelssohn’s forays into drama – a brass fanfare or plunge into percussive lower register – are more like interludes for interest.

Ilya Yakushev handled Mendelssohn with an exquisite lightness. His demeanor reflected the style. He was sweet and a bit goofy, sending the occasional smile to the audience. The kind of furrowed-brow soloist the audience gets used to is not without its benefits, but would not have suited the piece. Instead Yakushev was delicate, playing with ease and yet with a carefulness that was most affecting in the second movement. Very soft, almost without orchestra, he made each gesture sound like the most natural thing, as though the piano were playing itself.

Franck’s symphony was a different kettle of fish. From the silence before the first sound, conductor Mei-Ann Chen girded the loins of the whole room. Mendelssohn had begun with a powerful flourish, then relaxed into playfulness. Franck did the opposite. Growing from nothing, steadily building in tension, the symphony felt like a fast-approaching explosion.

Chen was dynamite. “Intensity, precision and a thorough knowledge of the score – Chen was a wonderful, full and delectable musical package to behold,” said Petar Dundjerski, conductor of Edmonton’s University Symphony Orchestra. She used the whole podium, wringing expression out of the symphony as she crouched and leapt. Her whole body seemed to be pushing the piece forward, from standing on her toes to her outstretched arms. Yet she was clear and precise. Her shoulders and elbows were loose, giving her great flexibility of motion. Somehow, she did not fall moderately between the spectrums of technique and expression, but rather conjoined them. She brought out a theme, then a countertheme, then wove them together again and again, as Franck’s elaborate composition demanded.

In the folksy, guitar-like opening of the second movement, the strings and harp plucked with a brighter energy than the melancholy wind themes or the enormous climaxes, but nonetheless with great energy. The piece lacked nothing – exciting composition, vibrant orchestra, expressive solos, and most of all a brilliant conductor.

—MaryGrace Johnstone

http://thesoundandnoise.com/2011/10/20/brilliant-conductor-meets-delightful-pianist/

UPDATED - RCCO Edmonton Organ Scholarship Deadline November 7, 2011

RCCO (Royal Canadian College of Organists) Edmonton Centre has a scholarship program which provides funds for organ studies.

The three programs include:

Beginning Organists, a scholarship for pianists interested in trying out the organ with one of our local teachers.

The Farmer Memorial Scholarship is for advanced organists wishing to continue or further their studies.

The Eileen Gordon Bishop Scholarship provides funds for working organists for further studies, workshops or attendance at conventions or other educational activities related to their work as an organist.

If you have any questions, please contact us at this email address and your message will be passed on to Dr. Kloppers, our scholarship chair.

jacobus.kloppers@telus.net

Applicants for the Farmer and the Eileen Gordon-Bishop scholarships  must be RCCO members.

The application deadline has been extended to November 7, 2011 and auditions will be in November. 

The application is now available on the RCCO web site - click on the link below.
RCCO Edmonton Centre

Review - Monday Noon Music brings the (understated) love

From Sound and Noise · University of Alberta Popular-Music Students on Music

The theme of love filled Convocation Hall in more ways than one during this week’s Monday Noon Music concert. Violinist Frédéric Bednarz and pianist Natsuki Hiratsuka chose a program of violin sonatas whose central theme was love. To add to this, University of Alberta Professor of Violin, Guillaume Tardif, introduced the concert by announcing to the audience that the duo had been recently married. This personal collaboration was immediately evident in the duo’s artistic collaboration.

Beginning with César Franck’s Violin and Piano Sonata in A Major, Bednarz and Hiratsuka exuded understated elegance and deeply sensitive playing. Neither one of them upstaged the other, nor did they create artificial fireworks for the sake of entertainment. I appreciated their simplicity, demeanour and musical approach, considering that the French style is one of more reserved expressions of emotion.

The second piece was Maurice Ravel’s Violin and Piano Sonata in G Major, which Ravel wrote as part of his marriage proposal to Hélène Jourdan-Morhange (unfortunately, Mme Jourdan-Morhange refused his offer). Ravel’s piece gave Bednarz the opportunity to show why he recently joined the renowned Molinari String Quartet, with his assured technique and versatile musicality. The second movement of the Ravel was a Blues theme, and Bednarz captured the mood well.

Hiratsuka played with beautiful colours and in perfect harmony with Bednarz, but she had to deal with several piano keys that were out of tune. She managed, however, to fill the sound with love, despite the instrument’s shortcomings. The duo programmed a third piece, Fritz Kreisler’s Gypsy Caprice, but a large group of students, in which I include myself, had to leave before hearing the Kreisler, due to the length of the concert.

Logistics aside, Frédéric Bednarz and Natsuki Hiratsuka presented Monday Noon Music with a beautifully understated concert. Everyone really did feel the love.

Monday Noon Music continues throughout the 2011-2012 season. Consult the Department of Music website at www.music.ualberta.ca for more information.

-Mark Wilkinson

http://thesoundandnoise.com/2011/10/18/monday-noon-music-brings-the-understated-love/