There is so much happening these days in Niagara, as the Christmas season is upon us, I thought I would devote my midweek entry to a round-up of things coming up over the next few days in the area. First, though, I want to quickly look back on the Niagara Symphony performance on the weekend.
As mentioned in my last entry, the second Masterworks concert of the season was conducted by Associate Conductor Laura Thomas Sunday afternoon, as they performed Buhr's Akasha and Mozart's Symphony No. 41, the "Jupiter" symphony. Laura, I find, is a very democratic conductor, giving credit to everyone in the orchestra who deserves it, perhaps since she is also a member of the orchestra herself. Oddly, though, I don't feel the orchestra sounded as sharp as it usually does, and I can't put my finger on just why that would be. The other notable piece on the programme was Vivaldi's familiar The Four Seasons, Op. 8, performed by members of the strings conducted from the violin by young Julia Wedman, who spends a lot of her time in Toronto performing with the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra. This was not a period instrument performance, of course, but the Symphony under Wedman presented a rather rustic, rough-hewn version of Vivaldi's greatest hit, with its own particular charm. A notable change was the fact all the violins and violas stood during the performance, which added a different visual dimension to the performance I quite enjoyed. Wedman for her part was poised and took control of the situation without dominating it. The other nice addition to the mix was Shaw Festival actress Sharry Flett, who narrated the sonnets attributed to Vivaldi that subsequently inspired him to write the music for The Four Seasons. Again, it added another dimension to the performance, changing it from just another performance of a classical warhorse to a work with exceptional grace and charm. Overall, a pleasant performance; I also scored a couple of winning bids at the silent auction tables after the performance. Bonus!
Now, on to other things happening this weekend. Staying at Brock University, tomorrow evening (Friday) from 6 pm to midnight, Nuit Blanche Brock 2010 takes place - a multidisciplinary celebration of installation, time-based and performance art. It's a free community event organized by the Department of Visual Arts, with over 30 student artists and performers participating from Dramatic Arts, Music and Visual Arts. Art works include drawings, sculpure, dance, photography, video, installation and performances. Locations are throughout the campus, including the Thistle Complex, James A. Gibson Library, Market Hall and the MacKenzie Chown complex. For a complete listing of art works and dowloadable maps, you can visit www.brocku.ca/visualarts/visaexhibits.html. Should be a great evening, and it's free!
On the weekend, the Avanti Chamber Singers present Christmas Suites: Seasonal Music from Niagara and Beyond at St. Barnabas Anglican Church on Queenston Street. Tickets are available at the door or through the Department of Music at Brock. The concert begins at 7:30 on Saturday evening. Also at St. Barnabas Church, which is one of the acoustic jewels of Niagara, by the way, the next Primavera Concerts performance takes place Sunday evening at 7:30, and features Graham and Ian Shaw as narrators in a performance of Dylan Thomas' A Child's Christmas in Wales. This is a perennial favourite, and the old recording of Dylan himself reciting it is still available on CD; you can order it through my website, www.finemusic.ca, or just emailing me directly, music@vaxxine.com.
Both Saturday and Sunday, Laura Thomas' choral group, Choralis Camerata, presents their annual Christmas concert, and since Chorus Niagara is doing Messiah this year, they are not. This season, the concert includes a number of seasonal favourites, with the highlight being Gian Carlo Menotti's Amahl & the Night Visitors, which premiered on television in 1951. There's an indication how television has changed over the years: the world premiere of an opera on television was broadcast LIVE on NBC back in 1951, so the 50th anniversary comes up next year. Laura and her singers jump the gun this weekend, with performances Saturday evening at 7:30 at St. Andrews United Church in Niagara Falls, and Sunday afternoon at 2:30 at the expansive St. Alexander Roman Catholic Church in Fonthill. Tickets are available at the door for both performances, and on Sunday afternoon I will be in the foyer at intermission and after the show with lots of seasonal music for sale, including the only CD recording of Amahl currently available, on the Naxos label. It is a great recording; sadly the original from 1951 which I still own on LP, is long out of print. If you can't make it to the concert but want a copy of the CD, send me an email at music@vaxxine.com and I can get a copy for you.
A little further afield, over in Lewiston, New York, their annual Christmas Walk takes place on Center Street with many area merchants getting into the act, and tied in with it this year is the grand opening of the Opera Hall Gallery at 736 Center Street. Many local artists' work will be featured, not just this weekend, but on an ongoing basis.
In Hamilton, one of the best area choirs down that way, the John Laing Singers, present their annual Christmas concert on Saturday evening, 7:30, at Central Presbyterian Church on Charlton Avenue in Hamilton. Titled Gloria in Excelsis, the concert features music from Palestrina to Whitacre and lots of other music in-between. The John Laing Singers have a great sound, and their lovely Christmas CD, Merrily Sing We, is a joyful celebration of the season in words and music. I have it featured on my website at www.finemusic.ca, or email me directly at music@vaxxine.com and I can get a copy out to you in time for Christmas.
So, as you can see, we have lots going on not far from our own front doors. More to come, too, and I will have some thoughts on the upcoming Messiah performances with Chorus Niagara this coming weekend in my next blog entry.
Enjoy the season!
December 2nd, 2010.
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