In 2003/2004, Tafelmusik celebrated its 25th Anniversary and presented a special season with innovative programming, exciting guest artists, and celebratory events. We are pleased to share some of the highlights of the season with you.
Images from left to right:
Tafelmusik musicians during the filming of the Four Seasons Documentary with Media Headquarters; In 2004 Jeanne Lamon was honoured with the prestigious Musician of the Year Award by the Toronto Musicians' Association; Jeanne Lamon and Tafelmusik Board President Dick Freeborough cutting the cake at Tafelmusik's Silver Anniversary Party on November 19, 2003.
Read Tafelmusik's 25th Anniversary Newsletter! (900K pdf file)
View the 2003/2004 press kit! (400 KB pdf file)
Images from left to right:
Mozart’s Mass in C Minor featuring Karina Gauvin, Isabel Bayrakdarian in Cleopatra, “A Silver Celebration” at Casa Loma.
This has been a season not only of looking back on great accomplishments and performances, but of creating new milestones and looking forward to an exciting future. Our first Toronto performances of Beethoven's 5th and 6th Symphonies were a real highlight for me, along with working with such gifted artists as Isabel Bayrakdarian and Richard Egarr. I would like to thank the orchestra and choir for their fine performances, their consistently high standards and their infectious enthusiasm. I would like to thank Alison Mackay for her spark of genius in conceiving the "Folia" project and for her hard work in seeing it to fruition. I would also like to thank Charlotte Nediger, who did such an excellent job of documenting the last 25 years in house programme articles throughout the season. It is so wonderful to have such a personal documentation of our journey. With all the frenetic activity around our 25th anniversary, our staff has worked many long, hard hours. Kudos to Tricia Baldwin and her excellent team for their support of our many undertakings. Lastly, I would like to thank our devoted Board of Directors and you, our audience, for giving us such warm receptions and making our performances a part of your lives. I see a bright and exciting future ahead for Tafelmusik, and I hope you will be there with us as we move towards it.
To honour our 25th anniversary, we presented a series of special articles on Tafelmusik's history in the 2003/2004 concert programmes.
Click on the following links to read these articles:
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Looking Back
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Tafelmusik's Beginnings
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Tafelmusik, 1981-1999
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Tafelmusik, 2000-2004
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Tafelmusik's Touring History
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Tafelmusik's Recording History
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: 25 Years of Guest Artists
Tafelmusik Celebrates 25 Years: Tafelmusik's Education Programmes
In the past year, Jeanne Lamon, the Tafelmusik Orchestra, Ivars Taurins, the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, and the board and staff of Tafelmusik have worked together to present special celebratory concerts and events for Tafelmusik's Silver Anniversary. As the season draws to a close, I would like to extend my sincere thanks and congratulations to the Tafelmusik team for making the 25th season such an extraordinary success!
Music Director Jeanne Lamon went above and beyond in programming superb concerts and guest artists for the 25th anniversary season. Everyone at Tafelmusik was thrilled when Jeanne was awarded the Musician of the Year Award from the Toronto Musicians' Association.
During this season, Tafelmusik has also received a number of distinguished honours. In November, Tafelmusik was the first orchestra to be recognized with the top prize ($50,000) of the Lieutenant Governor's Awards for the Arts. In addition, four Tafelmusik recordings received award nominations: Bach Orchestral Suites (Analekta), Le Mozart Noir (CBC), and Chants Sacrés et Profanes (CBC) received Juno nominations; and Scarlatti, Avison & Vivaldi Stabat Mater with Marie-Nicole Lemieux (Analekta) was nominated for a Canadian Independent Music Awards "Indie" award.
My peers on the Tafelmusik Board of Directors truly enjoyed the 25th anniversary celebrations, and we are committed to building on the next 25 years of Tafelmusik. This year, the board members tirelessly provided leadership in securing sponsorship opportunities, and in strategic planning, finance, and special event planning. Under the warm and generous leadership of Managing Director Tricia Baldwin, Tafelmusik's administrative staff put in long hours to organize the exciting activities planned for the 25th season.
Tafelmusik's success throughout the 25th season is due in no small part to the generosity of many organizations and individuals. We gratefully acknowledge the support of all of our donors and sponsors. A special thank you goes to Sun Life Financial, Classical 96.3 FM, Margaret and Jim Fleck, the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Toronto Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council, The Canada Council for the Arts, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.
And thank you to all the members of Tafelmusik's wonderful audience who have loyally supported us throughout the years. We look forward to sharing many more years of Tafelmusik with you!
