Opening concerts feature music by Tchaikovsky & Mendelssohn on period instruments, and a world premiere by Cree composer Andrew Balfour
September 19 to 22, 2019 at Koerner Hall
Toronto, August 14, 2019… Tafelmusik launches its 2019/20 season with new soundscapes and new repertoire, bringing a sense of creative renewal to the music of the 19th century. Elisa Citterio directs Tafelmusik meets Tchaikovsky, a program that extends Tafelmusik’s reach into an era where few period orchestras have gone before — the music of the late romantic Russian composer Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The Serenade for string orchestra, op. 48, is paired with works by Mendelssohn, and Pytor’s Dream, a world premiere by Cree composer Andrew Balfour. The opening concerts take place September 19 to 22, 2019, at Koerner Hall, TELUS Centre. Full program details are available at Tafelmusik.org.
The program opens with three works by Mendelssohn: two youthful string symphonies, as well as the Scherzo from A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a new arrangement by Elisa’s brother, composer Carlo Citterio.
Though these concerts mark Tafelmusik’s first experience with the music of Tchaikovsky, the orchestra is no stranger to 19th-century composers. Tafelmusik has performed and recorded works by Mendelssohn, Schubert, Bellini, Rossini, and Chopin.
“At Tafelmusik, we do our best to perform music as it would have been heard when it was first composed, whether in 1626 or 1880. We also infuse everything we play with inspiration from our experience in the world today. The opening program of our season highlights the brilliance and vigour at the heart of everything Tafelmusik undertakes, including our first-ever foray into the music of Tchaikovsky,” said Citterio. “More than 70 years ago, pioneering musicians began the journey of rediscovering original instruments. Without them, we would not be here today, and we wouldn’t have rediscovered thousands of amazing old scores. This spirit of creative renewal has paved the way for us to play Bach, Vivaldi, Haydn, Mozart, Mendelssohn, and now also Tchaikovsky with freshness and vitality, while respecting the original scores and the sonorities of instruments at the time when the compositions were first drafted.”
To prepare for the Tchaikovsky Serenade performances, Tafelmusik’s string players will take part in an intensive workshop led by a specialist in 19th-century performance practise, cellist Kate Bennett Wadsworth, who will also join the orchestra for these concerts.
“We’re beginning this artistic adventure with workshops to help the whole orchestra to get comfortable with a style that is new and, for some, downright bizarre. We hope that Toronto audiences will join with us in the spirit of adventure that has guided our work. We don’t exactly know what will happen next; that is part of the magic,” said Bennett Wadsworth.
For his first Tafelmusik commission, composer Andrew Balfour draws upon his background in early music as a choral singer and his great love for Russian classical romanticism. Pyotr’s Dream is based on Tchaikovsky’s 1878 choral work Hymn of the Cherubim, taken from the Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom. “Considered one of the most celebrated of the Eucharistic services of the Eastern Orthodox Church, it suggests a certain romantic ritualistic protocol which is familiar to me as the son of an Anglican priest,” says Balfour. “Pyotr’s Dream expands beyond the particular beauty of choral music in church and embraces an appreciation of music as a spiritual truth. The period strings lend themselves to a singing tone and help create a heightened sense of spirituality that is a universal beyond any church, religion, or ritual.”
LISTING INFORMATION
Tafelmusik’s 2019/20 Season Opener: Tafelmusik meets Tchaikovsky
Elisa Citterio, director and violin soloist
Dates: Thu Sept 19, Fri Sept 20, Sat Sept 21, 2018 at 8pm | Sun Sept 22 at 3:30pm
Venue: Koerner Hall, TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, 273 Bloor Street West, Toronto
Box Office: Weston Family Box Office, (416) 408-0208
Regular tickets starting from $39. Discounts available for seniors (65+), 35 & under, and youth (18 & under).
ABOUT TAFELMUSIK
Led by Music Director Elisa Citterio, Tafelmusik is one of the world’s leading period-instrument ensembles, performing on instruments and in styles appropriate for the era of the music. Renowned for dynamic, engaging, and soulful performances, Tafelmusik performs some 80 concerts each year for audiences across Toronto, and is Canada’s most toured orchestra, having performed in more than 350 cities in 32 countries. The orchestra is often joined by the critically acclaimed Tafelmusik Chamber Choir and its director, Ivars Taurins.
Tafelmusik also seeks to transport audiences to the baroque and classical periods through insightful multimedia programs and adventurous cross-cultural collaborations. Our musicians share their knowledge and experience through comprehensive education and artist-training initiatives such as the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer and Winter Institutes. Tafelmusik’s recordings on the Sony, CBC Records, Analekta, and Tafelmusik Media labels have garnered ten JUNOs and numerous international recording prizes.
Website: tafelmusik.org
Social Media: Facebook| Twitter| Instagram | YouTube | Spotify
2019/20 SEASON PARTNERS
Tafelmusik wishes to thank the following for their generous support: BMO Financial Group, TD Bank Group, RBC Foundation, KPMG, Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation, Whitmer Trudel Charitable Foundation, The Pluralism Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Classical 96.3 FM, and NOW Magazine. Tafelmusik is a proud member of the Bloor St. Culture Corridor.
Media contact: Luisa Trisi, Big Picture Communications, (416) 456-0499
luisa@luisatrisi.com | 427 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON M5S 1X7