Lots of planning. Location, masks, marked spots, print-at-home music, health questionnaires -- and a love of choral music.
Author: tmchoir
Post
Toronto Mendelssohn Choir Names New Associate Baton
Michael Vincent, Ludwig Van Toronto. Montréal-born conductor Simon Rivard has been appointed Associate Conductor of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. Named as one of CBC’s “30 Hot Canadian Classical Musicians under 30”, Rivard was mentored by Valery Gergiev at the Verbier Festival (2018).
Post
TMC announces appointment of Simon Rivard as Associate Conductor
Toronto Mendelssohn Choir is thrilled to announce the appointment of Simon Rivard as Associate Conductor. Simon Rivard has been serving as RBC Resident Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra since 2018. He comes to the position of TMC Associate Conductor having worked closely with the Choir: in preparing the TMC for their performances with the TSO; jointly conducting the TMC’s Festival of Carols concerts this past December which featured the TSYO as guest artists; and directing the TMC-TSYO-TSO collaboration in May to create the virtual performance of Gabriel Fauré’s Cantique de Jean Racine.
Post
TMC shares Andrew Balfour’s Mamachimowin
The TMC has released a video of its premiere of Andrew Balfour's Mamachimowin, commissioned by the TMC for its 125th anniversary gala concert in October 2019.
Post
Three Major Toronto Arts Groups Combine In Historic Virtual Choral-Orchestral Video
Michael Vincent, Ludwig van Toronto. There is nothing quite like the hope found in the continued resilience shown by artists coming together during a crisis. The TSO has joined the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, to perform Gabriel Fauré’s moving Cantique de Jean Racine, under the baton of conductor Simon Rivard.
Post
TMC, TSYO and TSO collaborate on a virtual choral-orchestral work – Gabriel Fauré’s Cantique de Jean Racine
Concert cancellations due to Covid-19 and the desire to keep sharing music has led to performances all around the world by virtual choirs and by virtual orchestras. The TSO’s RBC Resident Conductor Simon Rivard thought, why not choir and orchestra together?
Building on the long-standing collaboration between the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, Simon set out to bring together (virtually) musicians from these three groups to share Gabriel Fauré’s lush and well-loved Cantique de Jean Racine.
Post
Review of Great Poets in Music online program
Ken Stephen, Large Stage Live. On Saturday, May 30, the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir was scheduled to round out its season with a concert devoted to great poets in music -- a concert which I had fully planned to attend.
With a little bit of luck and a great deal of ingenuity, planning, effort, and coordination, the Choir has managed instead to present an online virtual concert built around the same theme. It originally aired at the same time that the live concert was scheduled to take place, and is now available online.
To pull this effort together, the Choir has brought together audio recorded performances from five other choirs, tossed in a previous video performance and a new social-distancing recording of their own, and tied the entire evening together with readings of great poetry and theatre by renowned Canadian actors Tom McCamus and Lucy Peacock and commentary by the choir's interim conductor, David Fallis.
Post
Toronto Symphony Orchestra New Recording of MASSENET: THAIS on Chandos Label
Broadway World Newsdesk.
In the absence of being able to perform live in its concert hall, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is especially pleased to announce the release of a new recording of Massenet's emotionally riveting opera Thaïs on the prestigious Chandos label.
Massenet: Thaïs is now available for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music, and for purchase on iTunes. Conducted by TSO Interim Artistic Director Sir Andrew Davis, and featuring a cast of renowned Canadian and international singers, with the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, Massenet: Thaïs was recorded live by Soundmirror, Inc. at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto in November 2019.
Post
Program for Great Poets in Music online
Great Poets in Music online program presented on May 30, 2020. Stratford actors Tom McCamus and Lucy Peacock join TMC Interim Conductor David Fallis to read poetry and listen to choral settings of some of the works. Here is a full list of the texts read and the music listened to.