Volume 9 Issue 4 - December 2003

EARLY MUSIC
by Fra1,1k Nakashima
Handel's Messiah is of course December's
biggest story, quality and
quantity-wise. At risk of giving it less
than its due, I am simply going to
refer you to the Quick List on page
18 which will enable you to discover
the story for yourself in our concert
listings.*
J-Iere instead are some stories
which might otherwise get lost, during
December and beyond.
The Christmas Oratorio is comprised
of six c_antatas which tell the
story of the nativity. Although meant
to be heard on six different occa- .
sions spanning the twelve days of
Christmas, Tafelmusik will condense
th~ experience for your Iisten­
'ing pleasure and tell the story over
the course of two nights! Directed
by Ivar.s Taurins and featuring Rufus
Millier as the J;:vangelist, the
jubilant choruses and pastoral arias
are sure to sweep you away as the
choir and orchestra of Tafelmusik
usher in the holiday season with one
of Bach's great masterpieces (December
4 - 7).
In one of the more creative programs
this year; "Noels from France and
New France" (December 6), the
Aradia Ensemble has decided to
use the noels as a focal point for
their Christmas concert. In fact, the
French noels will be presented in_
versions still alive in Ontario and
Que~c. In addition, recent research
has apparently brought to light 18thcentury
versions (from French and
English) translated _into the Cree language.
The foatured work will be
. *(For a unique spin on ihe seasonal
Messiah-fest, you might
want to check the "Further
Afield" listings for what Nota
Bene and Tactus are ·doing in
Kitchener and Waterloo December
12 and 13. Their "alternate
Messiah" . strings together various
settings by Henry Purcell of
se.veral of Handel's key texts.)
Charpentier's Pastoral sur lanaissance
de Notre Seigneur Jesus
Christ.
Imagine an early 19th-century
· arrangement of
Beethoven's Seventh Symphony
for wind· octet! In the program
"Ludwig: Seven for
Eight" (January 10), presented
by Baroque Music Beside
Toronto Consort's latest Yuletide the Grange, you'll have the
proj~ct. is to .rec.reate the joyful eel~- . rare opportunity to hear the globrat10n
of Christmas Vespers as It rious and colourful sound of
mig.ht have ?een heard u~de~ the di- period instrument wind octets .
recuonofM1chael Praetonus m17_th- playing "the Seventh" as well
century Germany. The Praetorius as music from Mozart's op­
Christmas Vespers (December l~,
13) assembles singers, recorders, v1-
eras in contemporary arrangements.
olins, cornetti, sackbuts, theorjJos
and keyboards arranged around the The combined talents of Canadian
balconies and stage of Trinity-St.
Paul's Church (the centrepiece of the
"service" is the sumptuous Magnificat
for triple choir and instruments).
The 6-member period ensemble
grows to 63 when it is joined by
guest vocal soloists Michele De Boer,
Paul Grindlay, David Arnot and
Kevin Skelton, The Toronto Chamber
Choir, and a host of rarely heard
period instruments, to recreate a 17thcentury
soprano Isabel
Bayrakdarian and the Tafelmusik
Baroque Orchestra
have.the makings of a fantastic
concert program - see "Cleopatra
with Isabel Bayrakdarian" (January
10, 11, 15, 16). The story of
the legendary Cleopatra was the perfect
vehicle for the baroque composers,
Handel, Hasse, and Graun, the
music of whom you will hear upon
Lutheran Christmas service. this.occasion. ·
If you would like to compare it
with a-Venetian Vespers, you might
The Toronto Early Music Centre
want to attend an actual service at
begins another series of "Musically
the Church of the Redeemer where
Speaking" presentations, a onehour
enlightening program of his­
The Musicians In Ordinary, the
clergy, choir and guests, are developing
an annual tradition of recreattorical
performance. Admission is
free to this event. The first presentation
features the ensemble "Musick's
ing a 17th-century Italian service
(December 7) with music by Claudio
Monteverdi, Alessandro Gran­
Hand-maid" (January 11) - Janet
Scott (harpsichord) with Valerie Sylvester
(violin), Sheila Smyth (violin)
di, Adriano Banchieri and other conand
Laura Jones (gamba).
temporaries.
1
A week-long performance festial and
The English romance "Sir Clege" educational symposium featuring retakes
place in an atmosphere of nowned Bach specialist Helmuth
almsgi~ing, . 9uest, :"1d the miracu- Rilling, soloists Darryl Edwards,
Jous,. m which mmstrels feature Lorna MacDonald (Lois Marshall
pro~mently · Around the fi;amework ·Chair in Voice Studies), violinist Scott
of ~1s rom~ce, Tor?nto. s ensem- St. John, the MacMillan Singers,
ble ,or medieval music, Sme Norn- members of the Elmer Iseler Singine,
has cre~ted a programme of ers the Bach Festival Orchestra and
delig.htful I.4th and l?th cen~ry sp;cial guests Russell Braun and
Engl.1sh Christmas ~us.IC for v01ces Daniel Taylor. "J.S. Bach in the
and mstruments - Minstrels at a World Today" begins on January
Christ~asCourt" (December 19~. 12 - see the website: http://
You ~mght want_to chec~ out th~tr www.utoronto.ca/music .-withparwebstte
- www.pims.ca/smenomme ticular attention to Cantatas 140
JOHN FERTH
Recorder Center ·
sheet music - recorders
984 Dovercou rt Rd.
Toronto; Ont. M6H 2X5
·(4·16) 534-7931
·everything for the
recorder player
"Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme",
105 "Herr, gehe nicht ins Gericht",
26 "A ch wie fluchtig, ach wie nichtig",
67 "Halt im Gedachtnis Jesum
Chrisi" and 172 "Erschallet, ihr
Lieder."
In the late Middle Ages, the dukes
of Burgundy created a domain which
was the most powerful political entity
in Western Europe, and a centre
of exuberant cultural activity. At the
pinnacle of this extravagance was the
supreme musical master Guillaume
Dufay whose music will be the focus
of the Toronto Consort concert
"The Splendour of Burgundy"
(February 6, 7), featuring his
masterwork, Missa Ecce Ancilla
Domini, sung by a small ensemble
of elite singers such as performed at
the Burgundian court. The program
also includes instrumental songs and
dances from the early 15th century.
Frank T. Nakashima
(franknak@interlog.com) is the Pres"
ident of the Toronto Early Music
Centre, a non-profit charitable organization
which promotes the appreciation
of historically-informed
performances of early music.
PHILIP L. DAVIS
Luth.ier
formerly with ff Schroder: Frankfurt, West Gennany
A Fine Selection of Small and
Full Sized Instruments and
Bows • Expert Repairs ,
(416) 466-9619
67 Wolverleigh Blvd., Toronto, Ontario, M4J 1 R6
DECEMBER 1 2003-:: FEBRUARY 7 2004