Volume 9 Issue 4 - December 2003

COVER STORY: SNAPSHOTS
compiled anil edited by David Perlman
As always these three interviews, conducted by e-mail, commenced with the
the same three-part request: Say who you are, as if for someone who
doesn't know you; say something about what you 're doing now; say something
about what you 're working on in the longer term. Follow-up was then
as varied as the initial responses. Meet Gabrielle Mcwughlin; Howard
Dyck; anil Johanne Goyette.
SNAPSHOT #1
We are I FURIOSI Baroque Ensemble. We
consist of two violins, cello and soprano and
we focus primarily on the Baroque period,
but like to mix it up with "crossover" pieces,
sometimes pop, sometimes jazz, sometimes
traditional. You may recognize us as the ;
group in the leather. We wear a lot of leather I~
and PVC and try to resuscitate some of the
r~J
sex appeal of the Baroque era that has been "
lost in academia. We tend to perform pieces
that are rarely heard on stage, and look for
appropriate visual accompaniment in our attire.
Our members: me, Gabrielle
McLaughlin, soprano; Aisslinn
Nosky, violin; Julia Wedman, violin;
Felix Deak, violoncello.
At the moment we have just begun
our 2003/2004 season. We are
hoping our audiences will throw
themselves into our somewhat more
daring themes of the year: Italian
Psycho (January 7) focusses on
DonCarlo Gesualdo - a composer
known also for having been quite a
ruthless murderer. Instruments to
Plague Us will feature music from
the times of great plagues, and a
new piece written in the time of
SARS. Gloriously Drunk looks unabashedly
at alcohol and complete,
unadulterated intoxication thereby.
Longer term: Several tours are in
the works right now, as is a recording.
We plan to continue our Toronto
concert series and also to perform
many concerts in places we
have never been. We have toured
parts of the United States and Great
Britain, and have interest from other,
warmer areas of the earth which we
plan to explore in great detail. We
are working on total world domination,
but it seems it might be at least
another few months. We'll let you
know.
FOLWW-UP:
One of your concert releases afew
seasons ago talked about your approach
as "brazen refinement" - to
deal with baroque's contradictions.
You called it "an age in which the
tenuous marriage between the Sacred
and the Profane scandalized
and intoxicated the European Nations."
Are "scandalize anil intoxicate"
still achievable? If so, how, if not,
then what saves the "sex-and leather"
from being dismissed as just a
stunt?
Scandal and intoxication are certainly
still achievable. By placing the music
into the appropriate contexts, it
can be as scandalous and exciting as
it was meant to be when it was written.
Early Music tends to be linked
with dried fruit and Birkenstocks in
many people's minds, whereas a lot
of it was written in very vivacious
times when figures of power were
throwing people's senses of morality
and acceptability into a tailspin.
Sex and leather is only one way in
which our society today tries to continue
to stretch the limits of moral
acceptance. We seem to forget that
sex was a tool used to grasp curiosity
long before the 20th century, and
it's only by updating that tool that I
FURIOSI can reveal the tantalising
nature of many of the works of the
past.
-"'7U2! makes this the right music
for your instrument (your voice)?
Partly it is simply the nature of my
instrument itself, being straighter and
more inclined toward word colouration
than toward large, operatic, vibratic
tone. I also have such a passion
for the music that what makes it
right for my voice is my love of it
and my desire to perform it so that
people will love it as much as I do.
-How do your concert themes
emerge? Choosing music for
themes, or finding themes in the
chosen music?
Themes emerge from any one member's
inspiration about things we find
we are relating with on a daily basis.
When planning a season, we find
we have been harbouring certain
themes that we are desperate to do
because there is so much great music
CONTINUES
GREAT CHAMBER MUSIC
DOWNTOWN
GRYPHON TRIO
3 musicians - or an
orchestra? Hear big, bold
performances of Martinu,
Ives and Beethoven
Tues., Dec. 2 at 8 p.m.
MARC-ANDRE HAMELIN
Escape the December
weather: Canadian
superstar plays an. evening
of Spanish composer Albeniz
Tyes., Dec. 9 at 8 p.m.
sic toronto
ST. LAWRENCE
STRING QUARTET
Ravel - Golijov - Dvorak
Adventurous music played
with precision, warmth,
electricity (NY TIMES)
Thurs., Jan. 15 at 8 p.m.
DUO TURGEON
2 pianos, 4 hands -
the concert version -
a wonderful varied
programme
Tues., Jan. 20 at 8 p.m.
BARBARA HANNIGAN
Soprano sings world
premiere of James Rolfe's
Rimbaud Songs
Hear the best of the new!
Thurs., Jan. 29 at 8 p.m.
l+I ==:,no
@%AT ~~Jane Mallett Theatre•
N TJQ.
~ St. Lawrence Centre for thl' Aris
.11 www.stlc.corn
www.music·toronto.com
416-366-7723 • 1-800-708-6754
order online at www.stlc.com
DECEMBER 1 2003 - FEBRUARY 7 2004 WWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COM 7