Eatdrink #63 January/February 2017

№ 63 | January/February 2017 www.eatdrink.ca 49
the classical beat
Young Talent Shines Bright
By NICOLE LAIDLER
It may be the dead of winter, but local
talent will be shining bright on stages
across our region this January and
February.
London’s least conventional classical
ensemble, the Rebelheart Collective,
presents its second concert at Aeolian Hall,
January 21, with a program of music by
Bartok, Haydn, Mozart and Mussorgsky.
At the core of the ensemble are four of
Canada’s top string players — Scott St.
John, violin; Sharon Wei, viola; Thomas
Wiebe, cello; and Erika Raum violin. Throw
in a group of graduate-level music students
and add the children of Aeolian’s El
Sistema program. Eliminate the conductor
and give half the tickets away for free. Then
wrap the concert into a series that also
includes a performance by the Vienna Boys
Choir (March 8) and an evening with Clark
Bryan and Marion Miller (April 8).
It’s a model that’s so crazy, it just might
work. “It’s an experiment. An attempt to
make classical music in London accessible
to people who might otherwise not be able
to come to a concert,” says Aeolian’s Clark
Bryan, who founded the El Sistema youth
program five years ago.
“These kids are reaching for the stars,” he
says. “They are already at a level where they
Cameron Crozman
The Rebelheart Collective, clockwise from top left:
Scott St. John, Sharon Wei, Tom Wiebe & Erika Raum
can play with professional musicians. It’s
something I’m very passionate about.”
www.aeolianhall.ca
At only 21 years old, cellist Cameron
Crozman is another young Londoner who
is reaching for the stars. In fact, he’s already
making a name for himself on stages across
Europe and North America.
Currently studying at the Paris
Conservatoire, he returns home to join
forces with Montreal-based pianist Philip
Chiu for a concert of British and French
music, February 4 at Wolf Performance Hall.
“The idea is to show how 20th-century
composers in England and France were
turning to
traditional and
folk music for
inspiration,”
says Crozman.
Both musicians
are
recent winners
of prestigious
awards. Crozman
performs
on the $12
Phillip Chiu
million Bonjour
Stradivarius
cello