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Toronto Consort Announces 07/08 Season “This dear band — so expert, so rhythmically alive, so humourous, at times so touching — has such an infectious good time doing what it does so well, I just sit and smile.” —Globe and Mail Toronto, August 30, 2007 — Artistic Director David Fallis has announced plans for The Toronto Consort’s 2007/2008 season. One of Canada’s premiere period music ensembles, The Toronto Consort is known for inventive programming that breathes life into the music of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and early Baroque. This season’s concerts offer a wide range of contrasts through music that Fallis has selected from around the globe: the courtly songs and dances of England’s Queen Elizabeth I; lively Christmas music of Latin America and Spain; exotic love songs from Persia, Armenia and Western Europe; the spiritual depth of the Franco-Flemish tradition; and the awe-inspiring vocal splendour composed for St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice. Subscriptions and single tickets are available through the box office at (416) 964-6337. For more information, visit www.torontoconsort.org 2007/2008 Season at a Glance The Queen The Queen, it seems, is all the rage these days: from Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Soulpepper’s duelling queens in Mary Stuart, to CBC Television’s upcoming series with The Tudors (for which members of the Consort provided music under the direction of David Fallis), audiences are gripped by Monarch madness. The Toronto Consort ups the ante and opens its 2007/2008 subscription season with a celebration of the remarkable monarch, Queen Elizabeth I. She reigned over the golden age of English music and literature, and was herself an exceptional writer of speeches, letters and poems. Toronto actor Karen Woolridge inhabits the role of the Queen and interprets selections from Her Majesty’s own brilliant rhetoric. She is joined by an ensemble of voices, lute, bandora, cittern, gamba, violin, and keyboard. Long live the Queen, in her own words! Serenissima Una Noche: Complex rhythms and sensuous melody are hallmarks of Christmas celebrations in the Spanish-speaking nations of the world, on both sides of the Atlantic. This year, the Consort turns to 16th and 17th century Spain and Latin America for its Yuletide concert. The music on this program is by turns haunting, boisterous, and soulful, and includes villancicos, ensaladas, xácaras and romances, as well as rarely heard masterpieces from Baroque Mexico and Guatemala. Ay!! Amor
The Toronto Consort is thrilled to welcome renowned Montreal-based ensemble Constantinople, which has earned an international reputation for its unique juxtaposition of medieval music and the living traditions of the Middle East, especially classical Persian music. Led by master setar player Kiya Tabassian, the ensemble offers a program of love songs from Persia, Armenia, Iberia and France. Franco-Algerian singer Françoise Atlan, whose own Judeo-Berber roots have imparted a deep affinity for Mediterranean singing traditions, performs with members of ensemble Constantinople. Music for a Medieval Labyrinth From ancient Greek myth to Harry Potter and Sting, the labyrinth has long been a compelling symbol of the journey to the centre (and back again), of the perils and the path of life, and of beauty. Artistic Director David Fallis has researched the idea of the labyrinth and has crafted a stunning program of music associated with this ancient custom: lively medieval dance-songs originally performed by pilgrims who visited sacred places, sophisticated renaissance polyphony such as Josquin’s Missa l’homme armé, and music by the great J.S. Bach. This concert is part of the Sacred Spaces, Sacred Circles Arts Festival, a celebration of music and architecture taking place in the spring of 2008. The Glory of St. Mark’s St. Mark’s Basilica is the jewel in the crown of Venice’s many riches, and several great composers including Monteverdi have written music specifically for its glittering, awe-inspiring interior. Francesco Cavalli was Monteverdi’s successor at St. Mark’s, and the Consort’s closing performances of the season feature his Missa Concertata, a sumptuous masterpiece for voices, strings, brass and continuo. Consort musicians will be positioned in the wrap-around balconies of Trinity St Paul’s to recreate the early baroque “surround-sound” experience, Venetian-style.
All concerts begin at 8:00 pm and take place at
Non-subscription event: The Toronto Consort teams up with Opera Atelier to present Monteverdi’s late operatic masterpiece, The Return of Ulysses. This deeply moving opera recounts the story of the Greek king Ulysses and his return to his homeland after a twenty-year absence fighting in the Trojan War. The Return of Ulysses features David Fallis as conductor, baritone Olivier Laquerre as Ulysses, mezzo soprano Stephanie Novacek as Penelope, and the Consort’s own Laura Pudwell. For more information, visit www.operaatelier.com
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The Toronto Consort
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