Get wired-in to this e-media night out at the symphony with video screens,new technology, multi-media, and theatre! Join Alexander and guest hosts for a fresh & informal concert experience. Perfect for the new concert goer or the ultimate symphony-lover!
Your Season Ticket package to this series includes a free drink to enjoy at one of our After Parties!
Oct 16 • 8:00 pm
The Royal Connection
Today we have Bono and Bob Geldof and a host of pop and rock stars that use their music as a political tool. In the 18th and 19th centuries, composers like Handel, Johann Strauss and Antonio Salieri shared relationships with royalty and were sometimes responsible for creating music for complex political situations. Join us as we perform some of this music and explore the long-standing connection between music and politics.
Alexander Mickelthwate, conductor
André Laplante, piano
Salieri: Fanfare: Royal Entry
Handel: Royal Fireworks Music
Strauss: Emperor Waltzes
Salieri: Imperial Fanfare
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5
Nov 13 • 8:00 pm
The Artist’s Life
The struggle between creating art that you love and making a living doing it: such is the life of an artist, a reality that hasn’t changed much from the time of Mozart and Mendelssohn to today. One of Canada’s brightest young conductors offers his take on some classical jewels as we explore how life’s ups and downs, inspirations and challenges shape the music we love. Also watch as acclaimed Nova Scotia artist Holly Carr paints a new work inspired by the music, live on stage.
Jean-Marie Zeitouni, conductor
Kerry DuWors, violin
Holly Carr, silk painter
Johann Strauss II: Artist’s Life
Mendelssohn: Hebrides Overture
Mozart: Rondo for Violin and Orchestra, K. 269
Haydn: L’isola disabitata (The Desert Island): Overture
Mozart: Symphony No. 39
Jan 22 • 8:00 pm
Fiesta
It’s no wonder people love travelling to exotic and culturally rich destinations – they rarely fail to inspire. During this winter program, we look at five composers who fell in love with the colourful music and dance traditions of Mexico, Spain, Egypt and Argentina, from the tango to the huapango.
Alexander Mickelthwate, conductor
Nareh Arghamanyan, piano
Copland: El salon Mexico
Piazzolla: Oblivion
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 5
Egyptian (mvmt II)
Moncayo: Huapango
Moncayo: Three-Cornered Hat
Feb 12 • 8:00 pm
NMF Closing Night
“I don’t choose what to compose”, Gustav Mahler once said, “It chooses me!” We close the New Music Festival exploring the passionate, often obsessive world of the composer. Why do they do what they do? Even more importantly, why do they feel they must? Meet Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Steven Stucky, host of the New York Philharmonic’s acclaimed “Hear & Now” pre-concert series, as we explore his fascinating occupation!
Mar 5 • 8:00 pm
Dangerous Liaisons
Stories about lovers have inspired music for centuries. The pieces featured in this program are among the most passionate, romantic and tumultuous. Hear the folklore behind the music including Scheherazade, the story of a woman who told stories so captivating that they saved her life and captured the love of a King.
Alexander Mickelthwate, conductor
Andreas Boyde, piano
Lehar: Eva: Waltz War es auch nichts als ein Augenblick
Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet (excerpts)
Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 (mvmt III)
Webern: Im Sommerwind
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade
