March Concerts Announced At The Royal Conservatory Of Music

March concerts have been announced at The Royal Conservatory Of Music including Live Life Now, Live Music Again @ Koerner Hall, Brubeck Brothers Quartet Celebrate Dave Brubeck, The Glenn Gould School Opera presents George Frideric Handel's Rinaldo in Koerner Hall, Jeremy Denk with Les Violons du Roy, Galilee Chamber Orchestra, Saleem Abboud Ashkar, and Jon Kimura Parker, Pianist Seong-Jin Cho and cellist Mischa Maisky return to Koerner Hall, ARC Ensemble (Artists of The Royal Conservatory) celebrates 20th anniversary season, and more.

Music Mix

Koerner Hall celebrates the life and music of Dave Brubeck with his sons, bassist Chris, drummer Dan, and cellist Matt, plus saxophonist Bobby Militello, who performed and recorded with Brubeck from the 1970s. This multimedia show with stories, video, and music performed by the Brubeck Brothers Quartet takes the audience on a journey along the timeline of Brubeck's extraordinary life and career on March 25.

Presented in partnership with the Songwriters Association of Canada, SongBird North presents top Canadian songwriters together with host Blair Packham performing their music and discussing the inspiration, the songwriting process, and the stories behind the songs. The guests for the March 12 event in the intimate Temerty Theatre include Melina Mellé, a 19-year-old pop singer/songwriter with a prophetic insight into what teenage girls really go through; Tania Joy, a folk-roots multi-talented artist who played with Serena Ryder and was in The Weeknd's original backing band; and Royal Conservatory alumna, violinist Natalie Wong.

Classical Music Concerts

Invesco Piano Concerts

Korean pianist Seong-Jin Cho was brought to the world's attention in 2015 when he won the First Prize at the Chopin International Competition in Warsaw. This "Chopin Competition winner can stand proud next to the likes of such illustrious past winners as Pollini, Argerich, and Zimerman," stated the Pianist. He returns for his second Koerner Hall appearance on March 2 with a program that includes works by Janáček, Ravel, and Chopin.

Chamber Music Concerts

Led by the charismatic MacArthur 'genius' award-winning pianist Jeremy Denk, Quebec's Les Violins de Roy perform Renaissance and Baroque works culminating with J.S. Bach's Keyboard Concerti in E Major and D Minor on March 6. Presented in association with the Bureau du Québec.

Conducted by Saleem Abboud Ashkar, who came to prominence as a soloist with Daniel Barenboim's West East Divan Orchestra, the 35-musician Galilee Chamber Orchestra broke ground as the first professional orchestra in Israel comprised of equal Jewish and Palestinian members. In their first Canadian appearance on March 21, with Canadian pianist Jon Kimura Parker, they perform a program consisting of Lebanese/Canadian Karim Al-Zand's Luctus Profugis, Haydn's Symphony No. 59 in A Major, Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21, and Beethoven's Symphony No. 1. Starting at 6:30pm, the concert will be preceded by a free panel discussion titled Music and Art in Conflict Zones, moderated by Nahlah Ayed, host of CBC Ideas. Panellists will include Nabeel Aboud Ashkar, Executive Director Polyphony Education, Israel; Simon Wynberg, Artistic Director of ARC Ensemble; Maryem Hassan Tollar, artist and educator; and Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, Professor of Global Health, University of Toronto and author of I Shall Not Hate.

String Concerts

The great Latvian cellist Mischa Maisky, who as originally scheduled to appear with his son Sascha (violin), and his daughter Lily (piano), will now present a solo recital on March 27, co-presented with Show One Productions. His program consists of Bach Cello Suites Nos. 1, 4, and 5.

The Glenn Gould School Opera 2021

One of George Frideric Handel's most celebrated operas, Rinaldo, is a story of love, war, and redemption, originally set at the time of the First Crusade in a magical world inhabited by kings, furies, dragons, and magicians. The beauty of Handel's score still enthralls 300 years after it was composed. What has not survived are the outdated ideas (by contemporary standards) of the superiority of the Christian world over other beliefs. In this production, the time frame has been transported to a classic "Once upon a time ..." world where the struggle becomes that of Good vs Evil, Lightness over Darkness. This conceit allows for a more consistently magical universe where anything is possible and provides an enthralling frame for the beauty of Handel's enduring score. This masterpiece of Baroque opera will be conducted by Ivars Taurins, directed by Tom Diamond, with designs by Teresa Przybylski, lighting by Jason Hand, and choreography by Marie-Josée Chartier. In celebration of performances returning to the live stage, the production not only features all the singers currently in The Glen Gould School, but many of the school's orchestral musicians both in the pit and performing on the stage of Koerner Hall with the singers. The production culminates in two performances on March 16 and March 18.

Mazzoleni Masters

Comprised of the senior faculty of The Royal Conservatory's Glenn Gould School, The Royal Conservatory's very own ARC Ensemble (Artists of The Royal Conservatory) is among Canada's most distinguished cultural ambassadors. Performing a wide range of music, with focus that remains the research and recovery of musical works suppressed and marginalized under the 20th century's repressive regimes, the three-time Grammy nominated ensemble celebrates their 20th anniversary season on March 20 with a program of works by Verdina Shlonsky, Paul Ben-Haim, and Franz Crzellitzer.

Free Concerts

The Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy for Young Artists presents the final 2021-22 Taylor Academy Showcase Concert on March 12, featuring leading young classical musicians in Canada aged 8-18.

On March 30, the talented ensembles of The Glenn Gould School compete for over $11,000 in prizes in The Glenn Gould School Chamber Competition Finals.

Music on Film

The Music on Film series, co-presented by The Royal Conservatory and our Bloor Street Culture Corridor partner, Hot Docs, wraps up on March 31 with It's More Than Music, a film about the Palestine Youth Orchestra directed by Anne Renardet. Mervon Mehta, Executive Director of Performing Arts at The Royal Conservatory, will host post-concert discussion and a musical guest.

Concert updates

The world premiere of Gould's Wall, presented in partnership with Tapestry Opera, which was to open our 21C Music Festival in January, has now been re-scheduled to August 4, 5, 9, 10, and 12. The production will now also be presented in collaboration with Toronto Summer Music.

Gerald Finley with Julius Drake, originally scheduled for January 23, 2022, has been cancelled

Joey Alexander Quartet and Selçuk Suna Quartet, originally scheduled for March 26, 2022, has been rescheduled for June 4, 2022

Sir Bryn Terfel's accompanist, Natlia Katukova, is replaced by Annabel Thwaite on April 30, 2022

RoyalConservatory.Live

The Royal Conservatory is livestreaming numerous concerts this season and audiences are encouraged to check the website 30 days prior to each concert if interested in this option. Single livestreams are available for $20 per household. The Conservatory is also offering new streaming "for pick your own" passes - $99 for 5 concerts, $130 for 10 concerts, and $199 for the full season per household. Each concert will be available for viewing for seven days. Please visit The Royal Conservatory's new digital channel www.RoyalConservatory.Live.

This month, the following concerts will be offered as livestreams: Víkingur Ólafsson and Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà: Elle - 25th Anniversary Concert.

HotDocs' It's More Than Music is available for streaming purchase here.

Koerner Hall has been awarded a #SafeTravels Stamp by World Travel & Tourism Council for adopting health and hygiene global standardized protocols. Click here to learn more about our safety protocols.

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