With the celebrations of the baroque and the sun which shone brightly over it now complete, our hemisphere has now begun to darken, though only slightly, day by day.
Always a display of the highest-quality, the Festival montréal baroque is never short of energetic, fun programming ideas. Over the past two years, I have been very fortunate to have been included as part of its own ensemble, la bande Montréal baroque. My work with them has demanded much from me, yet it is the most fulfilling work I have done.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Friday, June 22, 2012
Horsing around in Montreal
The Festival montréal baroque is celebrating its tenth anniversary this weekend with quite the program. Titled "Apocalypse", in line with the Mayan predictions, the festival lineup was inspired by the themes of revelation and transformation.
One of the main attractions this year is a reproduction of an equestrian ballet first performed in 1612. That's right, horses will be dancing.
The four horses (representing war, pestilence, famine, and death), along with four dancers from the baroque dance troupe Les Jardins chorégraphiques, will be accompanied by a 21-strong band of oboes, bassoons, sackbuts, cornets, fifes, drums, and trumpets as they dance in the open air.
This past Wednesday, the band got its first chance to run with the horses. Not a common gig, the rehearsal was quite the show in itself. With mosquitos flying, barn smells, dogs barking, and plenty of dust, if one were to have been driving by the farm a band of historical musicians would have been the least likely sight to expect to see.
The event looks to be quite the spectacle and I am told that it has been completely sold out for a while now. If you have a ticket, Good on You!
One of the main attractions this year is a reproduction of an equestrian ballet first performed in 1612. That's right, horses will be dancing.
The four horses (representing war, pestilence, famine, and death), along with four dancers from the baroque dance troupe Les Jardins chorégraphiques, will be accompanied by a 21-strong band of oboes, bassoons, sackbuts, cornets, fifes, drums, and trumpets as they dance in the open air.
This past Wednesday, the band got its first chance to run with the horses. Not a common gig, the rehearsal was quite the show in itself. With mosquitos flying, barn smells, dogs barking, and plenty of dust, if one were to have been driving by the farm a band of historical musicians would have been the least likely sight to expect to see.
The event looks to be quite the spectacle and I am told that it has been completely sold out for a while now. If you have a ticket, Good on You!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Breaking Winds Crowd-Funding First Album
The Breaking Winds, the world's most famous bassoon quartet (I'm making that up, or am I?), have decided to fund their upcoming debut CD, 'Breaking In', through Kickstarter. They plan for their disk to include both original arrangements and compositions. Check out all the details HERE. Or take a look at the video below... or both.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Andy's Handy Hints: Take a Load Off
Producing a concert takes a ton of effort. We can all do it if we set our minds to it, but the more we wear the manager hat, the more difficult it becomes to perform our best come concert time. I've produced six concerts in which I've performed in over the past two years, each demanding a different workload. Unsurprisingly, the more I have been involved behind the scenes, the less impressed I was with my own musical performance.
So, in preparation for the OVO's concert on the 1st of June, I made sure that I could hand off as much work as possible to others. Firstly, I sought out a sponsorship with the Austrian Embassy in Ottawa. Their work towards the event was excellent as they promoted the event on their mailing list and website, as well as provide a wine & cheese reception following the show. Secondly, I managed to get us back on a local concert series called Ars Nova. Ars Nova handled all ticket purchases, stage set-up and take-down, program printing, as well as promotion on their website and mailing list. Without Ars Nova's help, the concert wouldn't have been possible.
Sometimes we want our concerts to go exactly the way we see it in our mind's eye, but if we were to control every part of the production, we would most likely end up like Colin in the High School drama below (skip to 2:00 if it doesn't already do so). The more work you hand off to another, the better your chances for a good performance.
So, in preparation for the OVO's concert on the 1st of June, I made sure that I could hand off as much work as possible to others. Firstly, I sought out a sponsorship with the Austrian Embassy in Ottawa. Their work towards the event was excellent as they promoted the event on their mailing list and website, as well as provide a wine & cheese reception following the show. Secondly, I managed to get us back on a local concert series called Ars Nova. Ars Nova handled all ticket purchases, stage set-up and take-down, program printing, as well as promotion on their website and mailing list. Without Ars Nova's help, the concert wouldn't have been possible.
Sometimes we want our concerts to go exactly the way we see it in our mind's eye, but if we were to control every part of the production, we would most likely end up like Colin in the High School drama below (skip to 2:00 if it doesn't already do so). The more work you hand off to another, the better your chances for a good performance.
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