Oak Bay New Music Festival June 2 & 3 2018 in Victoria BC. Preview.(media release) One of my delights, when I'm not at the theatre, is new music. I've had the opportunity over the past six years to meet and engage with many of Victoria's young composers and musicians. The Victoria Composers Collective has partnered with the Oak Bay Music Society since 2015 to offer a festival of new music. Originally held in February, the Oak Bay New … [Read more...]
Perk Up Pianist at UNO Fest 2018. Interview with Sarah Hagen.
May 4, 2018 By Leave a Comment
Perk Up Pianist at UNO Fest 2018. Interview with Sarah Hagen. Intrepid Theatre’s UNO Fest, now in its twenty-first year, runs May 9-19, 2018 in Victoria BC. It features eighteen shows, including two as part of the new Family Fest Series, and a spotlight on women’s indigenous voices with a guest indigenous curator, Yolanda Bonnell. I’ll be featuring interviews, previews and reviews during the festival. Follow … [Read more...]
Fear No Opera and Braden Young present Strauss: First and Last
April 24, 2018 By Leave a Comment
Fear No Opera and Braden Young present Strauss: First and Last April 28 2018 in Victoria BC (media release) After the success of Fear No Opera’s first art song concert (An Interior Life: The Complete Songs of Henri DuParc), we combine forces once again with Braden Young to present an evening of works by Richard Strauss. Richard Strauss (1864-1949) composed songs and operas over the better part of an 85-year lifetime. His first known work … [Read more...]
Fête Française avec Charlotte Diamond November 15 2014
November 12, 2014 By Leave a Comment
Fête Française avec Charlotte Diamond November 15 2014. Presented by Canadian Parents for French in Victoria BC. My children who grew up in the francophone education system (Conseil Scolaire Francophone) rather than in the immersion stream, were nonetheless big fans of Charlotte Diamond. I still remember hits like "Four Hugs a Day" and "May There Always Be Sunshine" and look forward to introducing this longstanding and prolific artist to my … [Read more...]
University of Victoria School of Music presents tribute to Mahler Jan 6 – 11 2014
December 13, 2013 By 1 Comment
A tribute to Mahler, presented by the University of Victoria School of Music, January 6 - 11, 2014, includes Song of the Earth (Das Lied von der Erde). My knowledge of Mahler - sadly - is limited to the 1974 biographical film by Ken Russell, so when Kristy Farkas, the Concert Manager for the UVic School of Music, contacted me with news of a week-long Mahler tribute, I knew that I had to add some of the events to my arts calendar. I've also … [Read more...]
The Passionate Muse: The Life and Music of Pauline Viardot-Garcia Nov 8-10 2013
November 7, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Mezzo-soprano Elisabeth Wagner presents The Passionate Muse: The Life and Music of Pauline Viardot-Garcia. Wagner first learned of Viardot-Garcia when she sang her compositions. When she did research, she learned that this accomplished vocalist was also a composer of more than 200 pieces, and yet, she remains largely unknown to contemporary North American audiences. Photo: Ergsap on Flickr The Passionate Muse: The Life and Music of Pauline … [Read more...]
Barenaked Ladies launch 2014 Canaidan tour at UVic’s Farquhar Auditorium January 15 2014
October 28, 2013 By Leave a Comment
It's a feather in UVic Farquhar Auditorium's cap to be the opening venue for the 2014 Canadian tour of the Barenaked Ladies. If you're a fan, you'll want to get online at 9:30 am Thursday October 31st when tickets are released. The Barenaked Ladies hit the road this winter embarking on a 2014 Canada tour. The band has a lot to celebrate, surpassing their 25th anniversary and the release of their 12th album, Grinning Streak in 2013. Their … [Read more...]
Valdy at UVic’s Farquhar Auditorium October 12, 2013
October 9, 2013 By Leave a Comment
As a child of the West Coast in the 1970s, the music of Valdy was the music of my generation. Who can forget "Play Me A Rock and Roll Song", "Simple Life", "Bitter Green" or "Sonny's Dream"? In later years though, I came to know Valdy as the tireless advocate for literacy and his support of the annual PGIs For Literacy (founded by the late broadcaster Peter Gzowski), fundraisers for Literacy Victoria (and many other organizations across … [Read more...]
Black History Month 2013 in Victoria BC
February 4, 2013 By Leave a Comment
A Black History and Heritage Day, an evening of poetry and song, a documentary film, a solo show, a cemetery tour and three presentations make up the very ambitious schedule in celebration of BC Black History Month February 2013 in Victoria. Many people are not even aware of the significant role black citizens played in the establishment of the City of Victoria– including the founding of a precursor to the Victoria Police Department; nor that … [Read more...]
Voice ++ Festival 2013 at Open Space, February 2-10
February 4, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Just when I think I have a grasp on Victoria’s cultural climate, I’m introduced to a new pocket of practice. Now in its 8th year Open Space’s Voice ++ Festival features yodelling, Mongolian throat singing, vocalizations with humpback whales and performance poetry on the programme February 8-10th, 2013. (Check below for links to past festivals). This is definitely on the "expanding cultural horizons" list for this year! Voice++ 2013 is an … [Read more...]
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