It’s no longer unusual for opera singers to be seen in fashion publications. Alexandra Deshorties who makes her Canadian vocal recital debut at Roy Thomson Hall on Sunday was featured last year in a 18 page photo editorial of W Magazine. The feature was appropriately entitled “Aria” and in it Alexandra modelled Ralph Lauren, Yves St. Laurent, Calvin Klein, Lanvin, Oscar de la Renta, Prada, and Armani. You can view the video footage of the photo shoot and listen to Alexandra singing arias from La Traviata, Don Giovanni, and Idomeneo. We don’t know what she will be wearing on Sunday but we have high expectations!
You can hear Alexandra on CBC Radio 2 Saturday talk about her recital and career following the broadcast of the Met’s Tosca.
CONTINUE READING >
Alexandra Deshorties,CBC Saturday Afternoon At The Opera,fashion,Roy Thomson Hall,W Magazine
On the surface, the two shows presented in our halls this Saturday couldn’t seem more opposite. At Massey Hall, Classic Albums Live perform Pink Floyd’s The Wall and at Roy Thomson Hall, TSO continue their week-long festival, a tribute to iconic composer Jean Sibelius. Perhaps the two have more in common than one might think.
A fiercely poetic and passionate composer, Jean Sibelius (1865 – 1957) has been described as a monumental figure in shaping the Finnish national identity. Revered for works such as Finlandia, his artistic output, which famously includes seven symphonies, were virtually all composed prior to 1926. A composer during the tale end of the Romantic Movement, his compositions echoed the natural beauty, fragility and allure of his homeland. Often describing the sounds of his music by the sights and smells of the seasons, his was a dark and meticulous effort, which to this day remains as important to the culture of the Finnish people as it does to the treasured works of the genre. CONTINUE READING >
Classic Albums Live,Finland,Massey Hall,Pink Floyd,Romantic Movement,Roy Thomson Hall,Sibelius,Syd Barrett,TSO
Each year, individuals from every corner of the planet have come together to shut down, power off and go dark as a gesture and a symbol of our need for conservation. The global phenomenon known as Earth Hour, introduced by the WWF(World Wildlife Fund) in 2007, is a 60 minute reminder to all of us that the earth is precious and that conservation is the key to protecting it. Whether it is taking public transit, turning down the thermostat or planting a tree…there is something that each of us can do to show our commitment to preserving our natural resources.
At Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall we plan on doing our part and join our community by going dark. If you happen to be walking along Shuter on Saturday night, between 8:30 – 9:30pm, you won’t have the neon Massey Hall Marquee to light your way. The Grand Old Lady of Shuter Street will be reducing or turning off the lights, inside and out. Over at Roy Thomson Hall you won’t see the warm glow from our rooftop. The building, it’s marquee and our electronic sign will shut down as the corner of King & Simcoe powers down for one hour. Along with the rest of the city, we want to do our part to not only preserve but to celebrate our planet. CONTINUE READING >
Earth Hour,Massey Hall,Roy Thomson Hall,WWF
NEW SHOWS RECENTLY ANNOUNCED
We keep adding all sorts of good stuff to your calendars! Today we announced that Women Fully Clothed will perform their latest sketch show, Older & Hotter, at Massey Hall on Friday, May 7, 2010 (which happens to be the Friday before Mother’s Day). These four fantastic ladies – Kathryn Greenwood (Whose Line Is It Anyway, This Hour Has 22 Minutes), Robin Duke (Saturday Night Live), Jayne Eastwood (My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Chicago), and Teresa Pavlinek (History Bites, The Jane Show) – have been called “the funniest women in Canada” by the likes of Eugene Levy.
Jimmy Cliff
The reggae legend Jimmy Cliff, comes to Toronto’s Massey Hall on July 19. The Harder They Come star is also set to be the 2nd reggae artist (after Bob Marley) to ever be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Wyclef Jean will do the honours next week (March 15) at a ceremony in New York City. Tickets for the July 19 Massey Hall show go on sale to the public this Saturday at noon. CONTINUE READING >
a-ha,elizabeth Shepperd,Jamie Cullum,jimmy Cliff,Massey Hall,Nathan Gunn,Roy Thomson Hall,trailer Park Boys,Valery Gergiev,women Fully Clothed
So that’s how long twenty-five years is. Just under half my life so far. Does it feel like it? Well no if I think back to that night of May 10, 1985 in Roy Thomson Hall when we all anxiously awaited the jury’s decision in the one-time-only Toronto International Bach Piano Competition. I had just performed along with the three other finalists a Bach Concerto with the TSO under Andrew Davis (not yet Sir Andrew!), and my final own-choice selection, Liszt’s powerful “Aprės une Lecture de Dante”. When I walked on stage to perform that virtuoso piece, TV cameras and a sold-out audience all focussed on me, I knew I had to show everything I had. For ten years, since the age of 16, I had been on the international piano competition circuit, winning many prizes but lacking the “big one”. Winning this would, I knew, launch me worldwide and put an end to competitions for life. It wasn’t easy being in the spotlight on home territory. If I lost, all would know (in those days it was easier to hide such a thing if it were on the other side of the ocean), and say that the Russians were better anyway. If I won there was the danger that people would say it was fixed. I needed to really show I deserved it. Bach had always been in my life from the time I was born—unlike many competitors who had learned it only in order to participate in the competition. But I knew this was my repertoire, too, so I felt I could do it. CONTINUE READING >
Angela Hewitt,International Bach Piano Competition,Roy Thomson Hall
Roy Thomson Hall
A couple of months ago, amidst all the seasonal pre-holiday frenzy, something rather remarkable happened. In early November 2009 the City of Toronto broke a long streak of being passed over for major sporting events and was awarded the 2015 Pan American Games.
And because we were so busy with the aforementioned holidays and the aforementioned frenzy, we forgot to tell you all about it.
You see, it isn’t just Toronto that’s getting the Games, it’s Roy Thomson Hall that is as well. In what is rather a startling (though not entirely unprecedented) change of pace, for a few days in July 2015 we will be hosting some sporting events. Weightlifting, to be exact. CONTINUE READING >
Pan American Games,Roy Thomson Hall,sports,weightlifting
Portrait of Mozart painted posthumously by Barbara Kraft, 1819.
Five years ago, when Peter Oundjian was relatively new in his position as the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director, he announced the Mozart@249 festival at the TSO’s annual season media conference. He explained that he didn’t think we had to wait until the all important 250th birthday to have an excuse to have a Mozart festival so he was going to get a head start on everybody else. It was rather endearing, although we all knew it was really just clever marketing. But who cares? What’s not to love about Mozart, especially in the dark cold days of January?
Well here we are five years later and the annual January Mozart Festival is so popular that the TSO artistic team just keep programming it – hence Mozart@254. The festival opened last night and runs until January 24 at Roy Thomson Hall and CONTINUE READING >
Mozart,Mozart Festival,Mozart@254,Roy Thomson Hall,Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Doug discusses the vision of Arthur Erickson, the architect who designed Roy Thomson Hall.
Douglas Gardner is one in a million. A member, donor, and committed volunteer for over twenty-five years, Douglas is our champion tour guide at Roy Thomson Hall and Massey Hall. Douglas knows every secret, story, and legend of the Halls, from the ghosts at Massey to the backstage antics of big-time stars. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing some of Douglas’s knowledge as he takes us, and you, on a tour of some of the most interesting facets of Roy Thomson Hall. We thank Douglas for all of his years with us, and are proud to have him share his stories on Soundboard.
arthur Erickson,Roy Thomson Hall
The canopy above our heads in Roy Thomson Hall is heavier than you can imagine! Our champion tour guide Doug gives us all the details.
Douglas Gardner is one in a million. A member, donor, and committed volunteer for over twenty-five years, Douglas is our champion tour guide at Roy Thomson Hall and Massey Hall. Douglas knows every secret, story, and legend of the Halls, from the ghosts at Massey to the backstage antics of big-time stars. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing some of Douglas’s knowledge as he takes us, and you, on a tour of some of the most interesting facets of Roy Thomson Hall. We thank Douglas for all of his years with us, and are proud to have him share his stories on Soundboard.
canopy,Roy Thomson Hall
In this video, our champion tour guide Doug tells us a hilarious story about a secret staircase at Roy Thomson Hall.
Douglas Gardner is one in a million. A member, donor, and committed volunteer for over twenty-five years, Douglas is our champion tour guide at Roy Thomson Hall and Massey Hall. Douglas knows every secret, story, and legend of the Halls, from the ghosts at Massey to the backstage antics of big-time stars. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing some of Douglas’s knowledge as he takes us, and you, on a tour of some of the most interesting facets of Roy Thomson Hall. We thank Douglas for all of his years with us, and are proud to have him share his stories on Soundboard.
Gabriel Kney Pipe Organ,Roy Thomson Hall
