Month: January 2018

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Grammy-nominated Toronto Mendelssohn Choir leader recalls brush with Lady Gaga

David Friend, The Canadian Press

Noel Edison didn't expect to rub shoulders with Lady Gaga when he attended the Grammy Awards for the first time, but the chorus master at the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir couldn't resist the opportunity when it arose.

At the glitzy celebration for the 2010 awards in Los Angeles, Edison found himself standing near the "Bad Romance" singer. So he stuck out his hand and introduced himself.

"(I) said, 'Look, I want to congratulate you — I think you've got a unique sound and a unique approach to this modern-day popular culture,'" he recalls.

"We had a nice chat with her big thugs standing around. We had a little vodka together, so that was fun."

Edison didn't win the Grammy that year, but he'll have another chance on Sunday as he vies for best choral performance with his choir and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.

The Toronto performers share a nomination with British conductor Sir Andrew Davis for his daring take on Handel's "Messiah," which throws in new elements that elevate the composition's theatrical flair.

TMC Choristers
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The Art of Honing the Next Great Musical Communicators

Brian Chang, ludwig-van Toronto. The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and Elora Singers under Artistic Director Noel Edison host Connor Doran (Rochester), Alexandra Grabarchuk (Los Angeles), Trevor Kroeger (Cincinnati), Virginie Pacheco (Montreal), and Daniel Parsley (Cincinnati) for the annual Conductors Symposium January 23-27. Free Concert Saturday, January 27, 3 pm, Yorkminster Park Baptist Church, Toronto. “Conducting is a lonely profession,“ said Noel Edison, Artistic Director of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and the Elora Singers, ”[the symposium] is a shot in the arm for conductors.” 2018 marks the 8th year Edison has run this unique conducting program out of Toronto, bringing some of the finest emerging conductors to Toronto from across North America and immersing them in the full artistic and administrative process of successful choral music.

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Attendance Required

This Week in History - Parks Canada. For the Week of Monday, January 15, 2018. On January 15, 1895, Augustus Stephen Vogt led the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir in its inaugural concert at the Massey Music Hall.

Composer’s Commentary on Seven Last Words from the Cross
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Composer’s Commentary on Seven Last Words from the Cross

James MacMillan’s Seven Last Words from the Cross was commissioned by BBC Television and first screened in seven nightly episodes during Holy Week 1994, performed by Cappella Nova and the BT Scottish Ensemble under Alan Tavener.

The traditional text of the Seven Last Words from the Cross is based on a compilation from all four gospels to form a sequential presentation of the last seven sentences uttered by Christ. Composer James MacMillan comments on all seven movements.

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TMC brings a focus to the art of conducting – and shares an inside look

The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir Conductors’ Symposium, now in its eighth year, is an important part of its Emerging Conductors Program to further the development of young conductors. The week-long series of workshops and conducting sessions, led by acclaimed conductor Noel Edison, brings together five conductors from across North America. Participants have the rare opportunity to conduct 100 voices of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and the 20-voice professional Elora Singers in rehearsals throughout the week and in the concluding free public performance on Saturday, January 27th, which is also webcast live.