Two weeks’ of Announcements - rehearsal this Monday, no rehearsal on Family Day (Feb. 19), back to regular rehearsals on Feb. 26.
1. REHEARSALS MONDAYS FEBRUARY 12 and 26
Rehearsals Mondays, Feb. 12 and 26 (and thereafter) at The 519 Community Centre, 519 Church Street, 7:30 to 9:30pm. Please bring your own music stand and sheet music; please do not attend if you feel ill, and wear a mask if you are recently ill.
Break snacks - cellos and violas on February 12, winds and brass on Feb. 26. Please.
We’ll be rehearsing our whole programme: Beethoven’s Third, particularly the 3rd and 4th movements on Feb. 12, Beethoven’s Corialan Overture, and the Hoffmann Flute Concerto.
There were a few errors at the last rehearsal of the Hoffman piece caused by musicians using the un-corrected sheet music. Please check your copy. If the title has --- , then you have the up-dated version: eg., if your title looks like this: Violin 1 Konzertstuck g-moll, Op. 98 you’ve got the right one.
In paragraph 3, below, Tetsuya describes his rather lengthy and complicated efforts to find a suitable piece for the March 23 concert; turns out melodic flute concertos from the romantic era are not easy to find, although the technology of the flute itself was improving. It’s great that Tetsuya is using his solo opportunity to highlight a lovely work that has not received much attention.
If you are attending rehearsals but not playing the March 23 concert for any reason, please advise Concertmaster Gemma Donn, donn.gemma@gmail.com, asap. Space on the Eastminster stage will be tight.
2. MUSICIANS ONLY PAGE - Can you add some photos?
If you do not yet have an account on the CCO website, CCorchestra.org, please create one following the steps on the site. Any issues, see Tetsuya Kobayashi, flute, at rehearsals or contact him at tty103g@gmail.com. On the Musicians Only page you will find links to the sheet music for all CCO concerts, photos and recordings of past concerts. Musicians can upload and share photos or recordings directly onto that page: https://www.ccorchestra.org/photo-gallery.
We’d like more photos to consider for display purposes at the Anniversary concert - please post recent and older photos to the Musicians Only photo gallery so that we can include them. Older photos are sparse right now.
3. FINDING HOFFMANN
"Ever since Andrew Chung mentioned that CCO would perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, I've been on the hunt for a flute concerto from the 19th century. The period saw remarkable advancements in the mechanical structure of the flute. Yet, we can only name a few ‘serious’ flute works from this era, for example, a flute concerto by Reinecke which CCO performed several years ago.
During this time, there were several virtuosic flutists who not only mastered technical skills in performing the flute but also innovated the instrument by crafting their own flutes. They sought to showcase the mechanical and structural enhancements of their instruments. This resulted in many of their compositions leaning towards the virtuosic and "showy" side, rather than emphasizing the flute's strength of melancholic and sweet sound.
Flute scholar Nancy Toff said that 'these showcase pieces might have deterred composers from creating more substantial flute works like sonatas and concertos.’ Louis Fleury, the French flutist to whom Debussy famously dedicated ‘Syrinx', echoed this sentiment, criticizing virtuosos, saying that they 'poisoned the atmosphere of the nineteenth century with their silly music.’ Fleury attributed this to their relentless pursuit of pushing the flute beyond its traditional boundaries. Fleury called the airs and variations, which were very popular at the time, 'fireworks and the expression of hectic sentiment.'
Recognizing the challenge of finding an ‘interesting' and lesser-known piece from the 19th century, I turned to IMSLP in search of a 'hidden gem.' I would play a little bit of each piece and see if I would like it... and one day, I stumbled upon a piece by Hofmann that resonated with me. There was an absence of polished recordings on YouTube or anywhere else. There were two recordings of this piece, raw and unedited performances by John Wion and James Galway. Many comments were about how they never even heard of this piece before - which to me was a good sign!
Though IMSLP provided a piano reduction, orchestral parts were not available. Despite reaching out to three publishers, including the original publisher Breitkopf und Härtel, they all said they do not have the music. With the deadline looming back in July 2023, I was very close to abandoning the piece and choosing something else. Then, unexpectedly, someone on YouTube uploaded an orchestral accompaniment of the piece. I couldn't believe someone else shared my interest in this piece around the same time!
With enthusiasm and excitement, I left a comment asking for help on that YouTube video. This person in Germany was able to help me get direct contact with a rental agent of Breitkopf und Härtel. Unfortunately renting this piece would cost CCO a hefty $850 rental fee, so I opted to purchase the score to craft parts for CCO. I received permission from the publisher to make parts out of their score.
Now, here I am, playing the piece with CCO. After many emails and spending hours and hours on making parts, I'm filled with genuine excitement to hear the orchestra breathe life into this forgotten piece.
To my fellow musicians, thank you for embarking on this journey with me. May you find as much joy in performing this 'hidden gem’ as I did in its discovery.
Warm regards,
Tetsuya"
4. REPORTER VISIT ON MARCH 4
The 40th Anniversary Committee has given a videographer, Andre Tardif, permission to attend the March 4 rehearsal. He intends to do a video about the CCO’s upcoming anniversary. He'll be circulating, speaking to a few musicians, checking out future interviewing and filming opportunities; he may take some video. The Co-Chairs of the 40th Anniversary Committee, Trish Tervit and David Brownstone, will be at this rehearsal to host him.
Tardiff had a video production company, Stargazer Video Productions from 1982 to 2012, and now has a multi media production company, SVP Media. Tardif does freelance reporting for Outlook TV, pitching stories and videos. Some of his work is available on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/OutLookTVSHAW/videos), and includes Toronto Pride 50 years exhibition, Toronto ArQuives 50th Anniversary, Downtown Soccer Toronto, Montreal Pride Community Days. Of course, he has lots more, apparently over 1,500 (see https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwhZWngPb4sXo7L5Ecufwhw).
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The video Tardif wants to shoot about the CCO, if picked up, would be broadcast on the OUTtv cable network, its subscription streaming service, and its website.
No one at the rehearsal should feel compelled to speak with Tardif - feel tell him you would prefer not to, or disappear into the crowd. (But please don’t skip the rehearsal because he’ll be there - we have a concert to prepare for!) Without appearing too scripted, others who don’t mind speaking with him can think about their answers to obvious questions he is likely to ask: how did you hear about this particular orchestra? when did you start? what does it mean to you? etc.
5. IMPORTANT CCO DATES
Monday February 12 - rehearsals continue Mondays, 7:30 to 9:30, at The 519, 519 Church Street. (Snacks - Cellos and Violas)
Monday February 19 - Family Day holiday. No rehearsal.
Monday February 26 - rehearsals resume. (Snacks - winds and brass)
Friday March 22 - 7:00pm to 10:00pm Dress Rehearsal for “Romantic Echoes” at Eastminster United Church, 310 Danforth Ave. (Chester subway)
Saturday March 23 - 7:30pm Romantic Echoes Concert, Eastminster United Church
Monday March 25 - no rehearsal
Monday April 1 - Easter Monday. Discussion required re rehearsal or not.
Monday April 8, 7:30pm - rehearsals resume Mondays 7:30 to 9:30pm at The 519 Community Centre
Monday May 20 - no rehearsal - Victoria Day
Monday May 27 - rehearsals resume at The 519, 7:30 to 9:30pm at The 519
Friday June 14 - 7:00pm to 10:00pm Dress Rehearsal for “Melodies of Pride and Progress", Eastminster United Church. Violin Soloist: Jaedon Daly.
Saturday, June 15 - 7:30pm 40th Anniversary Concert, “Pride and Progress”, plus a post concert reception, and other celebratory events, Eastminster United Church.
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