Monthly Archives: March 2012

Music In the Afternoon with The Cecilia String Quartet by Stanley Fefferman

March 29, 2012. Walter Hall, Toronto. The Cecilia String Quartet’s account of Shostakovich’s Seventh Quartet, Op.108 was almost unbearably exciting. It begins with Min-Jeong Koh, newly in the first chair, playing the delicate theme, solo, in a nervous, wispy voice. … Continue reading

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Marc-André Hamelin @ Music Toronto reviewed by Stanley Fefferman

March 27, 2012. Jane Mallett Theatre, Toronto. The breathtaking piano virtuoso Marc-André Hamelin appeared in Toronto this evening in a new role: that of  “pianist-composer,” by ending his program with a selection from the Etudes he has written over the … Continue reading

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TOKYO QUARTET @ Music Toronto reviewed by Stanley Fefferman

Thursday, March 15, 2012 – 8:00 pm. Among the projects of their valedictory season, the Tokyo Quartet is pairing Bartok’s string quartets with one by Haydn who was pivotal in developing the genre. This evening opened with the chirpy, Italiante … Continue reading

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Recording Roundup for March 2012 by Stanley Fefferman

Daniel Ian Smith, Breaking News.Big and Phat Jazz Productions The New Jazz Composers Octet breaks it new with a synched big band sound featuring some stellar solos like Mark Walker’s on drumset during the opener, “Poco Picasso” written by Matthew Nicol. … Continue reading

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Orion: TSO New Creations Festival Closing Concert reviewed by Stanley Fefferman

March 7, 2012. Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto. To judge by the size and enthusiasm of audiences, this TSO New Creations Festival curated by composer-conductor Peter Eötvös has been a SMASH. Eötvös conducted two of his own compositions in this final … Continue reading

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Richard Goode @ Music Toronto reviewed by Stanley Fefferman

March 6, 2012, Jane Mallet Theatre, Toronto. Richard Goode chose three collections from Schumann, Chopin, and Brahms for his Toronto program. Short pieces make easy listening, and 26 of them offer the charm of variety. This survey of Romantic melodies promises … Continue reading

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Toronto Symphony Orchestra New Creations Festival: Con Brio reviewed by Stanley Fefferman

Saturday, March 3, Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto. A full house (almost) at Roy Thomson Hall—for a concert of New Music? Yes! And standing ovations that wouldn’t quit for the première of Derek Charke’s Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra? Too … Continue reading

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Jordi Savall @ The Royal Conservatory reviewed by Stanley Fefferman

              Thursday, March 1, 2012. Koerner Hall, Toronto. This concert celebrates how music works with changes. Jordi Savall has devoted a long and distinguished career to the preservation, restoration, and dissemination of early music—the … Continue reading

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