| May 13, 2008 - A fourth decade of musical excellence |
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Montreal, May 13, 2008 – Offering the public a novel and unequalled concert hall experience is one of the essential qualities of a great festival. At the Amphitheatre in Joliette, the natural surroundings, hundred-year-old trees, singing birds and gentle evening breezes allow the Festival de Lanaudière’s outstanding musical programming to take flight in a wondrous landscape. In addition, the meditative mood of the many heritage churches where chamber music concerts are presented blends harmoniously with the warmth of summer. For the 31st season, artistic director Father Fernand Lindsay and Alex Benjamin, director of programming, have assembled the ingredients of excellence, variety and originality to make magic happen once again year. CARMINA BURANA: A RESOUNDING KICK-OFF – SATURDAY, JULY 5 The Lanaudière Festival opens its 31st season in high gear. With Yannick Nézet-Séguin leading the Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal, the Amphitheatre will resound to Carl Orff’s sensational masterpiece, Carmina burana. The Orchestra will be joined by four choirs and soloists: Erin Wall, soprano, Frédéric Antoun, tenor and James Westman, baritone. This grand, opening-night concert also includes Prokofiev’s fiery Piano Concerto No. 2, a pianistic challenge that will be met by virtuoso Valentina Lisitsa. PUCCINI CELEBRATION WITH RICHARD MARGISON AND SONDRA RADVANOVSKY – FRIDAY, JULY 11 Sondra Radvanovsky, having returned from La Scala where she sang with Placido Domingo, is joined by Richard Margison (a 2008 Grammy Award winner) for a concert celebrating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Giacomo Puccini. Their program will include major arias from operas like La Bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Turandot. THE FIREBIRD FOR THE GRAND BALL OF THE BIRDS – SATURDAY, JULY 12, FROM 4:30 P.M. The Festival celebrates the centenary of the birth of Olivier Messiaen with the Grand Ball of the Birds, a series of activities devoted to birds in music: a sound installation by the artist Oswaldo Macià, an open rehearsal with commentary, a guided walking tour, an on-site exhibition, a dinner meeting with the artists at the Bistro SAQ and an evening concert with projections on a screen of the winning entries in the bird photo contest organized by the Festival and the Regroupement QuébecOiseaux. Conductor Jean-Marie Zeitouni will lead the Festival Orchestra in Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite. Joining them will be pianist Stewart Goodyear for Messiaen’s Oiseaux exotiques and soprano Aline Kutan for arias by Gounod, Saint-Saëns and Handel. The concert also includes a world premiere by Quebec composer Antoine Ouellette, Joie des Grives. Ouellette will chat with Pierre Gingras of La Presse at the dinner meeting before the concert at the Amphitheatre. HOLST’S PLANETS WITH PROJECTION OF NASA PHOTOS – FRIDAY, JULY 18 Back by popular demand, Holst’s Planets is again being presented with sensational NASA photos on a giant screen Pierre Chastenay, host of the science show Le Code Chastenay on Télé-Québec, will be our guide on this earthshaking musical and astronomical journey. Jean-Marie Zeitouni conducts the Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal. A DAY OF PIANO AND YOUTH WITH ALAIN LEFÈVRE – SATURDAY, JULY 19 Alain Lefèvre, the Festival’s Artistic Ambassador, has declared July 19th “a day of piano and youth.” Admission will be free for all those age 25 and under. These people will also be served free hot dogs, compliments of Maple Lodge Farms. During the morning of July 19, Alain Lefèvre will give master classes at the Joliette Art Museum. In the afternoon, he will present a concert with eight pianists in a display of pianistic pyrotechnics on four pianos. Full of fun and virtuosity, the program will include works by Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninoff and Poulenc. For the evening concert, he will be joined by eight excellent pianists in concertos for two, three and four pianos by Bach and Mozart. Daniel Myssyk conducts the Festival Orchestra. AN ALL-MOZART EVENING WITH BARITONE CHRISTIAN GERHAHER AND THE FREIBURG BAROQUE ORCHESTRA – FRIDAY, AUGUST 1 As one of the few Canadian institutions extending invitations to leading foreign orchestras, the Festival de Lanaudière welcomes the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, whose performances of Mozart have been hailed by the critics as being among “the most refreshing, surprising and pleasing” (BBC) to be heard anywhere. Sharing the stage will be the exceptional baritone Christian Gerhaher, whose performances have been called “miraculous” by La Presse. NAGANO AND THE OSM IN VERDI’S REQUIEM – SATURDAY, AUGUST 2 A magnificent close to the season: Kent Nagano conducts the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal in Verdi’s great Requiem. Four soloists, Sondra Radvanovsky, soprano, Elena Maximova, mezzo-soprano, Arturo Chacon-Cruz, tenor, and John Relyea, bass, will participate in this pillar of the repertory. Other must-see events include an all-Handel concert by Les Violons du Roy and their conductor Bernard Labadie as well as a program of Strauss and Wagner with soprano Marianne Fiset in conjunction with two orchestras, the Orchestre de la Francophonie canadienne and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas – 140 musicians in total – led by Jean-Philippe Tremblay and Alondra de la Parra. 11 CONCERTS IN THE NEARBY CHURCHES : CHAMBER MUSIC AND HERITAGE SITES Jewels of Quebec architectural heritage, the churches of Lanaudière (some of them dating from the 17th century), dot the picturesque Chemin du Roy which parallels the St. Lawrence River. The ambiance of these churches, conducive to contemplation, provides just the right context in which to appreciate the intimate quality of chamber music. Throughout the 31st season, eleven concerts in as many churches will be given by leading pianists of the current generation such as Marc-André Hamelin, Valentina Lisitsa, Jimmy Brière, Maneli Pirzadeh, Inon Barnatan, Ingrid Fliter and Alain Lefèvre (with his brother David, the violinist). Baritone Thomas Meglioranza, the Olivier Thouin (violin) / Yegor Dyachkov (cello) duo, mezzo-soprano Michèle Losier, harpsichordist Luc Beauséjour, Argentine gambist Juan Manuel Quintana and the Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal all offer tantalizing musical experiences. THE SUNDAY DESJARDINS CONCERTS: MUSIC AND PICNICS Picnics, wine, music and a convivial atmosphere are the main ingredients of the Desjardins Concerts given on Sunday afternoons at the Amphitheatre in Joliette. This positively delightful series begins on July 6 with the famous London vocal quartet Cantabile, which offers an eclectic program combining illustrious works by Bach with songs of the Beatles. These irresistible Sunday Desjardins Concerts also include a Romeo and Juliet transferred to the fiery world of modern tango by the composer Denis Plante, swing music from the ‘forties with the group The Easy Answers, and Constantinople, an ensemble led by singer Françoise Atlan, who will take us on a musical journey around the Mediterranean. The series ends on August 3 in a flood of passion with Caravana Flamenca, a company of instrumentalists, singers and dancers whose rhythmic energy conjures up the all the warmth of Andalousian Spain.
TUEDAYS AT THE CINEMA – EYES WIDE OPEN IN THE OPEN AIR! For the third year, the Festival de Lanaudière is presenting free films shown outdoors on Tuesday evenings. Sheltered under the Amphitheatre roof, film buffs can watch Le Peuple migrateur, Chicago, Les Triplettes de Belleville and La Vie en rose. (Films are shown in French only.) The Festival thanks its partners, Place des Arts and the municipalities of Joliette, St. Charles-Borromée and Notre-Dame-des-Prairies, for their support in this venture. TOURIST OUTINGS ALONG THE ST. LAWRENCE At Lanaudière, musical and fluvial splendor become one during two wonderful outings along the St. Lawrence River. On the afternoon of July 7, preceding the evening recital in Berthierville by the Lefèvre brothers David and Alain, the Festival is offering a visit by boat to the Lac Saint-Pierre Archipelago, a unique nature reserve recognized as a biosphere by UNESCO. Then, on July 11, as a prelude to the “Puccini Celebration” concert, festival-goers are invited to a dinner cruise, which will take them from Montreal’s Old Port (boarding at the Jacques-Cartier Pier) to the pier in Saint-Sulpice, where they will board a luxury coach for the Amphitheatre.
THE BISTRO SAQ The Bistro SAQ is a convivial spot where music lovers gather throughout the Festival. Come taste selected wines, enjoy a light meal or join the dinner-and-conversation events under the big top with artists like Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Kent Nagano, Alain Lefèvre and Antoine Ouellette.
FESTIVAL DETAILS For details about each concert (works on the program, ticket prices, reduced prices for subscribers and other special prices), consult the season brochure or go to the Festival’s web site at www.lanaudiere.org
BOX OFFICE OPENING May 13, 2008 Place des Arts Box Office 514-842-2112 / 866-842-2112 www.pda.qc.ca May 13, 2008 Amphitheatre Box Office 450-759-4343 / 800-561-4343 www.lanaudiere.org On Fridays and Saturdays, the Festival Express runs a shuttle service to the Amphitheatre leaving from the Infotourist Centre on Peel Street in Montreal. For information and reservations, call 1-800-561-4343.
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