Press release

For immediate release

 

 

Bernard Labadie, Conductor

Karina Gauvin, Soprano

 

Grands rendez-vous montréalais Series

Maison symphonique de Montréal, Place des Arts

 

 

H.-J. RIGEL Symphony in C minor, op.12 no.4

N. PORPORA Nobil onda (Adelaide)

N. PORPORA Misera, dove son? … Non son io che parlo (Ezio)

W.A. MOZART Aer tranquillo (Il Re Pastore, K.208)

N. PORPORA Aci, amato mio bene … Smanie d'affanno (Polifemo)

F.J. HAYDN Symphony no.101 in D major “The Clock”

 

Montreal, September 8, 2011 – Les Violons du Roy will perform for the first time at Maison symphonique de Montréal, the new Place des Arts concert hall, on Saturday, October 8. Conductor Bernard Labadie will lead the larger-than-usual 39 musician ensemble for the occasion and is delighted to welcome soprano Karina Gauvin, who will perform operatic arias by Italian composer Nicola Porpora that she recently recorded under the Atma label. This will be one of the first times these arias have been performed for a North American audience.

 

Soprano Karina Gauvin has forged a brilliant career at home and in Europe, and has collaborated with Les Violons du Roy for nearly 20 years. Each one of their performances together has created memorable moments of connection, elegance, and pure enchantment for audiences. For her first appearance at the new venue, the singer will perform a number of arias by Nicola Porpora, a composer of over 50 seria operas who had a glorious career not only in Italy, but also in Vienna, Dresden, and London, where he rivaled Handel as an opera composer. He also left his mark as a teacher, notably to celebrated castrati Farinelli and Caffarelli.

 

For the orchestral part of the concert, Bernard Labadie will return to a repertoire dear to his heart—the classical symphony—and one at which his musicians excel. For the opening piece, the audience will discover French composer Henri-Joseph Rigel’s Symphony in C minor. Rigel, who was originally from Germany, is credited with breathing new life into 18th century French symphonic music. The program will wrap up with one of Haydn’s so-called London symphonies—Symphony no.101—known as “The Clock.” This important work owes its nickname to a passage in the second movement whose rhythm is reminiscent of a ticking timepiece.

 

To listen to audio excerpts of the program, go to violonsduroy.com.

 

This concert is a presentation of Rio Tinto Alcan.

 

 

Place des Arts Box Office

175 rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest, Montreal, Quebec H2X 1Z8

514-842-2112 or toll free from outside Montreal: 1-866-842-2112

 

Tickets are also available online at www.laplacedesarts.com

 

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Media Relations: Dionne Communications Lippé Communications

514-844-5500 dlcom@cam.org 450-777-6107 jflippe@b2b2c.ca