Antonín Dvořák, composer

Antonín Leopold Dvořák was born in Nelahozeves, near Prague, where he spent the majority of his life. In the late 1850s, he studied music at Prague’s Organ School and played viola in the Bohemian Provisional Theatre Orchestra through the 1860s.

Dvořák served as the National Conservatory’s director in New York City from 1892 until 1895. Wealthy socialite Jeannette Thurber, who created the Conservatory, desired a renowned composer as director in order to elevate her organization. She wrote to Dvořák, asking him to accept the position, and he agreed, provided she was willing to meet his conditions: talented Native American and African-American students who could not pay tuition must be admitted for free.

Dvořák became acquaintances with Harry Burleigh, who went on to become a significant African-American composer when he was the Conservatory’s director. Burleigh spent countless hours singing classic American spirituals to Dvořák while the composer educated Burleigh about composition. Burleigh went on to compose settings of these Spirituals which compare favorably with European classical composition.

Dvořák was a colourful character. In addition to music, he had two other particular interests: pigeon breeding and locomotive engines. He finally made his way back to Prague, where he served as the conservatoire’s director from 1901 until his passing in 1904. He was buried in Prague’s Vyšehrad cemetery.

Lucille Chung, piano

Born in Montréal, Canadian pianist Lucille Chung has been acclaimed for her “stylish and refined performances” by Gramophone magazine, “combining vigor and suppleness with natural eloquence and elegance” (Le Soir).

She made her debut at the age of ten with the Montréal Symphony Orchestra and Charles Dutoit subsequently invited her to be a featured soloist during the MSO Asian Tour in 1989. Since then, she has performed an extensive concerto repertoire spanning from Bach to Adams with over 70 leading orchestras such as the Philadelphia Orchestra, Moscow Virtuosi, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Flemish Radio Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerífe, Orquesta Sinfónica de Bilbao, Staatskapelle Weimar, Philharmonie de Lorraine, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, Belgrade Philharmonic, Seoul Philharmonic, KBS Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, Dallas Symphony, UNAM Philharmonic (Mexico), Orquesta Filarmónica de Buenos Aires, MAV Symphony (Budapest), Lithuanian National Symphony, Israel Chamber Orchestra as well as all the major Canadian orchestras, including Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, National Arts Centre (Ottawa), Calgary, Winnipeg and Métropolitain, among others. She has appeared with conductors such as Krzysztof Penderecki, Vladimir Spivakov, Vasily Petrenko, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Stéphane Denève, Peter Oundjian, Gerd Albrecht and Charles Dutoit.

As a recitalist, she has performed in over 35 countries in prestigious venues such as the Wigmore Hall in London, New York’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center and Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., Spivey Hall, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Madrid’s Auditorio Nacional, the Great Hall of the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest, the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, the Seoul Arts Center, and Sala São Paulo. Festival appearances include the Verbier Festival in Switzerland, Incontri in Terra di Siena in Italy, MDR Sommer Festival in Dresden, Lübecker Kammermusikfest, Salon-de-Provence Festival, Santander International Festival and Gijón International Piano Festival in Spain, Felicja Blumental Festival in Israel, Music@Menlo, Mainly Mozart, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, Montreal International Festival, Ottawa Chamber Festival, Bard Music Festival in NY, International Keyboard Institute and Festival in NYC, Chang Chun Festival in China, and the Bravissimo Festival in Guatemala.

In 1989, she was recognized on the international scene as the First Prize winner at the Stravinsky International Piano Competition. She won Second Prize at the 1992 Montreal International Music Competition, at which she also won a Special Prize for the best interpretation of the unpublished work. In 1993, she received the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Governor General of Canada and in 1994 won the Second Prize at the First International Franz Liszt Competition in Weimar. In 1999, she was awarded the prestigious Virginia Parker Prize by the Canada Council for the Arts.

Before turning twenty, she graduated from both the Curtis Institute of Music and the Juilliard School, where she studied with Seymour Lipkin. She decided to further her studies in London with Maria Curcio-Diamand, Schnabel’s protégée, at the “Mozarteum” in Salzburg with Karl-Heinz Kämmerling and received the Konzertexam Diplom from the Hochschule “Franz Liszt” in Weimar, where she worked with the late Lazar Berman. She was the first non-Italian recipient of the honorary title of “Master” upon graduating from the Accademia Pianistica “Incontri col Maestro” in Imola, Italy. She also worked with Joaquín Achúcarro at Southern Methodist University, where she held the Johnson-Prothro Artist-in-Residence endowed position. Ms. Chung is the recipient of the Honors Diploma at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, Italy and was named Honorary Professor of the Jilin Arts College in China.

Lucille Chung has been hailed as “a considerable artist, admirable for her bold choice of music” by The Sunday Times for her recordings of the complete piano works by György Ligeti on the Dynamic label. The first volume was released in 2001 to great critical acclaim, receiving the maximum R10 from Classica-Répertoire in France, 5 Stars from the BBC Music Magazine, and 5 Stars in Fono Forum in Germany. The final volume, which also contains works for two pianos, was recorded with her husband, Alessio Bax and once again received the prestigious R10 from Classica-Répertoire. Her all-Scriabin CD won the “Best Instrumental Recording” prize at the 2003 Prelude Classical Awards in Holland as well as the coveted R10 from Classica-Répertoire in France.

She also recorded the two Mendelssohn Piano Concerti on the Richelieu/Radio-Canada label, which was nominated for the Prix Opus in Canada. In August 2005, Bax and Chung recorded Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals with the Fort Worth Symphony and Maestro Miguel Harth-Bedoya with narration by Michael York. In 2007 she released a solo album for the Fazioli Concert Hall Series. Lucille then embarked on an exclusive contract with Disques XXI/Universal: Camille Saint-Saëns Piano Transcriptions and Mozart & Me. 2013 marked the release of a piano duo disc with Alessio Bax, presenting Stravinsky’s original four-hand version of the ballet Petrouchka as well as music by Brahms and Piazzolla for Signum Records. In 2015, she released an all-Poulenc album for Signum Records, which was chosen as the “Recording of the Month” on MusicWeb and most recently in 2018, her 14th album titled Liszt Piano Works was released to great acclaim. Her upcoming album for Signum Records will feature works by Debussy and Ravel.

Lucille is fluent in French, English, Korean, Italian, German, and Russian. She and husband, pianist Alessio Bax make their home in New York City with their daughter, Mila, and are artistic co-directors of the Joaquín Achúcarro Foundation, which seeks to further the careers of young pianists.

https://lucillechung.com/

The Four Seasons Recomposed

Composer Max Richter is now part of Deutsche Grammophon’s acclaimed Recomposed series, in which contemporary artists are invited to re-work a traditional piece of music.

The idea of recomposing and re-processing musical works was common practice in Vivaldi’s time and the project presents an exciting opportunity to make favourite classics relevant to a wider audience. However, Richter’s approach differs fundamentally from the preceding releases: in contrast to previous participants, such as Matthew Herbert or Moritz von Oswald & Carl Craig, who reworked recordings from the extensive Deutsche Grammophon catalogue, Richter actually ‘recomposed’ Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. He is the first in the series to employ an existing score, ‘inscribe’ his new composition into Vivaldi’s and record a ‘new’ version of a familiar work, thus creating a new hybrid work.

Like many composers Richter was always fascinated by Vivaldi’s 1725 composition because “The Four Seasons is an omnipresent piece of music and like no other part of our musical landscape’ But he was also aware of that for many, including himself, it had long ago ceased to be something of beauty and had instead become an ever-present piece of muzak “You hear it in the supermarket regularly, you’re confronted with it in adverts or hear it as muzak when on hold. Slowly you begin to blank it out” Richter yearned to reconnect with the piece and to re-start the conversation on Vivaldi’s work, and he sought to do so in an accessible style that mirrored Vivaldi’s intentions with the piece, rather than to place a twentieth century Modernist imprint on it. “I wanted to open up the score on a note-by-note level, and working with an existing recording was like digging a mineshaft through an incredibly rich seam, discovering diamonds and not being able to pull them out. That became frustrating. I wanted to get inside the score at the level of the notes and in essence re-write it, re-composing it in a literal way.” In order to do this Richter wrote an entirely new score and recorded it with Daniel Hope and The Konzerthaus Kammerorchester in Berlin.

Richter calculates that, in the process, he has discarded around three-quarters of Vivaldi’s original. He opens with what he describes as “a dubby cloud which I’ve called Spring 0. It functions as a sort of prelude, setting up an electronic, ambient space for the first Spring movement to step into. I’ve used electronics in several movements, subtle, almost inaudible things to do with the bass, but I wanted certain moments to connect to the whole electronic universe that is so much part of our musical language today.” Other resonances are no less unexpected: Richter describes part of the first movement of his Summer as “heavy music for the orchestra. It’s relentless pulsed music, which is a quality that contemporary dance music has; and perhaps I was also thinking about John Bonham’s drumming. Then, in the second movement of Autumn I asked the harpsichordist Raphael Alpermann to play in what is a rather old-fashioned way, very regularly, rather like a ticking clock. That was partly because I didn’t want the harpsichord part to be attention-seeking, but also because that style connects to various pop records from the 1970s where the harpsichord or Clavinet was featured, including various Beach Boys albums and the Beatles’ Abbey Road.”

Clearly, Richter has brought his own frame of reference to the project. As he says, “Vivaldi’s music is made of regular patterns, and that connects with post-minimalism, which is one strand in the music that I write. That felt like a natural link, but even so it was surprisingly difficult to navigate my way through it. At every point, I had to work out how much is Vivaldi and how much is me. It was difficult but also rewarding because the raw material is so fascinating.” Just as Richter’s Seasons plays tricks with the way we hear Vivaldi’s original, so it also asks questions of the soloist, Daniel Hope. “Violinists have Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons hardwired in their brain. Daniel is likely to play the original I don’t know how many times in a year, and for him to have my parallel text going on in another part of his brain is a challenge. I think he did a wonderful job. He brought to it a deep engagement with the original, but he was fully prepared to cut this new swathe through the text.”

Adapted from the booklet text for the Recomposed release, written by Nick Kimberley.

Museum of the Moon FAQs

Museum of the Moon

Museum of the Moon is a touring artwork by UK artist Luke Jerram.

Measuring seven metres in diameter, the moon features 120dpi detailed NASA imagery of the lunar surface. At an approximate scale of 1:500,000, each centimetre of the internally lit spherical sculpture represents 5km of the moon’s surface.

Over its lifetime, the Museum of the Moon will be presented in a number of different ways both indoors and outdoors, so altering the experience and interpretation of the artwork. As it travels from place to place, it will gather new musical compositions and an ongoing collection of personal responses, stories and mythologies, as well as highlighting the latest moon science.

The installation is a fusion of lunar imagery, moonlight and surround sound composition created by BAFTA and Ivor Novello award-winning composer Dan Jones. Each venue also programmes their own series lunar-inspired events beneath the moon.

Luke Jerram’s multidisciplinary practice involves the creation of sculptures, installations and live arts projects. Living in the UK but working internationally for 19 years, Jerram has created a number of extraordinary art projects which have excited and inspired people around the globe. Jerram has a set of different narratives that make up his practice which are developing in parallel with one another. He is known worldwide for his large scale public artworks.

http://my-moon.org/

FAQ – Frequency Asked Questions

1. Where did you get the idea to make an artwork such as Museum of the Moon?

Bristol has the highest tidal range in Europe. There’s a 13m gap between high tide and low tide. Cycling to work each day over the river to work, reminded me that it’s the gravitational pull of the Moon that’s making this happen. I had the idea to create the Museum of the Moon some 15 years ago, but it was only until very recently that the data for creating the Moon imagery was made available by NASA.

As a child I always wanted a telescope so I could study the Moon and the night’s sky. Now with my own Moon, I can fly there, study every detail and share this experience with the public. We can explore the far side of the Moon which is never visible from Earth.

2. The moon has always been an inspiration for artists. What was so inspiring for you about the moon?

From the beginning of human history, the moon has acted as a ‘cultural mirror’ to our beliefs, understanding and ways of seeing. Over the centuries, the moon has been interpreted as a god and as a planet. It has been used as a timekeeper, calendar and to aid night time navigation. Throughout history the moon has inspired artists, poets, scientists, writers and musicians the world over. The ethereal blue light cast by a full moon, the delicate crescent following the setting sun, or the mysterious dark side of the moon has evoked passion and exploration. Different cultures around the world have their own historical, cultural, scientific and religious relationships to the moon.
Museum of the Moon allows us to observe and contemplate cultural similarities and differences around the world, and consider the latest moon science. Depending on where the artwork is presented, its meaning and interpretation will shift. Through local research at each location of the artwork, new stories and meanings will be collected and compared from one presentation to the next.

3. During its tour, the Moon has always be shown in public spaces. Why is it important to you to show your artworks in public spaces?

Depending on where the artwork is presented, the meaning and interpretation of the Museum of the Moon, will shift. The interpretation of the Moon will be completely different if it is presented in a cathedral, warehouse, science museum or arts centre.

Whether the artwork is exhibited in China, USA, India or Europe the cultural context and audience, also effects the public’s interpretation. Every culture has its own relationship to the Moon which varies from one country to another.

4. Museum of the Moon is made of really precise lunar imagery from NASA. Can you explain this choice?

I wanted to make the artwork seem as authentic and realistic as possible. For most people, this will be their most intimate, personal and closest encounter they will ever have with the Moon.

5. What’s been the public’s response?

It’s been wonderful to witness the publics’ response to the artwork. Many people spend hours with the Moon exploring its every detail. Some visitors lie down and moon-bathe.

At our exhibition Natural History Museum a man in a suit came up to me in tears. He explained how he was a space scientist from the European Space Agency and had spent his career studying the surface of the moon. I gave him a hug and he left the exhibition, a very happy man!

In Leicester one young girl asked “will you put the moon back afterwards?” She thought I’d stolen the real moon! I reassured the young girl that I would definitely return the moon after the exhibition.

In Bristol, we had an unexpected group of visitors who arrived in slow motion to the exhibition, dressed as spacemen!

In Marseille I arranged an arc of deckchair beneath the Moon. Within minutes, many of the chairs had been groups into pairs and were occupied by couples holding hands!

6. Why has the artwork been so well received?

I think one of the reasons the artwork has been well received so far, is that it leaves space for the public to interact with one another and participate in a communal shared experience. The artwork can be accessed an enjoyed by different people at different levels. It can be enjoyed as much by a 4 year old child as much as a professional astronomer.

To date over 3million people have visited the artwork. We often draw massive crowds many of which will have never have visited the museum or gallery before.

The Museum of the Moon is both an installation artwork, as well as a venue for other people to be creative. Hosts programme their own lunar inspired events to take place beneath the Moon. This way the artwork can reflect the culture and community of a venue.

7. Each venue that hosted the Moon had its own architectural specificities. It also offered different performances beneath the Moon. Therefore it is always a new story. Why is it important to you to have several performances going on beneath your Moon?

Like many of my artworks like Play Me, I’m Yours and Withdrawn, this work provides opportunities for collaboration and the creative input of others.

The Museum of the Moon is an installation artwork that combines the architecture of the space, the sculpture of the Moon and a surround sound composition. Each venue and host, has the opportunity to curate their own moon-inspired events which reflect their local culture and creativity.

8. Music is also very important for your artwork. How relevant and important is Dan Jones’ composition to your work?

The Museum of the Moon installation is a fusion of lunar imagery, moonlight and surround sound composition. I’ve worked with Dan over 15 years, commissioning him to create music for a number of my art installations. We both understand the power that music has to paint imagery in our imaginations.

For the Museum of the Moon, the surround sound composition helps connect the sculpture of the moon with the surrounding architecture. For me, the music in the spacel shapes the atmosphere of the experience guides the interpretation of the artwork.

9. How long did the artwork take to make?
The artwork took 6 months to make. There was a lot of prototyping, planning and fundraising. The artwork was commissioned by many partners coming together to support the initial creation.

I originally had the idea to make this accurate facsimile of the moon 15 years ago. But back then neither the data nor the printing technology were available.

More information about the artwork can be found at:

www.my-moon.org/about
www.my-moon.org/research

Vicissitude

Vicissitude

Monique Martin and Alexandra Hedberg

120sq metres of silkscreened canvas
Created in Gothenburg, Sweden 2022

Change occurs through deep time when life hangs like a question mark, fragile and always changing.
A moment in time can impact this planet, but it can also take years and decades to notice the change.
Transformation is a process within human existence and within the ecosystems on the earth that allows
us to live in the continuous present as we know we will not be the same person or planet tomorrow
that we were today. The arithmetic of life can be looked at as continuous subtraction or as continuous
transformation. When parts of our life and the earth run thin like the transparent chrysalis
of a butterfly there is room for transformation, change, growth and movement.

We thought the environment was frozen in time. It is now a slow emergency. Nature measures
time in epochs, eras, eons; it is not based on a human construct of days or years. Humans
trespass without notice on nature’s time scale but have altered deep time. Our trespassing
renders a lasting impact, stripping mother earth, leaving her vulnerable and weak. We
were complacent thinking we had the answers and believing that tomorrow is always promised.
Did we even really try? The eternal seconds of our nascent attempts to address climate
change may be too late. The regrets will be carried by the future generations
comparing what we could have done with what actually occurred.

Time is eternal and everything is gradually covered by the earth.

See how it was made on Monique Martin’s website http://moniqueart.com/vicissitude/vicissitude.html

Max Richter, composer

Max Richter stands as one of the most prodigious figures on the contemporary music scene, with ground-breaking work as a composer, pianist, producer, and collaborator. From synthesizers and computers to a full symphony orchestra, Richter’s innovative work encompasses solo albums, ballets, concert hall performances, film and television series, video art installations and theatre works. He is Classically trained, studying at Edinburgh University, the Royal Academy of Music, London, and completing his studies with composer Luciano Berio in Florence,

“Memoryhouse”, Richter’s 2002 debut, has been described by The Independent, and Pitchfork Magazine as a “landmark”, while his 2004 album “The Blue Notebooks” was chosen by The Guardian as one of the best Classical works of the century. “SLEEP”, his eight-and-a-half-hour concert work, has been broadcast and performed worldwide, including at the Sydney Opera House, Berlin’s Kraftwerk, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, the Philharmonie de Paris, and at the Barbican, London. In 2012 Richter “Recomposed” the infamous Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, winning him the prestigious ECHO Classic Award, and an established place in the classical charts.

In recent years Richter’s music has become a mainstay for many of the world’s leading ballet companies, including The Mariinski Ballet, La Scala Milan, The Joffrey Ballet, New York City Ballet, The Paris Opera Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Semper Oper, and NDT, while his collaborations with Wayne McGregor for The Royal Ballet have been widely acclaimed.

Richter has written prolifically for film and television, with recent projects including Hostiles, Black Mirror, Taboo – which gained him an Emmy nomination, HBO series The Leftovers and My Brilliant Friend and most recently White Boy Rick, Mary Queen of Scots and the sci-fi drama Ad Astra starring Brad Pitt. His music is also featured in Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island, Ari Folman’s Waltz With Bashir and in the Oscar-winning Arrival by Denis Villeneuve.

Richter’s most recent commissions are from the city of Bonn to mark the Beethoven 250th year anniversary, and a further collaboration between Richter, Margaret Attwood and Wayne McGregor, based on Atwood’s Maddaddam trilogy of novels, premiering in Toronto in September 2022.

His latest recorded project, The New Four Seasons, was released in 2022 marking ten years of his Vivaldi Recomposed project, re-recording the piece with period instruments.

maxrichtermusic.com

Kenneth Fuchs, composer

Kenneth Fuchs is the first living American composer recorded by the virtuoso Sinfonia of London and its brilliant conductor, John Wilson. In July 2023, Chandos Records released Cloud Slant, Orchestral Works, Volume 1, which includes two works for full orchestra, an exuberant composition for strings, and a concerto for C and alto flute, performed by the extraordinary Adam Walker.

Fuchs recorded for Naxos five albums with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by JoAnn Falletta, the last of which won the 2018 GRAMMY^® Award for “Best Classical Compendium.” In August 2020, Naxos released Point of Tranquility (Seven Works for Symphonic Winds), recorded by the United States Coast Guard Band. Naxos also published an album of chamber music including Falling Canons, Falling Trio and String Quartet No. 5 “American.” Albany Records published String Quartets 2, 3, 4 in definitive performances by the American String Quartet.

Fuchs has composed music for orchestra, band, voice, chorus, soloists, and various chamber ensembles. With Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lanford Wilson, Fuchs created three chamber musicals. The National September 11 Memorial & Museum presented Fuchs’s operatic monodrama Falling Man (text by Don DeLillo, adapted by J. D. McClatchy) in commemoration of the 15th anniversary of 9/11. His music has achieved significant global recognition through performances, media exposure, and digital streaming and downloading.

Fuchs serves as Professor of Music Composition at the University of Connecticut. He is a graduate of the University of Miami and received master of music and doctor of musical arts degrees from The Juilliard School. His composition teachers include Milton Babbitt, David Diamond, and Vincent Persichetti. His music is published by Bill Holab Music, Hal Leonard LLC, Edward B. Marks Music Company, and Theodore Presser Company, and it has been recorded by Albany, Chandos, and Naxos.

http://www.kennethfuchs.com/

Eventide

Kenneth Fuchs’ Eventide is a one-movement concerto that highlights the exquisite lyricism of the English horn.

Composed especially for Thomas Stacy, solo English hornist in the New York Philharmonic, Fusch created a work with a highly unique character. A technically challenging piece, Eventide includes the use of multiphonic chords.

A multiphonic is an extended technique on a monophonic musical instrument (one that generally produces only one note at a time) in which several notes are produced at once. This includes wind, reed, and brass instruments, as well as the human voice. Multiphonic-like sounds on string instruments, both bowed and hammered, have also been called multiphonics, for lack of better terminology and scarcity of research. – Wikipedia

The piece is inspired by spiritual songs such as Mary Had a Baby and Swing Low, Sweet Chariot. According to Fuchs, “Eventide is inspired by the mysterious quality of sunset glowing through stained-glass windows.”

The piece begins with mellow and delicate passages that create a sense of calm and anticipation, inviting listeners to embrace the tranquillity. Throughout the work, the soloist plays haunting multiphonic chords depicting the strange activity of the creeping darkness.

In the final moments of Eventide, Fuchs produces a declining motion that depicts the sun’s last rays giving way to the enveloping darkness of night. The music achieves a tremendous sense of completion, as though the natural world has reached a peaceful balance.

Véronique Mathieu, violin

Described as a violinist with ‘chops to burn, and rock solid musicianship’ (The Whole Note, TORONTO), Canadian violinist Véronique Mathieu enjoys an exciting career as a soloist, chamber musician, and music educator. Recent engagements have taken her throughout Europe and Asia, and she continues to work extensively with composers. Her CD ARGOT was recently featured on a BBC series dedicated to the music of Lutoslawski, and receives frequent airplay in the US. Recent highlights include the Canadian premiere of Marc-André Dalbavie’s violin concerto with Esprit Orchestra, a performance of John Corigliano’s Chaconne during the composer’s 80th birthday celebrations, the release of a second CD with pianist Stephanie Chua, and numerous recitals throughout North America.

Véronique has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Asia, Europe, South Africa, South America, and the United States. She is a prizewinner of the 2012 Eckhardt-Gramatté Contemporary Music Competition, the 2010 Krakow International Contemporary Music Competition, and a three-time winner of the Canada Council Bank of Instruments Competition. Ms. Mathieu holds the David L. Kaplan Chair in Music at the University of Saskatchewan where she serves as an Associate Professor of Violin. She previously served on the faculty at the University of Kansas and State University of New York, in Buffalo.

An avid contemporary music performer, she has commissioned and premiered numerous works by American, Brazilian, and Canadian composers, and has worked with composers such as Pierre Boulez, Heinz Holliger, and Krzysztof Penderecki. She recorded for the CD series New Music at Indiana University, the label of Radio-Canada, Centrediscs, PARMA, Naxos, and Pheromone. Current projects include the commission of a large-scale solo violin work by Odawa First Nations composer Barbara Croall and a set of 12 pedagogical pieces written in collaboration with 12 internationally renowned composers with the support of the SSHRC and the Canada Council for the Arts.

Véronique has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Shenyang Symphony Orchestra, Esprit Orchestra, Oakville Symphony Orchestra, the Filarmonica de Americana, Kokomo Symphony, Columbus Indiana Philharmonic, and the Montreal Contemporary Ensemble. She has given solo performances in China, Georgia, Italy, Vietnam, as well as world premieres of works by Brian Harman and Adam Scime. Her CD debut of solo works by Boulez, Donatoni, and Lutoslawski was praised as a recording of “outstanding violin playing” and “stunning [performance] with amazing technique”. Following the release of her 3rd solo CD (Cortège), she was a finalist in the Classical Artist/Ensemble of the Year category at the 2021 Western Canadian Music Awards.

In addition to her teaching and performing activities, Véronique is the co-founder and artistic director of NAVO (www.navoarts.com), a non-for-profit arts organization dedicated to bringing world-class performances to the Midwest.

Véronique won many prizes in Canada before completing her Bachelor’s Degree in Music at the Québec Conservatory. She obtained an Artist Diploma with outstanding achievement in violin performance from McGill University as a student of Denise Lupien, where was a recipient of the Ethel J. Ivey Award, and the Lloyd Carr Harris Scholarship. Mathieu completed a Performer Diploma and a Master’s Degree in music at Indiana University with professor Miriam Fried while working as an Associate Instructor in violin. She also completed a Doctor of music degree in violin performance at the same institution under the guidance of Mark Kaplan, and was a fellow at the Glenn Gould School in Toronto.

https://www.veroniquemathieu.net/

Erin Brophey, English horn

Erin Brophey is currently the Principal Oboe of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. Previously, Erin held the position of section oboe and English horn with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra for eight seasons. Erin is also an active freelance musician and has performed with many Canadian orchestras, including the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, the Regina Symphony Orchestra, the Windsor Symphony Orchestra, the Charlottetown Festival Orchestra and the Elora Festival Orchestra.

In 2000, Erin received her Honours Bachelor of Music from Wilfrid Laurier University where she studied with James Mason. She completed her Master of Music degree at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania under the tutelage of Cynthia Koledo de Almeida in 2002.

As a chamber musician, Erin has performed in many summer festivals nation-wide including Festival of the Sound, West Ben Festival, Elora Festival, Stratford Music Festival, Tafelmusik Summer Baroque Institute, National Youth Orchestra of Canada, L’Orchestre de la Francophonie and the National Academy Orchestra. Recently, Erin performed at the Ritornello Festival with the Gryphon Trio.

Erin Brophey is a sessional lecturer at the University of Saskatchewan and is the Woodwind Coach for the Saskatoon Youth Orchestra. In Saskatoon, Erin co-directs a community double-reed band called Squawk, is active in new music programming and also teaches a private oboe studio. In addition, Erin is on faculty at the Inter-Provincial Music Camp in Parry Sound, Ontario.

Erin is the Director of a unique online oboe education program called the Oboe Path.

https://www.erinbrophey.com/