Anton and Julian Kuerti take a bow with the Boston Pops.

The 70-year-old father is a world renowned classical pianist, the 32-year-old son one of the world’s top up and coming conductors, currently serving as associate conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Their last performance together, in March 2008, has grown into almost legendary status.
Anton Kuerti – who has lived in the same house for 40 years within walking distance of Jarvis Collegiate Institute, where his son graduated from – was in Boston specifically to watch his son Julian Kuerti make his conducting debut for the Boston Symphony.

But as fate would have it, guest pianist Leon Fleisher who was to play Beethoven’s Emperor Piano Concerto had to bow out because of food poisoning.

Julian called his dad two hours before the show to ask if he could fill in. Like any good dad, he was only too pleased to help his son out of his jam.

It didn’t hurt, of course, that the elder Kuerti was more than qualified to take on the task.

He is considered one of the world’s most renowned Beethoven interpreters on piano, and has recorded all five Beethoven piano concertos – including the Emperor Piano Concerto – with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.

The resulting performance was hailed by the Boston critics.

Coincidentally, the day after the Boston tour-de-force, official announcement came that the elder Kuerti was to receive a Lifetime Artistic Achievement Award as part of the 2008 Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards.

Julian, himself, is no stranger to saving the day.

This past summer he had to fill in for his ailing boss, BSO musical director James Levine, as conductor of the BSO for early July performances in the summer series.

And in November, on very short notice, the Jarvis Collegiate grad had to fill in for a Russian guest conductor who, after a week of rehearsals, abruptly pulled out upon finding his prominence in the billing not up to his liking.

Julian, with just one rehearsal, had to take over what the Boston Globe critic called “a lengthy and decidedly nonstandard program” for its entire four-performance run.

He ended up receiving a robust ovation and the orchestral musicians insisted he take a solo bow.
The Boston Globe critic said he “rose to the occasion and pulled off a triumphant concert.”

Even the miffed Russian conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky told The Boston Globe that “in our days, many young conductors have no right to conduct, but he really does. Now he can realize it. I’m very glad.”

Ironically, the last-minute substitution forced Julian to cancel a musical reunion planned for that very weekend in Edmonton where he was to guest conduct the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra with the elder Kuerti on piano. They had to settle for just one Kuerti.

On Jan. 11, however, they are slated to get back together again for their first shared bill since March, making their home debut – only this time, it’s completely planned.

While the younger Kuerti could not be reached as he was scheduled to be out of the country until mid-week, the elder Kuerti said to share billing with his son “is wonderful.”

He thinks they’ll mesh just fine again on stage.

“We get along now very well, we didn’t always,” Anton said with a hearty laugh. “And we respect each other.”

While it definitely “adds to the excitement,” he added “once you’re on stage, it’s not that different. You’re concentrating on doing your own job and staying together and working together.”

A childhood prodigy, Anton grew up in the Boston area and was able to make his own debut with the Boston Symphony when he was 11 years old so to have his son with the orchestra is a special thrill.
“It’s a big deal to be assistant conductor of the Boston Symphony. It’s a fantastic launch to a career.”

The two will perform Sunday, 3 p.m. at the University of Toronto at the MacMillan Theatre in the Edward Johnson Building, as part of the Mooredale Concert series, which is now in its 20th year, and which is very close to their hearts.

It was started by the late Kristine Bogyo, wife of Anton and mother of Julian (and brother Rafael), who passed away in April 2007, after a lengthy battle with cancer.

In 2005, Bogyo was awarded the Governor General’s Meritorious Service Medal for her tireless work in creating the prestigious Rosedale-based Mooredale youth orchestras.

“Both (concert series and youth orchestra) are doing very well, but of course there’s a sadness too because these were started by my wife,” said Anton, who is now the artistic director.

“She was to have been present on Sunday and also to have been present when Julian conducted the Boston Symphony.”

The youth orchestras, home to more than 100 aspiring musicians from 6 to 20 years of age, are based in Rosedale at historic Mooredale House, 146 Crescent Rd. with concerts held at Rosedale Heights School, 711 Bloor St. E. at the Castle Frank Subway Station.

Julian went on from Jarvis Collegiate to the University of Toronto, earning an honours degree in engineering physics. He specialized in quantum optics, which is no basket weaving course, and his fourth-year thesis was titled “Lasing and Amplified Spontaneous Emission in Periodic and Quasi-Periodic Photonic Band Gap Materials”.

Despite heavy academic commitments, however, music still remained very much on the front burner, and he served as concert master and violin soloist at the Hart House Orchestra.
In the end, music won out.

After taking a year off – in which he played electric violin for a Toronto-based world music band during a tour of Brazil – he returned to the University of Toronto in 2000 where he began conducting studies in the faculty of music department.

That summer he was accepted at the renowned Pierre Monteux School for Conductors in Maine and finished up his studies in 2005 with Lutz Kohler at the University of the Arts Berlin.

He already has compiled extensive guest conducting credits in Europe and South and North America, including last year’s debut with his hometown Toronto Symphony Orchestra, which his father has also performed and recorded with, of course, on numerous occasions.

This weekend’s official father-son local debut was made possible by a fortuitous set of circumstances in which, basically, the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra (HPO) on Jan. 10 will host the Kuertis as featured guests in Hamilton.

And then on Jan. 11, so to speak, the Kuertis will host the entire HPO at their Mooredale Concert Series, which explains why the tab is a tad higher for this installment in this affordable series.

“It’s probably the most ambitious event Mooredale Concerts has ever put on, certainly one of the most expensive just by the fact that there’s full orchestra,” said Anton.

At the same time, he said it was also a golden opportunity.

“It was a relatively economical way of getting this concert here because we don’t have to pay for the rehearsals, we just have to pay an extra fee for the musicians and transportation.”

As far as the program, he said “I’m performing two pieces for piano orchestra by Mendelssohn, the Concerto in G Minor which is very popular and well known and the less well known but wonderful piece, the Capriccio Brillante.

“And then my son is going to conduct some exciting Bartok sketches, I think they’re all dances and then beautiful Symphony No. 8 (by Beethoven) will close the program.”

A special art display will be on sale at the concert with paintings by the late Janos Buda, who was very poor but who left a treasure of art in his St. James Town apartment when he died in 2005.
“He came to all the Mooredale concerts and he did sketches of the artists. These were part of his estate which has come to us.

“We are going to have those on sale for the benefit of Mooredale Concerts and people even get 75 per cent of the price as a tax receipt.”

MUSIC NOTES
While Sunday, Jan. 11 will provide an opportunity to hear Anton – one of the world’s foremost Beethoven interpreters – play a Beethoven concerto with full orchestra, the following Friday, Jan. 16, 2 to 3:30 p.m., you can hear him talk about Beethoven.

His combined lecture-demonstration, hosted by the Royal Conservatory of Music at its recently refurbished main home at 273 Bloor St. W. (in the Conservatory Theatre), will focus on Beethoven’s third concerto.

It’s part of a five-part series with Anton focusing on each one of the five Beethoven concertos.
Admission is free.

Also upcoming on Anton’s busy schedule is a performance by the Mooredale Youth Orchestra tentatively for Sunday, March 15, at 3 p.m.

Kuerti will lead them through Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2.
For more on Mooredale, log on to www.mooredaleconcerts.com

For the second year in a row, the venerable Annex-based institution at 273 Bloor Street West is celebrating a Grammy nomination.

A group of musicians based out of the RCM, called Artists of the Royal Conservatory of Music (ARC), nabbed a Grammy nomination in the category of Best Chamber Music Performance for their recording called Right Through the Bone.

In addition, the producer of that recording, David Frost, a well known American classical music producer, is nominated in the category of classical producer of the year.

It’s becoming old hat for ARC who last year were also nominated in the same category (of Best Chamber Music Performance) for their recording titled On the Threshold of Hope: Chamber Music of Mieczyslaw Weinberg. Subsequently it was also nominated for a Juno Award.

Right Through the Bone will also no doubt be in consideration when this year’s Juno Award nominations are released Feb. 3.

Annex resident Simon Wynberg, the RCM’s artistic director who served as executive producer on both recordings, said just to be nominated is an honour.

“It’s actually easier to win if you’re nominated, then it is to be nominated,” he pointed out.

A nomination, he said, can be a tremendous help in putting a recording on the map, especially in terms of international exposure.

“People know what a Grammy is. It has a huge kind of marketing effect just in terms of the PR for a group.”

The same core of local musicians from ARC are on both albums, all but one of them currently living in Toronto, including: Steven Dann (viola) in East York; Erika Raum (violin) in Riverdale; Marie Berard (violin) in Parkdale; Dianne Werner (piano) in North Toronto; Ben Bowman (violin) just west of Riverdale in east Toronto; Joaquin Valdepenas (clarinet) and David Louie (piano) in North York; and Bryan Epperson (cello), east of the city.

They’ve had a hectic schedule this past year with performances in London, Rome, Budapest and Warsaw and capped off last month with their Kennedy Center debut in Washington as well as an engagement at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York.

The two albums were recorded in the GTA, Right Through the Bone at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga and On the Threshold of Hope at North York’s George Weston Recital Hall at the Toronto Centre for the Arts.

The Grammy nominations are a great way for ARC to kick off a high profile recording deal with Sony BMG, that is slated to include an upcoming third CD.

The recordings are widely available, as they are distributed on the RCA Red Seal label, one of the most prestigious classical labels and the home for a formidable array of artists including Jascha Heifetz, Vladimir Horowitz, Arthur Rubinstein, Leopold Stokowski, Ben Heppner and Placido Domingo.

“We’ve tended to go for music which is not represented in the catalogue,” explained Wynberg.

Right Through the Bone, released in November 2007, features the chamber music of the neglected Dutch composer Julius Röntgen (1855-1932), whose influences included Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Edvard Grieg.

“In the case of Röntgen, I don’t think any of these pieces had been recorded – maybe one. But some of them had not even been performed before. It’s pretty well new material,” said Wynberg.

Röntgen’s cousin was Nobel prize-winner Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, the discoverer of x-rays. The title of the CD actually comes from a quote by composer Edvard Grieg who observed that unlike x-rays, Röntgen’s music went “right through the bone”.

“He wrote a lot of really amazing music which has just not been explored, certainly not in a big way,” said Wynberg. “We chose what we thought were some of the best of his works.”

While the composer may be obscure, Wynberg stressed that it’s accessible.

“The first CD we did (On the Threshold of Hope) was, in terms of the average classical listener or even the average music lover, it was perhaps a little more challenging for them than this CD (Right Through the Bone) which is really very accessible and instantly likable music. It’s like listening to Mendohlson or the Brahms that Brahms never wrote. That’s really what it’s like.

The first CD (On the Threshold of Hope) featured the chamber music of Mieczyslaw Weinberg who fled Nazi-occupied Warsaw in 1939 and spent most of his life in Moscow.

A lifelong friend and protégé of Dimitri Shostakovich, Weinberg is today considered one of the three most eminent Russian composers, along with Prokofiev and Shostakovich.
Dating from 1944 and 1945, the works recorded on the new CD have not been available on CD before.

As for the third CD, you can be sure ARC will continue their mission.

“It will definitely be music that needs a catalogue. And we’re just deciding on that right now,” said Wynberg.

The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) returned to its Bloor Street home in the Annex earlier this fall after a two-year, $110 million redevelopment that will finally be complete with the opening of the state-of-the-art, 1,140-seat Koerner Concert Hall projected for “Sepember 2009.”

“That’s the star on top of the Christmas tree,” said Wynberg.

The following is a story that was written during the recording of the song, back in 2006 … 

A Scarborough recording studio recently played host to a steady stream of top Canadian recording artists, including members of Billy Talent, Thornley and Big Sugar, all lending their talents to a benefit CD/video single designed to raise awareness of AIDS/HIV in Africa.

It’s the brainchild of Winnipeg-based producer Darcy Ataman, who also helped co-write the song, along with Rob Wells, Luke McMaster, Simon Wilcox, which is entitled A Song For Africa.

The song was recorded over two days at Scarborough’s Phase One Studios on Kennedy Ave. just north of Finch Avenue earlier this spring. The instrument tracks were laid down one day, and the vocals the next.

The popular studio owned by Barry Lubotta has featured stars like Sting, 50 Cent and Anne Murray among recent clients.

The timing of the project is specifically designed to co-incide with the 16th annual International AIDS conference which is being held in Toronto Aug. 13-18.

The huge world conference, based out of the downtown Metro Toronto Convention Centre, is expected to attract at least 20,000 participants including scientists, health care providers, political, community and business leaders, journalists, government, non-governmental and intergovernmental representatives, and people living with HIV/AIDS.

“The single will go to radio really late spring, early summer so it starts to become a hit on the radio – hopefully,” said a patient but busy Ataman in an interview at the Scarborough studio as he oversaw both the sound and video recording. “I would say late May (or) early June it will be in the stores and available for download.

“The video will make its debut at the international AIDS conference during opening ceremonies.

“It’s a great event. You get 30,000 people in the Rogers Centre, 2,500 media. It’s a worldwide event. It’s a great chance to show Canadian artists in the forefront.”
Ataman, who has produced records of late for Canadian Idol winners Ryan Malcolm and Kalan Porter, among others, has held benefit concerts for AIDS/HIV awareness in Winnipeg, but conceded his home town wouldn’t work for this project.

“It’s easier for me to come here then to try to fly a whole bunch of people out to Winnipeg.”

And the Scarborough studio, he said, fit the bill exactly. “I’ve worked out of this studio before and I knew not too many places in Canada, period, could house it.”
One artist that didn’t need any directions was Juno award winner Choclair.

Although now living in Mississauga, Choclair, one of several artists awaiting their turn in the artists lounge, pointed out that “I was Scarborough all the way, Pope John Paul, St. Martin de Porres, Cedarbrae, Pearson – all those schools.”

He said he was happy “just to help bring attention to the cause – I’m here because it’s a worthy cause.

“Some artists I’m meeting for the first time, some I’ve know from before. We all connect because our common denominator is music, so we can appreciate each other’s music.”

Ken Tizzard, one-time bass player for Thornley and The Watchmen, did double duty for the record.

“I played bass on the track yesterday, I’m doing some vocals today,” he said, adding that “it’s shaping up really, really nicely.”

He said the project “is really an awareness thing.”

“If we can  help raise awareness in any way, shape or form for a good cause like this, it’s important.

“I know that there’s all kinds of things linked to this project that are going to help spread the word and help the actual immediate problem.”

Ataman’s own musical projects are on hold as he pursues this cause, funded, in part, through a grant from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

The musicians, of course,  have all donated their time; the grant is being used strictly to cover production and marketing costs.

“I’m not under any delusions that one song is going to save the world,” said Ataman whose father and grandmother are Holocaust survivors,”but any bit helps, in my opinion.”

The primary goal, he said, “is conscious raising and educating the youth of Canada.” Secondary, he said, “is fundraising.”

“We’re giving all that to CARE Canada and to a group called Free the Children that are building a mobile AIDS clinic in Kenya to service 10,000 people.”

The project already seems to be paying dividends, he said, with the website already generating donations.

Log on to www.songforafrica.com.

A song dedicated to AIDS fundraising and awareness, with contributions from some of the biggest names in roots and world music, got its genesis from the 16th international AIDS conference that was held in Toronto more than two years ago.

It was recorded in Toronto, at six different studios, under the direction of Parkdale resident Waleed Abdulhamid, a renowned producer/musician who emigrated from the Sudan in 1992.

Abdulhamid, who also teaches in the Humber College music program, called in just about every favour he could to help forge this eclectic international cast led by David Clayton Thomas of Blood, Sweat and Tears fame.

The international version of the song, titled Let’s Find A Way, is already available for download on various music sites including ITunes.

Available shortly will be a more complete package that includes three versions of the song – English, international and rap – as well as a DVD of its making. The international version has 13 different languages represented.

The all-star band goes under the name of Kenoronhkwa which in the Mohawk language (one of the 13 languages represented on the recording) means love medicine, or “I give you love medicine”.

The international initiative, according to a press release on the project’s dedicated website at www.letsfindaway.ca, is aimed at the grass roots, to “start the funding at the bottom rather then the top with as little political and administration influence as possible.

“Too many smaller communities are left with little to no funding once the larger groups have had their share and due to political issues beyond our control the money seems to disappear at the end of the funding chain.”

The initiative is the brainchild of British Columbia-based activist Robin Tomlin who got the idea to raise funds and awareness for the fight against HIV/AIDS through music.

He commissioned two songwriting friends to pen the song and at the 2006 Toronto AIDS conference he convinced Abdulhamid, who was there performing with his band, to produce it.

Abdulhamid said the original song was in the vein of “Neil Young meets Bob Dylan which is beautiful.”

With full support from the songwriting duo, Abdulhamid also added to it (and was given a songwriting credit). Given that the song is geared for an international HIV/AIDS campaign aimed at and for youth, he tried to inject elements that would also gear it to both a youthful and an international audience.

“I feel like how come we cannot stop this (HIV/AIDS pandemic) if we can go all the way from the United States to go to Iraq and get Saddam, we dig the ground and get him out, how come we cannot stop such a thing.”

A tireless contributor of both his time and music to such causes as Doctors Without Borders and to orphans of the Rwanda holocaust just to name a few, Abdulhamid said his work with the Lets Find A Way project has inspired him to embark on “an international song, very similar to this, for Darfur, just to make our voice louder.

“It is a crisis and people are dying there.”

For more on Lets Find a Way, visit the website at www.letsfindaway.ca.

For Abdulhamid’s MySpace account, type his name into a popular search engine.

LETS FIND A WAY
Musician credits:
Waleed Abdulhamid, bass, electric & acoustic guitar;
Derek Thorne, congas and percussion;
Mark Kelso and Richard Greenspoon, drums;
Bruce Cassidy, horn;
David Maracle, Iroquoian and Celtic flutes;
John Epata, piano/keyboard;
Ravi Naimpally, Tabla;
Laurence Stevenson, Violin.

Vocal credits:
Anton Mamine, Russian;
Boonaa Mahammed, African Canadian (Hip-Hop):
David Clayton Thomas, Canadian;
David Maracle, Mohawk First Nations Canada;
Denise Whitcomb, Thailand;
Fatima Germany, African;
Jordan Lipson, Canadian;
Kgomotso (KG) Tsatsi, African Canadian;
Yui Kiewboriboon, China;
Lizzy Mahashe, African (Cape Town, South Africa);
Orpheus Choir, Canadian;
Ruth Mathiang, Sudan;
Samidha Joglekar, Hindi Canadian;
Ursula Rucker, African American;
Valu David, African (Angola, Africa);
Waleed Abdulhamid, Sudan;
Zaki Ibrahim, South African.

With the third annual Nuance Art Rock Festival running this Saturday, Oct. 4 in East York, Music Notes conducted a Q&A with Wilton Said who is both the organizer and one of four bands that will be playing.

The festival is being held at the Legion Hall, Br-10, located at 1083 Pape Ave just south of O’Connor drive.

Doors open at 2:30 p.m, and the event runs Until 9:30 p.m. with a 90-minute dinner break.

Door Cover is $20. Children 12 and under free.

The website is www.myspace.com/nuancegta.

A long-time East York area resident who lives with his wife in the area of Coxwell and Danforth, Said is Scarborough-born and raised, attending Sir Wilfrid Laurier Collegiate Institute, later attending York University.

Just click on ‘more’ to read the complete Q&A …

Can you tell us a bit about the bands you’ve got coming, including yourself:

There are four bands all from Ontario.
First up is Lorne Hind 360 who is an instrumental guitar shredder with bass and drums backing band, sort of in the vein of Joe Satriani.

Second to go on is a band called COUNTERPOINT which are an instrumental trio consisting of keyboards, bass and drums. Their sound is probably more in line with Emerson Lake and Palmer (ELP).

Next up is myself, Wilton Said… and my band. I’ve been told that our music and style is reminiscent of Queen, Roxy Music and Genesis.

After the dinner break there’s The Rebel Wheel who are from Ottawa. Their style reminds me a little of King Crimson.

Exactly what is progressive rock?

That question is often debated on progressive rock websites. To many it’s a genre of music which has to be reminiscent of the sounds and styles of 1970’s bands such Genesis, Gentle Giant, Yes, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, ELP and Jethro Tull.

While I do agree that the above-mentioned artists are Progressive rock (or prog for short), they are not the be all and end all of the style. For me, prog doesn’t have to have a definite sound or style. It’s more to do with the details of the music. The fact that there are details is a start.

Examples found in prog are: experimentation of sounds, odd and changing time signatures, multiple or unusual song structures, integration of other genres of music, creative, changing moods and/or above average ability at playing one’s instrument.

Personally, I much prefer the term Art Rock as it encompasses the above mentioned bands plus many more.

How did you come to organize these concerts?

Europe and the States have quite a few of their own prog festivals, but we seem to be lacking them here in Canada. At the time of the first NUANCE, there were only two prog festivals in Canada, one in Montreal and one in Ottawa. So I figured it was time for one in the Toronto area. I knew there were prog fans here in Toronto as major name artists such as Rush, Dream Theater, Yes, A Perfect Circle, and The Musical Box (Genesis Tribute act) always do quite well here. It was just a case of trying to tap into this market of fans. Also, I thought it would be a great place for bands of the genre to build relationships with each other and support the genre as a whole.

How did you end up in East York for your third festival?

The previous two NUANCE festivals were held in downtown Toronto and were a success from a financial, an entertainment and a prog community standpoint. I decided to hold the third one here in East York because I wanted to show some support for the area which I live near, especially the eating establishments as I think East York can sometimes get overlooked. Also, East York is more relaxed then the downtown area and I wanted to be in an area with a different vibe.

Renting the Legion Hall for NUANCE is my way of showing some support for the people that have helped defend our country in the past, and for those that are currently serving time overseas in conditions which most of us wouldn’t want to live in.

How many people are you expecting?

NUANCE is still a small affair compared to many of the other festivals, but I think we’re looking at a turn out of about 60 to 70 people.

Highlight so far as a musician?

Previous to organizing concerts, and previous to singing in my own band, I played lead guitar in various bands. After a while I wanted to branch out musically and I decided to take some vocal lessons and brush up on my keyboard skills. One of my highlights as a musician was when I completed my second CD in 2001 titled ‘Broken’. It was this CD where I considered myself an actual singer as opposed to someone who could sing. The second highlight was my CD Release show in 2006 for my last CD titled ‘The View’. It seems that everything went right with that show. The venue was great, the band and I performed great, the audience was great, overall it was an amazing vibe.

Highlight so far as an organizer?

So far, pulling off the first NUANCE festival. So much work went into organizing it that it was a huge rush to see so many people and see the bands all immensely enjoying themselves.

Your own favourite progressive rock band?

I’ve got two. First is The Beatles, especially their later period from Sgt. Peppers onward. They are the greatest and my most favorite band of all time of any genre. They incorporated so many different styles and different textures into their music that it’s impossible to get bored with any one album.

Second is Kate Bush. This woman is extremely underrated, especially here in North America. Three of her albums from the 80’s titled ‘Never Forever’, ‘The Dreaming’ and ‘The Hounds of Love’ are her most experimental work.

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I’ve lived in various areas of Toronto all my life. Most of my childhood and teen years were spent in Scarborough in the Markham and Eglinton area. I went to high school at Laurier CI located in the Guild. In my very early 20’s my family and I moved to the Woodbine and Danforth area. Around this time I attended York University where I studied music for five years. After graduating, I moved out on my own and lived in the Danforth and Dawes road area and started work at a daycare where I’m still working today. When I met my wife, we moved to the Coxwell and Danforth area where we are currently living.

That’s because – and you can call it a cop-out if you want – I enjoyed both artists, both in their final show and throughout the season, in general, and so decided to keep sitting on the fence, like a good Libra.

Tams, from Lethbridge, Alberta, reminded me of a young Elton John, with his superb vocals backed up by superb piano playing.

MacDonald, from Port Hood, Cape Breton, didn’t remind me of anybody, being rather unique, but judge Zack Werner did draw Paul Simon references at several points. And I guess I could see that - a kind of a Maritime Paul Simon.

At the end of the final episode it was announced that Tams and MacDonald would head out on a 25-date cross country tour along with the third place finisher Drew Wright from Collingwood.

Wright, who played guitar and even drums during the course of the season, was good too, but I think I would be more interested in hearing the bluesier, rootsier and distinctive sound of fourth place finisher Earl Stevenson, also a guitarist.

Anyway, the top-three tour starts Nov. 9 in Fredericton and ends Dec. 22 in Hamilton, and, fittingly, includes stops in the performers’ stomping grounds with concerts set to go for Sydney, Collingwood and Lethbridge.

There is good and bad news for the Toronto stop.

The good news is that it’s actually a free outdoor concert. The bad news is that the date is Dec. 6 at Nathan Phillips Square as part of the annual Calvacade at Lights. You’ll probably have to bundle up for this one.

I wonder if the trio will be joined by any Toronto finalists – that would make for a great addition. Electric guitar playing Mookie Morris, a Northern Collegiate grad, gave the best run ever of any Toronto contestant, finishing fifth, employing a gravelly throw-back rock voice that belied his 18 years.

Toronto resident Sebastian Pigott made top eight, after his brother Oliver just failed to crack top-10, ousted in the massive cut that pared down the top-16 to the top-10. Also a victim of that cut was Scarborough’s Omar Lunan.

The Toronto area was represented in the top-24 by one other contestant, Tetiana Ostapowych who was among the first cuts.

Ostapowych and the Pigotts were all students of Etobicoke School of the Arts; while Lunan split his high school years between West Hill Collegiate and Cedarbrae Collegiate.

The top ten was so good this year that, given a choice, I would rather attend a top-ten than a top-three concert, although I guess the logistics and scale just wouldn’t make that feasible in Canada.

In fact, it’s been around so long that the venerable musical Brigadoon is back for the third time, having previously been performed in 1984 and 1967.

The group used to mount its productions in Scarborough at Cedarbrae Collegiate but in the past few years has moved around, and is staging this year’s production just outside Scarborough at the Bayview Glen Upper School Theatre, 85 Moatfield Rd., near Don Mills and York Mills roads.

The group’s home base and practice venue, however, continues to remain in Scarborough at Agincourt Collegiate.

“We’ve been there forever,” said Barbara Back, co-producer of Brigadoon with Teresa Turner.

The group has two components.

The aptly named Onstage Productions mounts the elaborate musicals like Brigadoon (which even has its own 12-piece orchestra), while the other component is strictly a choir or choral format used for its annual popular ‘Sounds of Christmas’ show.

“When we sing as a choir there’s more people,” said Back. “But there’s a lot of people who do (both) the choir singing and do the musical. We have a core of people who are really committed and we always have new people coming in.”

Recent musicals like High School Musical have re-ignited interest in musicals among young people, and the society’s elaborate musicals are a great place to learn the ropes, she said.

“We had one guy came out for Kismet (1997), and he got the part as the prince. Six years later, (he) was in Lord of the Rings. And his first performance in musical theatre was on our stage.”

One slight headache is that a lot of the newer musicals have not yet released performing rights.

“Community groups can’t get those rights. We want to do ‘Les Mis’ and all these but they’re not out yet.

“So that will be the next generation, I guess.”

While the annual spring musical and Holiday concert are the annual major productions, they are by no means the only one.

For instance, the group is preparing a choral concert for a senior’s extravaganza in October.

“It’s going to be a sort of retrospective of all of our shows since 1953, bits and pieces from different eras.”

Past special events have included a tribute to the music of the war years “that was really well received” two years ago.

Check out the society on their website at www.actco.ca/scarboroughchoral.

Think of your favourite brew by a major label, and then by a mirco brewery?

In a taste test, some might even prefer a micro-brewed beer even though it couldn’t even begin to compare with its major brewery counterpart in terms of sales and profits earned.

I found the same thing with the local artists I’ve had the privilege to listen to now for a couple of years.

Many of their CDs have confidently crept from my work file into my regular collection.

Among them are:

• Norm Hacking, who sadly passed away last November. I had started on a Hacking phase before his untimely death at 52, mostly his Skysongs (a wonderful sampling of his music) and One Voice, which was actually a tribute album made by his adoring peers, including one of my favourite artists of all time, Michael P Smith from Chicago;

• East York’s Mandy Lagan. She’s actually a neighbour and friend, and her Versus CD is now available on iTunes but will be officially released with an official Hugh’s Room send-off on May 1, 2008. The album is very much for adults although its theme is childhood which is looked at through the timeless poetry of Robert Louis Stevenson (best known as the author of Treasure Island). Add consistently strong and imaginative songwriting and performing from start to finish by Lagan and her collaborators, which include some of Toronto’s finest musicians (including this year Juno nominee David Occhipinti), and the result is a unique, inspired work of art.

• Riverdale’s Gregg Lawless: his most recent CD, Something Beautiful from 2004 is, indeed, Something Beautiful. This CD, I think took some time, to implant itself, but once it did it was hard for many of the songs to get out of my head, especially Fallin’ All Over You which I always seem to whistle for a couple of days after I hear it. It’s got ‘hit’ written all over it. Many artists are inspired by the Beatles but few can harness this admiration as well as Lawless.

• Peter Verity and Paul Grady from East York; and Brian Gladstone from North York. The fact that these artists are grouped together (and Norm Hacking would fit comfortably with this group) absolutely does not mean they take second fiddle. Their most recent CDs have all equally had lots of play in my house. The albums are, respectively, Sometimes a Journey; A Song for Paddy Clarke; and A Time For New Beginnings. All are compelling storytellers, Verity a little more Lightfoot inspired, Grady a little more Maritime inspired; and Gladstone a little more Prine inspired. All uniquely original.

SECOND ANNUAL BRENDA CAROL RENAISSANCE JAZZ FAIR

The second annual Brenda Carol Renaissance Jazz Fair will be held the weekend of Feb. 1 to 3 at the Renaissance Cafe, 1938 Danforth Ave., just west of Woodbine Avenue with the music starting up nightly at 8 p.m. The event is designed to showcase some of Canada’s finest up-and-coming young jazz artists.

General admission tickets (no reservations) are $12 in advance or $15 at the door. A three-day pass is $27.50 advance or $35 at the door. Advance tickets are available at www.brendacarol.com, through Jon Long, Long and McQuade, 925 Bloor St. W. and at www.renaissancecafe.com. Advance tickets are also available from the artist directly. All ages are welcome.

Sponsors of the event are Brenda Carol, Jon Long of Long and McQuade and Stephen Gardner of Gardner Piano and Guitar Lessons.

Carol, an east Toronto resident, has been a vocal performer since 1986 and a private vocal educator in Toronto since 1994. Her band ClaireVoyance has impressed many both on CD (their most recent release is Live At Hot House Cafe) and in live performances. In addition, she has performed with many prominent Canadian jazz performers.

Visit www.brendacarol.com for admission and lineup information.

SIXTH ANNUAL WINTERFOLK ON THE DANFORTH

The much larger Winterfolk roots/blues/folk festival will be back for its sixth year in the city (and fourth straight on the west end of the Danforth) over the weekend of Feb. 8 to 10.

This year’s Winterfolk is promising 100 artists over three days in several Danforth Avenue venues.

This year, there will be a combination of free and paid stages with two special events at Eastminster United Church with a $10 price tag.

Meanwhile, entertainment at other venues such as the Black Swan Tavern, Willow Restaurant, Dora Keogh and Big Carrot will be free.

The festival will also include workshops for guitar playing, song writing and more.

Winterfolk is the brainchild of North York artist Brian Gladstone, who ran the Thursday open stage at Renaissance Cafe for several years. He runs the festival through his Association of Artists for A Better World, a registered non-profit organization.

It’s a unique opportunity for local residents to have a folk/roots/blues festival brought right to their door. Artists welcome it because it’s a chance to perform during what is typically a slower time in the winter.

With east Toronto, and particularly Riverdale, being home to many musicians, the lineup always has a lot of local flavour such as Steve Briggs and Gladstone.

For up-to-date lineup and other information, such as how to volunteer, visit www.abetterworld.ca.

At the Brenda Carol Renaissance Jazz Fair, general admission tickets (no reservations) are $12 in advance or $15 at the door. A three-day pass is $27.50 advance or $35 at the door. Advance tickets are available at www.brendacarol.com, through Jon Long, Long and McQuade, 925 Bloor St. W. and at www.renaissancecafe.com. Advance tickets are also available from the artist directly. All ages are welcome.

Sponsors of the event are Brenda Carol, Jon Long of Long and McQuade and Stephen Gardner of Gardner Piano and Guitar Lessons.

Carol, an east Toronto resident, has been a vocal performer since 1986 and a private vocal educator in Toronto since 1994. Her band ClaireVoyance has impressed many both on CD (their most recent release is Live At Hot House Cafe) and in live performances. In addition, she has performed with many prominent Canadian jazz performers.

Visit www.brendacarol.com for admission and lineup information.

East York resident Randy James might have to think twice – or even three times – about what band he’s anchoring on the drum kit at a CD release party Friday, Dec. 14 at the Hollywood on the Queensway.

One thing he won’t need to think twice about, however, is who his band mates are: from Rexdale lead vocalist Todd Sharman; from Mississauga bass player Paul Whiteside; and originally from Windsor, guitarists Stephen Ruppert and Mark Higginbottom.

The band mates have actually been together for many years. But the band’s stage name can change depending on the gig.

Call it a band with multiple personalities if you will, but the band is fairly well known in local circles as the Wheat Kings, a Tragically Hip tribute band that has been around since the mid-1990s. They recently gained good publicity by being part of a documentary on tribute bands that has aired on the E!-Channel a couple of times this year.

Every once in awhile another band personality surfaces, and the same band becomes Full Moon Fever, a Tom Petty tribute band.

In recent years, they’ve also created another front name – the Cat House Dogs – which is actually the name they would one day most hope to be known as since it’s the name under which they will record and perform their original music.

And it’s in this guise the band will perform and officially release their new 10-song CD called That was Now, This is Then.

Admission is $20, or $15 with a non-perishable food item that will be donated to a food bank. Admission also includes a couple of goodies, including a copy of the new CD, a T-shirt, entry into a draw to win Leaf tickets and, of course, a “wicked live performance.”

The three tracks previewed were immediately likable with strong songwriting and strong vocals lifting them above the ordinary fare. To describe what they sound like, it probably wouldn’t be too clever to describe them as a cross between the Tragically Hip (particularly Sharman’s voice) and Tom Petty (particularly in the songwriting withh straight-ahead but catchy rock).

James, who is married with three daughters aged eight, five and two-and-a-half months, has lived in the Mortimer Avenue and Linsmore Crescent area of East York for eight years and in his own home for three years.

By day, he’s a freelance graphic design artist and web designer working out of his home.
Naturally, he takes care of all the band’s graphic art needs, including CD design and band logos (all of them).

James has been a Toronto resident all his adult life, but grew up in Burlington to very understanding parents.

“They bought my first two (drum) kits for me. I think my college fund became my kit fund,” he said, laughing, in an interview at the Last Drop Cafe, corner of Mortimer and Sammon avenues. “That same kit I played for 20 years, and I just bought a new kit a month ago.”

His parents not only let him play in the basement, but his friends as well.

“My house was the practice house,” he said.

“We would drive them (his parents) nuts, but they were pretty happy, I guess, to have us where they could find us.”

He actually got his start as a pre-teen drumming in the Burlington Teen Tour Band, still one of that area’s more renowned youth marching bands.

That served him well, he said, until his mid-teens when he got the itch – like his favourite drummer, the Who’s Keith Moon – to anchor a rock band.

And he’s been doing it ever since, in one guise or another, as Full Moon Fever or the Wheat Kings or, as in the case for the official CD release party, as the Cat House Dogs, steadily averaging “about six to eight shows a month.”

One of the perks of participating in the documentary on tribute bands, he said, was that the show producers set them up with a big label record executive who came out to both a recording session and one live performance.

He offered up invaluable advice plus an intriguing carrot-stick that he would keep tabs on how many waves they can make locally with their new release.

Visit www.cathousedogs.com or www.thewheatkings.com for the CD or upcoming gigs.