Canadian Opera Company presents

Mozart’s Requiem

This multi-disciplinary presentation in collaboration with Against the Grain Theatre invites us to reckon with the impact of COVID-19 and devastating losses—and heal together through the power of Mozart’s astonishingly moving Requiem.

“This performance is meant to be a sonic journey from those dark, isolating days of deep COVID to a more hopeful and brighter future.”  —Joel Ivany

Incorporating interviews with the artists, who have each faced deeply personal journeys of grief and healing, this interpretation conceived by Joel Ivany and Johannes Debus connects individual stories of loss and resilience to the sonic world of Mozart’s heartbreakingly beautiful piece. The result charts a passage out of some of our collective darkest days towards a new hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Featuring artists from the COC Ensemble Studio training program, as well as Kwagiulth and Stó:lo First Nations mezzo-soprano Marion Newman, this Requiem is a showcase of the next generation of voices in opera.

Artists
Midori Marsh, soprano

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Midori Marsh is completing her Master of Music in opera at the University of Toronto, following undergraduate studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. Recent engagements include Sarah Thorpe in No One’s Safe and Johan’s Mother in Silent Light (Banff Centre); Frasquita in Carmen (Waterloo Symphony); Arminda in La finta giardiniera and Rose Maurrant in Street Scene (UofT Opera); Annina in La Traviata (Cambridge Symphony Orchestra). She will also sing the role of Ivy in Fantasma, a newly commissioned Opera for Young audiences being written by the COC’s composer in residence, Ian Cusson, with libretto by Colleen Murphy.

Marion Newman, mezzo-soprano

Marion Newman “sings with rich, opulent tone, and her delivery pulses with the multiple meanings of her duplicitous existence.” (Opera News) and she has been noted as “a show stealer” (BBC Music Magazine). In her Irish debut with Cork’s Opera-2005 in the title role of Carmen, she was widely praised for her “superbly sinuous sexuality” and “as a very exciting new talent” by the Irish Examiner.

Highlights of Marion’s recent seasons include the lead role of Noodin-Kwe in the world premiere run of Giiwedin, a First Nations opera by Spy Dénommé-Welch and Catherine Magowan. In a recital for the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto, Marion sang the world premiere of Bigiiwe, by Canadian Ojibway/Odawa composer Barbara Croall.

Andrew Haji, tenor

Canadian tenor Andrew Haji is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after voices on both the operatic and concert stages. Recent and upcoming concert engagements include performances of Haydn’s The Creation, Verdi’s Requiem, Puccini’s Messa di Gloria, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Rossini’s Petite messe solennelle, and Mozart’s Requiem, Great Mass in C minor, and Coronation Mass.

Vartan Gabrielian, bass

Canadian-Armenian bass-baritone Vartan Gabrielian is a current ensemble member of the Canadian Opera Company. While still a student, he made his professional debut with the Opéra de Montréal performing the role of Sparafucile (Rigoletto).

Johannes Debus, conductor
Joel Ivany, director
With the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra and Chorus

Saturday, November 27, 2021 at 7:30pm ET
To enjoy this free streaming event, visit: www.coc.ca

Canadian Opera Company
Based in Toronto, the Canadian Opera Company is the largest producer of opera in Canada and one of the largest in North America. The company enjoys an international reputation for artistic excellence and creative innovation. The company presents six fully-staged productions at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts annually.

The COC’s repertoire spans the history of opera from the baroque to the 21st century and includes several commissioned works and Canadian premieres. Professional opera artists from all over the world are engaged for COC productions, including a significant number of Canadian singers, directors, conductors and designers.  The company performs with its own professional Chorus and Orchestra.  The company also fosters emerging Canadian talent through its Ensemble Studio, Orchestra Academy and Company-in-Residence programs.

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