The Unbelievable Soldier’s Tale – August 18, 2023

Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) presents

The Unbelievable Soldier’s Tale by Stravinsky

As part of La Virée classique 2023

The myth of Faust inspired many musicians: Stravinsky’s highly original version depicts a deserting soldier in the grip of the Devil. To illustrate this phantasmal tale, the composer ventured into jazz and popular styles, which lend this iconic work an often unexpected and fiendishly alluring quality.

Artists
Todd Cope, clarinet

Todd Cope was appointed Principal Clarinet of the OSM in 2013. He was previously a member of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and a member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida. In addition, he has performed with the Sun Valley Summer Symphony and Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and has held fellowships at the Aspen and Eastern music festivals, the National Repertory Orchestra, the Music Academy of the West, and the American Institute of Music Studies in Graz, Austria. He graduated from the College-Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati where he studied with Richie Hawley. Todd Cope also completed a professional studies certificate at the Colburn School, where he was a student of Yehuda Gilad. He is currently on the faculty at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University, and is an exclusive performing artist for Buffet Crampon.

Olivier Thouin, violin

Olivier Thouin dreamed of becoming a violinist for as long as he can remember. At age 8 or 9, he began practising tirelessly to fulfill his dream. He studied in Joliette with Hratchia Sevadjian from 1981 to 1987, then in Montreal with Raymond Dessaints and Sonia Jelinkova from 1987 to 1995. He pursued his training with Ivan Straus in Prague and Igor Ozim in Bern. His fondest musical memories date back to his years as a student, when he played Schumann’s Quintet with Isidore Cohen, and to his performance of Brahms’ First Symphony as Concertmaster with the Jeunesses Musicales World Orchestra at the Berliner Philharmonie. His first time playing with the OSM musicians was in 1997 and a few years later, in 2001 and 2004, he performed with the Orchestra as a soloist. He officially joined the Orchestra in 2008. That same year, during the highly acclaimed Automne Messiaen in Montreal, he was deeply moved by the intensity with which Maestro Nagano directed Messiaen’s epic opera Saint François d’Assise, a work whose total performance time stands at more than 5 hours!

François Zeitouni, piano

The titular organist at the Church of the Gesù since 2005, François Zeitouni leads a distinguished career as an organist and pianist. A passionate chamber musician, he has performed with several renowned artists including contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux, violinist Olivier Thouin, clarinetist Stéphane Fontaine, pianists Olivier Godin and Julien LeBlanc, and cellist Benoit Loiselle. As an orchestral musician (piano, celesta, and organ), François Zeitouni has played with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Les Violons du Roy, I Musici, and the Festival de Lanaudière Orchestra. He has also performed as an organist twice with the OSM Chorus at the Maison symphonique. François Zeitouni’s recordings include, on the XXI Productions label, Louis-Claude d’Aquin’s Noëls pour orgue and Gabriel Fauré’s works for violin and piano with violinist Olivier Thouin. The latter recording garnered critical praise in the Americas and in Europe, including in the prestigious Strad Magazine, which named the album its Recording of the Month in July 2010.

Program
MILHAUD, Suite, op. 157b (11 min.)
Srul Irving GLICK, The Klezmer’s Wedding (12 min.)
STRAVINSKY, The Soldier’s Tale Suite (20 min.)

Piano Nobile de la Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier
Friday, August 18, 2023 at 6:30pm

To purchase your tickets visit: www.placedesarts.com