CBC

In Concert wins Silver Medal for Best Classical Format

It’s a thrill to announce that In Concert has won a Silver Medal for “Best Classical Format” at this year’s New York Festivals Radio Awards. I’m lucky to work with an outstanding team at CBC Music and I’m so proud of our team and our little radio show. You can hear In Concert live here…

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Do the instruments of the orchestra have specific personalities?

I went to a high school that had a full symphony orchestra, and even back then I could see, as a lowly quirky nerdy bassoonist, that certain instruments attracted certain personality types. The brass players were brash. The woodwinds were varying degrees of studious and serious, depending on how many reeds there were on their…

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B minor: The Dark Romantic

B minor: The Dark Romantic Also known as:The Gloomy Gus.The Pessimist. B minors you might know:Werther from Goethe’s The Sorrows of Young Werther.Jay Gatsby from The Great Gatsby.Cliff Barnes from Dallas. The notes: B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G – A♯ – B. Number of sharps: two. Relative major: D major. What they…

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D major: Miss Congeniality

D major: Miss Congeniality Also known as:The Workaholic.The Homecoming Queen. D majors you might know:The Goddess Athena from Greek mythology.Oprah Winfrey.Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The notes: D – E – F♯ – G – A – B – C♯ – D. Number of sharps: two. Relative minor: B minor. What they said about D major in the…

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Reminiscing about summer camp and the Fountains of Rome

This Sunday I’m lucky enough to begin a fantastic gig: hosting CBC Radio 2’s weekly classical music performance program, In Concert. Preparing tomorrow’s show put me in mind of summer camp – and thus conjured up all kinds of feelings and recollections. Once upon a time there was a camp called Toronto Music Camp that…

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A major: The Will-o’-the-wisp

If A major were a person, who would she be? Here’s how The Signature Series works: 1. Select a musical key.2. Gather the most famous melodies composed in that key.3. Mash up.4. Meet the person behind the key. To get to know A major, click on the orange play button. Follow along with the pop-up comments to find…

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G minor: The Contrarian

G minor: The ContrarianAlso known as:The Moody Teenager.The Complicated ManG minors you might know:Captain Ahab from Moby Dick.Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye.Pete Campbell from Mad Men.The notes: G – A – B♭ – C – D – E♭ – F♯ – G.Number of flats: two.Relative major: B-flat major.What they said about G minor in…

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Why it’s pointless to classify Rufus Wainwright

The year I moved to Vancouver, I arrived in the middle of November. It was dark and gloomy and dreary and rainy. I did a lot of walking that month, to get to know my new neighbourhood and my new city, and my constant companion was Rufus Wainwright. I know not everyone likes Rufus Wainwright….

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America the Beautiful

Here are some of my favourite things about America: Win Butler. Big Sur. The drumming of Art Blakey. The Third Coast International Audio Festival in Chicago. My earliest memories, of splashing through the shallows of Cape Cod as a toddler. That list is quickly cobbled-together over a bleary Sunday morning coffee – but needless to…

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