July 14th saw to a reappearance of the Dvořák String Quintet, a treat for visiting board members and fellow orchestra colleagues alike. 

[ Blake Pouliot | Blake | Catherine | Hugo Rinfret | Nora Schreckenschläger | Crozman | Hugo | Catherine Gray | Cameron Crozman | Blake, Nora, Hugo, Cameraon, Catherine - Dvořák, String Quintet op. 77 ]

[ Steve Sitarski & David Hetherington – Gary Kulesha, Pro et Contra | Gregory Oh, Carolyn Christie, Denis Bluteau – Léo Delibes (arr. Baxtresser), Flower Duet (Lakmé) & Franz Doppler, Andante and Rondo | Greg Oh | Carolyn Christie | Denis Bluteau | David Hetherington | Steve Sitarski | Greg Oh | Hetherington | Sitarski, Oh, & Hetherington – Dvořák, Piano Trio Op. 21 ]

After days packed with fabulous chamber music, we were immediately plunged into orchestral rehearsal. Having to wear concert dress for professionally taken photos, here are a few quick candids I managed to take that day.

[ Meagan Turner | Scott Ross-Molyneux | Violins | The ever lovely Julien Simard (: | July 12th, 2012 ]

The final instalment to the whirlwind of student concerts took place in a different venue this time around, UWO`s Davenport Theatre. Managing to catch the first two pieces of the programme before leaving to perform myself, the Becker had fantastic rhythmic drive and ensemble work between the entire percussion section, while the Mendelssohn quartet possessed a very pure and beautiful opening adagio which lead into the rest of the captivating performance.

Unfortunately, I missed out on the Hétu Wind Quintet, but many thanks and credit to Luke Chang who took great shots of all the remaining performances from the evening. This leads to the Haydn Quartet, also known as “Fifths”, a name which describes the prominence of falling fifths in the theme (fun thing to note - this was the Op. 76 no. 2, and no. 1 was previously performed the previous Thursday).

The famed Ravel String Quartet was a delight to listen to; great blending between the players, and, of course, with very dynamic pizzes and energy from all.  And the Stravinsky Concerto for piano and winds, a rich and grand piece, beautifully highlighted the large ensemble and intriguing, very rhythmic, piano playing.

This July 7^th programme was a very lovely, very entertaining, conclusion to an intensely packed few days of chamber performances. 

Bravo to all. 

[ Kyle Reyes | Jay Mannion | Alex Petrenko | Kyle Reyes | Dave Burns | Colin Frank | - Becker, Away without Leave | Stelth Ng, Sunny Chan, Becca Gans, Kendra Grittani – Mendelssohn, String Quartet Op. 13 no.2 | Sara Moorhouse, Slavko Popovic, Anna Norris, James Tizzard, Natasha Sullivan – Hétu, Wind Quintet | Slavko | Laura Hillis, Cecilia Gee, Chantelle Jubenville, Charles Cayer – Haydn, Op. 76 no. 2, “Fifths” | Cecilia | Charles | Chantelle | Laura | Anne-Sophie Paquet, Gabriele Thielmann, Jonah Poplove, Nicolas Stephenson – Ravel String Quartet | Jonah | Gabi | Anne-Sophie | Nico | Ria Kim | Graham Isaak, Stéphane Krims, Daniel Lalonde, Brandyn Lewis, Joël Girard, Kyle Reyes, Chris Graham, Vlad Kalinichenko, Julien Simard, Marshall Gayman, Olivier Brisson, Emily Lair, James Tizzard, Joshua Wood, Daniel Mills, Peter Gajdek, Taz Eddy, Steve Donegan, Bianca Chambul, Kevin Harris, Kelly Hermann, Sara Moorhouse, Lara Deutsch, Laurence Neill-Poirier, David Gazaille, Aidan Dugan, Gabriel Lemieux, Natasha Sullivan, Ria Kim, Jaeyoung Chong – Stravinsky, Concerto for Piano and Wind | Greg Oh | THANK YOU Luke for photos ] 

July 7^th featured a programme of six chamber music performances from my fellow colleagues.

The opening piece, Jolivet`s Petite Suite for Flute, Viola, and Harp, was a five movement suite, rich with interweaving sound and exquisite harmonies. Unfortunately, I experienced some difficulties and was unable to procure any photos. My apologies.

Kondo`s Standing Violin Trio was comprised in such a way that each player had a note, either drawn by bow or pizzicato, in sequence one after the other in such a way that, collectively, a single musical line was created. Fast paced, it was intriguing to how each sound connected together from the three individual performers.

Playful and humorous, the Haydn Op.33 no. 2 String Quartet was enthralling and drew laughter from the audience. The suspense and joking manner made it all the more entertaining.

The Partita for Wind Quintet, by American composer Irving Fine, was a neo-classical piece that was intricate and extremely alluring, a highlight of the afternoon.

Shostakovich 8, one of my personal favourites, was a powerful and gritty performance with obvious self-branding from the repeated utilization of the DSCH motif.  

The Beethoven Quartet no. 5 performed was modeled upon Mozart`s quartet in the same A Major key. The first breath taken was stately, and the group`s subsequent performance was lively and cohesive.

[ Fred Xu, Rebecca Ruthven, Cadee Qiu – Kondo, Standing Violin Trio | Cadee Qiu | Lindsey Herle | Jenna Koller | Haydn, String Quartet Op. 33 no. 2 | David Gazaille | Kelly Hermann, Gabriel Lemieux | Olivier Brisson | Kevin Harris |  - Fine, Partita | Jiten Beairsto, Erick Wawrezkiewicz, Lauren Tyros, Nicholas Denton-Protsack – Shostakovich String Quartet no. 8 | Jiten | Nick | Lauren | Erick | Colin Repas, Jeremy Dyck, Genevieve de Caen, Youngho Yoo – Beethoven, String Quartet Op. 18 no. 5 | Genny | Colin | Jeremy | YOUNGHO ]