Reunite! A Review of Free Flow Dance Theatre’s 27th/25th Anniversary Gala

Free Flow Dancers: Taylor Zeller, Maggie Lucas, Rachel Saufert, Philip McDermott, Shannon Pybus,
Derek Souvannavong, & Aiyana Ruel
Photo credit: Ken Greenhorn

Better late than never! 25^th/27^th Anniversary Gala: Free Flow Dance Theatre Company’s “REUNITE!”
   For years now, I have taken in dance performances – mostly Modern Dance – because of the way they make me feel and think & because of the way they change my perception & my experience of the world. The experience of every-day things is changed completely in me after experiencing such a dance performance.
   This one in particular offered plenty of food for thought & feeling – dealing with themes of human connections & ultimately our connection with Mother Earth.

Free Flow Dancers: Shannon Pybus, Maggie Lucas, Taylor Zeller, Aiyana Ruel, & Rachel Saufert in Terrill Maguire’s “Sisterhood Songs”
Photo credit: Ken Greenhorn

   The program began with Terrill Maguire’s “Sisterhood Songs” danced by Free Flow Dance Theatre Company members Maggie Lucas, Shannon Pybus, Aiyana Ruel, Rachel Saufert, & Taylor Zeller. This fun and colourful piece accompanied by music by Roaula Said, Earnie Tollar, & Derek Gray, reflected on supportive relationships between women.

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Dancer: Philip McDermott in Newton Moraes’ “Two Men and Their Lives”

“Two Men and Their Lives” featured collaboratively created work by choreographer Newton Moraes & Philip McDermott – danced by Philip McDermott. In this piece, we see reflections of current and projected life activities expressed in dance and gesture. The suitcase prop is used incredibly effectively & expressively and the storytelling is clear and engaging throughout.

Dancers: Rachel Saufert & Taylor Zeller in Newton Moraes’ “Mulheres”
Photo Credit: Ken Greenhorn

   A duet between dancers Taylor Zeller & Rachel Saufert came next: “Mulheres” – created & choreographed by Newton Moraes – again a piece that shows life from 2 perspectives – exploring women’s roles & challenges in life: societal demands of them, motherhood, friendship, connection, performance, giving, supporting, aging, & aspirations. This was a very strong & expressive piece that drew on the performers’ dance & movement abilities as well as their ability to express themselves verbally – relating their stories directly to the audience – a very effective & personal touch.
   The music chosen for both of Newton Moraes’ choreographies helped so much to support the storytelling in both cases: Extent by Hillmer & Overflow by Rival Consoles for “Two Men and Their Lives” and Amour Imaginaire and excerpts from Path 17 by Max Richter for “Mulheres”.

Dancers Aiyana Ruel & Philip McDermott
Photo Credit: Ken Greenhorn

   “Resurgence” by Terill Maguire: Originally commissioned by Dance Ontario in 2005, this piece danced by Aiyana Ruel & Philip McDermott challenged us to explore deeply the emotions involved in relationships that either weather the storms of transgressions or don’t. In this piece, we are intimately invited into the navigation process of a couple in a committed relationship. Difficult emotions are explored through dance, movement, & connection between 2 beautiful performers. The piece seems to find some peace by the time it reaches its end. Music accompanying this dance was composed by Lawrence Shragge.

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Free Flow Dancers: Taylor Zeller, Rachel Saufert, Maggie Lucas, Derek Souvannavong, Aiyana Ruel, Shannon Pybus, & Philip McDermott in Jackie Latendresse & Danny Grossman’s “Earth: Womb of Life (A Pantomime for Our Times)” Photo credit: Ken Greenhorn

   After intermission, “Earth: Womb of Life (a Pantomime for Our Time)” – choreographed by Danny Grossman & Free Flow Dance Theatre Artistic Director, Jackie Latendresse. This piece involved all 7 of the company dancers: Maggie Lucas, Philip McDermott, Shannon Pybus, Aiyana Ruel, Rachel Saufert, Derek Souvannavong, & Taylor Zeller – exploring life, love, parenthood, childhood, childhood trauma, war, PTSD, suicide, death, and all the emotions that pair with these. Using dance, movement, gesture, & props, we are guided through bringing life into existence, love, play, cruelty, war, a variety of coping methods, death – all things human – ending with an image of earth and a solo dancer (Aiyana Ruel) dressed as a pregnant mother-to-be moving through expressions of frustration & anger, peace & expectation. The piece is accompanied by sounds and images including a moving quote from Danny Grossman’s mother. It was conceived & developed by Danny Grossman & Jackie Latendresse. Music/Soundscape and Visual Compilation for this was done by Eddie Kastrau, a dancer with the Grossman Dance Company since 1986. Costumes and props for this piece were done by Lili with thanks to Linda Coe Kirkham.

Dancers Philip McDermott & Taylor Zeller
Photo credit: Ken Greenhorn

Maggie Lucas & Shannon Pybus in Terrill Maguire’s Sisterhood Songs
Photo credit: Ken Greenhorn

  Dance can thrill & challenge an audience like no other Artform – engulfing the audience in an emotional audio-visual experience. Terrill, Newton, Jackie, Danny, and Eddie all did a wonderful job of telling their stories & taking the audience on a ride for this remarkable Anniversary Gala through the work of the fine rising star dancers who were part of the Free Flow Dance Theatre Company these past couple years: Maggie Lucas, Philip McDermott, Shannon Pybus, Aiyana Ruel, Rachel Saufert, Derek Souvannavong, & Taylor Zeller. Brava e Bravo Tutti!!! Et, Merci Beaucoup!!!

Anna Marie Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT
 – photo credit: Natalie Struck Photo

Anna Marie Bekolay is a multidisciplinary artist, composer, collaborative musician (voice, violin, recorder), performer, private music teacher, clinician, music adjudicator, gardener, & dance enthusiast who loves and supports all things Arts related.

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Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra’s Bolero concert!!!

   Saturday night, I had the great fortune to attend the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra concert. Knowing Ravel’s Bolero & de Falla’s works were on the program were the main draws for me.

   The entire program was extremely well performed & kept the audience engaged the entire time. Just before the concert started, Mark Turner, CEO and Creative Producer came out and told us that the programs had mysteriously disappeared – he mentioned having said something earlier about wishing to one day do a concert where they don’t tell the audience what they’re going to play … it may have been that wish that made the programs disappear … who knows? He went on to tell us exactly what we were about to hear including a little about the audience reaction to the first time Ravel’s Bolero was ever performed.

   The concert began with de Falla’s Interludio e Danza from La vide breve. I applaud both the orchestra and the conductor: Judith Yan on this – especially the opening – this is a piece that begins as if mid-sentence out of nowhere with a grand flourishing into life! Here and later in the program in the Bolero, we experienced great senses of restraint & a feeling of “wait for it” as the music unfolded – which prepared the brilliantly played quick ending section perfectly!

   Next, Angela Cheng took the stage as piano soloist in de Falla’s piano concerto: Noches en los Jardines de España. I remember long ago, my first time hearing Angela perform – it was near the beginning of her career & I remember her throwing herself at the piano – there were  some moments in this that reflected that tonight. Mostly, I was taken away by her absolute immersion in the music – she was most definitely playing with the orchestra – & seemed to practically play the orchestra – all while expressively playing the solo part I a very efficient & easy-looking manner. She and Judith Yan made quite a team in this performance!

Angela Cheng at the piano with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra – seen behind her & to her left, concert master Michael Swan. Photo borrowed from SSO’s facebook page.

   Intermission gave us an opportunity to stretch our legs & enjoy a performance by Flamenco Borealis – a great mix of some intense & lighter Flamenco music and Dance. Lina danced, Daniel sang & played guitar & they were joined by 2 other dancers who did palmas & then joined in with the Dancing!! I do believe that they finished their set with Bulerías…

Lina Kazan with Daniel Regnier behind her from Flamenco Borealis – photo borrowed from SSO’s facebook page.

   The second half of the SSO program brought us some new music by Film music composer, Fernando Velázquez: Viente de oeste. This music was not written specifically for film, but being an orchestral tone poem, it tells a story nonetheless: the sections seem to seamlessly meld one into the next: from Andante (walk) to a very eerie stillness in Contemplation (Still) to an exuberant Animato (Celebration). In this piece, I found myself in a frightening “film forest” – dark & unpredictable that eventually led to a frenzied celebratory finish.

   Then, it was time at last for Ravel’s Bolero. There was a bit of a stage re-set to bring the snare drum player out beside the strings and also to bring in the saxophone players … The snare drum (I believe played by Brayden Krueger) began so incredibly quietly and there was an inexorable feeling tempo-wise throughout as Ravel’s melody traveled from one soloist & one section to another through the steady build – for which I applaud everyone on stage: the restraint to keep that slow, constant build to the thrilling & all encompassing ending.

Judith Yan, conductor – with Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra – photo borrowed from SSO’s facebook page.

   The audience members were on their feet for a well-deserved standing ovation shortly after the release of the final sounds in Bolero!
   Many thanks to the orchestra as a whole, to the soloists within the orchestra, to our wonderful piano soloist, Angela Cheng, and most importantly to Judith Yan who conducted this concert in a specific, masterful, & expressive way with precise efficiency!
And, Thanks to my Mamma Dianne for the ticket to catch this live performance!

Brava e Bravo Tutti!!

Et Merci Beaucoup!!!

Anna Marie Bekolay
Photo credit: Natalie Struck Photo

Anna Marie Bekolay – a multidisciplinary artist – combines her passion for all the Arts (visual, dance, drama, design, and most especially music) to create a new character and evocative music for every project she participates in.  She is a collaborative musician and holds a Bachelor’s of Music Education degree, a grade 10 Violin RCM, and an Associate diploma in Voice Performance from the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto for which she won a gold medal for the highest mark in Canada (2006).

Prior to the pandemic, Anna was involved regularly with 13 performing ensembles. Since then, this number has been reduced to 4.… This created the opportunity for Anna to further explore her interest in dance and in health and wellness. She participates regularly with “Dance On!” (an improvised dance-play-movement-meditation group – an outgrowth of Aileen Hayden’s improvisational dance class: the “Big Fat Ass Dance Class” ®. Anna currently takes other online dance classes as well: African Brazilian Dance with Newton Moraes (Newton Moraes Dance Theatre) and Modern Dance with Jackie Latendresse (Free Flow Dance Theatre Company) and she sings and dances as part of her own meditation practise which is quickly progressing toward a new concert series (opening in March 2023).

Ms. Bekolay’s currently active performance projects include: Back of the Bus (Celtic), The Whiskey Jerks (Klezmer/Roma (Gypsy) Folk/Prog Rock/Jazz), Mac Talla Quartet (String Quartet with vocals), and The Stephanies (Pop Trio). Anna also continues to enjoy teaching Violin/Fiddle at the Saskatoon Academy of Music and she also enjoys teaching Voice, Violin/Fiddle, and Recorder in her home Studio (Anna Bekolay’s Studio).

One of her greatest joys is in being fully present while developing connection and communication through the sharing of music with students, band mates, and audiences alike.

Anna Bekolay’s Studio – accepting new students for a new year!!

Studying Music is one way to improve the quality of your life.

This is a new year with new challenges! Why not choose one of your challenges and embark on musical studies or re-discover your passion for music?

Anna Bekolay’s Studio has several Spots open for this new year!

There are Spots open to study Voice, Violin, Recorder, Fiddle, Music Theory (including History & Harmony), and Creative Piano!!!
This year with the challenges of Covid, in person lessons will be done preceded by hand washing or sanitizing and followed by hand washing or sanitizing (students provide their own sanitizer, the Studio provides soap and water in the bathroom sink). We will also keep our distance to protect everyone and as usual, if a student is ill in any way, they are asked to not attend their lesson to help protect the health of the instructor and all the other students studying in the Studio.
One other change is that lessons will be scheduled to accommodate a 5 minute break between students so that no one has to pass each other in the porch on their way in or out of the Studio.
Students also have the option of lessons on Skype or Zoom if that is their preferred method of studying.

Here’s to staying safe and making more music!!!

-Anna

photo credit Dianne Marie Bekolay (c) 2016

Anna Marie Bekolay (BMusEd, ARCT) writes and performs evocative folk and classical inspired music. She runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio & performs with many projects: Back of the Bus, The Stephanies, The Whiskey Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, Phantasma (NEW!), The Untamed, & does freelance collaborations: classical vocal album under stage name, Anna Maria Soparlo: “Songs in Loving Memory of My Father”, Flamenco Borealis, SWAG galas, Fringe play, “Brel!”, The Karpinka Brothers, Auresia, & new projects as they present themselves!

 

Anna has her Bachelor of Music Education and a gold medal ARCT in Voice Performance. In addition to performing and recording, she teaches and adjudicates at music festivals. Anna enjoys teaching musicians of all ages and levels (age 4 & up) bringing over 20 years experience teaching and performing into lessons that are individually crafted for each student while exploring some common repertoire to help create community within the Studio. Instruments she teaches include: Voice, Violin, Recorder (flute a bec), & Fiddle & also Theory (including History & Harmony), & Creative Piano.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

ambekolay@yahoo.ca

 

Reflections on Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra’s presentation of The Planets by Gustav Holst interspersed with Heather Schmidt’s Lunar Reflections

photo from SSO’s facebook page

 

I have love The Planets by Holst for a very, very long time – I spent a year years ago listening to a recording of The Planets most evenings at bedtime. So, when the SSO announced they would be performing The Planets, I was delighted by the news! And, it happened to line up with my mother’s birthday weekend … and, my brother was coming in for mom’s birthday as well – So, the stars and planets aligned and we went to the concert as a family as part of our weekend-long birthday celebrations. What a wonderful way to spend the evening! Listening to some of my favourite music with some of my favourite people both in the audience and on stage! Bravo Saskatoon & SSO!!!

 

Before the concert began, Mark Turner, SSO’s Executive Director, said a few words about what we were about to experience: An oscillation between Holst’s Planets and Schmidt’s Moons. Mark’s remarks were encapsulating and expressed appreciation for our exceptional SSO musicians and entertained with a slight reference to the famous Star Trek phrase “To Boldly Go …” – a great way to set the stage for the journey on which we were about to embark!

 

The Planets were accompanied by video footage from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Centre and each of Schmidt’s Moons in Lunar Reflections paired with a picture by a Saskatoon photographer. This gave a cinematic feel to the entire experience and was especially effective in Venus & Mercury.

 

The orchestra played each section with a high degree of precision and clarity. Eric Paetkau’s chosen tempi were exciting and exhilarating and really tested the edge.

 

Mars was followed by Blue Moon

Pink Moon followed Venus

Mercury was followed by Wolf Moon (one of my favourites)

And, Jupiter wrapped up the first half of the concert – it took everything in me to stay in my seat when the theme arrived in Jupiter – such an exciting piece with such an anthem-like theme!

 

I found all Heather’s Moons exciting in their own ways – sprinkled with rhythmic intricacies – I hope there will be a recording of them available in the not too distant future – I want to explore these engaging Moons further with my dance / movement meditation group some time …

 

The second half of the program saw Saturn into Snow Moon into Uranus into the “heavy metal” Thunder Moon (Jamie Parker’s words from a performance by Gryphon Trio) and finally into Neptune that ends with female chorus (singers from Aurora Voce & U of S Greystone Singers directed by Dr Jennifer Lang). It was such a neat experience having the vocals creep in near the end of this – the singers sang from off stage and it was amazingly effective – very Mystical indeed! The singers did a brilliant job of it – not easy to sing those parts super quietly.

 

Well done all ‘round!! Thanks for a wonderful evening!!

 

Thanks for reading!!

-Anna

 

Anna Marie Bekolay (BMusEd, ARCT) writes and performs evocative folk and classical inspired music. She runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio & performs with many projects: Back of the Bus, The Stephanies, The Whiskey Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, Troubadours du Bois, Phantasma, The Untamed, & does freelance collaborations: classical vocal album under stage name, Anna Maria Soparlo: “Songs in Loving Memory of My Father”, Flamenco Borealis, SWAG galas, Fringe play, “Brel!”, The Karpinka Brothers, Auresia, & new projects as they present themselves!

 

Anna has her Bachelor of Music Education and a gold medal ARCT in Voice Performance. In addition to performing and recording, she teaches and adjudicates at music festivals. Anna enjoys teaching musicians of all ages and levels (age 4 & up) bringing over 20 years experience teaching and performing into lessons that are individually crafted for each student while exploring some common repertoire to help create community within the Studio. Instruments she teaches include: Voice, Violin, Recorder (flute a bec), & Fiddle & also Theory.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

Review of Joel Grundahl’s EP Release show at The Bassment with special guest, Kyle Krysa and Distant Conversation

photo from The Bassment’s website

It has been a while since I wrote a review of a show and I didn’t expect to be writing about this one, but the compulsion to write is upon me, so here we go! I had the great fortune to attend last night’s celebration of Contemporary Jazz and Jazz Fusion at The Bassment in Saskatoon. This was most likely a once in a lifetime experience and show and I am so grateful I got to attend!

 

Congratulations to Joel Grundahl and the Joel Grundahl Trio on the release of their EP and on a fantastic live show too! Also, congratulations to Kyle Krysa and his band for a really wonderful first live performance of some of Kyle’s material from his 2015 release “Distant Conversation”!

 

I am compelled to write about this and at the same time, feel that words cannot do the show justice. In any case, to give some extra context, this is from The Bassment’s website and promo for the show: “With a set list of original and cover jazz-fusion compositions, the Joel Grundahl Trio melds jazz with modern music, all the while embracing creativity and improvisation and striving to carry the fusion torch forward. Percussionist/composer Kyle Krysa and Distant Conversation plays the opening set with a set of Krysa’s original contemporary jazz tunes.”

 

When I write about symphony concerts, I go home and press play in my mind and listen to the whole concert again while jotting down my thoughts. I can’t quite do this with Contemporary Jazz and Jazz Fusion (yet!). For me, Contemporary Jazz and Jazz Fusion demand immediate and perfect presence on the part of the players and also on the part of the audience. This was a well-supported show with an audience full of friends and family and Bassment members and supporters. It was a typical listening crowd where they soak in every note played (and there were a lot of notes played!!)!

 

The opening set was a set of Kyle Krysa’s original Contemporary Jazz compositions played by Ian Summach on guitar, Connor Newton on sax and vocals, Dave Anderson on bass, and of course Kyle Krysa on drums. I was very excited to hear this music performed live and the experience of hearing this live as opposed to listening to the “Distant Conversation” tracks is much to be preferred!! For me, this live performance gave this music more meaning, more purpose, and more obvious drive.

 

The Joel Grundahl Trio played 2 sets of original Jazz Fusion with a few covers thrown in here and there – at least one selection was written by one of Joel’s colleagues from music school. Joel’s music is very much melody based with some progressive tendencies and his phrasing creates a very easy to follow experience for the audience – reflected and supported well in both the bass and the drum parts. I love how Joel has a radio announcer style voice – every song was introduced in that voice – giving the show an extra level of professionalism. The Trio consists of Joel Grundahl on guitar, Lloyd Tomczak on bass, and Kyle Krysa on drums (which is why this was likely a once in a lifetime show since Kyle was doing more than double duty at last night’s show!). I admire Kyle’s playing and find it precise, subtle, melodic, and reflective as well as always completely present and enmeshed with the melodic and harmonic structure of the music – his own music and Joel Grundahl’s music as well. At one point during the show, Graham Tilsley leaned over to me and told me something to the effect of: “if I were to describe Kyle’s playing in one word, that word would be ‘beautiful’…” – I whole-heartedly agree! And, I’d take that one step further to apply to the whole show last night – it was a beautiful night of beautiful playing all around!

 

As usual at music events, I would have preferred to be up dancing rather than sitting for the show but I wasn’t feeling quite that bold and Bassment regulars, Ashley and Dennis weren’t there with their ballroom dancing chops…

 

It was neat hearing these two groups back to back – very similar approaches to the music and the phrasing and yet, even though both groups played Contemporary Jazz Fusion material, the material was very different from one group to the next and this kept the audience’s attention for the entire show! I was actually surprised at how tired I felt at the end of the show since it was so wonderfully engaging throughout!

 

Thanks to all the amazing musicians on stage last night – well done! And, thanks to Troy Denet for doing sound, to The Bassment for having this event, and to Don Griffith for having the inspiration to have Kyle’s original music open Joel’s EP release show!

 

Looking forward to the next time I get to hear these musicians play!!! I hear that they’re playing at the Jazz Festival! Watch for it!!

 

Thanks for reading!

-Anna

Anna Marie Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT

Anna Marie Bekolay, soprano, violinist, teacher, adjudicator performs with many ensembles in and around Saskatoon and runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio teaching Voice, Violin, Recorder, and Fiddle. Her current projects include: Back of the Bus, The Stephanies, The Whiskey Jerks, a classical vocal album under stage name, Anna Maria Soparlo: Songs in Loving Memory of My Father, Mac Talla Quartet, Troubadours du Bois, brand new operatic/heavy bass & drums project: Phantasma, and a variety of freelance collaborations including performances with Flamenco Borealis, a recent retirement party that involved some music from Billy Elliot, a Fringe play, Brel!, based on the music of Jacques Brel, a collaborative presentation of wearable art piece, “Faceted Wings” at SWAG 2017, and upcoming fiddle feature at the Saskatoon Men’s Chorus concert (April 22, 2018).

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

Review of SSO pops concert, March 3, 2018: Don’t Give Yourself Away – The music of Joni Mitchell

photo from SSO facebook page

 

What a wonderful reckoning of a dream! At the opening of this Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) concert, Executive Director Mark Turner gave his introduction expressing how inspiring he found the music of Joni Mitchell when he discovered one of her albums at the tender age of 18. Mark gave a heartfelt introduction to the concert that included praise for all the guest artists performing at the concert as well as a deep and inspiring statement about Joni’s music and the concert we were about to hear (his words here, slightly reminiscent of a song by Tina Turner …), “Hang on Every word, and get Lost in the Music.” And, that is exactly what we did for the entire concert!

 

This really was a wonderful celebration of Joni Mitchell’s music and of her musical life. The whole package: orchestration, interpretation, presentation, right down to the lighting – and for me, the lighting was far more than setting the stage for the music: it was integral to the Magic of the show – the right touch for each song: each cinematically orchestrated vignette brought to life by a stage full of musicians working together as one.

 

Sarah Slean has been my hero for close to 20 years now. It was a thrill to hear her and watch her bring this music to life. She sparkled in her golden gown and gave so much to breathe new, rich life into songs we thought we knew – her interpretation made them new again – so clear, clean, embodied anew.

 

Conductor-composer Vince Mendoza spoke with passion about the project and shed light on his own processes. His direction was wonderfully clear as only he could be as the original composer and arranger of these orchestrations for these songs.

 

Peter Erskine proved to be quite the storyteller – as player and speaker from behind the drums: he had us spellbound with his one story he told about Joni Mitchell and his original involvement with a Joni Mitchell recording project. His playing was subtle, specific, and inviting throughout the show.

 

Mark DeJong, saxophone: a lovely touch to the program here and there – world class playing – especially near the beginning of the show!

 

Edwin Livingston, bass: provided all the necessary support and groove as a sensitive and solid part of the rhythm section.

 

It was such a thrill to see and hear these musicians join our beloved SSO on stage – and what an ensemble they were all together!!! I am so grateful I was able to attend this concert: I cried and I laughed and I cried some more – it was more cathartic for me than I expected it would be! I am so very proud of our SSO musicians for the work they did as a unit in this concert bringing to life those sweeping cinematic orchestrations – truly recording quality right there on stage in front of us. Thank you to all involved – you were all integral to the success of this show. From the bottom of my heart, thank you! I could indeed drink a case of you!

 

The choice to have no encore at a concert that had people in the audience on their feet immediately following the final notes of the concert: well done! The show ended with Joni Mitchell’s song, “Both Sides Now” – a tender and extremely effective setting and rendition of this song that needed to not be followed by anything further. All that needed to be said had been said and crafted in just the right way, and in just the right amount to leave the audience with the experience of a lifetime.

 

Thanks for reading and if you were at this concert, thank you for attending and sharing this experience with me!!

-Anna

 

Anna Marie Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT

Anna Marie Bekolay, soprano, violinist, teacher, adjudicator – performs with many ensembles in and around Saskatoon and runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio teaching Voice, Violin, Recorder, and Fiddle. Her current projects include: her classical vocal album under the stage name, Anna Maria Soparlo: “Songs In Loving Memory of My Father” (2017), Back of the Bus (Celtic), The Stephanies (Pop/Folk), The Whiskey Jerks (Klezmer/Folk/Jazz), Mac Talla Quartet (classical/Pop/Folk), Troubadours du Bois (Renaissance), a brand new project called Phantasma (exploring the combination of operatic vocals and heavy bass and drums), and a variety of freelance collaborations including performances with Flamenco Borealis and Free Flow Dance, a recent retirement party that involved some music from the musical, “Billy Elliot”, and a Fringe play, “Brel!” (July, 2017), based on the music of Jacques Brel – where she was both musical director and performer. Ms Bekolay’s singing was also featured recently at the 2017 Saskatchewan Wearable Art Gala in the collaborative presentation of the wearable art piece, “Faceted Wings” by Nadine Jaggi.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

Review of Jeans ‘n Classics: Stardust – The Music of David Bowie

photo from the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra’s facebook page.

Saturday night, October 14, 2017: This was my first time attending a “Jeans ‘n Classics” concert where the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra joins together with a rock band to do some pop/rock music and I was so very happy to be there! I love so much of David Bowie’s music and it was great to have it all brought to life at the concert with all the colours of the orchestra and the band on stage.

 

Mark Turner (SSO’s Executive Director) introduced the concert with reference to similarities between David Bowie and Beethoven, Debussy, and Stravinsky – that they were all busy “pushing the envelope” and challenging their audiences with their new approaches to creating music and defining music. I love all of Mark’s enthusiastic introductions to SSO concerts – Mark, I have to say that in my world, you are one of my fav Rock Stars!! Thank you for always being so awesome!!

 

Set 1:

 

The “David Bowie Overture” was a beautiful way to open the concert and to open our ears to the sounds of David Bowie! Janna Sailor was our guest conductor for this concert and I couldn’t stop grinning from the joy I felt seeing her at work on stage! Janna!!! You TOTALLY ROCKED THIS!! Great energy, great professionalism and enthusiasm on stage – both as conductor and as on the spot interviewee! Beautiful words about choosing a palate of colours regardless of style – from one who conducts so beautifully!

 

Jean Meilleur did a fantastic job as lead singer singing David Bowie’s parts and as host for the night. He was very professional in the role, comfortable on stage and well grounded in an inviting way. He worked the crowd a bit – gently and invitingly and even did an impromptu interview with Janna at one point during the concert. And, his voice was so well suited to Bowie’s material as well! Thanks for a fun and entertaining evening, sir!!

 

Both Set 1 and Set 2 were packed with David Bowie Classics – included in Set 1 were: “Rebel Rebel”, “Let’s Dance”, “Modern Love”, “Blue Jean”, “Starman”, “China Girl” (co-written with Iggy Pop), “Ashes to Ashes”, “Five Years”, and “All The Young Dudes”. Jean Meilleur did a lovely intro to “China Girl” for our modern audience, which was both appropriate to do, and necessary as well since today’s general public would not necessarily find the metaphors and images used in this song about addiction acceptable.

photo from Shaun Dyksman’s facebook page.

During the set break, I chatted with sound tech, Shaun Dyksman who let me know that this was the first one of these concerts where he was stationed on the same level as the orchestra rather than in the sound booth up top. It was interesting for me to hear how his positioning changed how he approached the sound and the resulting sound as well. Apparently, being positioned high up, less of the bass carried up there so the tendency was to have too much bass put into the mix for the main floor. I’m happy to say that from row C, the sound was just great – well balanced and definitely not too heavy on the bass. The best sound techs are often overlooked because they are doing their job so well that we don’t notice them – when you don’t notice the balance, you know it’s just right – thanks for doing a great job, Shaun!!!

 

Set 2:

 

Set 2 included: “Space Oddity”, “Golden Years” (wap wap wap), “Sorrow”, “Young Americans”, “Life on Mars”, “Suffragette City”, “Fame”, and “Changes”. And, since Jean Meilleur hit and held a beautiful high note in “Life on Mars”, they could have technically included my fav David Bowie song, “Cat People” where Bowie holds the last syllable of “gasoline” for several life-fulfilling measures.

 

I must say that the band was wonderfully solid! They collectively brought together a wealth of experience and stagecraft to bring David Bowie back to life on stage through his music. I love the communication between Janna and the drummer, Paul DeLong – this kept everyone comfortably together on stage! We had Mitch Tyler on bass, we had Dave Dunlop on guitar, we had Donald Paulton on keyboards, we had Kathryn Rose and Lis Soderberg on backup vocals, and we had “JnC” Founder Peter Brennan on guitar – these musicians, along with Jean Meilleur on lead vocals, and help from charts on stage, made for a solid evening of Bowie Classics!

 

The Back up singers really caught my attention – not just because this is part of what I do on stage with my various projects but because they were just SO good!! Excellent energy on stage especially at the beginning of the concert! I like that they were right up front in front of the grand piano – their harmonies and coordinated dance moves really made the show! And I loved how Kathryn, Lis, Jean, and Janna all changed outfits during the set break – all about sparkles and black and white and greys!

 

The Orchestra – nicely done! You created the wall of sound necessary for some of the songs and more intimate sounds necessary for others! I even noticed some members rocking out here and there – especially toward the end of the concert!

 

I was so delighted to see Sheldon Corbett take some rockin’ sax solos (“Shel-Cor” as J M called him on stage)! As always, Sheldon, your solos were unassumingly and musically performed – beautiful and exactly what the songs needed!

 

We also got to hear solos from SSO members Don Schmidt – a beautiful ending trombone solo in one song, and Terry Heckman whom we heard do a solo in one song on piccolo trumpet – nicely done, both of you!!

 

I liked how things were changed up here and there in terms of instrumentation on stage. There was one song with just piano and vocals, and at least one other song that didn’t include the orchestra. This was good to clear the aural palate and reawaken it as well. And, it gave people on stage a break too.

 

After the final song of Set 2, we were on our feet – we gave our typical Saskatoon Standing Ovation (truly well-deserved!) and the Encore was “Under Pressure” by David Bowie and Queen. The opening almost universally known bass line had the whole crowd cheering – (I’m sure that more than a few people had “Ice Ice Baby” go off in their heads … the Vanilla Ice hip-hop song that borrowed from “Under Pressure” in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s …). This performance of the 1981 song “Under Pressure” gave Kathryn Rose a chance to truly shine singing Freddie Mercury’s part in this duet and she absolutely owned this! Good Vibes All Around!!

 

My one and only reservation about this concert was that I had hoped that Saskatoon would stand up and dance at this concert! Oh well … my friend Dawna and I did our version of chair dancing for much of it anyway!!! Thanks for a great evening, ALL!!!

 

Thanks for reading!! Rock On!!

-Anna

edited by Kevin Buzinski, PhD

– Anna Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT
soprano, violinist, teacher, adjudicator

Anna Marie Bekolay has her Bachelor of Music in Music Education, Orff Level 1, a gold medal ARCT in Voice Performance, and grade 10 Violin RCM. Anna has performed as a soloist and in a variety of ensembles over the years, including Saskatoon Opera Chorus, National Youth Choir of Canada, Collegium Musicum, Voci Strane, and the drowned. Ms Bekolay is continually advancing her musicality through attending and performing in concerts. Her current projects include: Back of the Bus, Troubadours du Bois, The Whiskey Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, The Stephanies, and her most recently released album “Songs In Loving Memory of My Father” – a recording project of classical vocal pieces exploring the grieving process and dedicated to the memory of her father – recorded under the stage name: Anna Maria Soparlo. Anna is also involved in a variety of freelance collaborations that come up here and there, including this past summer’s Fringe production of “Brel”, and the upcoming SWAG – Saskatchewan Wearable Art Gala.

In addition to rehearsing, performing, and recording, Anna is an adjudicator for the Saskatchewan Music Festival Association and runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio – a very busy Music Studio at her home teaching Voice, Violin, Recorder, and Fiddle. Anna makes her home in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

 

Review of Opening Night with James Ehnes and the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra: Saturday, Sept 23, 2017

Welcome back and welcome to a new season with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra! This is season 87!!! Opening night began with some opening comments from Mark Turner, SSO’s esteemed Executive Director. In his opening comments, Mark mentioned some of the really wonderful performers who will be in the spotlight this season including Jan Lisiecki, & Tanya Tagak! He also mentioned that this is our 3^rd year with Eric Paetkau as SSO’s Music Director!! Thank you to both Mark and Eric for all the work they do to challenge and feature the talents and efforts of our symphony orchestra!

 

For Home by Kevin Lao

The concert opened with a 2 minute piece by Canadian composer, Kevin Lao – “For Home” is his musical tribute to Canada and it was one of the 2-minute pieces commissioned for Canada’s 150^th. The piece itself made use of the orchestra beautifully – introducing a simple lilting melody in one section that meanders through the work and through the sections of the orchestra. In my mind it combined sounds similar to the work of Elgar and Grieg with an extra inviting sense of comfort. The lilting, whimsical theme travels through the orchestra and is developed and harmonized richly using the entire orchestra, ending with a return to simplicity. In the composer’s own words: “The simple, folk-like melody which recurs throughout the brief course of this work represents my best attempt at capturing feelings too complex for words.”

 

After this comforting piece, Eric Paetkau spoke to the audience a bit. There was no microphone on stage for him to use, so he had to use his own ability to project. Mr. Paetkau: your projection is on point – very clear from the 2^nd balcony in any case! Eric spoke a bit about the opening piece and passionately about the exploration of Czech folk music and the lush romantic harmonies in the Dvorak coming up as the final piece of the concert. He also gave a lovely introduction to the star of the night: James Ehnes! As a side note, I was personally pleased to hear Eric’s un-amplified voice since it tuned our ears up for all the subtleties the SSO and James Ehnes were about to explore in the Beethoven.

photo taken from the SSO facebook page

Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D Major Op 61

When I first heard that James Ehnes would be our soloist for this concert, I was over the moon excited about it. Every time I get to hear him play on the radio (French CBC 88.7 FM), I know it’s him before they announce it – from his clarity: clarity of tone, phrasing, expressiveness, and communication – creating simple, understandable beauty in the music he plays – leading us along so that we can really absorb it.

 

And so, James was in fine form with the SSO – leading us through the Beethoven – Beethoven’s only violin concerto – with dynamic expressivity and deep understanding of the demands of the piece – stretching the expressivity in exploring especially the quieter possibilities with the violin – inviting the orchestra to dig deep into their abilities with piano and pianissimo playing in supporting parts.

 

Beethoven’s violin concerto begins with a long exposition in the orchestra that outlines the gorgeous themes in the first movement. Introduced by the timpani, the long lines are first expressed in the woodwinds with a liquid quality to the phrasing, which is carried through the orchestra to the solo violin part when it eventually comes in. During the orchestra’s introduction, James stood in a ready, but relaxed stance helping the audience to be ready and relaxed in our anticipation of the violin’s entry.

 

For me, the highlights in this performance were specifically James’ cadenzas – so typical of his style and clarity of interpretation – a real treat to hear it in person! I was also pleased to hear so much dynamic expressivity in a concerto in both the soloist’s part and in the orchestra – I feel like our orchestra may well have gained in expressive ability through this particular work with this particular artist! It was also a treat to be able to see some of the communication going on between soloist and conductor at transition points between cadenza sections and full orchestra sections.

 

As in all Beethoven – the herald of the Romantic movement – the first movement of the concerto could have been a piece unto itself with all it’s Romantic explorations of thematic development. The second movement is graced with a powerful and recurring harmonized motif that is first introduced in the orchestra and is later explored in the soloist’s cadenza.

 

After the suspended feeling of the 2^nd movement and the brilliant mini-cadenza at the end of it, James launched unassumingly into the Rondo – the 3^rd movement – with a carefully chosen tempo – definitely moderato throughout the movement – which created its own kind of excitement in the return of the Rondo theme again and again: an elegant dance tempo!

 

We gave James a well-deserved standing ovation and he graced us with an encore: the final section of Bach’s 3^rd Sonata for solo violin – an excellent display of the capabilities of both the instrument (the “Marsick” Stradivarius of 1715) and the player! Thank you so much for coming back to Saskatoon, James – looking forward to next time!!!!

 

Dvořák’s 8^th Symphony in G Major Op 88

After intermission, we were treated to Dvořák’s 8^th Symphony. How I adore Dvořák! I was raised on his 9^th symphony and studied the 7^th at university. I never consciously paid attention to Dvořák’s 8^th symphony and as Eric Paetkau mentions in his Music Notes video, the 8^th symphony is very different from the more well-known 7^th and 9^th symphonies. So, I expected that this concert would be my introduction to Dvořák’s 8^th symphony. The first 2 movements were unfamiliar to me, but as soon as they launched into the 3^rd movement, I was there with them inside the music to the end – the 3^rd and 4^th movements were far more familiar to me for some reason.

 

This is the kind of work that makes me wish I was a conductor – so many fun and enticing tempo changes! Much like some of Brahms’ work! As in most of Dvořák’s work, he explores themes with roots in his beloved Czech/Bohemian background throughout this symphony. One of the most exciting parts for me was the Trumpet fanfare that heralds in the 4^th movement. The symphony comes to a close with a wild dancing theme that caught and held our attention beautifully! This is one of the best and most exciting endings to a piece and to a concert done with great energy and flare worthy of an immediate standing ovation!

 

 

This marks a great opening to Season 87!! See you at the Symphony for a wonderfully entertaining year celebrating talent and the Performing Arts!!

 

Thanks for reading,

-Anna

– Anna Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT
soprano, violinist, teacher, adjudicator

Anna Marie Bekolay has her Bachelor of Music in Music Education, Orff Level 1, a gold medal ARCT in Voice Performance, and grade 10 Violin RCM. Anna has performed as a soloist and in a variety of ensembles over the years, including Saskatoon Opera Chorus, National Youth Choir of Canada, Collegium Musicum, Voci Strane, and the drowned. Ms Bekolay is continually advancing her musicality through attending and performing in concerts. Her current projects include: Back of the Bus, Troubadours du Bois, The Whiskey Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, The Stephanies, a recording project of classical vocal pieces dedicated to the memory of her father – recorded under the stage name: Anna Maria Soparlo, and a variety of freelance collaborations that come up here and there.

In addition to rehearsing, performing, and recording, Anna is an adjudicator for the Saskatchewan Music Festival Association and runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio – a very busy Music Studio at her home teaching Voice, Violin, Recorder, and Fiddle. Anna makes her home in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

Review of SSO’s O Canada! concert featuring percussionist Bryan Allen and narrator Carol Greyeyes.

I was very fortunate to be able to attend the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) concert last night. Much of the music is still with me today even though I have 3 very different rehearsals coming up later today.

Last night’s concert was one of a kind – long anticipated and fully Canadian. SSO Executive Director, Mark Turner told me after the concert that he thought this up several years ago and was pleased that the program fit together perfectly – like pieces of a puzzle. The programming was all Works by Canadian composers and included a Canadian Swearing in Ceremony. And, 3 of the 4 Canadian Works were World Premieres!

I noticed that the house lights stayed partially up for this concert – an interesting experience where instead of the darkness of the concert hall vs the brightness of the stage, we were all lit up to a certain degree – it felt in a way like we were even more part of the programming going on onstage.

Before the concert began, 2 volunteers from the SSO book and music sale presented Mark Turner with a cheque from this year’s sale!

 

Photo credit: taken from SSO’s facebook page – presumably photos are by Electric Umbrella.

The concert began with a short fanfare of a piece: Elan: Sesquie for Canada’s 150^th by Derek Charke – a broad triumphant sweep that was over too soon and heralded in the Canadian Oath of Citizenship Ceremony – very powerful words spoken about being Canadian and becoming Canadian preceded this and the audience was invited to take part reaffirming their Canadian citizenship as well. 20 new Canadians were sworn in during this ceremony followed by the communal singing of O Canada with orchestral accompaniment – a truly proud moment.

The Shaman, Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra by Vincent Ho – featuring the Barefoot Shaman himself: percussionist Bryan Allen … inviting, evocative, compelling, leaving no recourse but to come along for the ride. The titles of each section of this work describe perfectly what is happening musically in each section.

I.        Ritual  – the title says it all – and, you really had to be there to experience this music – primal, primeval, all encompassing.

II.       Fantasia – Nostalgia   – this section explores keyboard percussion – vibraphone & marimba offset by orchestral shots of various sorts – brass, strings, percussion, woodwinds, echoes and tender moments with piano and vibes in duet backed up by low strings and intermittent brass – very much nostalgic in character.

          Interlude – Conjuring the Spirits – energetic, exciting, mysterious, gripping      musical and percussive storytelling.

III.       Fire Dance – a whirling dervish style opening in the strings, brass, woodwinds, and of course percussion – driving forward throughout this movement.

 

After intermission, Raven Steals the Light by John Oliver was performed – presented by SSO and narrator, Carol Greyeyes. Storytelling in words and music invited us into a magical world creating images with words and music – a fascinating story that brought light back to the world of darkness.

Four Seasons of the Canadian Flag by John Burge closed the program. Beginning with Summer, each season was heralded in evocatively – sweeping Romantic melodies for Summer, cold high notes for Fall, deep rumbles for Winter (that included nostalgic bits of heart wrenching, longing melodies), and tremolos and trills in the strings to herald in Spring! My favourite moment in this work involved the perfect unison of tambourine (Bryan Allen) and snare drum (Brad Litster I believe) – so clear, clean, precise, locked in – this reflects the epitome of technical artistry.

To end off his introduction, Mark Turner, SSO Executive Director quoted Frank Zappa: “Talking about music is like dancing about architecture”. Challenge accepted, Mark Turner and Frank Zappa! We will dance about architecture in my improv dance group this week!

Thank you, Bryan Allen for your intense, focused, inside-the-music performance – you are an inspirational musician and performer. Thank you, Carol Greyeyes for your beautiful and entertaining narration. Thank you to every member of the SSO – what a fantastic concert and superior season – looking forward to what next season brings!! Thank you Eric Paetkau for your artistic brilliance and inspiring leadership – thus far, you have created beautiful, straightforward, evocative, and compelling clarity with our orchestra and I can see there is more to come – looking forward to every moment. Thank you of course to Mark Turner for all his inspirations and enthusiasm – you definitely deserve your holiday, sir!!! Thank you to everyone else involved in making these concerts successful!! Here’s to more SSO success – check out their Share in the Future campaign.

Thanks to my Kevi B for attending the concert with me and for helping me to refocus and come down from the excitement of the concert experience enough to relive it and reflect on the experience.

On a side note – there were a couple interesting sub-plots going on onstage – first, the positioning and re-positioning of the orchestral wind chimes … by string players … and also, Concert Master Michael Swan was bearded for the first half of the program and un-bearded for the second half of the program … curious and intriguing!!

What a way to wrap up a season!!! Bravo Bryan, Bravo SSO, Bravo Mark, Bravo tutti & merci beaucoup beaucoup – looking forward to the treasures of next season!

Thanks for reading,

-Anna

– Anna Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT
soprano, violinist, teacher, adjudicator

Anna Marie Bekolay has her Bachelor of Music in Music Education, Orff Level 1, a gold medal ARCT in Voice Performance, and grade 10 Violin RCM. Anna has performed as a soloist and in a variety of ensembles over the years, including Saskatoon Opera Chorus, National Youth Choir of Canada, Collegium Musicum, Voci Strane, and the drowned. Ms Bekolay is continually advancing her musicality through attending and performing in concerts. Her current projects include: Back of the Bus, Troubadours du Bois, The Whiskey Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, The Stephanies, a recording project of classical vocal pieces that will be released soon and dedicated to her late father, and a variety of freelance collaborations that come up here and there – including a show with Flamenco Borealis in June at The Bassment.

In addition to rehearsing, performing, and recording, Anna is an adjudicator for the Saskatchewan Music Festival Association and runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio – a very busy Music Studio at her home teaching Voice, Violin, Recorder, and Fiddle. Anna makes her home in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/

Review of SSO’s Ukrainian Oratorio concert, March 25, 2017

Carissa Klopoushak, Eric Paetkau, & SSO – photo taken from SSO’s facebook page

March 25^th, 2017: Ukrainian Oratorio: This concert was close to my heart because my late father was adopted and raised by a Ukrainian-Polish man and a Norwegian-English woman – so, he grew up with and raised us with a lot of Ukrainian culture and reverence for the cultures and traditions – especially at Christmas and Easter time.

Mark Turner, Executive Director of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) greeted us with a reference to the slogan that SSO is using for the upcoming season: “You have to be in the room” – because that’s what Live Music is all about – actually being there experiencing it – Live Music is An Experience that cannot be had without being there. He went on to mention that the SSO will be embarking on recording projects over the next 4 years (very exciting and it’s definitely time for SSO to do this!!). Mark also mentioned all the wonderful things in store for next season – definitely time to become a subscriber!

The SSO’s next fundraising campaign “Share in the Future” will include attendance at a recording session for all donors who give $100 or more during this fundraising campaign.

There was so much good energy in the lobby and in the auditorium for this concert – much anticipation and excitement! The concert began with a work by Emily Doolittle: Sapling – played by violin soloist Carissa Klopoushak and the SSO.

i. branching

ii. bending

iii. leafy green

The music told so many little stories through motivic imitation – imitation of small musical ideas throughout the orchestra. Mark mentioned to me at intermission that he was reminded of echoes and there were moments when it was hard to tell who was echoing whom (soloist and orchestra).

In composer, Emily Doolittle’s own words – quoting from the program:

     “Many of my pieces are inspired by sounds, imagery, or processes from the natural world. In the case of Sapling, the musical ideas came first, and it is only after I had written the piece that I realized that it followed an organic process of development that made me think of the growth of a tree. The first movement begins with a persistent repeated note motive in the solo violin, which pushes its way upwards through a series of loud, percussive orchestra chords, before spreading outwards into a mist of overlapping, branching figures. The second movement, too, grows out of repeated note, this time gentle and flexible, swaying and bending like a sapling in the wind. The third movement explores the various colours of the orchestra, as the sapling buds and bursts into leaf and flower. Sapling was commissioned by the Canada Council for the Arts for Calvin Dyck and the Vancouver Island Symphony in 2014.”

Carissa Klopoushak, a commanding presence on stage, played with great mastery and complete awareness – it was really breath-taking to see and hear her in action – to experience that presence on stage – that complete awareness, that complete immersion in the music, and her complete command of her instrument – just that experience alone was already worth the ticket price. Possibly because of Carissa’s immersion in Ukrainian music, the motivic elements of this piece seemed to reflect a Ukrainian flavour – which is not outside Emily Doolittle’s realm of creativity – often based on folklore. I was so very inspired by the freshness and modern-ness of the music and the many wonderful folk-like and possibly folk-inspired rhythms and ideas.

After the delicate echoes of Doolittle’s Sapling and our enthusiastic applause for Carissa and the SSO died away, The Golden Harvest by Larysa Kuzmenko was performed – A Ukrainian Oratorio incorporating Ukrainian folk music performed by SSO joined by Greystone Singers (Dr Jennifer Lang conductor), U of S Chorus (James Hawn, conductor), and vocal soloists Kateryna Khartova, soprano and Joel Allison, bass-baritone.

Where Sapling was filled with delicious rhythmic and melodic tidbits and clarity of statement and imitation, The Golden Harvest embraced a full rich Romantic and post-Romantic musical language – much akin to film music in its drama and storytelling. The chorus alternated with the soloists singing in English and in Ukrainian. The Oratorio with lyrics by Talia Zajac, told the story of Ukrainian immigration in 3 parts: 1. Journey, 2. Struggle, 3. Settlement: the hopes, the hard work, the loss, the despair, the war-time struggles and hopelessness, separation, imprisonment and ill-treatment, and ultimately the joy of reunion and reaping the harvest of hard work that went into the golden harvest of red fife wheat: “The music ends on a very optimistic note, with full orchestra and choir, celebrating the harvest that became one of the economic engines of Canada, and our most important international export.” – L Kuzmenko, 2016.

Kateryna Khartova, Joel Allison, SSO, chorus: Greystone Singers and U of S Chorus

– photo from SSO facebook page

During the oratorio, there were moments of complete clarity in the chorus and moments that incorporated gorgeous instrumental solos in the orchestra: cello solos played by Principal cellist, Lahni Russell, a sweet violin solo played by Concertmaster, Michael Swan, and “an ominous oboe solo” (L Kuzmenko) played by Principal oboist, Erin Brophey. There were wonderfully dramatic moments involving trumpets and percussion – great big, thrilling sounds to experience and feel in person – the vocal soloists used these moments dramatically by standing up during them prior to singing. Both Kateryna and Joel were completely immersed in their knowledge of the piece and engaging in the presentation of their parts.

Kateryna’s gorgeous soprano voice soared beautifully and expressively over the orchestra expressing a mother’s fear for her children and husband. I loved Joel’s characterization and his presence vocally, physically, and dramatically in his rich bass-baritone solos. The timpani (played by Principal timpanist Darrell Bueckert) played a huge role in setting the tone of this piece along with masterful snare drum & bass drum playing by Bryan Allen (Principal percussionist), and Kevin Grady with military precision and artistic flare. Great balance between orchestra and soloists and then the thrilling combination of orchestra, chorus, and soloists all together for the ending of this piece added a triumphant note! The end of The Golden Harvest had people in the audience on their feet clapping and cheering wildly!!

After Intermission, the SSO played Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No 2 in C minor Op 17 with great energy and focus from beginning to end!!! In SSO conductor, Eric Paetkau’s words (from his interview with Kateryna Kartova), “Tchaikovsky was a Russian composer but had big Ukrainian roots. He would spend his summers at his sister’s family in the Ukraine. In his 2^nd Symphony, he uses 3 Ukrainian folk tunes in the 1^st, 2^nd, and 4^th movements and it actually is nicknamed ‘Little Russia’ which at the time, that’s what Ukraine was called: Little Russia. And so, there’s a wonderful tie between Tchaikovsky’s use of Ukrainian folk song and how he incorporates that into the Russian orchestral tradition …”

This symphony starts off with a Ukrainian folk tune played inspiringly by Principal horn player, Carol-Marie Cottin – this is echoed shortly thereafter on bassoon by Principal bassoonist, Stephanie Unverricht. The orchestra goes on to elaborate on elements of the folk tune in imitative and expansive Romantic style. Intimate moments alternate with orchestral building and thrilling orchestral largess throughout the work. I was taken with the exuberant energy with which the orchestra members approached this work – at the end of an engaging concert! Their efforts certainly paid off in the glorious finale to this work. We were on our feet again in the audience at the end of the Tchaikovsky!

Huge thanks from the bottom of my heart to everyone involved in bringing this concert to us here in Saskatoon – featuring 2 Canadian composers and celebrating Ukrainian music! A really wonderful commemoration of 125 years of Ukrainian culture in Canada. There was a true feeling of community in the audience and it was wonderful to see so many friends there – for me, it had a bit of a feel of family reunion.

photo credit: Marie Bekolay

Thanks for reading,

-Anna

– Anna Bekolay, BMusEd, ARCT
soprano, violinist, teacher, adjudicator

Anna Marie Bekolay has her Bachelor of Music in Music Education, Orff Level 1, a gold medal ARCT in Voice Performance, and grade 10 Violin RCM. Anna has performed as a soloist and in a variety of ensembles over the years, including Saskatoon Opera Chorus, National Youth Choir of Canada, Collegium Musicum, Voci Strane, and the drowned. Ms Bekolay is continually advancing her musicality through attending and performing in concerts. Her current projects include: Back of the Bus, Troubadours du Bois, The Whiskey Jerks, Mac Talla Quartet, The Stephanies, a recording project of classical vocal pieces, and a variety of freelance collaborations that come up here and there.

In addition to rehearsing, performing, and recording, Anna is an adjudicator for the Saskatchewan Music Festival Association and runs Anna Bekolay’s Studio – a very busy Music Studio at her home teaching Voice, Violin, Recorder, and Fiddle. Anna makes her home in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

https://annabekolaysstudio.wordpress.com/anna-bekolays-studio/