2018
MARKHAM CONTEMPORARY MUSIC FESTIVALS
Founded by Maestro Kristian Alexander in 2011, Markham Contemporary Music Festival
is an
annual event that takes place in various concert venues in Markham,
Ontario. The Festival promotes the performance of music written
worldwide in the 20th and
the 21st centuries. It also includes lectures and
seminars in both English and French, workshops, master-classes, pre-concert chats,
intermission discussions, post-concert receptions, documentary films about
the life of contemporary composers, and networking events.
The 2018 Markham Contemporary Music Festival included the following events:
Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Official opening ceremony
An evening filled with activities for families and children – “Make your own musical instrument” workshop and “Write your own song” workshop animated by musicians of the KSO.
Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at 6:00 p.m.
Workshop
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Composition workshop (part 1 - artistic expression through contemporary writing techniques) for young Canadian composers.
Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.
Open rehearsal
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Maestro Kristian Alexander leads the Kindred Spirits Orchestra in an open rehearsal featuring pieces by contemporary composers.
Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Exhibit
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Open Visit of the World Musical Instruments Collection at the International Music Academy.
Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at 6:00 p.m.
Lecture and film
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Stravinsky et le rêve Américain. Lecture (in French) and a documentary film (in English) about the artistic achievements of Russian émigrés in the USA during the early 20th century.
Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.
Open rehearsal
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Maestro Kristian Alexander leads the Kindred Spirits Orchestra in an open rehearsal of L'Histoire du soldat by Stravinsky.
Thursday, June 14, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Exhibit
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Open Visit of the World Musical Instruments Collection at the International Music Academy.
Friday, June 15, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Exhibit
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Open Visit of the World Musical Instruments Collection at the International Music Academy.
Saturday, June 16, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Open rehearsal
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Maestro Kristian Alexander leads the Kindred Spirits Orchestra in an open rehearsal of L'Histoire du soldat by Stravinsky.
Saturday, June 16, 2018 at 8:00 p.m.
Concert
L'HISTOIRE DU SOLDAT The Soldier's Tale
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Markham’s 2018 Contemporary Music Festival is pleased to present a provocative concert of mesmerizing modern music, dance and drama featuring local artists. A bargain with the devil leads a soldier to a life of hardship and heartache in Stravinsky’s L'Histoire du Soldat (The Soldier's Tale).
Kristian Alexander | conductor
Nicolas van Burek | as the Devil
Philippe van de Maele | as the Soldier
Sophie Goulet | as the Narrator
Michael Berec | host
| Stravinsky, L'Histoire du soldat |
Sunday, June 17, 2018 at 10:00 a.m.
Exhibit
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Open Visit of the World Musical Instruments Collection at the International Music Academy.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 at 6:00 p.m.
Workshop
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Composition workshop (part 2 - exploring new ideas in collective writing of contemporary music) for young Canadian composers.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.
Open rehearsal
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Maestro Kristian Alexander leads the Kindred Spirits Orchestra in an open rehearsal featuring pieces by contemporary composers.
Thursday, June 21, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Exhibit
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Open Visit of the World Musical Instruments Collection at the International Music Academy.
Free admission.
Friday, June 22, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Lecture and Film
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Shostakovich and Stalin. Lecture (in English) and a documentary film about the artistic struggle and human tragedy of Soviet composers during the communism.
Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 6:00 p.m.
Workshop
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Composition workshop (part 3 - writing music for film and television) for young Canadian composers.
Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 7:00 p.m.
Open rehearsal
Cornell Recital Hall
3201 Bur Oak Ave., Markham ON L6B 0T2
Maestro Kristian Alexander leads the Kindred Spirits Orchestra in an open rehearsal featuring pieces by contemporary composers.
Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.
Lecture and film
MCMF Rehearsal Hall
3a-50 Innovator Ave (2nd fl.), Stouffville ON L4A 0Y2
Lecture and documentary film about the live and work of the Russian composer Serge Prokofiev.
Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 8:00 p.m.
Flato Markham Theatre for the Performing Arts
171 Town Centre Blvd., Markham ON L3R 6GB
Concert
LOVE AND FAITH
Markham Contemporary Music Festival features local musicians from Markham's Kindred Spirits Orchestra presenting French composer Ravel’s most celebrated work, Boléro - a cleverly crafted rising orchestral crescendo through the use of brilliant ever-changing instrumental colours and texture. Intriguingly annotated “Herein is enshrined the soul of…..” makes Elgar’s Violin Concerto, a truly touching piece where “love and faith meet.” Taken from motives from his sinfully immoral opera, The Fiery Angel, Symphony No. 3 by Prokofiev unquestionably rouses our darkest emotions.
Kristian Alexander | conductor
Andrew Sords | violinist
Michael Berec | host
7:15 p.m. Prélude (pre-concert recital)
7:30 p.m. Pre-concert talk in the foyer of Markham Theatre
Intermission discussion with Michael Berec and Andrew Sords
Post-concert complimentary glass of Champagne
Ravel, Boléro Elgar, Concerto for violin and orchestra, Op. 61 Prokofiev, Symphony No. 3, Op. 44
Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 10:00 p.m.
Flato Markham Theatre for the Performing Arts
171 Town Centre Blvd., Markham ON L3R 6GB
Official closing of Markham Contemporary Music Festival. Meet-and-greet the conductor, the musicians, volunteers, management and staff while listening to live jazz during the post-concert Champagne reception.
The 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 festivals have been supported by the Tourism Industry Partners, a program of the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, administered by the Tourism Marketing Partnership Corporation.
