Time for Three & the TSO: From Bach to Bluegrass

Today Mom and I went to see Time for Three perform with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. It was fantastic!

I had no idea what to expect. My violin teacher recommended that we go. She has never suggested any concerts to us before so we just had to make it. I'm so happy she told us about it.

We knew it was a Pops Concert and that Steven Reineke was going to conduct. He always does fun concerts.

The first thing we heard was Also Sprach Zarathrustra but with hilarious narration that we weren't expecting... It was the Overture to Time For Three. It was a good preview for what to expect for the rest of the concert. They mixed various styles in with the classical music.

We got right into the concert. I loved everything they did!
I wouldn't do it justice if I were to describe what they do. You have to hear it yourself.
Here are a couple videos on youtube:
This one is Czardas
http://youtu.be/BiXn6yBm9ZE

Blackbird
http://youtu.be/CSrwozWmc9k

I still can't believe they mixed Katy Perry's Firework and Igor Stravinsky's Firebird together!
I loved the mash up of Flower Duet from Lakmé and Le Vie En Rose.

Time for Three and the TSO had a lot of fun together. It was great seeing them just having fun with the music.

The TSO even did "Pops Hoe-Down for Orchestra" by Richard Hayman on their own and it was such a lively piece. It even had melodies from "Pop goes the weasel" and "Do your ears hang low?" It's been a long time since I've seen the percussionists using so many different instruments. They really made things clack, zing & pop!


Here is Time for Three performing Hungarian Dance 5 with the Heartland Festival Orchestra
http://youtu.be/v_sV-AEeSUY

And believe me, they are even better in person!

My favourite song was The Devil Went Down to Georgia.
They mixed Charlie Daniels Band's The Devil Went Down to Georgia with Bach's Toccata & Fugue in D Minor and Paganini's Caprice #24,  added in their own narration and completely made it their own.


Nick, Ranaan and Zach posed for a picture with me as well.

If you ever have the chance to see them perform you have to go!

Thanks Amanda for telling me about this concert.

TSO's The Orchestral Piano

Last night, Dad and I went to see the Toronto Symphony Orchestra Concert "The Orchestral Piano." I didn't know what to expect. I thought that we'd hear the orchestra and the piano together.

The musicians came out on stage and warmed up as usual but they all got up and left the stage. I wondered what was going on and then pianists Emanuel Ax and Stewart Goodyear took their places. They played Four Dances by Carl Maria von Weber. Then the orchestra came out and played  Hindesmith's Symphonic Metamorphosis and Themes of Carl Maria von Weber. They were very similar but Metamorphosis was composed years later for the orchestra.

We moved on to Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn. He composed it on 2 pianos before he arranged it for orchestra. We got to hear both versions. Pianists Anagnoson and Kinton came out to play the piano version and then the orchestra came back out to play the orchestral version. It was the exact same piece and I liked both of them equally. I love piano and I love all of the instruments of the orchestra.

For Ravel's La Valse, we got to hear Emanuel Ax and Stewart Goodyear again. They played the piano version and the orchestra came out to play their version. The piano version of La Valse was crazy! I loved it! I really liked both versions but I loved the piano!

It was a very different concert! But, it was totally cool!

TSO's Carnival of the Animals

Last night I went to see TSO's Carnival of the Animals conducted by Peter Oundjian.

They played:
Mozart: Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 316a/365
Kevin Lau: Foothills of Heaven
Saint-Saens: The Carnival of the Animals

Pianists Jan Lisiecki and Emanuel Ax played Mozart's Concerto for Two Pianos. It was wonderful!

My favourite part of the evening was Saint-Saens' The Carnival of the Animals. They played Aquarium, the Pianists, the Swan, the Elephant, the Coockoo and lots more. But of those, I really loved The Tortoises!

Peter Oundjian told a joke about a tortoise.
He said:

"I once was friends with a tortoise. 

I never knew him well. 

It was so hard for me
to get him out of his shell.

We had an argument. 

We were friends no more. 

He decided to leave, 

but it took him one month 

to get to the door." 

Emanuel Ax pretended to fall asleep while they were playing "The Tortoises," and Joseph Johnson 'woke" him up by tapping him with his bow.

There were so many jokes and they fooled around but they are so talented that they can do that and still sound great!

The Carnival of the Animals is such a fun work and it has so many different moods.
It was cool seeing it in person instead of just listening to a recording.

BBC's God Only Knows

I saw the BBC Video "God Only Knows"
It's so cool!
I have to share it with you!
http://youtu.be/XqLTe8h0-jo

Here is a link to the behind the scenes video:
http://youtu.be/vp5bVdXOLs4

They released it to help raise funds for "BBC Children in need".


There are so many talented artists:
http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-29531389


I can't believe I've actually met one of the artists in the video.
I met Alison Balsom when she performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra a couple of years ago. I have a picture but I didn't blog about it because I took a break from my blog that month.
She was so amazing!
We bought her CD and she signed it for me. :-)

"The Travelling Cellist" at St. Lawrence Market

Dad and I went to see "The Travelling Cellist" early this morning at St. Lawrence Market. We got there early so we could get some British meat pies and gluten free things from the Farmers' Market before they sold out.

We were waiting for the cellist at the North Entrance where we thought it was supposed to be but it turned out it was at the West Entrance.

Joseph Johnson, the Principal Cellist of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra played Tomaso Albinoni's Adagio. I think it was noisier than the north entrance because of the ventilation system but we were still able to hear him.

When he was about to get started the cello wasn't stable enough.

So he had to improvise.

 But it still sounded beautiful!

For more information about "The Travelling Cellist" check this link from the Toronto Public Library's Keep Toronto Reading Festival. They will have performances up until April 7th in different parts of Toronto.
http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/ktr/the-travelling-cellist.jsp

"The Travelling Cellist" at Malvern Library

Mom and I went to Malvern Library to see "The Travelling Cellist".

The Toronto Public Library and the TSO are doing 22 performances of Albinoni's Adagio from March 17 - April 7 as part of the Keep Toronto Reading Festival. They chose this piece because in the book The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway, the cellist played it everyday for 22 days to remember 22 people who died while waiting in line for bread.

Today, Marie Gélinas played and it was wonderful!
Each time I hear Albinoni's Adagio, I love it more and more!

Here are some pictures from today.

When Marie was finished she posed for a picture with me.

Here's a link with more information about "The Travelling Cellist"
http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/ktr/the-travelling-cellist.jsp