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MJC's artists are strong contenders at the 2008 GRAMMY Awards!

James Ehnes is nominated for Best Instrumental Soloist for his recording of concertos by Barber, Korngold and Walton.

Richard Margison's recording with the ARC ensemble of Mieczyslaw Weinberg's chamber works is nominated for Best Chamber Music Performance.

Russell Braun's recording of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde with the Smithsonian Chamber Players under Kenneth Slowik is nominated for Best Small Ensemble Performance.

The GRAMMY Awards will be handed out on February 10, 2008. Check back then for news!

Congratulations to all our nominees!

Adrianne Pieczonka, Richard Margison, Russell Braun, and Sondra Radvanovsky performed with a host of Canadian singing stars on the stage of Roy Thomson Hall on Friday, June 8 for LUNA, Luminato Festival’s opera gala.

The gala will be rebroadcast on September 1st on Saturday Afternoon at the Opera and CBC Records will release a CD of highlights later this fall.

We are happy to announce that 3 of MJC's artists were winners at the 2007 JUNO awards!

Russell Braun & Michael Schade won the 2007 JUNO in the category of Classical Album Of The Year: Vocal or Choral Performance for Mozart e duetti.

James Ehnes won the 2007 JUNO for Classical Album of the Year: Large Ensemble or Soloists with Large Ensemble Accompaniment for his recording of Mozart's complete works for violin and orchestra.

Congratulations!

We are delighted to announce nominations for 5 of MJC's artists for the 2007 JUNO Awards.

Russell Braun & Michael Schade for their Mozart Arie e duetti

James Ehnes for his recording of the complete Mozart concertos

Richard Margison for On the Threshold of Hope

Adrianne Pieczonka for her recording of arias by Wagner & Strauss

The JUNO Awards will be handed out on March 31 and April 1, 2007. Check back then for news!

American pianist Andrew Russo has received a 2007 GRAMMY nomination for his recording of works by John Corigliano on Black Box Records. This disc, recorded with pianist Steven Heyman and Canadian violinist Corey Cerovsek, brings together John Corigliano’s most substantial solo and chamber works involving the piano.

The 49th Annual Grammy Awards will be held February 11 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The show will be broadcast live on CBS from 8-11:30 p.m. (ET/PT)

Congratulations, Andy!

MJC is delighted to announce the addition of soprano Shannon Mercer to our roster. Her voice has been described as luminous, dazzling and shining and her acting witty, delightful, and feisty - Shannon Mercer is taking on the opera world as one of Canada's most promising young stars.

Visit her website: www.shannonmercer.com

James Ehnes has reached a milestone in his recording career with the release of his 20th CD. The new recording is a collaboration with Bramwell Tovey and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and features three wonderfully romantic violin concertos from the mid Twentieth century by Barber, Korngold and Walton (CBC Records North America / Onyx worldwide).

For more information, read the press release (PDF)

Giovanni Reggioli has opened the Washington National Opera's 2006-2007 with a booming success conducting a double-bill production of Bluebeard's Castle and Gianni Schicchi.

"Giovanni Reggioli led the Washington National Opera Orchestra with sure lyricism and stage-to-pit synchronicity." (Washington Post, 18 September 2006)

"Russell Braun, making an overdue Covent Garden debut, is a sterling Valentin." (Daily Telegraph, 18 September 2006)

"Russell Braun's debut as Valentin was impressively lyrical." (Music OMH, 18 September 2006)

John Terauds of the Toronto Star wrote of Act I: "There was one heart-rending hour in the entire cycle that everyone present will remember for the rest of his or her lives. It was a magical meeting of singers, music and drama that was more powerful than anything I have ever witnessed onstage...with the once-in-a-lifetime vocal and dramatic power of Toronto soprano Adrianne Pieczonka and American tenor Clifton Forbis...many audience members were left in tears, and most found it impossible to rise from their seats at the first intermission."

The Globe and Mail was no less effusive in its praise: "The heart and star of the COC's production was soprano Adrianne Pieczonka (Sieglinde), who fused an astonishing torrent of beautiful singing with a characterization that was almost painfully true."

For more reviews, visit Adrianne's website

Tenor Michael Schade will make his Barcelona opera debut at the Grand Teatro del Liceu in one of signature roles, Tito in Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito, opening September 29th.

Russell Braun is set to make his Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut on September 15th as Valentin in Gounod's Faust. Check back for reviews.

A standing ovation of almost 30 minutes following the new production of Die Walküre conducted by Christian Thielemann, affirmed that she is the “Sieglinde of our time” (Die Zeit, 29 July 2006). Die Zeit also called her "a shooting star of international Wagner and Strauss renown" and went on to say that "Pieczonka glitters with a lyrically expressive, well nuanced soprano, appearing effortless even in top range, always with clearest articulation".

Other journalists have been no less enthusiastic in their praise of  Adrianne’s exceptional talent as both singer and actor — check out her website for additional rave reviews!

In a busy weekfeaturing 3 Concerts in 5 days across the U.S. - from the Hollywood Bowl (July 13) to the Blossom Festival (July 15) to the Philadelphia Orchestra's summer series (July 17) - James Ehnes was hailed by critics and audiences alike:

Of Dvorak's Violin Concerto with the LA Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl: "He brought extroversion and propulsive energy... In the finale, he was all fire and playfulness, and everywhere he showed powerful technique and drew a range of warm colors." (LA Times, 15 July 2006)

Of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto with the Cleveland Orchestra at the Blossom Festival:

"Ehnes also happens to possess one of the most wizardly bow arms in the business. In passages requiring velocity, especially in the finale, he passed across the strings at a speed that sounded dangerous, but never obscured notes." (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 16 July 2006)

Of Dvorak's Violin Concerto with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts:

"He has a gorgeous, saturated tone - alive with vibrato but clear and honest. He's measured and solid, yet he's not hesitant to outline phrases in bold edges. He gave phrases real meaning where I had never heard any before." (Philadelphia Inquirer, 19 July 2006)

The recording features some of the greatest Strauss and Wagner roles, which Ms. Pieczonka interprets to great critical acclaim the world over. Accompanied by the Bavarian Radio Orchestra under conductor Ulf Schirmer, this will be a "must-have" for CD collectors everywhere!

James Ehnes has received his second INDIES Award of "Favourite Classical Artist" for his recording of Bach's Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord (vol.1) with Luc Beausejour (Analekta). The awards were handed out in Toronto March 1st. For more information, visit www.cmw.net

Russell Braun's recording of Winterreise (CBC Records) with pianist Carolyn Maule has been nominated in the category of Classical Album of the Year: Vocal or Choral Performance.

Michael Schade's recording of Schubert's Die schöne Müllerin (CBC Records) with pianist Malcolm Martineau has been nominated for a 2006 JUNO Award in the category of Classical Album of the Year: Vocal or Choral Performance.

James Ehnes's recording of Bach's Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord (vol.1) (Analekta) with Luc Beausejour has been nominated for a 2006 JUNO Award in the category of Classical Album of the Year: Solo or Chamber.

The awards will be handed out on Sunday April 1 & 2, 2006 at a ceremonies in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Check back for updates!

Tuesday, February 14 - James Ehnes will make a special Valentine's Day visit to Studio Sparks for a performance and interview with Eric. For those who miss it, the show will be posted on the Studio Sparks website.

Friday, February 17 - Russell Braun joins Eric as a special house guest and co-DJ for an hour of conversation and to share some of his favourite music.

Monday, February 20 - Adrianne Pieczonka will stop by Studio Sparks to speak with Eric about her recent return to Canada and the upcoming release of her debut solo recording of works by Strauss and Wagner.

Celebrate the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth with two stunning new releases:

• James Ehnes's double CD set of the complete works for violin and orchestra by Mozart: Concertos 1-5 and three single movement works. For more information about the recording and the Mozart Anniversary Orchestra, visit James Ehnes's website.

• Mozart Arie & Duetti features an all-star trio of Isabel Bayrakdarian, Russell Braun, and Michael Schade. This stellar recording has been flying off the shelves since it was released only two weeks ago - it has sold over 4,000 copies in Canada alone.
  
  

"A searching musician, Braun also has one of the world's most beautiful baritone voices. He brings a poet's soul and a young man's bewildered grief to Schubert's shattering cycle of solitude and loss." (Newsday, 25 December 2005)

"A mellifluous, musical and strongly felt interpretation... His finely honed instrument. Braun's unpretentiously moving singing is supported with articulate sensitivity and fine, clear tone by pianist Maule." (Opera News, January 2006)

For more reviews and information on the CD, check out Russell's web site: www.russellbraun.com

Russell Braun, accompanied by Carolyn Maule, will release the second of Schubert's great song cycles Die Winterreise in September 2005. To celebrate the release of the recording, Russell will perform Die Winterreise in recital on September 15, at the Jane Mallett Theatre in Toronto, presented by Music Toronto. www.music-toronto.com

The Moritzburg Festival is a prominent international chamber music festival held annually throughout the month of August in Dresden, Germany. It will feature many well-known musicians as well as several young, talented new generation musicians.

MJC will be responsible for the co-ordination of international public relations for the 2005 Moritzburg Festival.