___________________
Windsor Symphony has Halloween Monster Mash
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
November 1, 2009
Even the ghouls need a little art.
The witches and the zombies danced among gravestones, and the trolls had a picnic in the cemetery.
Apart from the giant butterflies, it was a monster mash Saturday and Sunday at Windsor Symphony Orchestra's annual Halloween pops concerts at Chrysler Theatre.
Symphony set to celebrate Day of the Dead via music
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 31, 2009
John Morris Russell and the Windsor Symphony Orchestra will laugh in the face of death this weekend at a pair of pops concerts at Chrysler Theatre.
WSO's annual Halloween concerts will include costume contests for adults and kids, puppetry and dances in celebration of the Latin American autumn fiesta known as Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.
The concerts tonight at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at the St. Clair Centre for the Arts are the next stop on WSO's season-long, musical world tour.
247-year-old violin 'meant to be played'
BY MARTY GERVAIS, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 31, 2009
A nearly 250-year-old violin may once again breathe new life.
And if all goes well with its restoration, the Italian-made instrument may be featured in a solo performance at a Windsor Symphony Orchestra production as early as December.
The violin I'm speaking about belongs to Pat Sturn, a longtime Windsor artist and photographer who turned 99 earlier this month.
Chamber series off to a rapturous start
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 24, 2009
There should have been a sign outside Assumption University Chapel on Friday: American spoken here.
The Windsor Symphony Orchestra opened its chamber series, Intimate Classics, Friday with performances of 20th century American masterpieces by Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, and Ernest Bloch.
The centrepiece was Bloch's magnificent Concerto Grosso No. 1 for Strings and Piano.
This work dating from 1925 was Swiss-born Bloch's first composition after taking up American citizenship. It employs elements of the 17th century concerti grossi of Handel and others, yet written in the musical language of the 20th century.
Jarvis Right on the Mark
BY Dan Reaume, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 23, 2009
Anne Jarvis' column on a lack of vision for the city hits it right on the mark. Arts and culture are very important to the livelihood of a community. I am speaking not just of Windsor, but all of Essex County.
Why has nothing been done in developing a summer theatre in regards to the rich history of this area? From the history and stories the War of 1812, the Underground Railroad, the rumrunners, the history of Sandwich Town.
Think how Stratford started, just with a summer theatre group in a tent. We now have a symphony of national quality, and no real discussion as to how to move forward with a development of a cultural centre at the armouries. They cannot do it on their own, the private and public sector have to work together. Why are our local politicians not helping in getting this moving forward?
With the new University of Windsor engineering school and the medical school, along with the manufacturing industry of this area, why not work on new medical tools and concepts? By bringing together these three groups, great ideas can be realized and developed.
Our county politicians, arts and cultural minds, and industrial developers must put aside their separate agendas and start to talk and get ideas going. The politicians in Essex County have to put aside their petty disagreements and learn to talk to each other and work together. By putting forth a vision over, say five years for the county, things can get done. Be open to taking risks and change.
Dan Reaume, Windsor
© Copyright (c) The Windsor Star
Windsor lacks vision
BY ANNE JARVIS, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 19, 2009
Five years ago, the 100-year-old King Edward Hotel in Calgary was condemned and boarded up.The same year, Windsor acquired the vacant century-old armouries downtown.
Now, in a bold and visionary move, the King Eddy is to be refurbished and incorporated into a new national music centre that will lead a massive revitalization of Calgary's blighted East Village.
And the armouries?
Little has happened with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra's $28-million proposal to convert the stately and historic building into a concert and festival hall. The city, which sees this as the symphony's project, contributed $10,000 to the feasibility study and is reluctant to commit more. The symphony is still trying to find a partner.
Gifted, yes, but Raffoul stage presence needs work
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 19, 2009
It had the potential for so much more, but Saturday's union of blue-collar rocker Jody Raffoul and the Windsor Symphony Orchestra was less than the sum of its parts.
The fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House Charities drew about 1,000 to the Chrysler Theatre, most of them ready for a special and unprecedented joint performance. It was a benefit concert organized by St. Clair College's Centre for the Arts, Southland Insurance and the McDonald's charity.
Things got off to a rocky start when Raffoul and his band kept the audience waiting for a good half-hour after the starting time of 8 p.m. Restless patrons started to cheer and clap to urge the group on stage.
WSO offers something for all tastes
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
October 5, 2009
Music travels well, across the globe and across time.
The opening classics concert in the Windsor Symphony Orchestra's 2009-10 season on Saturday featured contemporary works based on sounds of nature and the music of Indonesia and Africa. It also offered one of the great classical works in the repertory -- Franz Schubert's Symphony No. 9 in C major, The Great, dating from 1827.
The season has been titled Connections, and each concert will explore music of a different country or era.
Percussion ensemble loves improv
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
September 30, 2009
Members of Canada's Nexus hear music in the strangest places.
The world-famous percussion group has gone to the four corners of the globe in search of new forms of expression.
And sometimes a noise at a construction site can inspire a composition. Sometimes, it's birdsong.
Nexus co-founder Bill Cahn is bringing two such compositions to Windsor this week to perform with the Windsor Symphony.
Shades of Sarah Vaughn in memorable show
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
September 28, 2009
The first stop on Windsor Symphony Orchestra's world tour this season was Detroit, and it was a grand send-off thanks to conductor John Morris Russell and guest vocalist Shahida Nurullah.
Russell has dubbed the 2009-10 WSO season Connections because of the several concerts that link Windsor with its sister communities around the world.
Russell's number is 9
Numerical theme this WSO season
BY TED SHAW, THE WINDSOR STAR
September 26, 2009
John Morris Russell has history on his side as he enters his ninth season on the podium of the Windsor Symphony Orchestra.
There is a mystical connection between classical music and the numeral nine. Beethoven, Schubert and Dvorak all expressed their final and ultimate musical statements with their ninth symphonies.
John Fogerty and the Los Angeles Philharmonic -- Concert Review
By Erik Pedersen, July 05, 2009 02:59 ET [Hollywood Reporter]
Bottom Line: USA! USA! Fo-ger-ty! Fo-ger-ty!
Sousa, Bernstein, Copland, Prima ... Jackson? Yup.
The Los Angeles Philharmonic paid typically expert tribute to great American composers Thursday during the opening night of its annual 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular at the Hollywood Bowl. And conductor-ringmaster John Morris Russell said they decided it was apropos to "salute one of America's greatest performers."