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Young Musicians Receive World Class Instruction from their Living Rooms
October 1, 2020The thing about music auditions is that it doesn’t matter whether you are playing for a jury in-person or via Zoom, the nerves can hit you just the same. Throughout the spring, in homes throughout the country and around the world, exceptional young musicians who were set to participate in…
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The NAC Orchestra Romances Listeners with a Quartet of Recordings
August 24, 2020Under the direction of NAC Orchestra Music Director Alexander Shelley, the NAC Orchestra released new recordings in the spring of 2020 featuring Romantic music by Clara and Robert Schumann, and Johannes Brahms. The first album, Darlings of the Muses, included improvisations inspired…
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Following The Flow: Violonist Frédéric Moisan
October 29, 2018Frédéric Moisan is a violonist in the NAC Orchestra. One of Frédéric off stage passion is fly fishing. He loves the environment, the river, the nature, the wild and being alone. He particulaly likes that it is not something you need to share or go with a friend. Frédéric shares how fly…
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Get to know Anna Petersen, NAC Orchestra oboist
May 2, 2018Q & A With Anna Petersen, oboe player, NAC Orchestra Q1. When did you begin playing the oboe and why this instrument? I started playing the oboe when I was 9 years old. My parents were both music teachers, so I was constantly surrounded by musical instruments at home, and informally…
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Reconnecting with the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra
July 17, 2017In the spring of 2017 the NAC Orchestra was in residence for two days with 240 students from across New Brunswick as part of their Canada 150 Tour. Alexander Shelley, James Ehnes and members of the NAC Orchestra coached three Sistema ensembles, with a final concert featuring NAC Orchestra…
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NAC Orchestra in Eskasoni: An unforgettable musical experience
May 10, 2017As the NAC Orchestra tour buses travelled along the beautiful tree lined edge of Bras d’Or Lake we knew we had arrived to a very special place. The community of Eskasoni is the ancestral home of Mi’kmaw poet Rita Joe. Her poem I Lost My Talk was the inspiration for NAC Award composer John…
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Panel Discussion on Creation and Collaboration through ENCOUNT3RS
May 5, 2017In this bilingual panel discussion on Creation and Collaboration that preceded the world premiere of ENCOUNT3RS (April 20-22, 2017), animator Catherine Clark speaks with the six Canadian artists involved in this historic NAC dance-music commission celebrating Canada 150. Following a…
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ENCOUNT3RS: Three world premieres in one performance
March 24, 2017Creation is at the core of the National Arts Centre. “One of the key things we’re trying to celebrate all the time is our Canadian artists,” says Cathy Levy, Executive Producer of NAC Dance. ENCOUNT3RS is a landmark NAC Commission that pairs three of Canada’s outstanding choreographic…
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Music Alive Program teaching artists come together to share, learn, and collaborate
November 9, 2016The NAC’s Music Alive Program, which brings local and visiting artists to mostly rural and remote schools and communities, was developed in partnership with local arts organizations and in consultation with school boards. It began in Alberta and Saskatchewan in 2008, then expanded to…
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Classical Collisions
October 22, 2016In celebration of Beethoven and Schumann – two highly expressive and innovative composers, the NAC Orchestra created an eclectic evening of music, dance and art called Classical Collisions. Fine art inspired graffiti artists while classical music mixed with DJ scratching - and everybody…
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Celestial sounds: the life of a harpist
July 23, 2016“People often associate the harp with heaven and angels,” says Manon Le Comte, a harpist who has been performing works like The Nutcracker, among many others, with the NAC Orchestra for over 35 years. “But there’s a very concrete aspect to it all: the pedals, the 2,000 metal parts, and one…
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My Name is Amanda Todd: telling her story through music
April 6, 2016When Canadian composer Jocelyn Morlock began to compose the music for My Name is Amanda Todd, one of four new Canadian works the NAC Orchestra has commissioned about remarkable Canadian women, she met with Amanda’s mother Carol Todd. "That was illuminating" Morlock said. "She feels like…
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The Young Artists Program: the next generation of orchestral musicians
January 3, 2016Founded by Pinchas Zukerman in 1999, the National Arts Centre's Young Artists Program is an intensive training program for outstanding classical musicians. Alumni include NAC Orchestra musicians Jethro Marks (principal viola), Donnie Deacon (principal second violin), Jessica Linnebach…
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WolfGANG Sessions: What chamber music was meant to be
November 6, 2015A chamber music concert is, by nature, more social than an orchestral performance. The smaller number of performers and more intimate setting create a more informal, inclusive vibe, and in turn, expands the musical conversation between players to include the audience. The NAC Orchestra's…
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Sounds of Jazz Age: NAC Orchestra’s Roaring 20s Festival
October 19, 2015For five unforgettable nights (Oct-8-17), Music Director, Alexander Shelley and the NAC Orchestra brought the sounds of Jazz Age “Storytelling music” to the stage. Featuring the music of Elgar, Cole Porter, Sibelius, Weill, Gershwin, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Ravel, and even Charlie Chaplin,…
