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Principal Guest Conductor John Storgårds extends collaboration with NACO
March 29, 2023The National Arts Centre (NAC) is pleased to announce that John Storgårds, Principal Guest Conductor of the NAC Orchestra, has extended his contract with the NAC Orchestra for five years, through the 2027-2028 season. The acclaimed Finnish musician first conducted the NAC Orchestra in…
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SPHERE: Listening to the Earth with NACO
August 29, 2022Music creates important and empathetic bonds with human beings, connecting through the auditory senses. The eco-world also communicates through the senses, creating an interdependence with people globally. From September 22-25, SPHERE, co-curated by NACO Music Director Alexander Shelley…
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Interview with Doug Burden: 50 Seasons with NACO
August 8, 2022In an alternate universe, he could have become a dentist. Instead, and lucky for us, Douglas Burden has been the Bass Trombonist of the National Arts Centre Orchestra since 1972. He recently retired in June 2022 – marking an incredible 50 season career with NACO. During his career, Burden…
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Bobby Thompson winner of 2022 NAC Orchestra Bursary competition
May 5, 2022Bobby Thompson, bassoon, takes home $7,000 grand prize It was a competitive weekend for music students from around the National Capital Region who congregated at the National Arts Centre (NAC) and on the University of Ottawa campus for the National Arts Centre Orchestra (NACO)’s Annual…
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Reggae Roots or an Unexpected Rendez-Vous!
April 4, 2022A video-on-demand series bringing to life the sounds and stories of the musical movement that grew to influence music around the globe! In February 2022, Orchestral Conductor Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser joined the National Arts Centre Orchestra as Principal Youth Conductor and Creative…
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Spreading Love through Music
February 3, 2021As passionate supporters of the performing arts, you know that music, dance and theatre can be powerful expressions of love. This year, to show appreciation for dearly missed audience members, the NAC Orchestra invited patrons to dedicate a virtual performance to a loved one as part of a…
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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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NAC Superfan: Ken McKinlay
July 17, 2020Ken McKinlay has been coming to concerts at the National Arts Centre for more than 28 years. He sees at least 30 performances each season. Ken is the NAC Orchestra’s number one fan. “I’m missing the Orchestra like crazy,” says Ken, who last saw the NACO perform Mozart on February 26,…
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Chip Hamann: Grateful in isolation
May 11, 2020A big part of an orchestra’s musician’s life is people. You sit beside them, breathe the same air, share a music stand, turn pages for each other. And you perform in a hall full of people, sometimes in the thousands. Musicians are also alone a lot, said Chip Hamann, Principal Oboe of the…
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Karen Donnelly and the 32 trumpet tribute
May 4, 2020Last month, 32 of the world’s top trumpet players came together over the internet to perform a tribute to front-line health care workers battling COVID-19. The song is A Hope for the Future by Matt Catingub and the video has more than 220,000 views. The musicians, who come from 14…
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A Landmark Celebration: The NAC Orchestra 50th Anniversary European Tour
October 4, 2019This past spring, your NAC Orchestra performed under Music Director Alexander Shelley to captivated audiences across Europe. CROSSINGS featured six Canadian composers and five Canadian soloists and offered more than 60 learning and engagement activities, none of which would have been…
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The National Arts Centre Orchestra at 50
September 30, 2019A reflection by Winston Webber “The Centre must have a heart that beats.” - Jean Gascon. “A good orchestra is called for. A superb one would be more to the point.” - Louis Applebaum And on October 7, 1969, from the first dramatic notes of Haydn’s “Drumroll” symphony, played by…
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A few comments on The Marriage of Figaro
June 7, 2019Susanna, Rosine, Marcellina, Barbarina and the rest It was barely two years after the opening night of The Marriage of Figaro, six years after its publication, that Mozart and Da Ponte transformed Beaumarchais’ lively ideological offering into a much more subversive musical work,…
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Q&A: Nelson McDougall, NAC Orchestra and Tour Manager
April 12, 2019Q. What are the key numbers around the NAC Orchestra’s 50th Anniversary European Tour (May 10 to 26)? A. Nine concerts, 50 education activities, seven cities, 70 musicians and five Canadian soloists performing the music of six Canadian composers. Q. What’s your role? A. I’m like a “chief…
