The Royal Conservatory Announces 9 new Concerts for the 2010.11 Season

July 20, 2010

Cowboy Junkies, Art of Time Ensemble, The Manhattan Transfer, Brandi Carlile, Harry Manx and David Lindley, Shawn Colvin, and Rolling Stones Members in Concert

Mervon Mehta, Executive Director, RCM Performing Arts, has just announced more pop, blues, and world music concerts for the 2010.11 season in Koerner Hall, which will augment the 50 concerts announced in May. Mehta remarked: “At The Royal Conservatory, we are proud to present concerts of the highest quality in all genres of music, and the newly added pop and world music shows will greatly complement the already announced classical and jazz concerts, including our signature Aspects of Oscar series, international superstars such as Yo-Yo Ma, and Canadian artists like Adrianne Pieczonka.”

Two distinguished Canadian groups will grace Koerner Hall in two very different concerts. Alt-country icons, the Cowboy Junkies, whose hits include timeless classics like Misguided Angel and Sweet Jane, have been darlings of Toronto audiences for more than 20 years. Making their Koerner Hall debut, they will now be heard in an intimate and acoustically superb setting. Returning to the Hall after two very successful concerts during the grand opening season, Conservatory faculty member Andrew Burashko’s Art of Time Ensemble will present an all-Canadian interpretation of the much-loved Beatles album, Abbey Road. The Ensemble will be joined by many notable Canadian singers, including ex-Barenaked Lady Steven Page, Sarah Slean, Alejandra Ribera, John Southworth, Martin Tielli, Andy Maize, and Kevin Hearn.

American pop stars will also loom large in Koerner Hall. Veteran vocalese masters The Manhattan Transfer will sing music from the Chick Corea songbook alongside festive seasonal songs. After 38 years in the business, with eight Grammy Awards behind their belts, and their signature four-part harmony, this is going to be a very special Christmas show. American pop-rock-alt-country-indie-folk singer Brandi Carlile, whose music has been featured on the hit TV shows Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice, will make her Koerner Hall debut; and folk singer-songwriter and Grammy Award-winner Shawn Colvin, who cites Joni Mitchell among her greatest influences, will appear with the witty and refreshing Canadian original, Katherine Wheatley, as her special guest. Members of The Rolling Stones will roll into town, headed by the group’s go-to sax player, Tim Ries, accompanied by one of the band’s singers, Bernard Fowler, and bassists, Darryl Jones. They will present Ries’s jazz and world music arrangements of Stones’s staples, such as Brown Sugar, Jumpin’ Jack Flash, and Angie.

Two more world music concerts have also been added to the Koerner Hall schedule. In the first, the Indo-Canadian singer Kiran Ahluwalia, renowned for her arrangements of ancient Persian and Punjabi ghazals (poems), will return to The Royal Conservatory (and make her Koerner Hall debut) on a double bill with Rhythm of Rajasthan, the vibrant group of folk musicians and dancers of western India. In the second, bluesmen and multi-instrumentalists Harry Manx (Canada) and David Lindley (U.S.A.) will share the stage and fuse blues with the worlds of the Eastern and Western roots music traditions.

Bluebird North events in the Conservatory Theatre of The Royal Conservatory grew in popularity during the 2009.10 season. These intimate showcases bring together some of Canada’s most inspiring songwriters, such as Andy Kim, the late Paul Quarrington, Emm Gryner, Dan Hill, Sylvia Tyson, D’Ari, Marc Jordan, and Luke McMaster, to share their songs and stories round-robin style. This is a unique opportunity to get up close to the artists, to hear great music and the stories that inspired the songs, and enjoy a few drinks in an informal atmosphere. Next season, three Bluebird Norths will again take place in the Conservatory Theatre while the final one, a very special Bluebird North All-Star Concert on May 14, 2011, hosted by Blair Packham and featuring Marc Jordan and many special guests to be named later, will move into Koerner Hall and close The Royal Conservatory-presented season.

Additional Artists and Concerts Updates
Jamaican jazz pianist Monty Alexander, who will appear in the Aspects of Oscar series dedicated to Oscar Peterson, will be joined by tenor saxophonist Houston Person and guitarist Russell Malone on March 5, 2011. The previously announced Mazzoleni Masters Series concert with ARC Ensemble (Artists of The Royal Conservatory) will be part of Culture Days, and will therefore be free for the public; and in the Eybler Quartet performance Eric Hoeprich will be replaced by clarinetist Jane Booth. One additional performance has been added to the Discovery Series – Hungarian violinist Ádám Banda will make his Canadian debut as part of a special new partnership between the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest and The Royal Conservatory’s Glenn Gould School (The GGS). The GGS is also thrilled to announce the two one-act operas that will be performed in Koerner Hall – Ravel’sL’heure espagnole and Bizet’sLe docteur Miracle, on March 23 and 24, 2011.

School Concerts
New this season, the Performing Arts and Learning Through the Arts divisions of The Royal Conservatory will be presenting a four-concert series designated especially for teacher and student groups. All concerts will be at 10am, tickets will be only $10, and study guides will be available. This is a wonderful opportunity to provide students with a unique learning experience while exposing them to the beautiful acoustics of Koerner Hall. The artists featured in the 2010.11 student concerts will include Yo-Yo Ma with Kathryn Stott, the Royal Conservatory Orchestra conducted by Uri Mayer, the Toronto Blues Society, and the Monty Alexander Trio.

Tickets for new concerts will be on sale starting Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 10:00am
Tickets for Koerner Hall concerts range from $20-$75, with premium tickets available upon request
Tickets for all other concerts range from $10-$25, or are free
Select any 4-6 concerts and save 10%; Select any 7+ concerts and save 15%
A limited number of $10 rush tickets are available starting 90 minutes
before all performances presented by The Royal Conservatory

All concerts take place at The Royal Conservatory
TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, 273 Bloor Street West, Toronto

Tickets are available online at www.rcmusic.ca, by calling 416.408.0208,
or in person at the Weston Family Box Office

Media Contact:
Barbora Kršek,
Publications Editor and Publicity Manager
Phone:416.408.2824 x265
barbora.krsek@rcmusic.ca

For general RCM questions please contact:
Jeff Embleton,
Manager, Publicity
Phone:416.408.2824 x461
jeff.embleton@rcmusic.ca