Mattina Musica featuring Couloir

add to outlook add to google calendar remind me

Monday, November 5th, 2012
Reception 9:45 AM Performance 10:30 AM

Co-presented by Sarah Hagen and the Sid Williams Theatre Society

Mattina Musica returns to the Comox Valley for an exciting third season.

Italian for �Morning Music�, Mattina Musica is a 5 concert series of classical music, each taking place on a Monday morning. Patrons are warmly invited to meet in the Sid lobby at 9:45 am for tea, coffee, and conversation before the 10:30 am concert.

The series is hosted by pianist Sarah Hagen, who is thrilled to have flautist Krzysztof Kaczka, cellist Ariel Barnes, harpist Heidi Krutzen, violinist Martin Chalifour, tenor Ken Lavigne, and violist Vaida Rozinskaite bring their world-class artistry to the Comox Valley. The musicians, all known for their perceptive, eloquent and entertaining commentary, will take time to offer personal insights into the music.

Can you think of a better way to spend a Monday morning?

The acclaimed duo Couloir makes its way from Vancouver for the second concert in the Mattina Musica series.

Comprised of two of the West Coast�s most exceptional musicians, harpist Heidi Krutzen and cellist Ariel Barnes, Couloir is dedicated to collaboration with today�s leading composers, performing modern art music at the highest level of excellence, and presenting engaging chamber music concerts in non-traditional settings.

Joining Heidi and Ariel on this concert will be pianist Sarah Hagen, the host of the Mattina Musica series. The trio of musicians will play a programme of chamber music spanning the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.

Couloir: Heidi Krutzen, harp and Ariel Barnes, cello


��played passionately by Ariel Barnes�� - BBC Music Magazine


��The unexpected delight of the evening was violinist James Ehnes and harpist Heidi Krutzen in a Saint-Saens �Fantaisie� (Op. 124), which was all elegance and subtlety.�- The Seattle Times

Having collaborated for many years as chamber and orchestral musicians, Ariel and Heidi have joined forces to explore the sound, timbre, and colour of cello and harp, a combination of instruments rarely heard together. Their mutual desire to create memorable, moving performances, reaching deeply into music�s emotional and spiritual elements, provides the foundation for their new duo. Couloir is project based, moving away from the traditional recital format, presenting innovative and thought provoking works, and exploring interdisciplinary creations with artists, dancers, and poets.

Couloir debuted at Music on Main�s Modulus Festival at Heritage Hall, Vancouver in October. Their performance included the world premiere of �Three Meditations on Light� by Jocelyn Morlock, and a subsequent performance with DJ Michael Red. Couloir has played several concerts since then, recently returning from a tour in Washington State for NY�s Piatigorsky Foundation. This January Couloir will be featured in recital with world premieres of �A monk, dancing� by Glenn Buhr and �Drifting Seeds� by US composer Baljinder Sekhon. This concert will be recorded live for CBC Radio�s �The Signal.� Couloir are looking forward to upcoming performances in Ukraine with violinist Petro Krysa in September 2012 and as touring artists for Prairie Debut 2012/2013. Upcoming commissions include works by Canadian composers: James Maxwell, Andrew Staniland, Anthony Genge, and Caroline Lizotte.

Heidi and Ariel are Principal Harp and Principal Cello respectively of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, and former Principal Harp and Principal Cello of the CBC Radio Orchestra. They are members of the Turning Point Ensemble, with whom they have recorded and premiered many new works. As individuals they perform at festivals and concert series internationally as well as teaching on the national and international stage. Their performances are broadcast regularly on CBC Radio and NPR in the US.

http://www.couloir.ca/

Sarah Hagen - Piano

Pianist Sarah Hagen has been heard in concert halls and on the airwaves to critical acclaim throughout North America and Europe. Originally from the Comox Valley, she has performed as soloist and guest artist with the Victoria Symphony, the Emily Carr String Quartet, Ballet Victoria and the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, among many others.

Sarah is the Artistic Director for Pro'ject Sound, a performance project involving live piano with large-scale projected images. She curates, hosts, and performs on four recital series in British Columbia, sharing the stage with artists from Canada, the United States and Europe. Miss Hagen has been heard on Swedish Radio 2, CBC Radio 1 and 2, WDAV (North Carolina) WOSU (Ohio), KFUO (Missouri), CKUA (Edmonton), WKAR (Michigan), WITF (Pennsylvania), 98.1 KING FM (Seattle) and has appeared on Bravo Television. Her solo album, Glass House Dancing, was nominated for Classical Recording of the Year at the 2009 Western Canadian Music Awards.

Sarah�s primary teachers and mentors have been Jamie Parker, Glen Montgomery, Gregory Chaverdian and Christine Purvis. Passionate for inspiring students of all ages, she is in demand as an adjudicator and clinician and is on faculty at the Vancouver Academy of Music. She is the director of the Piano Programme at the Comox Valley Youth Music Centre where she has been on faculty for over a decade.

Since her move in 2011 to an artist loft in one of Vancouver�s most vibrant neighbourhoods, she has become deeply involved with intricate projects inspired by urban vitality.

Sarah's motivation is the belief that music has the power to be a window into our souls regardless of age or knowledge.

http://www.sarahhagen.com/

�Exquisite phrasing and a refreshingly imaginative approach make her one to watch.�
-Marcia Adair, TheOmniscientMussel.com

�Her Bach and Haydn were outstandingly inventive � this is a young woman ready to take interpretive risks.�
-University of Waterloo Gazette


Interested in the entire Mattina Musica series?
Buy all 5 performances for $115. Member price for the series is $90.