Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra "Music in the Air"

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Sunday, June 2nd, 2019
2:30 PM to 4:30 PM

The human voice is the most intimate of instruments: it projects a great range of not only sound but also emotion. To back up the voice with a full complement of stringed instruments is to set the stage for wonderfully captivating moments that bloom from timeless classical repertoire. The Nanaimo Chamber Orchestra has chosen to feature two vocal soloists in its June program; baritone, Benjamin Loyst – winner of the 2019 Concerto Competition for Young Musicians, and soprano, Nadya Blanchette – professional, Montreal-born singer and wife of VIS Conductor, Pierre Simard.

Ben Loyst is from Nanaimo and, since starting with musical theatre and the Sinclair Singers, he has discovered a passion for classical works, studying first with the VSO School of Music and now with Stephanie Bogle at the Glenn Gould School of Music in Toronto. He will sing Samuel Barber’s “Dover Beach, Op 3” based on the poem by Matthew Arnold which uses the ebb tide as a metaphor to explore some darker emotions of human experience and predicament.

Nadya Blanchette and family recently moved to Nanaimo. She has a Master’s degree in performance from the Université de Montréal and has sung, nationally, numerous opera and choral works. In 2000 she sang at former prime minister Pierre Trudeau’s state funeral. She has performed with Cirque du Soleil, the Vancouver Symphony and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and more recently with the Vancouver Island Symphony. Nadya will sing several short works including Mozart’s “Exultate Deo”, Rachmaninoff’s “Vocalise”, an aria from Handel’s “Dido & Aeneas”, and one of Villa Lobos’ “Bachianas Brasilieras”.

The NCO is excited to offer this unique program and to feature these two excellent vocalists. And, in retaining its connection to Early Music, Director Karl Rainer has chosen to begin the concert with “Sonata for Strings” by wonderful 18th century French composer, Jean Marie Leclair.

Please join us for a most engaging and diverse program – our season finale.

https://www.nanaimochamberorchestra.com/