Classical music: New offerings at Vancouver's The Annex top the season
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With many of our classical presenters' series winding down or even over, next month is notable for intriguing explorations, transitions, and grand finales.
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For example, aficionados of new music can sample a bumper crop of events at The Annex, that useful and adaptive space tucked in behind the Orpheum on Seymour Street.
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Conductor Naomi Woo has assembled a sampler of new music, including the late Jocelyn Morlock's Blue Sun for violin and viola, and Icarus Landing, a turn of the century work for chamber ensemble. Also on the program is Vancouver-based Robyn Jacob's A World in Each, a commemorative piece about the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. As well, Woo will perform piano music by ex-Vancouverite Alexina Louie: her evocative Memories in an Ancient Garden from Scenes from a Jade Terrace.
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When: May 17, 7:30 p.m.
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Where: The Annex, 823 Seymour St.
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Vancouver boasts several gamelan ensembles. Three of them — Gamelan Bike Bike, Gita Asmara, and Kembang Telang — will be on show in a mid-month concert presenting a mixture of traditional Indonesian repertoire and new works.
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When: May 24, 7:30 p.m.; May 25, 2:30 p.m.
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Where: The Annex, 823 Seymour St.
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Info: turningpointensemble.ca/
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One of the great figures in contemporary composition, Kaija Saariaho, died two years ago. The Turning Point Ensemble offers a timely portrait of the Finnish master. The highlight of the program is her Notes on Light, a 2007 commission by the illustrious Boston Symphony. For this performance, cellist Isidora Nojkovic is featured with an ensemble of 19 musicians. Rounding out the program are Semafor for eight instruments and vocal works sung by Robyn Driedger-Klassen with instrumental backup.
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When: May 3, 7:30 p.m.
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Where: The Annex, 823 Seymour St.
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