ORCHESTRA STRAUSS PROGRAM SUPPORTS HAITI RELIEF EFFORT
LONDON – Orchestra London joins other London organizations in the Haitian Relief effort, this Saturday evening during its Spectacular Strauss concert at Centennial Hall. Donations will be collected from the approximately 700 attendees for the Canadian Red Cross, in support of the ongoing efforts to provide emergency relief and long-term recovery for Haitians devastated by last week’s earthquake.
“Since the earthquake we’ve received many calls from our musicians and volunteers, asking what Orchestra London can do to help in the wake of such a horrible disaster,” says Joe Swan, Managing Director for Orchestra London. “We are counting on our audience to help us provide the Canadian Red Cross with much-needed financial support for the victims of Haiti,” he adds.
Featured on the Ovation Series program is Richard Strauss’s Concerto for Oboe, Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 Prague, and Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll. Ian Franklin, Orchestra London’s Principal Oboist, will demonstrate his chops on the Strauss concerto with the orchestra. Franklin previously performed the piece with Orchestra London in 1986 and again in 1994. “Despite the extreme difficulties of the piece, it is still one of my very favourite solo pieces for oboe, and I hope to bring greater maturity to it now”, says Franklin.
“It is melodious and beautiful, and although Strauss' over-the-top romanticism has been criticized by some, I love it. There is a luscious decadence in late Strauss, tinged with sadness.” The Concerto has been described as the “Oboist's Everest.” The piece is technically demanding, and physically exhausting, but according to Franklin the rewards are great. “Timothy Vernon and I have been talking about doing this piece together for some time. The concerto requires a conductor who truly understands Strauss (Who better than Vernon?), and a fine chamber orchestra capable of its technical and musical demands, which we have. I am very excited about this performance, and really looking forward to it.” ABOUT IAN FRANKLIN
Ian Franklin is Principal Oboist of Orchestra London Canada, and is a lecturer at The Don Wright Faculty of Music, University of Western Ontario.A native of Victoria, B.C., Ian began musical studies at the age of five, and was appointed Principal Oboist of The Victoria Symphony Orchestra at the age of seventeen. His teachers included Bernard Shapiro, of Seattle, and Ray Still, of Chicago. He has held the position of Principal Oboe with The Regina Symphony, The Colorado Music Festival, and since 1986, with Orchestra London. He has performed with many other orchestras including those of Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary, Kitchener-Waterloo, The National Ballet of Canada, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and the Elora, Huntsville, Westben, Harbourfront, and Stratford festivals.Ian is a founding member of The Aeolian Winds, long recognized as one of Canada’s finest chamber ensembles. The Aeolian Winds have been frequent performers on CBC Radio, and have toured repeatedly from coast to coast.
In 1998, The Aeolian Winds presented five concerts in Taiwan as part of the True North Festival of Canadian art and music. They have produced a number of CDs for IBS Records, CBC Records, and CentreDisc.Ian has been a concerto soloist with many orchestras, and in recital, including a number of CBC broadcast performances. He has been a featured soloist with The Victoria Symphony Orchestra, The CBC (Vancouver) Orchestra, The Regina Symphony Orchestra, the Orquesta Sinfonica de San Luis Potosi (Mexico), The London Community Orchestra, The Woodstock Strings, The International Symphony Orchestra (Sarnia/Port Huron), and repeatedly with Orchestra London Canada. He is a soloist, with Erik Schultz, trumpet, and David Haward, bassoon, on the ebs recording, “Cantabile Virtuos”, with Vladislav Czarnecki and The SouthWest German Chamber Orchestra, Pforzheim.
CO
NCERT SUMMARY
Who:Orchestra LondonTimothy Vernon, conductorIan Franklin, oboe What:Spectacular StraussStrauss: Concerto for OboeMozart: Symphony No. 38 PragueWagner: Siegfried Idyll When:Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 8:00 pm Where:Centennial Hall550 Wellington St.
Single Ticket Prices:Adults: $39-$55Students: $15 For Tickets or More Information:Orchestra London Box Office (519) 679-8778609 Wellington St. (at Central)www.orchestralondon.ca
