News
LORI GALLAGHER Fredericton Daily Gleaner
March 19, 2015
On March 29 at 2 p.m., the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra, along with some special guests, will be making beautiful music together. The event, at the Richard J. Currie Center, is the NBYO’s season finale concert and one music lovers will not want to miss.
“It’s quite an exciting program,” says Don Matheson, executive director of operations for the NBYO. “In many ways, it’s been a momentous year for the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra.” This year is the 50th anniversary of NBYO, he says, noting it was founded in 1965.
“The last decade and a half have been particularly productive and prestigious for the NBYO, with five international tours,” he says, including trips to New York, Italy, China and two visits to Austria. “In 2011, the orchestra won the Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival competition in Vienna, and just this past summer, as part of our Keeping Faith commemorative tour, the orchestra returned to Austria and performed the world première of ‘A Dream of Dawn.’ ” The NBYO commissioned “A Dream of Dawn” to commemorate the centenary of the First World War, he says. It was written by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s RBC composer in residence, Kevin Lau. “It has performed throughout our season with the backdrop of this amazing video montage,” says Matheson, which included actual footage and photos from the First World War.
A big part of this concert series is honouring and paying tribute to veterans, armed forces personnel and members of the Royal Canadian Legion. Many CFB Gagetown personnel will be enjoying the March 29 concert as guests of the NBYO, as will a number of area veterans and legion members. “This Keeping Faith/Gardons espoir tribute is something that’s quite meaningful and moving to any veteran or present day soldier or relative or family member,” he says.
The public concert is truly the pièce de résistance of the NBYO’s rehearsal-concert weekend, he says. “And in that concert, ‘A Dream of Dawn’ is the introduction with the video,” says Matheson. “But the music and repertoire our brilliant conductor Tony Delgado chose this year really accentuates many moving classical pieces of music that were often composed during wartimes and/or as something that would appeal to a nation or populations in the throws of conflict.” Add to this the bonus of three community youth orchestras that are joining the NBYO for the event – Fredericton High School, Leo Hayes High School and the Fredericton Youth Orchestra. As well, the featured clarinet soloist will be Luc Vaillancourt, a local who is currently a music senior at Mount Allison University.
“We’ll finish the concert on the 29th with a joint performance,” says Matheson. “Some of the crack musicians from each ensemble will join NBYO in a mass orchestra, probably numbering 120 to 125 members.” The concert is going to be a moving and spectacular event, he says, and he hopes people come out to enjoy it. The finale is being presented by the University of New Brunswick and UNB president Dr. Eddy Campbell will be acting as co-host at the event.
Adding to the excitement on March 29, the 2015 Lieutenant-Governor’s Award recipients will be presented during the concert. The awards are presented annually to deserving nominees for outstanding contributions to the development of youth orchestral music in New Brunswick.
On top of the public concert, the NBYO has done school outreach programs in every community they have visited on this tour, and their rehearsal-concert weekend in Fredericton is no different. On Friday, March 27, the NBYO’s chamber ensemble will be going to Devon Middle School to perform at an assembly. They will be joined by representatives from the Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Society, who will give a narration on the First World War and Canada’s contributions. Nicholas Richard, 17, is a Grade 12 student at École Sainte-Anne and the principal bassoonist with the NBYO. He’s looking forward to performing in Fredericton. “You feel like the crowd that’s in the audience, they’re yours. You know so many people in the audience. It’s just a special experience to play in your hometown,” he says. “The fact that we’re playing with so many different ensembles of musicians is something I’ve never done with the orchestra and that’s really something I’m looking forward to, just to play with different personalities and have a change of atmosphere is always really great and it’s something NBYO is trying to do more and more lately.” This is Richard’s fourth season with the orchestra. “I love the dynamic that NBYO offers. It’s just this really high energy, intense weekend every time we have orchestra weekends,” he says. “It’s just a bunch of people playing together and trying to make this really, really great sound, and it’s just a dynamic that’s really addicting. ”Being part of the NBYO has made him a better musician, he says. “I would never be at the level I am without the support of NBYO. When I started four years ago I could barely read the notes on the page, and they just took a chance with me and I’ve been so, so fortunate to grow under their wing and leadership,” he says. Richard says being part of the NBYO is wonderful for everyone who’s in it. “It’s just impossible to do without the generoussupport that our donors give us,” he says “Yes, we pay a fee at the beginning of the year, but it really is such a big organization that it takes so many different sponsors to really make it at the level that it is, so for that I’m so thankful.”
Erika MacLeod is also a big fan of the NBYO. She is not only a volunteer with the organization, she’s a former member. The violin player spent seven years with the NBYO. “The first year I was in the orchestra was 2002 and I was in Grade 9. I joined in September and the following summer, in 2003, the orchestra went to Carnegie Hall. It was a really cool experience for never playing outside of Canada before and then playing in such an amazing venue,” she says. There was so much she loved about being part of the orchestra. “A lot was just being surrounded by people who love music. When you’re at school, you don’t really have that experience, so it was really neat to go to orchestra once a month and be surrounded by the people who had the same passions as you did. As well, you’re also surrounded by amazing faculty,” she says. “Also travelling. I experienced three trips. In addition to Carnegie Hall, I went to Parma, Italy, and that was in 2005, and a couple years later I went to China. I was so fortunate with those experiences, it was incredible.” Being part of the NBYO helped MacLeod develop confidence. “My sister and I started a small business when I was in high school, playing at weddings. I’m not sure I would have had that confidence if I hadn’t been performing so much with the orchestra,” she says. MacLeod loves going to listen to the NBYO perform and tries to make it to at least a concert or two each season. “The orchestra, every single year they seem to be doing better and better. We’ve got so much talent here and I can’t wait to see what this concert will bring,” she says. “One thing that’s really important to know is all the hard work that goes into this. Being on the volunteer side now, I really have the chance to see that. There are so many contributions, not only from the volunteers, but from all of our partners, sponsors, donors, and I think it’s really important to recognize that as well.”
The NBYO’s season finale concert is taking place on Sunday, March 29, at 2 p.m. at the Currie Center on UNB campus. Tickets are $20 for adults or $10 for students and are available through the UNB/Aitken Centre box office or online at www.auc.unb.ca.
