Alex Toskov, Concertmaster

ALEX TOSKOV serves as Concertmaster of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra and is Music Director of the Odin Quartet which he established in 2015. The Odin Quartet has performed at Music Toronto, Music Niagara and Luminato festivals. The Quartet is maintaining a busy artistic schedule, premiering new music, as well as recording. Alex has also been a member of the first violin section of Sinfonia Toronto since 202 and has lead the orchestra on a few occasions including a gala concert in Roy Thomson Hall in June 2016. Alex toured South America in 2018 and China in 2019 with Sinfonia Toronto.

Recently, Mr. Toskov has appeared as the concertmaster of Toronto Mozart Players, Toronto Artist Symphony, Toronto Philharmonic, Toronto Operetta Theatre, Scarborough Philharmonic, Casa Loma Symphony, principal of Toronto Concert Orchestra, and has recorded various soundtracks for CBC’s Murdoch Mysteries. He also performed with Trans-Siberian Orchestra (Air Canada Centre), Diana Krall (Massey Hall), Josh Groban (Sony Centre), Il Divo (Queen Elisabeth Theatre), Evanescence (Budweiser Stage), and Owen Pallett (Massey Hall). Alex participated at St. Gallen Festival in Austria 2004, Stavanger Chamber Music Festival in Norway 2009, and Colours of Music Festival 2012 & 2013. In October 2010 he was invited to perform as a soloist on a gala concert hosted by cellist YoYo Ma in prestigious Koerner Hall in Toronto, Canada. Mr. Toskov performed as a soloist with Serbian Radio Symphony Orchestra. He was a concertmaster of Bayreuth Festival Orchestra in 2006, German-Scandinavian Youth Philharmonic 2009 and was a member of Santiago de Chile Philharmonic Orchestra in 2007/2008. During his studies in Norway 2008-2010, Alex was regularly playing with Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra. 

 

Alex was the winner of The Glenn Gould School Chamber Music Competition 2011, is a recipient of various scholarships such as Norwegian Government scholarship, The Royal Conservatory full tuition scholarship, and Serbian Fund for highly gifted students. Alex took violin lessons with some of the greatest violin pedagogues and soloists such as Pierre Amoyal (Lausanne), Ruben Aharonian (Borodin Quartet Moscow), Isaac Shuldman (Oslo), Michael Frischenschlager (Vienna), Joel Smirnoff (New York), James Boyd (London). Mr. Toskov graduated violin at the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, Serbia. In 2003/04 he was a student at the University of Music in Vienna, Austria with Professor Ernst Kovacic. In June 2010 he received a title Master of Music Performance at Agder University in Norway. Alex received his Artist Diploma in June 2013 from The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory in Toronto, where he studied with Atis Bankas on violin and Steven Dann, on viola.

Mr. Toskov speaks English, Spanish, Russian, German, Norwegian and Serbian.

Corey Gemmell

COREY LYLE GEMMELL: Corey is a native of Hamilton, Ontario. He has distinguished himself as a soloist and chamber musician with performances in Canada, Germany, the United States, and China. Concerto appearances include performances of such works as Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto, Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, Sibelius’ Violin Concerto, Brahms’ Violin Concerto, and Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Cello. 20th Century solos with orchestra include Mozetich’s Affairs of the Heart for Violin and Orchestra and Vaughn Williams’ The Lark Ascending.

Mr. Gemmell is concertmaster of the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra, Mississauga Symphony Orchestra, and Symphony Hamilton Orchestra. He has also performed in this role with the Boris Brott National Academy Orchestra, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir Orchestra, and Esprit Orchestra. He performs frequently with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra.

Corey Gemmell was concertmaster for the fall CBC television production of Over the Rainbow with Sir Andrew Lloyd Weber. He has performed as concertmaster for a number of musicals including recent productions of Beauty and the Beast, The Hugh Jackman Show, and Next to Normal. He has worked with such pop icons as Hugh Jackman and Chantal Kreviazuk. Mr. Gemmell was concertmaster for the 2010 production of Miss Saigon at the Four Seasons Centre and the 2009/2010 production of The Sound of Music at the Princess of Wales. He is also active in commercial studio work in Toronto and has recorded for numerous movies and commercials.

Mr. Gemmell can be heard on compact disc in recordings of sonatas by Brahms, Ravel, Robert A. Baker, David Eagle, and Hope Lee. He was one of the contributing artists to record the Royal Conservatory of Music’s violin syllabus on compact disc.

Much in demand as a teacher, Mr. Gemmell’s students have distinguished themselves at provincial and national competitions. He is presently on faculty at the Western University, the National Music Camp of Canada, and is a member of the Royal College of Examiners.