96.3FM Interview with Dr. Lisa Tahara and Ronald Royer by Daniel Vnukowski

October 31, 2022 — SPO Music Director & Conductor, Ronald Royer, along with our Sat-Nov-5 guest pianist, Dr. Lisa Tahara, were interviewed by The New Classical 96.3FM Host, Daniel Vnukowski.  The interview aired at 2 pm on the 31st, but can be heard again via this link: http://classicalfm.ca/station-blog/2022/11/01/ronald-royer-and-dr-lisa-tahara-join-classical-jukebox/.  An excellent interview by all!!  Apologies we couldn’t give more notice prior to the interview, but it was all done quickly, thanks to the 96.3FM team.  More interviews coming soon — so stay tuned!

Re-stream of our Sep-24 concert a success!

The SPO successfully re-streamed our live concert, “Mixing It Up!”, performed on Saturday, September 24, to Facebook and YouTube on Saturday, October 29, 2022.  Missed it?   Don’t worry, the stream is available on our YouTube channel < https://www.youtube.com/user/SPOGreatMusic > in our 2022/2023 Playlist.  It will be our featured video for at least the next two weeks.  Watch it again (and again) at your convenience!

Yes, We Had Streaming Issues Sep-24

Hello, SPO Fans!   YES — we had unanticipated streaming issues for our September 24th concert, “Mixing It Up!”.   This was our first SPO live-streamed concert and we definitely had a few unexpected bumps in the road.  While the stream was available to watch via Facebook later that evening (thank you to Tanya Charles Iveniuk who shared the link on our Facebook page), many of you may have already switched to something else.  We are planning to re-stream this concert in full on our Facebook and YouTube pages around mid-October 2022. Check back in with our homepage or our Facebook page for further updates once we’ve worked out the kinks!  We apologize to you for any inconvenience (or disappointment), and to our concert co-producers The Dancing Damsels, but look forward to offering this stream to all of you who missed out that evening — including my parents, who are in another part of Ontario.  — Devin Scott, Executive Director

Flute Festival Opening Night Zoom Party was AMAZING!

February 4, 2022 — Last evening, the SPO and Flute 360 Podcast with Dr. Heidi Kay Begay officially launched the Flute Music by Women Composers: An International Online Festival with a fantastic Zoom meeting, where everyone had the chance to meet the Festival organizers, to meet composers and performers, and have a really excellent open dialogue of celebration. If you love the flute, you won’t want to miss any of this February’s content! Click https://www.spo.ca/flute-music-by-women-composers-festival-2022/ for full access now!

Flute Music by Women Composers Festival Now Playing!

February 4, 2022 — The FLUTE MUSIC BY WOMEN COMPOSERS: An International Online Festival is now on, with 7 Podcast Episodes posted, and the first set of four videos released just today! Click https://www.spo.ca/flute-music-by-women-composers-festival-2022/ to check out the videos, podcasts, composer and performer bios, plus links, bonus information, and much more! This festival is presented by the SPO and Flute 360 Podcast hosted by Dr. Heida Kay Begay.

New Generation Composers Workshop application now available!

The Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra is pleased to announce that our 2021/2022 New Generation Composers Workshop application is now available to download (PDF).

If you would like experience and mentoring to help you compose for a string quartet, this is a great opportunity.

Deadline to apply is Wednesday, December 15, 2021. 

If you require more information, please send an email (Subject: New Gen 2022) to spo@spo.ca.  One of our team will respond as quickly as possible.

SPO Wins JOHN BECKWITH AWARD!!!

The Canadian Music Centre (Ontario branch) has announced the winners of the 2021 Beckwith Award. And your SPO has been selected as a WINNER!

Congratulations to all the winners, including music educators Bernie Andrews, Catherine Kloepfer, and Laura Lee Matthie, music ensemble the Kingston Symphony, and the presenter NUMUS.

The process of making and sharing music connects so many communities, and CMC Ontario is inspired by the work of the 2021 award winners who embrace this role in their work. These individuals and organizations explore new models for career development among artists, unique approaches to learning and self-expression, and programs that invite in a variety of audiences.

The Beckwith Award is named for composer John Beckwith—who just celebrated his 94th birthday. Beckwith is one of the founding members of Canadian Music Centre, an ardent supporter of the organization, and a champion of contemporary Canadian music. We feel the enthusiasm that Beckwith shares with the CMC is reflected in the incredible work of the 2021 winners. View all the details here.

Toronto Choral Society’s New Chanukah Video!

We just posted a fantastic new video from our friends at the Toronto Choral Society, “Sim Shalom”.

You can watch it right now on our YouTube Channel — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZO6ZkE_TMUY&list=PLnNaA-kDVr4LALJk52EQxhnDaKEvA7Prl&index=4.

An amazing performance from their ensemble and Cantorial Soloist, Geoffrey Butler. Also, an amazing video showing so many of the singers. Just great!!!!