Ludwig van Toronto

PREVIEW | Apocryphonia & The Rezonance Baroque Ensemble Present The Schobertiade

Anya Wassenberg
L-R: Musicians Michelle Odorico (Photo courtesy of the artist); Laura Dean Jones (Photo courtesy of the artist); Alexander Cappellazzo (Photo courtesy of the artist); Andrea Botticelli (Photo courtesy of the artist); Rezan Onen-Lapointe (Photo: Bo Huang)
L-R: Michelle Odorico (Photo courtesy of the artist); Laura Dean Jones (Photo courtesy of the artist); Alexander Cappellazzo (Photo courtesy of the artist); Andrea Botticelli (Photo courtesy of the artist); Rezan Onen-Lapointe (Photo: Bo Huang)

The Schobertiade, a chamber concert presented by Apocryphonia in partnership with the Rezonance Baroque Ensemble, is not a typo. With, as the poster announces, sonatas, strings, fortepiano, and possibly poisonous mushrooms, the concert takes place June 14 in Toronto, and features sonatas by Johann Schobert, Giuseppe Agus, Paul Constantinescu, and Ralph Vaughan Williams, among other rarely heard gems.

It’s Apocryphonia’s mission to spotlight under-programmed and forgotten works from across the centuries. Performers include Andrea Botticelli on the fortepiano, violinists Rezan Onen-Lapointe and Michelle Odorico, cellist Laura Jones, and tenor Alexander Cappellazzo.

The Music

The Schobertiade is programmed around the keyboard sonatas of 18th Century composer Johann Schobert. They’ll be performed on period string instruments, along with a rare Kenneth Bakeman fortepiano.

Born in Germany, Johann Schobert moved to Paris to become part of the household of Louis François I de Bourbon, prince de Conti. There, he wrote several works until his untimely death by ingesting poisonous mushrooms – fungi he had insisted were safe. After eating a soup he’d prepared, he, his wife, all his children except for one, and the doctor who’d told him they were safe, died. While he’s largely unknown today, in his era, he was an inspiration to a young Mozart, spanning the transition from the Late Baroque to Early Classical eras.

London-based Italian composer Giuseppe Agus was a contemporary of Schobert’s. As an artist, he went beyond the boundaries of the time, and achieved success in England. Born in Cagliari, his father was a musician in the Chapel of Cagliari, and he began his studies on the violin at age 8. After a time of relative obscurity, he reemerged in London in 1750, where he collaborated with the likes of Handel and Johann Christian Bach.

British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams was born in 1872, and is considered one of the masters of the symphony of the 20th century. At the age of three, his father died, and Williams would go on to study at the Royal College of Music and Trinity College, Cambridge. He’s become one of England’s favourite composers, with works that are widely performed. He was one of the first to travel in order to collect folk melodies, which inform his Merciless Beauty, set to the words of poet Geoffrey Chaucer.

Paul Constantinescu (1909 – 1963) was a Romanian composer, and a professor at the Bucharest Conservatory. He was fascinated by Byzantine folk melodies, and became an enthusiastic researcher, as well as using them in his compositions. He studied at the Bucharest Conservatory, and in Vienna under Joseph Marx.

L-R: Composers Ralph Vaughan Williams; Paul Constantinescu; manuscript copy by Giuseppe Agus; Johann Schobert (Public domain images)

The Program:

The fortepiano, designed by Kenneth Bakeman, is one of only 42 replicas produced of a Viennese Walter fortepiano from ca. 1802. The fortepiano has a lighter sound than the modern piano, allowing for harmonic subtleties to be heard, particularly in lower registers.

The Performers

Andrea Botticelli, fortepiano

Canadian pianist Andrea Botticelli combines historical research with her musical artistry. Along with the fortepiano, she performs on the clavichord, harpsichord, and contemporary piano in a career that has taken her across North America and Europe. While studying as a doctoral student at the University of Toronto, Andrea studied fortepiano performance as an exchange student at McGill University. She is an avid educator as well as performer, and taught at the Glenn Gould School, the Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy of the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), and the Oscar Peterson School of Music for 13 years before opening a private teaching studio.

Rezan Onen-Lapointe, violin

Rezan Onen-Lapointe is a freelance specialist in historical violin performance. She is the founder and artistic director of Rezonance Baroque Ensemble, which released its debut album James Oswald: Airs for the Seasons in May 2023 on Leaf Music. Rezan earned a Bachelor of Education from the University of Toronto (OISE), and is an avid educator and coach, currently with a private violin studio. She is a regular performer with Aradia Ensemble. The Ensemble has recorded two albums on the Naxos label, including the JUNO-nominated Vivaldi’s Sacred Music, vol. 4.

Michelle Odorico, violin

Michelle Odorico was born in Pickering Ontario. After studies with a Suzuki teacher, she attended the Young Artist Performance Academy at the Glenn Gould School, and was a member of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra during her high school years. She earned her Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from the University of Ottawa, followed by a Masters of Music at the University of Toronto specializing in Baroque violin under Tafelmusik’s late musical director, Jeanne Lamon. Michelle freelances with various ensembles in Toronto, including Tafelmusik and Opera Atelier.

Laura Jones, cello

Laura Jones performs on the modern cello, historical cello, and viola da gamba. She is a longstanding core member of the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, along with performing as the cellist of the Windermere String Quartet and a founding member of Nota Bene Baroque Players. She is also the cellist and arranger for the Talisker Players, and in that capacity has worked with some of Canada’s most renowned singers.

Alexander Cappellazzo, tenor

Alex holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Vocal Performance and Opera from Montreal’s McGill University and is a member of the Ralph Vaughan Williams Society. In 2022, he founded Apocryphonia and the Diapente Quintet, and has produced nine concerts since then. As a performer, he has sung 32 different roles with companies that include VOICEBOX: Opera In Concert, Toronto City Opera, Toronto Operetta Theatre, Opera By Request, OperOttawa, Mississauga Symphony Orchestra, the Ashkenaz Festival and choirs including the Trinity Bach Project, Oakville Choral Society, Jubilate Singers, Brott Music Festival, and Metropolitan United Church.

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