The Cathedral Bluffs Symphony Orchestra is a classical music ensemble with strong roots in the neighbourhood. They’re led by Music Director Martin MacDonald, and will kick off their 2024/25 season with a Beethoven celebration on October 5.
We caught up with MacDonald to talk about Beethoven’s 9th, and making music with a sense of community.
Martin MacDonald, conductor
Martin MacDonald was the recipient of both the Heinz Unger Award and the Jean-Marie Beaudet Award for orchestral conducting. The native of Cape Breton Island studied at McGill University and Memorial University of Newfoundland.
As a guest conductor, he has worked from sea to sea across Canada, including with the orchestras of Toronto, the National Arts Centre, Vancouver, Victoria, Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo, London, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland, among others. He often works with ballet companies, including as a Cover and Guest Conductor for the National Ballet of Canada, and with the Minnesota Ballet, Atlantic Ballet, and Halifax Dance.
He was named to the position of Music Director of Toronto’s Cathedral Bluffs Symphony Orchestra in 2022. During the summer of 2024 and continuing into the fall, he has been working as an Artistic Partner of the Brott Music Festival in Hamilton.
Martin has a close association with Symphony Nova Scotia, where he has worked as the Resident Conductor, Associate Conductor, and a regular guest conductor since 2008, leading more than 200 performances.
The Interview
The season opener for 2024/25 celebrates the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s epic 9th Symphony, the Ode to Joy.
“The choral symphony, the premiere was May of 1824, so we’re a few months off,” MacDonald notes. “Mind you, it is a very good season closer, and a great season opener.”
Beethoven’s symphony, and its message of brotherhood, have an enduring appeal that goes beyond the usual confines of a classical music audience. “It’s still resonates with people across the board, across the generations, the message of joy and hope,” he says. “For me, and for us, as an ensemble, it represents community.”
That’s the nature of the concert, not only in its musical theme, but in the realities of putting a large undertaking, which includes a large instrumental ensemble along with two choirs, on stage.
“As we’ve discovered in putting this concert together,” he adds “it really takes a village to put on a concert of this scope.”
Other than five paid positions for the string principal players, the CBSO is made up of volunteer musicians. And, music is just the end result. “Not only do they donate their music making, but they donate their time,” he says. Setting up chairs, selling tickets — it’s all handled by the musicians themselves. “It really is a big community coming together to do this.”
The full program includes:
- Joel Toews: Fanfare 401 (2015)
- Matthew Emery: Hymn of Praise (2015)
- Beethoven: Symphony No 9 in D minor Op. 125
The concert opens with a piece by the orchestra’s manager, Joel Toews, whose Fanfare 401 refers to the orchestra’s venue, located just north of Hwy 401. “The first half of the program is 12 minutes long,” he laughs. “It’s a wonderful fanfare and march.”
Along with the orchestra, performers include Pax Christi Chorale, with conductor Elaine Choi and the Voices Chamber Choir, with conductor Ron Cheung. To start the second half, MacDonald hands the baton over to Pax Christi conductor Elaine Choi to conduct Matthew Emery’s Hymn of Praise. “I could think of no better way of community music-making,” he says.
“Two very enthusiastic choirs. They just jumped to be a part of it,” Martin says. He also mentions the four soloists, two familiar to CSBO audiences and two newcomers. The four choral soloists include Rachel Krehm (soprano), Danielle MacMillan (mezzo-soprano); Daeyvd Pepper (tenor), and Alex Halliday (bass-baritone).
“It’s a real love affair all around.”
CSBO: Music & Community
It’s in keeping with his experiences with CSBO in general. “I came on board with this orchestra in January 2022,” he recalls. That makes 2024/25 his third full season with the ensemble.
After his education, then guesting across the country and beyond, working with a community orchestra wasn’t necessarily on MacDonald’s radar. “Something just spoke to me about the position,” he says. During the audition process, his mother passed away, meaning rescheduling around that and the pandemic lockdowns. “I’m so glad that they found a way for it to work,” he says.
“They’re really all wonderful musicians. They’re also just really lovely people, and we connected right away. I found a lot of joy in it,” he adds.
“So many of them have been playing together since the orchestra’s inception in the mid-80s,” he says. It’s the dedication of the musicians to work together to create music, and strive to produce a memorable performance, that makes it a special experience. “This orchestra works very hard,” he says. That includes working on phrasing and orchestral colours, along with putting chairs away after rehearsal.
“One of the joys of this orchestra is that we get along so, so well,” he says. “They’re there because they absolutely love to play.” The first concert’s focus is also welcome territory. “This orchestra plays Beethoven particularly well.” Working on the details is part of the fun of perfecting the piece. “It’s a nice feeling that we can really dive into the nitty gritty,” he says. “I’m very proud of the orchestra.”
The entire organization, as he notes, is virtually entirely led by musicians, including the board of directors and other administrative functions.
“It really is, in so many ways, a perfect example of a community organization working together.”
For the organization, success speaks for itself. “They placed a lot of trust in me,” he says. It’s resulted in strong programming and outreach. “Those risks have all paid off. He reports that ticket sales are doing well, and building steadily — even to beyond pre-pandemic rates. “We’ve got a nice upwards slope.”
“We’ve done some pretty ambitious programming. We’ve got a big season ahead of us.”
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