{"id":106817,"date":"2024-08-12T10:49:41","date_gmt":"2024-08-12T14:49:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=106817"},"modified":"2024-08-12T10:49:41","modified_gmt":"2024-08-12T14:49:41","slug":"critics-picks-classical-music-events-you-absolutely-need-to-see-this-week-august-12-august-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2024\/08\/12\/critics-picks-classical-music-events-you-absolutely-need-to-see-this-week-august-12-august-18\/","title":{"rendered":"CRITIC\u2019S PICKS | Classical Music Events You Absolutely Need To See This Week: August 12 \u2013 August 18"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"L-R
L-R (clockwise): Vocalist Idina Menzel (Photo courtesy of the artist); Blythwood Winds (Photo: Terry Lim); Pianist\/composer Hilario Duran (Photo: Olivia Cardinali)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is a list of concerts we are attending, wishing we could attend, or thinking about attending between August 12 and August 18, 2024. For more of what\u2019s happening around Toronto, visit our calendar here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Music Mondays: \u062f\u0652\u06cc\u064e\u0627\u0631 \u2014 Diar, featuring Hinad Alshuhuf (oud)<\/h3>\n

Monday, August 12, Noon
\nChurch of the Holy Trinity, 19 Trinity Sq., PWYC<\/p>\n

Tarek Ghriri (guitar) and Nour KDN (percussion), with guest Hinad Alshuhuf (oud), will present a lovely Monday break at the Church of Holy Trinity, fusing Syrian and Arabic tradition with Flamenco. In Toronto, we are blessed with easy accessibility and plenty of opportunity to hear how people\u2019s lives\u2014 including music \u2014 extend beyond the standard, and the limitations of such standards. Come with an open ear for driving rhythms and rich harmony. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Idina Menzel: Take Me or Leave Me<\/h3>\n

Tuesday, August 12, 8 p.m.
\nMassey Hall. $63. 10+<\/p>\n

Idina Menzel, the Queen of Broadway, is singing one night in Toronto at the Massey Hall as part of her Take Me or Leave Me tour. Well-known for her debut as Maureen Johnson in The Rent, Elphaba in Wicked, and Elsa for Disney\u2019s Frozen (whether for good, or for bad, \u2018Let It Go\u2019 certainly made a mark in our ears), this would be a lovely chance to hear Idina sing her hits. Since school\u2019s out, bring all your Elsa fans and have a grand night out. Tickets are selling fast! Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

RAW Taiko: Bang On!<\/h3>\n

Saturday, August 17, 8 p.m.
\nFactory Theatre, 125 Bathurst St. $25+<\/p>\n

For the fourth year of the Toronto Taiko Festival, August 16 \u2013 18 at the Factory Theatre, the drummers gather to take a closer look into the meaning of community, community building, and the role of an individual when faced with opposition\/oppression. We often wish to make art a completely separate experience from political and\/or communal contexts \u2014 and with commonly experienced drastic escalation through faceless accusations and \u2018conspiracies,\u2019 that is certainly an easier way out. However, isn\u2019t the whole point of art to reflect and challenge ourselves in real life? The TTF\u2019s big concert on Saturday evening will feature many groups, drawing their strength from one another, creating hearty resonance through everyone in the hall. Accommodation for d\/Deaf and Hard of Hearing people is available for the Bang On! concert. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Drom Taverna: Forr\u00f3 de Man\u00e9<\/h3>\n

Saturday, August 17, 8 p.m.
\nDrom Taverna, 458 Queen St. W., $17+<\/p>\n

Forr\u00f3 de Man\u00e9 returns to Toronto this Saturday. Originating from the Northeastern Region of Brazil, Forr\u00f3 \u2014 an amalgamation of music and dance \u2014 is one of the most popular social dances of Brazil. Its initial instrumentation involved three instruments: an Accordion, a bass drum, and a triangle. The rhythm sets of forr\u00f3, bai\u00e3o, xote, xaxado or xamego, are quite infectious. You may want to get up and join the forrozeiros \u2014 and, please do! If the night isn\u2019t enough to scratch your itch, do return to Drom on the Sunday, where the weekly summer Sunday Forr\u00f3 session starts at 2 p.m, with Maria & the Band. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Ukrainian Art Song Project: Summer Institute 2024: Artists In Performance<\/h3>\n

Sunday, August 18, 3 p.m.
\nTemerty Theatre, Royal Conservatory of Music. $25+<\/p>\n

For the sixth annual Ukrainian Art Song Project Summer Institute, eight singers and a pianist have gathered in Toronto for an intense study of Ukrainian Art Song. Here is our Preview of the project<\/a><\/strong>. The current international political climate is a burning reminder to all of us, especially for the majority of Canadians who may have never experienced the difficulty of war, of how important it is to continue to protect and foster cultural identity, not to fuel jingoistic nationalism, but to build honest respect and empathy across the borders. Come with awareness, but really, enjoy the beauty of this particular repertoire in the easy-going Sunday afternoon. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Music at Mount Pleasant: Blythwood + 1<\/h3>\n

Sunday, August 18, 3:30 p.m.
\nMount Pleasant Cemetary, 375 Mount Pleasant Road, free.<\/p>\n

This is a rich woodwind ensemble program, with special guest Justin Massey, on alto saxophone. A typical woodwind quintet consists of oboe, flute, clarinet, bassoon, and horn, and the addition of saxophone promises richer contrasts and emotional range. Woodwind chamber music, despite its delicate beauty, somehow remains elusive to the general public \u2014 this would be a great way to hear a wide variety of works, ranging from French composer Henri Tomasi, to Canadian composers John Estacio and Robert Lemay, American flute\/composer genius Valerie Coleman, and a lesser-known French women composer Louise-Marie Simon (pen name Claude Arrieu). Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Markham Jazz Festival: Hilario Duran Big Band<\/h3>\n

Sunday, August 18, 5:30 p.m.
\nMillenium Bandstand Stage, free.<\/p>\n

The annual Markham Jazz Festival returns this weekend at Unionville, 16 \u2013 18 August. The list of artists is impressive, and the festival\u2019s closer show will be with Hilario Duran and his big band. Duran wears many hats \u2014 pianist, composer\/arranger, music director, producer \u2014 the man has overflowing talent. So come out and experience the beautiful energy from Duran and his Latin Jazz Big Band. If you are travelling from downtown, you can take the GO to Unionville GO station, and link up with the shuttle bus, 6 \u2013 11 p.m. Another shuttle route will operate from the Markham Pan Am Centre as well. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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\nHERE<\/a>.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Classical music and opera events in Toronto for the week of August 12 to 18, 2024. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":106821,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[40967,10,76,19,3895,32,43,63,72],"tags":[41406,5540],"yst_prominent_words":[21730,19834,19833],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/08\/Copy-of-CRITICS-PICKS-64.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-rMR","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106817"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/62"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106817"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106817\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":106823,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106817\/revisions\/106823"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/106821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106817"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=106817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}