{"id":112189,"date":"2025-02-26T13:21:19","date_gmt":"2025-02-26T18:21:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=112189"},"modified":"2025-02-26T13:21:19","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T18:21:19","slug":"preview-apocryphonia-presents-brews-beauties-brawlers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/02\/26\/preview-apocryphonia-presents-brews-beauties-brawlers\/","title":{"rendered":"PREVIEW | Apocryphonia Presents: Brews, Beauties & Brawlers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"L-R:
L-R: Composers Samuel Coleridge-Taylor; Henry Purcell; Charles Villiers Standford; Ralph Vaughan Williams (Public domain images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Musical explorers Apocryphonia will present a mix of classical music and punk sensibilities for their next concert, titled Brews, Beauties & Brawlers. The program features works by Stanford, Coleridge-Taylor and Vaughan Williams, and it takes place March 1 at St. Olave\u2019s Anglican Church in the city\u2019s west end.<\/p>\n

The vocal music of the 20th century and 1980s punk aesthetics will be on display, including songs about drinking, wedding brawls and more.<\/p>\n

The Apocryphonia Concert Series derives its names from Apocryphus, meaning secret, or non-canonical, taken from the Greek adjective \u1f00\u03c0\u03cc\u03ba\u03c1\u03c5\u03c6\u03bf\u03c2 (apokryphos), meaning obscure.<\/p>\n

The Music<\/h2>\n

Charles Villiers Stanford<\/h3>\n

Stanford\u2019s choral ballad Phaudrig Crohoore is the centrepiece of the program, and it epitomizes the spirit of punk, albeit in 1896 form. The epic poem by Sheridan Le Fanu tells the tale of a feisty 7-ft tall Irishman who crashes a wedding in the hopes of eloping with his true love. He throws a few punches, and runs off later, so the story goes. The last line reads, ‘So he took a good pike for Phaudrig was great, An\u2019 he fought, an\u2019 he died in the year ’98’. Stanford, a composer in the late romantic style, died in 1924, making this a bit belated centenary of his death.<\/p>\n

The concert is bookended by Stanford and Le Fanu\u2019s work. Excerpts from their opera Shamus O\u2019Brien, which tells the story of the titular character, hunted by the hated English during the Irish Rebellion of 1798.<\/p>\n

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor<\/h3>\n

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and Ralph Vaughan Williams were both students of Stanford. Both also developed into their own distinctive style. 2025 is Coleridge-Taylor\u2019s 150th birthday year. Coleridge Taylor\u2019s Valse Suite for piano \u201cThree-Fours\u201d is a showcase for virtuosic piano playing. The concert also features the Canadian Premiere of his Three Songs of Heine.<\/p>\n

Ralph Vaughan Williams<\/h3>\n

The program includes drinking songs from Vaughan Williams\u2019 Shakespearean opera Sir John in Love. The composer himself wrote the libretto based on the story of The Merry Wives of Windsor, along wth other texts by Ben Jonson and other Elizabethans. It premiered in 1929.<\/p>\n

Henry Purcell<\/h3>\n

Purcell, as it turns out, wrote a number of songs with drinking as their theme, including \u201cTis Wine Was Made To Rule the Day\u201d. The ensemble will perform a few, along with songs about the impossible quest to find love.<\/p>\n

\"L-R:
L-R: Musicians\/vocalists: Mairi Demings; Alessia Naccarato; Alexander Cappellazzo; David Walsh; Gabriel Sanchez Ortegas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Performers<\/h2>\n

Tenor Alexander Cappellazzo<\/h3>\n

Alexander Cappellazzo, Apocryphonia\u2019s founder, has always looked for the original creative spark of classical music. Apocryphonia brings together local musicians and audiences to enjoy works that are rarely performed, and celebrate their unique qualities.<\/p>\n

Alexander routinely performs with companies across Canada including: 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.<\/p>\n

Thera Barclay, soprano<\/h3>\n

Barclay, and Ottawa native, has performed across North America and Europe, including recent engagements as Gretel (Hansel and Gretel), Flora (The Turn of the Screw), Marie (La fille du r\u00e9giment), Marzelline (Fidelio), and Barbarina (The Marriage of Figaro), among others. She holds an Artist Diploma from The Glenn Gould School, a Master of Music in Opera from The University of British Columbia, and an Honours Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Wilfrid Laurier University.<\/p>\n

Alessia Naccarato, Mezzo-Soprano<\/h3>\n

Italian-Canadian mezzo-soprano Alessia Naccarato studied voice performance, and graduated from the Artist Masters at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, UK. She also earned a BFA in Voice Performance from York University, followed by a MMus in Opera from the University of Toronto. Her operatic repertoire includes a variety of roles, and she has worked with The London Contemporary Orchestra, Wigmore Hall, Opera in Concert, The Barbican Centre, and Spectra Ensemble, among others.<\/p>\n

Lucia Santilly, soprano<\/h3>\n

Based in Toronto, Lucia\u2019s recent roles include Gretel from Humperdinck’s Hansel und Gretel with UWO opera, Blanche in Poulenc’s Dialogue of the Carmelites with SOLT, and Canadian Debut of Raquel in Jacinto Guerrero’s operetta El hu\u00e9sped del sevillano with the Toronto Operetta Theatre. She also performs as a voice-over artist, and in musical theatre productions, including an Ontario-wide theatre tour with Education Arts Canada.<\/p>\n

Grace Quinsey, soprano<\/h3>\n

Soprano Grace Quinsey is from Windsor, Ontario. Her performances have been noted for their dramatic flair along with her vocal abilities. Recent roles include Giannetta in Opera York\u2019s L\u2019elisir d\u2019amore, as Ma\u0159enka in Prodan\u00e1 nev\u011bsta and Terinka in Jakob\u00edn in Toronto\u2019s Czech Music Festival, and as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro with the Toronto Concert Orchestra, among many others.<\/p>\n

\"L-R:
L-R: Musicians\/vocalists: Grace Quinsey; Jean-Paul Feo; John Holland; Lillian Brooks; Lucia Santilly<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

M\u00e1iri Demings, mezzo-soprano<\/h3>\n

From Springhill, Nova Scotia, M\u00e1iri holds a Bachelor of Music from Acadia University and a Masters of Music from the University of Western Ontario. Her resume include work as a soloist and in operatic performance. She\u2019s performed in Good Mess Opera Theatre: A Good Haunting Volume 2, Tapestry Opera Songbook XII, Slow Rise Music: Fair Use, Acadia Performing Arts Series Tom Regan Memorial Concert, among others. Currently based in Toronto, she is a frequent performer with Voicebox: Opera in Concert and Toronto Operetta Thetare. She also performs with pianist Zain Solinski in the contemporary duo mezzopiano.<\/p>\n

Lillian Brooks, mezzo-soprano<\/h3>\n

Lillian made her professional debut in 2015 with Chorus Niagara performing Mozart\u2019s Requiem, and has often performed oratorio and concert work in addition to operatic roles, including peformances in Handel\u2019s Messiah, Beethoven\u2019s Missa Solemnis, Bach\u2019s St John Passion and St Matthew Passion, Vivaldi\u2019s Gloria, Durufle\u2019s Requiem, and Mahler\u2019s Das Lied von der Erde and R\u00fcckert Lieder, among others. She is a graduate of York University, and received her Artist Diploma in Vocal Performance from the Glenn Gould School.<\/p>\n

Catharin Carew, mezzo-soprano<\/h3>\n

Canadian Catharin Carew holds Masters of Music in Vocal Performance both from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London England and McGill University. She continues to study vocal pedagogy at the University of Toronto, where she earned her undergraduate degree. Catharin pursues a career as both classical soloist and workshop clinician. Recent roles include Judith in Bluebeard’s Castle with Opera Five, the Mezzo in Georges Aperghis’ Sextour: L’origine des esp\u00e8ces in Montreal’s MusiMars, and previous roles include premiering the role of Maeve in Ana Sokolovic\u2019s The Midnight Court at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden with Queen of Puddings Music Theatre.<\/p>\n

David Walsh, tenor<\/h3>\n

Toronto native David Walsh recently finished his Diploma of Opera Performance at the University of Toronto with Honours. During the 2024\/25 season, performed as the Tenor Soloist for Chorus Niagara\u2019s Messiah. Other recent roles include Nemorino in North York Concert Orchestra\u2019s production of Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love, as well as Conception in a new production with new libretto of Ravel’s A Spanish Hour in Vancouver.<\/p>\n

William Salinas-Crosby, tenor<\/h3>\n

Based in Toronto, William Salinas-Crosby is currently completing his studies in Voice Performance at the University of Toronto. Recent performances include appearances with the Toronto Consort, HarbourVOICES Festival, Carmina Burana with Pax Christi Chorale and North York Concert Orchestra, and \u201cAnd Still We Sing\u201d Missa Afro-Brasileira as part of Luminato Festival 2024.<\/p>\n

\"L-R:
L-R: Musicians\/vocalists: Martin Gomes; Moji Abella; Thera Barclay; William Salinas-Crosby; Narmina Afandiyeva<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jean-Paul Feo, tenor<\/h3>\n

Organist, singer, and early musician Jean-Paul Feo is based in Toronto. He studied at St. Michael’s Choir School. As a soloist, Jean-Paul has given numerous recitals across the city, including Grace Church-on-the-Hill, the Cathedral Church of St. James, and St. Michael’s Cathedral-Basilica.<\/p>\n

John Holland, bass<\/h3>\n

Czech-Canadian Bass-Baritone John Holland won a JUNO Award in 2020 for a recording of Handel\u2019s Dixit Dominus. He has carved a diverse performing career of opera, art song and oratorio. His performances include Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro at theMozarteum in Salzburg, Leporello in Don Giovanni at the Estates Theatre in Prague, Kecal in The Bartered Bride, Purkrabi in Dvo\u0159\u00e1k\u2019s Jakob\u00edn, and recently as Belcore in L\u2019Elisir d\u2019amore. Dr. Holland completed his PhD in Musicology in 2018, his research focused on the study of Czech Opera, Art Song, and Choral Works, and has published a book on the subject.<\/p>\n

Moji Abella, bass<\/h3>\n

Emerging bass-baritone Moji Abella graduated with a Bachelor\u2019s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, then pursued a Bachelor\u2019s degree in Music, graduating Magna Cum Laude. He has sung and toured with a variety of choral groups.<\/p>\n

Martin Gomes, bass<\/h3>\n

Based in downtown Toronto, Martin Gomes (He\/They) is an Afro\/Latino, queer writer and composer. He works as an artist facilitator teaching poetry and beatboxing for a variety of organizations. Martin has performed with Opera Atelier, CBC, Sony, Soho House, The Harbourfront Centre, Nuit Blanche, TOLive, and Treemonisha, among others.<\/p>\n

Gabriel Sanchez-Ortega, bass<\/h3>\n

Montreal native Gabriel Sanchez-Ortega earned a performance diploma in voice from The Glenn Gould School., where he was the recipient of the Ihnatowycz Emerging Artist Scholarship. He has performed in a number of operas for the Glenn Gould School Opera, The Aspen Opera Centre, The Mississauga Symphony Orchestra, Opera York, and Toronto City Opera. He has recently joined The Canadian Opera Company chorus for their 2024\/2025 season.<\/p>\n

Narmina Afandiyeva, piano<\/h3>\n

Narmina is a graduate of the Baku Music Academy (Azerbaijan) and the University of Toronto, Faculty of Music. She has devoted her performance practice to vocal and instrumental music. Narmina is an in demand collaborative artist, and recent project include Cherubini\u2019s M\u00e9d\u00e9e (Voicebox Opera in Concert), Barber\u2019s A Hand of Bridge, Puccini\u2019s Il Tabarro (OperaFest), and many chamber recitals. In June 2022 and 2023 Narmina was a Faculty member in the La Roche d\u2019Hys: Domaine des Arts (Burgundy, France) working with young singers.<\/p>\n