{"id":68308,"date":"2020-06-11T14:15:24","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T18:15:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=68308"},"modified":"2020-06-12T09:35:30","modified_gmt":"2020-06-12T13:35:30","slug":"feature-the-national-youth-orchestra-of-canada-canadas-orchestra-career-launch-pad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2020\/06\/11\/feature-the-national-youth-orchestra-of-canada-canadas-orchestra-career-launch-pad\/","title":{"rendered":"FEATURE | The National Youth Orchestra Of Canada: Canada\u2019s Orchestra Career Launch Pad"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The
The National Youth Orchestra of Canada<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

W<\/span>e often look back into youthful summer days with memories of slow daydreams extending right into the late nights with barely set sun, time relaxed and soaked with unstructured freedom. However, for the past 60 years, summer with National Youth Orchestra of Canada meant the polar opposite \u2014 a calendar full of bursting schedules and an annual grand orchestral tour, squeezing in practice whenever one can, with sleep that is way too short. This special program has been the centre of so many Canadian orchestral musicians\u2019 lives, yet many have yet to hear about it. What is NYO Canada and how has it shaped our national and individual identities in Canadian classical music?<\/p>\n

Gathering budding musicians from age 16-28 across the nation, National Youth Orchestra of Canada<\/a><\/span> (NYO Canada), is one of our best national nurturing programs available for young Canadians.<\/p>\n

The competition is fierce \u2014 in recent sessions, nearly 100 musicians (the exact numbers vary but the minimum is set at 92 members) were chosen from 500+ applications, for multi-dimensional orchestral training as documented in That Higher Level<\/a><\/span> (2018, directed by John Bolton, for the National Film Board).<\/p>\n

Founded in 1960 by Walter Susskind<\/a><\/span> (1913-1980), the program initially focused on young musicians exploring symphonic program, with a short concert tour within selected regions of Canada. Early members remember that certain difficult works were presented only at the very final concert. The Short Sweet Summer<\/a><\/span> (1963, produced by Norman Campbell), an in-depth CBC documentary of the 1963 session gives a lovely insight to NYOC\u2019s early days.<\/p>\n

Since then, NYO Canada has morphed into a comprehensive program, covering various subjects, including a chamber music program, orchestra-specific topics from business skills to audition preparation, and various health-related topics including physical and mental wellness programs, in addition to traditional training and the presentation of large-scale symphonic works. NYOC records at least one full length album every year, available through SoundCloud<\/a><\/span>, and has been nominated for a Juno (Mahler\u2019s 6th Symphony<\/em> and Stravinsky\u2019s Rite of Spring<\/em>, 2009).<\/p>\n

\"NYO
NYO Canada, Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound. (Photo: Mark Rash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

NYO Canada programs two large orchestral works, a concerto tied to the Michael Measure Prize, and one Canadian annual commission<\/a><\/span> through a partnership with SOCAN; shorter works are then selected to complement these core selections. Past favourites include works by Mahler, Ravel, Stravinsky and Strauss, giving participants an experience of some of the richest works in the standard orchestral repertoire.<\/p>\n

NYO Canada covers most of the costs related to the program (food and housing at the training location, and travel and accommodation during the tour), which is a great relief to the young musicians, as higher music training bills can adds up fast \u2014 from accessing and maintaining appropriate instruments to insurances, travelling, lessons, and often even to renting an appropriate practice space. The billing list is endless.<\/p>\n

The musicians are responsible for their travel cost to\/from the session, and food costs during the tour.To help cover these costs, a $1,200 Achievement Award is given to members after successful completion of the program. There are also additional prizes<\/a><\/span>. the Canada Council for the Arts Michael Measures Prize, and NYO Canada Award of Excellence.<\/p>\n

The annual audition portal is open from October to the end of January with a varying fee scale. Audition repertoire<\/a><\/span> is specified per instrument, and applicants upload their video audition through YouTube. NYO Canada requires the auditionees to play without accompaniment, and that all materials should be played in the order specified, in a single take.<\/p>\n

When the selected works have been rehearsed and refined, the musicians present the program to the general public in a tour (in the early days, certain works \u2014 particularly difficult works \u2014 were presented only once, at the final concert). This is significant, as it gives individuals an opportunity to overcome the challenges unique to live performances, including performance anxiety, acoustic variations and other logistical changes, as well as giving the orchestra an opportunity to refine itself as an ensemble.<\/p>\n

So far, the largest Canadian tour was the 2017 Edges of Canada Tour. As part of Canada’s sesquicentennial signature event, NYO Canada toured Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Charlottetown, Halifax, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Whitehorse, Nanaimo and Vancouver over 25 days.<\/p>\n

The first international tour was in 1996 (Japan), and there were numerous visits to the United States (2008, 2011 and 2012). In 2013, selected 2012 participants toured to India for an international collaboration, and the most recent overseas touring regimen started in 2016 to Portugal, 2018 to Germany and Scotland, and in 2019, the Odyssey Tour<\/a><\/span> to Spain, alongside hosting the European Union Youth Orchestra in Canada for the Frenergy Tour<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n

\"NYO
NYO Canada, Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound. (Photo: Mark Rash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jonathan Welmers \u2013 Director of Tours and Production<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A<\/span>t the heart of this huge logistical puzzle is Jonathan Welmers, Director of Tours and Production, working for NYO Canada since late 2007. For the European portion of last year\u2019s tour, Jonathan organized 101 seat bookings and over 122 check-in instruments and equipment (and an additional 75 instruments as hand luggage \u2014 this is \u2018per leg\u2019 of the journey \u2014 as well as having a key role in curating 9 days of Canadian experience for the 35 visiting EUYO members for Frenergy. Jonathan\u2019s dedication \u2014 including learning everyone\u2019s name for every session \u2014 is much appreciated and loved by all participants.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe role I am currently in has sort of morphed from its original place of being a real logistics person (tour manager),\u201d says Jonathan. \u201cWhen I originally came to the job, I was coming from a production background doing indie rock shows around Toronto. It was a company that attempted to give a leg up to musicians who couldn\u2019t go out and rent a bar and sort of hedged the risk across multiple bands. The company did shows initially just in Toronto, then expanded to Ontario, Canada, and then the US over a period of years. I saw the (NYO Canada) job listed on work in culture and applied… My classical background was nil at that time, but I managed to convince the organization that learning an orchestral plot would be easy enough to learn, but that relationship building and an agility of thinking was perhaps ultimately [what] would make someone good at the job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Working closely with both staff and participants, Jonathan is keenly aware of the importance of the program and the subsequent adaptation needs for the program. \u201cI was never good enough to get into a program like NYO, so getting to experience it on the other side is a privilege,\u201d says Jonathan. Seeing the participants\u2019 passion up close, year after year, Jonathan is motivated to prove that, \u201cThe hype was worth it, so to speak.\u201d A typical day can include a full concert day (10 a.m.-11.30 p.m.) in Ottawa, then loading the truck and driving through the night (11.30 p.m.-4 a.m.) to Toronto, for the load to be transferred from Toronto to Berlin, just in time for a rehearsal and a concert in Berlin.<\/p>\n

He considers NYO Canada as a life-changing experience, \u201c\u2026not because of anything I think per se, but because every single person I\u2019ve spoken to years and decades after their NYO experience tell me that.\u201d He encourages young musicians to keep auditioning, even if one does not get in for many years. \u201cI know players who failed many times and then got in. I\u2019ve seen players go from the #1 auditionee one year, to #6 the next year, not because they got worse, but others got better. NYO is a real meritocracy, and as such, you always have a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The NYOC \u2013 A Big Part of Canada\u2019s Orchestral Fabric<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\"Clockwise
Clockwise from Top Left: Frank and Dan Morphy \u2014\u00a0TORQ Percussion Quartet in 2015 NYOC Residency (Courtesy of artist), Gregory Irvine \u2014\u00a0Adrian Irvine in 2013 NYOC Chamber Institute (Adrian Irvine, Madeline Hocking, Elliot McMurchy, Avery Bonair-Cyrus) (Courtesy of artist)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

T<\/span>hrough last 60 years\u2019 programming, NYO Canada has touched many lives, and about a third of current Canadian professional orchestral players are NYO Canada alums. How did NYO Canada impact the individual lives? Each of these experiences is so personal and amazing, especially for Frank Morphy and Ed Tait \u2014 it was not only a chance for refinement, but a total and complete revelation.<\/p>\n

Frank and Daniel Morphy<\/strong><\/h3>\n

F<\/span>rank Morphy joined NYO Canada in its very first year, 1960. Having started on trombone in grade 9, Frank switched out to oboe on his teacher\u2019s request. \u201cMy music teacher asked me if I would try the oboe \u2014 I really did not know what it was, but I said yes, as long as I could go back\u2026 when I wanted to go back to trombone, he said no, and instead, he found a teacher for me.\u201d After a year or so of lessons, Frank\u2019s oboe teacher left the RCAF band. \u201cThen I was pretty much left on my own, and self-taught. I did buy some records, and did a lot of listening,\u201d says Frank.<\/p>\n

Frank cannot remember how he heard about the Christmas 1960 NYO Session. \u201cI don\u2019t remember any audition. I arrived to find six of us, and I was in awe of them all \u2014 they all played so much better than me\u2026 it was a huge orchestra, with six players in each wind section.\u201d<\/p>\n

By the 1964 session, Frank was still without a teacher, but through NYO, he met Perry Bauman<\/a><\/span> playing with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and he started to travel once a month from Ottawa to study with him. For the 1964-66 sessions, he remembers staying at Burwash Hall, Victoria College, University of Toronto, and playing under the batons of Walter Susskind, Franz Paul Dekker, Victor Feldbrill and John Avison. \u201cNYO game me an appreciation of orchestra playing, and the beginning of what might be involved,\u201d says Frank.<\/p>\n

Once Frank graduated from University of Toronto, he played a few years with the National Ballet Orchestra, then won his position with the Toronto Symphony in 1972 until he retired in 2011. And Daniel, his son, grew up watching Frank play with TSO as a child.<\/p>\n

It was a very proud moment for the family when junior made it to the orchestra 46 years later. \u201cI\u2019ve looked up to my dad a lot, especially when I started preparing for university and decided that I wanted to be a professional musician,\u201d says Dan. \u201cI wanted to do the same things he did, so I was getting the same type of training he did. I was just excited that I got into NYO and that I was able to do the same thing he did when he was my age.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dan\u2019s first instrument was piano, but soon, he wanted to be a drummer in a band. So he joined the school band in grade 5 to sit on a drum kit. The kit lessons then expanded in exploring the wide world of percussion, and when he was 17, Dan started to study with John Rudolph<\/a><\/span> (current NYO Canada faculty), and in 2006, Dan was accepted to NYO Canada on his second application \u2014 he remembers that there was definitely a Bach transcription on the audition material.<\/p>\n

\"NYO
NYO Canada, Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound. (Photo: Mark Rash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cMy summer at NYO was incredible,\u201d says Dan. The training base was in Montreal that year, and Dan cherished the chance to live and experience one of his favourite cities to date. \u201cBuilding a wall of coffee cups in the percussion section, staying all night out by the fire pit at the Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu during a tour stop\u2026 some of my closest friends I made during that time, and those I may have met before, strengthened my relationship with them for sure,\u201d says Dan.<\/p>\n

Dan had a quite a good performance story as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were playing Don Quixote, and in this particular variation Don Quixote and his sidekick Sancho are “flying” through the air on a magical horse, blindfolded. The music to me also sounds very storm like (it helps there is also a wind machine, along with rushes of strings and winds) and it just so happened that there was also a lightning storm happening right outside the theatre. Precisely when we arrived at that part in the music, all the lights in the theatre went out, but everyone kept playing! throughout the minute-long sequence, the lights flickered once or twice, just long enough to see your music and also to see our conductor, Jaque Lacombe, conducting bigger and bigger (as if we could see him in the dark). When the section came to a close, the lights came back on and we finished the piece. No one got lost, no one stopped playing. we had actually played it from memory…in the dark. You can’t make that up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having attended NYO Canada at age 21, learning to deal with several different personalities and tendencies, and owning up to the responsibility as a section, has been a valuable experience for Dan.<\/p>\n

Gregory and Adrian Irvine<\/strong><\/h3>\n

G<\/span>regory grew up in Middleton, Nova Scotia, and began to play music through his school program. \u201cWe started with recorders in the beginning of the year, then by Christmas, we were given instruments”. He was given a baritone in grade 6. his high school \u2014 one of the two well-established band programs in Nova Scotia at the time \u2014 got brand new euphoniums and Gregory really wanted to play the new shiny instrument. However, when he asked the teacher if he could play something \u2018larger,\u2019 alas, it was the tuba that was given to him. However, he quickly fell in love with the deep sound of tuba, and when he went to his first music camp in Mount Allison University at age 13, Gregory was truly hooked.<\/p>\n

Gregory first heard about NYOC from an older student who was preparing for his NYO Canada audition on French horn. Back then, with no internet, there wasn\u2019t an easy way to find out about NYO Canada, but he knew that it would be quite challenging as a tuba player. \u201cThere\u2019s only one position, I knew it was hard. I wasn\u2019t expecting to get in on my first year (at age 15). I just kept auditioning.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his time, the auditions were done through live recording. \u201cEach year, the viola coach \u2014 Steve Kondacs, did a tour around the country, listening to, and recording auditions in various cities \u2014 mostly provincial capitals except when distances were too great. I auditioned in Halifax in a CBC Radio studio.\u201d<\/p>\n

The news came eventually. \u201cI remember when I was 19, I had a summer job, pulling tree seedlings and putting them into buckets at a tree farm. We worked in all-weather conditions. And on the last day, unexpectedly, they gave us the pink slips.\u201d Working for minimum wage, and now dismissed, Gregory felt quite low on his way home that day; however, when he got home, NYO Canada called him with news of acceptance and \u201c\u2026 that saved me,\u201d laughed Gregory.<\/p>\n

His first year with NYO Canada was life-changing yet also quite intimidating. \u201cBeing from the Maritimes, I had a bit of an inferiority complex \u2014 typical at the time for Maritimers \u2014 and wondered if they had made a mistake! But I thrived, and was so inspired by great players and instructors,\u201d says Gregory.<\/p>\n

For the 1976 session in Quebec City, Gregory took an overnight train, \u201cBy then, I had a hard case made for band trips. It was a plywood box, made with 1\/4-inch and lined with styrofoam. It was incredibly heavy, but at least it had wheels on it. I remember taking everything I owned \u2014 NYO Canada asked us to pack tux with bow tie, and I had a second-hand tux that I got from my band director \u2014 it was from 1940, it wasn\u2019t in the style, but I took it.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a 19-year old, Gregory and age-appropriate friends frequently hung at the bar just outside of the residence. And he remembers lots of soccer playing and great conversations. In fact, it\u2019s the summer conversations that led him to his next pursuit in brass pedagogy in the United States, studying with Arnold Jacobs and Rex Martin. Gregory returned to NYO Canada multiple times, and as a professional, he went on to play with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra for 11 years, and then joined faculty at the University of Prince Edward Island in 1990. He just recently retired last year after teaching there for 29 years. For NYO Canada, he served as staff member for 12 years (1979-1991), and is currently on the board of directors.<\/p>\n

\"NYO
NYO Canada, Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound. (Photo: Mark Rash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Adrian started on violin at age 3 (his mom is a violinist, and Adrian wanted to be like the older \u2018cool kids\u2019 that she taught at home). On one unsuspecting afternoon, Adrian was given a full-on NYO Canada application pitch on his way back home from a lesson. \u201cDad would drive me to lessons in Halifax once a month, and at the time, NYO Canada\u2019s age limit started at age 16. My birthday is in July, so I was 15 when this happened.\u201d He wasn\u2019t keen at the beginning, but Adrian decided to apply. His first application was recorded by proctor \u2014 his dad, at University of PEI. \u201cI don\u2019t know if it was more or less nerve-wrecking to have my dad as proctor,\u201d Adrian laughs. Adrian\u2019s acceptance for NYO Canada was a proud moment for Gregory, and Adrian went on to return two more times.<\/p>\n

In his first year, Adrian and bunch of 16-year olds were extra violins \u2014 they didn\u2019t get a placement in traditional string quartets for chamber sessions. Instead, they were given a unique opportunity to explore Bartok duets, Telemann works for 4 violins, and Steve Reich\u2019s Violin Phase. \u201cGreg Oh approached us for the Violin Phase \u2014 at this point, I haven\u2019t really experienced or played Reich, so it was a totally new experience. We played the 4-person version and the amount of focus shifting required for phase shifting, entry points, and walking across the stage to get to the \u2018right\u2019 score \u2014 all this was a total mind bender,\u201d says Adrian. And Adrian consider this as a pivotal point where he got more interested in extended techniques with technology and composition.<\/p>\n

Along with his lifelong friends met in NYO Canada, Adrian considers NYO Canada as one of the core experiences that has shaped him into the musician he is today.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was 16 in my first summer with the NYOC and was just about to enter my final year of high school. It was perfect timing for me to see so many dedicated young musicians at various stages of education and careers. There were people just starting their undergrads, people already auditioning for professional orchestras, and everything in between. It was incredibly eye opening to see what was involved at every stage and definitely made a future in orchestral playing feel more tangible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"L-R:
L-R: Sarah Wiebe (Photo: Brenda O\u2019Connor); Julia Wedman (Photo: Sian Richards); Gwen Thompson (NYOC alum for 6 years and past faculty member.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Wiebe Family \u2013 Peter, Sarah, Evan and Kathryn<\/strong><\/h3>\n

W<\/span>ith choral conducting dad and pianist\/composer mother, Peter Wiebe grew up with music in the house. Initially starting on the violin, Peter fell in love with the cello at age 9, listening to Beethoven\u2019s 5th Symphony, second movement, and switched instrument.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started to audition for NYO Canada in 1980, and made it for 1982,\u201d says Peter. For the auditions, Peter remember going to someone\u2019s house, where NYO Canada had arranged for a recording session, and doing a paper-based application. For those early days, Peter remembers NYO doing smaller tours, mostly on buses, playing at local school gyms and town halls. Citing Death and Transfiguration in a Vancouver concert under the baton of Kazuyoshi Akiyama as one of the most memorable moments, Peter took a job at the Windsor Symphony as core member in 1987. He has also been busy on the podium as the associate conductor of the WS, and only recently has stepped down from conducting the Windsor Youth Orchestra.<\/p>\n

With his wife, Ruth Wieber, they have six children, and three of them \u2014 Sarah, Evan and Kathryn \u2014 have participated in NYO Canada. Sarah started violin and piano at age 5 at home. Though she enjoyed chamber music and orchestral playing through the violin, she always preferred the piano, and it wasn\u2019t until grade 12 that she decided to apply for a university music program.<\/p>\n

For her first application, Sarah travelled to Western University to do a proctor-run audition recording. Sarah remembers prepping excerpts from Der Heldenleben, Mahler 1 and Prokofiev\u2019s Scythian Suite for the 2008 audition. When NYO Canada started to experiment with its chamber music program in 2009, Sarah was placed in a string quartet. \u201cUnlike now, just a few students were enrolled in chamber music, so the schedule was quite crazy \u2014 we worked on the Haydn Sunrise String Quartet,\u201d Sarah says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI used to do lots of things that Sarah did, and it would be a musically awesome experience \u2014 and it is free!\u201d Evan says. With strong encouragement from parents and his older sister, Evan decided to apply for NYO Canada. Starting on the violin at age 5, Evan was asked to switch to cello, as there were \u2018too many violins in the family (the other two boys, John and Andrew plays viola).\u2019<\/p>\n

The 2009 program included Stravinsky\u2019s Rite of Spring<\/em><\/a><\/span> with Alan Trudel \u2014 and this is Evan\u2019s most memorable repertoire of the session; he also remembers many games of ultimate Frisbee and card games. Evan and Sarah also remembered that this was the first year of NYO Canada\u2019s online streaming performance, and the recording session at McGill \u2014 and seeing the technical studio production side of it was another highlight for Evan (he now works for voices.com<\/a><\/span>, one of the largest voice-over production companies). This particular recording, featuring Mahler\u2019s 6th and the Rite, was nominated for the 2010 Junos.<\/p>\n

Kathryn Wiebe remembers her 2010 audition as being quite tough. As part of the 50th anniversary, NYO Canada invited past alumni to rejoin the orchestra on stage. However, the perk of a big orchestra meant that Kathryn got to play extra lush programs \u2014 in fact, two programs, including Don Juan, Scheherazade, La Valse<\/em> and Petrushka<\/em>. In the 2011 tour, ‘Strike A Chord’, Kathryn vividly remembers Mahler 5 and Der Rosenkavalier<\/em> as highlights. \u201cI\u2019m so glad to have experienced NYO Canada \u2014 it shaped me a lot and I confirmed my own passion for orchestral playing,\u201d says Kathryn.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing that I have come to value most in my work as a musician is the community that is built among my colleagues. From the good friends I made at NYO and school to those I have met on gigs, going to work often feels like a reunion of people that I enjoy being around and who inspire me both musically and in their personal lives. It is also extra special to show up to work and see one of my family members there; often there are hugs on stage and looks shared across the orchestra when we get to a part we both really enjoy playing. I am so grateful that my immediate family also gets to be part of my music family and vice-versa. It is one of the great joys of life!\u201d adds Sarah.<\/p>\n

Julia Wedman<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cM<\/span>y dad was from a big family \u2014 12 kids, and they all played something, and he thought it was very important that all kids get the chance to learn an instrument,\u201d says Julia. Starting violin lessons at age 4, Julia first applied to NYO as a high school student from Saskatoon, where she was the concertmaster of the local youth orchestra. \u201cI probably sent a cassette tape.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though she didn\u2019t know much about the program when she initially applied, Julia\u2019s participation in training orchestra (she later attended the World Youth Orchestra and the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival Orchestra in Germany), allowed her to see the world. \u201cOne year, we took a 30-hour train ride from Vancouver to Toronto; it felt interminable at the time,\u201d she remembers.<\/p>\n

Along with intense professional training, Julia also got to experience the richness that orchestral life can bring \u2014 including the late night parties. \u201cI loved getting the chance to hang out with wonderful musicians all day and night. I especially loved the late night jam sessions where people would just play together or for each other. There was something magical about that time of the day \u2014 people were relaxed and just happy to share music with each other,\u201d says Julia. Her other highlights include coaching with Gwen Thompson, and making lifelong connections, including meeting cellist Felix Deak for the first time on a tour bus.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou also learn how to deal with homesickness, you learn how to be resilient and overcome challenges, and you learn to find a place for yourself in the midst of this group of fantastic musicians, especially for people coming from smaller places. It is an invaluable experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Clockwise
Clockwise from Top Left: Kira Shiner and Katrina Kwantes \u2014 2017 NYOC tour; Carolyn Farnand \u2014 2015 NYOC Tour \u2014 Calgary, Matthew Ross and Taz Eddy- 2013 NYOC Brass Ensemble Close-up (Photos courtesy of NYOC).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Matthew Ross<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cO<\/span>ne of my friends in middle school played the trumpet and I thought it was fun,\u201d says Matthew. And ever since then, he\u2019s been trying to figure the trumpet out. When Matthew left Bermuda to start university in 2009 at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto, his teacher, Anita McAlister, encouraged him to audition for NYO Canada.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe my first audition was at the University of Western Ontario \u2014 and it did not go that well\u2026 I procrastinated a lot during my first year of university, so I left my preparation that year to the real last minute. It wasn\u2019t until my third year where I started to organize my time better, and I was waitlisted for 2012 session.\u201d Then for 2013 session, the first year NYO started to accept video applications, Matthew took his take wearing baggy jeans and no shoes on the very last day before the deadline, and finally made it into his first NYO Canada session.<\/p>\n

For the 2013 session, Matthew\u2019s favourite was Mahler 9 with Alan Trudel conducting, and he immensely enjoyed the chamber music institute. \u201cI remember playing in brass quintet for two weeks and it was incredible. It is really hard to schedule rehearsals for chamber groups at university, so this was the first time for me, where everyone was on the exact same schedule and we were able to rehearse and get coached every day\u2026 the schedule was busy, but manageable. On a normal day, we would have a rehearsal or a coaching from 10-12.30 p.m,, and another from 2-4.30 p.m.\u2026 the brass faculty were very generous with their time and were so supportive to all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

in 2015, Canadian National Brass project had an NYO residency, and them performing O Magnum Mysterium<\/em> was another memorable moment, as well as the overnight train journey from Montreal to Halifax in 2017. However, the best thing for Matthew in 2017 session was re-grounding. \u201cI had a really tough year during the first year of my Master\u2019s degree, and lost a lot of confidence. However, NYO Canada is a really positive environment for making music, something I really appreciate \u2014 the 2017 program helped me to have fun playing again.\u201d<\/p>\n

And for the 2019 session, Matthew\u2019s request to focus on second trumpet parts was accepted, which gave him a great preparation for his contract with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. \u201cFor NYO trumpets, you rotate parts so everyone gets a chance to play different roles in the section. However, for 2019, I requested to play mostly 2nd trumpet for the tour, as I was starting a one-year contract with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. It really helped me.\u201d Having several alumni in the CPO, including Alisa Klebanov (2015,2016. Violin), who attended NYO Canada 2015 with Matthew, is another joyful connection at his work.<\/p>\n

Carolyn Farnand<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cI<\/span> remember people kept slamming the main door to the residence building and thus ruining every recording \u2014 eventually I had a couple of quiet minutes and managed to get a decent take,\u201d Carolyn remembers. However, all those efforts were worth it, as that was the take that allowed Carolyn to experience NYO Canada.<\/p>\n

As a shy person, Carolyn appreciated the first two weeks of chamber music institute, as it allowed people to get to know a small group, then to build a larger connection with others once the orchestral training started. Carolyn found NYO Canada\u2019s workshops, especially on hearing loss prevention, injury prevention and studying abroad, quite memorable and practical. \u201cNYO also provides each musician with high-quality earplugs from the Musicians\u2019 Clinic, which I still use to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2016 Portugal tour was a particular highlight for Carolyn, musically and personally. \u201cWe got to travel and play in so many gorgeous venues! And my partner is a musician that I met from NYO! In 2016, the orchestra had toured to Portugal and we had access to a high school there to practice in. My partner and I ended up practising at the same time, every day, and thus running into each other continuously.\u201d A few years later, when Carolyn wanted to collaborate with a clarinetist a few years later, she immediately reached out to him. They continue to perform together in various chamber ensembles and orchestral settings.<\/p>\n

These personal and professional connections through NYO Canada are very common among alums, so when Carolyn showed up at her first day at the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra Academy she was met with a familiar face \u2014 the current tuba faculty, Sasha Johnson (1993,1996 alum), and also when she was greeted by an NYO friend, Richard Zheng (2016, Violin) upon her arrival to Schleswig-Holstein Orchestra. These things continue to make her NYO Canada experience stay alive.<\/p>\n

\"NYO
NYO Canada, Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound. (Photo: Mark Rash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kira Shiner<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A<\/span>fter learning the piano for 7 years, Kira chose the oboe in Grade 7 band. \u201cBand was mandatory, and I knew that I did not want to play the flute, because every girl in my class wanted to play it.\u201d When it came to pick instruments, Kira briefly mused on French horn. \u201cI knew that was supposed to be hard,\u201d she remembers. But, she was convinced that the oboe must be interesting. Being the \u2018only one\u2019 in a small town was refreshing to Kira. \u201cI was really the only young, serious oboist in town.\u201d With lessons and a youth symphony program, Kira decided to pursue a career in music.<\/p>\n

Kira applied to NYO Canada in 2015 as she was graduating from high school. But it was in 2016 that she started to look into it seriously, as she came to Toronto to study with Sarah Jeffrey<\/a><\/span>\u00a0 (1996, 1997, 1998 alum and current faculty). \u201cSarah encourages her students to attend at least one summer program during the long summer vacation, and she suggested that I apply to NYO Canada and she supported the process, to make sure I went about it the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Working on excerpts in lessons, making recordings at least a week before the final due date for last feedback from her teacher, and prepping to make a \u2018good\u2019 reed, Kira has auditioned five times in total, and she notes that some excerpts were perennial favourites<\/a><\/span>. La Scala di Seta<\/em> (Rossini) and Le Tombeau de Couperin<\/em> (Ravel).<\/p>\n

Getting a good recording device and finding a good space to record also posed its own challenge. There were plenty of late nights. \u201cMy 2017 audition video was taken at 1:15 a.m. It was me and a friend. It was 1 a.m., and he wanted to do one more take. I was exhausted but I thought, why not, I will do one more \u2014 that turned out to be the best one, which got me in,\u201d Kira chuckles.<\/p>\n

The 2017 tour, Edges of Canada<\/em>, took Kira to 13 different Canadian cities, with a camera crew in tow the whole time. \u201cI remember being very stressed \u2014 I was having a major case of imposter syndrome during my first year at NYO Canada. I had never been in such an intense training situation, so that, plus having to meet all the new people (I am an introvert), was quite overwhelming.\u201d But she found her people, and it truly became a once-in-a-lifetime experience for her.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe entire tour was a dream come true in lot of ways. It will always be a highlight of my life as it was the first time I got to perform in real concert halls such as Koerner Hall, Maison Symphonique, National Arts Center, etc. Also getting up early with friends to watch the sunrise in the middle of nowhere New Brunswick on the overnight VIA train from Montreal to Halifax\u2026 taking the charter plane to get to Whitehourse\u2026 and my parents attending our last concert in Vancouver. They were extremely proud and excited for me to attend NYO Canada, and at the performance, they were impressed at the level of playing in the orchestra. It was one of the moments where they fully understood why I was studying music and what I was working towards. Since I was studying in Toronto and they are in Kelowna, they didn\u2019t get to see me perform a lot, so seeing that NYO Canada performance meant a lot to them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The best thing about NYO Canada: \u201cIt\u2019s just you, the music and the people you are sharing that with,\u201d Kira says. In fact, Kira is happy to send, \u201cA shout out to my now partner, Taran Plamondon \u2014 he was a constant supporter during my years in NYO and I\u2019m happy to say he\u2019s now a constant supporter in my life.\u201d(Taran is 2016, 17,18 French Horn alum). Kira\u2019s life has NYO Canada embedded in it deeply, and it\u2019ll always remain special.<\/p>\n

\"Clockwise
Clockwise from Top Left: 1970s rehearsal with Marius Constant; 1960\u2019s Burwash Hall \u2014 University of Toronto meal time; 1960\u2019s arrival by bus 1971 NYOC Casual \u2014 Harcus Hennigar, Bill Harrison, Ken Bingham, Gwen Dunlop. (Courtesy of NYOC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jacob Valcheff<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cI<\/span> first started guitar in the fifth grade, and I wanted to be in a rock band,\u201d says Jacob. But since guitar wasn\u2019t a band instrument, it was suggested that he should try percussion. So during summer after grade 8, Jacob took some drum lessons and started band percussion in 9th grade. First hearing about NYO Canada in grade 11, it took Jacob a bit of time to carve out sufficient time to prepare for the audition. In the fall of 2017, Jacob started to work on his audition repertoire as a second year undergrad at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto. \u201cThe format was video recording, and I started my preparation the day the excerpts came out in October 2017, and finished my recordings four days before the last deadline, which was February 1, 2018.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the morning of February 26, 2018, Jacob got a text from a friend who said the results were coming out. \u201cI then went through my morning routine, and as I left for school, I got the email on my phone. I was expecting a rejection \u2014 being only a second year music student at the time, I knew the competition was high and I knew that so many strong musicians had auditioned, but I was incredibly surprised when the email opened with ‘congratulations!’. I was ecstatic. I immediately called my family.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the chamber music institute of 2018, Jacob and friends studied Steve Reich\u2019s Drumming<\/em>, and coach Aiyun Huang called in Russell Hartenberger, who taught them by rote. \u201cRussell was a member of the original Steve Reich and musicians ensemble, and they premiered Drumming<\/em> in 1971, so it was incredible to learn from his expertise.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2018 Migrations Tour<\/a><\/span> brought NYO Canada to European tour stops at Berlin, Kassel and Edinburgh. However, the most memorable moment for Jacob was right at his hometown. \u201cI remember playing Ein Heldenleben<\/em> in Toronto. Leading up to a huge climactic moment, I looked out into the audience at Koerner Hall. I saw my current percussion teacher, my previous private teacher, and my parents in the audience. I remember thinking of how fortunate I was to be making such incredible music with such incredible people in such a beautiful hall. This really was magical, and I knew then that I wanted to do this for the rest of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacob has been accepted for 2020 session and was really looking forward to it, as he would\u2019ve known a lot of the orchestra, which makes a huge difference for musicians.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was beautiful about the 2018 section was that I got to experience the development of these connections with people I did not know, and I got to see these connections grow over the course of the institute. I was really excited to connect and grow even closer to the friends I was going to be with, in 2020. Although I was sad to hear about the cancellation, it definitely needed to happen in the interest of health and wellness. It was a tough decision I am sure, but it was the right one. I look forward to seeing all my friends and colleagues, and making music with them in the 2021 iteration of NYO Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lucy Nesbitt<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cS<\/span>tudying with Gabe Radford<\/a><\/span> for the first three years of my undergrad meant that, since he was NYO Faculty, he sort of made all of us in the studio work up the list and send a video every year,\u201d says Lucy. Working on the excerpts from the day the reps are announced till the deadline on 01 February \u2014 it\u2019s a tough process, balancing everyday life, school work and to prep for a great audition. \u201c\u2026 The videos, when you are allowed to call the shots on how many takes you\u2019re allowed to do, it gets very easy to try to do it a million times until it\u2019s perfect \u2014 which can be draining,\u201d says Lucy.<\/p>\n

As she was waitlisted, Lucy had to be patient. \u201cThe news came through the grapevine at first, and so when I finally got the email, it was so exciting \u2014 such a relief. I\u2019d auditioned for the past three years and made the waitlist the year before, so it felt like a long time in the works.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, it wasn\u2019t so easy. The participants often cite worrying about underperformance and failure, and Lucy ended up breaking down in tears one day. \u201cI was so worried that I couldn\u2019t play well enough to match the section. I remember going to Gabe and asking him. how do I match tone colour? How do I find the intonation of the entire orchestra? How do I watch the concertmaster to stay in time? And he just sort of laughed and said, \u2018Just listen and blend.\u2019 It was all just so new and terrifying but I felt myself figuring everything out better and better every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2019 Odyssey Tour<\/a><\/span> was definitely the best part for Lucy. \u201cIt was the best thing that has happened. The entire Canadian tour was perfect. Every concert was an adventure, and just so alive. These performances were the first time I understood how connected an orchestra can and should be. Every single person there was giving their all, every time, and after the shows we were always all so pumped up, no matter how tired we were. I don’t remember anyone complaining about the schedule once, or really anyone getting to overwhelmed. It was such a fantastic group of people; I can’t even begin to explain.\u201d<\/p>\n

The gruelling recording session in Montreal, and performing in Spain, including the final performance at the Alhambra palace, with a birthday stuck between the last three free days before returning to Canada so that Lucy and boyfriend, Ryan Garbett (2014, 2015, 2019 Horn Alum) could explore together, Lucy considers the 2019 session as one of the best things that she\u2019s ever experienced. \u201cEvery night, we\u2019d get a standing ovation, the audiences were so good to us. And playing in Alhambra \u2014 by this point, I felt that the orchestra was completely unified.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNYO Canada helped me to come out of my shell. Music tends to do that to a person, because it pushes you out of your comfort zone every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Courtesy
Courtesy of NYOC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ryan Scott \u2013 Percussion Faculty<\/strong><\/h3>\n

S<\/span>ince 2013, Ryan has been working as percussion faculty for NYO Canada, and he is keenly aware of the possible influence and experience available to young musicians through the program. \u201cThe NYO Canada is in many ways the first stepping stone into the professional community outside of a formal education at a university or conservatory. It is an enormously important way for top early-career performers to connect with established professionals and to their emerging colleagues. The relationships developed at the NYOC last for decades and lifetimes,\u201d says Ryan.<\/p>\n

During the chamber music institute, Ryan tries to focus the students on how to play with other people. Considering it a learned\/learnable skill, the communication through body language, whether within a section, or with a conductor, is essential musicianship. Other topics, including how to practice, and developing general musicianship and etiquette, are also of interest to Ryan, as he also learns constantly from fellow faculty members. \u201cWell, it\u2019s not just how you play and every professional knows that,\u201d says Ryan. \u201cIt takes a lot of character, endurance, stamina, discipline, professional courtesy, well-measured humour, warmth, compassion, reliability \u2014 you name it. The faculty demonstrates this on a daily basis and expects to see these qualities resonate in the students.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Ryan, the most rewarding aspect has been to connect to the next generation of outstanding Canadian percussionists, so with the 2020 cancellation, he is interested in staying connected to the new crop of 2020 percussion players through a new layer, continuing to find a way to stay engaged and teach\/learn online. Once the NYO Canada goes online for the summer session, both participants and audiences will have the chance to explore this rather new context.<\/p>\n

Ed Tait \u2013 Double Bass to Double Bass Faculty<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\"Clockwise
Clockwise from Top Left: 1966 NYOC London Tour: Ed Tait, Gary Kosloski, Michel Zaitzeff; 2013 NYOC Bass- Ed Tait and Brandyn Lewis, 2013 NYOC Bass- Malcolm Armstrong, Ed Tait, Jonathan Yeoh, Maximilian Mauricio-Cardilli (Photos courtesy of NYOC).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cW<\/span>ithout the Canadian National Youth Orchestra I would never have become a bass player,\u201d says Ed Tait. Ed wanted piano lessons at age 4, but it just wasn\u2019t possible for his family, so instead, he sang at the local church choir. At his high school, he finally got his hands on a violin. After a year, Ed was asked to switch instrument by a bass player; he agreed and spent the next four years holding up a double bass. \u201cNo lessons\u2026 I did not know how to play a C major scale when I left high school,\u201d laughs Ed.<\/p>\n

As a teenager, Ed took drum lessons. \u201cI studied privately with a studio drummer for four years, and I was fairly a proficient rock\u2019n\u2019roll Dixieland drummer,\u201d he says. He also prepared for the grade 6 piano certificate to be accepted into the music education program at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto. Ed was accepted as, \u201cThe possibly the worst piano major in the history of the Faculty.\u201d He finally had to choose his major.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, one of my friends told me that I should choose the bass because there were no really good bass players in Toronto, so I would get a lot of jobs,\u201d says Ed. The friend\u2019s uncle was a bass player, and agreed to take Ed as a student the following year. \u201cHe also suggested that I carry a Toronto phone book around for a while every day, gripping the binding side with my left hand. I bought a $200 plywood bass and took it with me to my summer job as a drummer in a hotel dance band,\u201d says Ed.<\/p>\n

Ed got to serious work in September of his second year in university but realized that his teacher, a dance band bassist who had never played in a symphony, was not able to give Ed the knowledge he wanted. \u201cThis is where the NYO Canada comes in,\u201d says Ed.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of my university friends were members of the NYO. They were all pushing me get into that orchestra.\u201d For the coming summer, Ed applied to NYO Canada (bass) and Fort Henry Guard Band (drums) and was accepted for both. \u201cHow the devil, I cannot imagine. It must have been slim pickings for the audition panel for the last position of their bass section,\u201d chuckles Ed.<\/p>\n

The legendary Frederick Zimmerman, Assistant Principal Bass of the New York Philharmonic was the coach that year, and under his patient, methodical and encouraging teaching, Ed kept swimming in the deep water, up to 14 hours a day. \u201cHow to hold the bow, how to shape the left hand, fingering patterns that improved intonation\u2026”
\nThis became Ed\u2019s life. \u201cDuring the school year I worked with my Toronto teacher. I played in a string orchestra and the symphony orchestra at the RCM, and I played in in dance and jazz bands as a drummer. The NYO was where I really did my most important work,\u201d says Ed.<\/p>\n

The 1966 NYO Tour included England, Scotland, France and a concert in Berlin, and Ed studied with Robert Rohe, then the principal bass of the New Orleans Philharmonic symphony. Still in his third year of serious bass training, Ed was still hard at work, when an unexpected offer came. \u201cAt the end of the session, just before we headed out on that tour, Robert approached our principal bassist, my jazz buddy. He told us that his bass section in New Orleans was perennially short three players,\u201d says Ed.<\/p>\n

The two young bassists couldn\u2019t take the offer \u2014 they had professional positions already. \u201cHe then turned to me and asked if I would be interested. I took a brief moment and I said, \u2018Uh well\u2026 Yes!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

In New Orleans, Ed met a section consisting of old pros and young graduates, playing major serious symphonic works, and it was the NYO Canada experience that saved him. \u201cNearly every major symphonic work that was programmed for the 1966\/67 season of the New Orleans Philharmonic Orchestra was something that I had played in the NYO. I was in familiar territory,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n

Then came the draft notice came, and he had to leave New Orleans. In the summer of 1967, after returning home, Ed joined NYO Canada as student for the last time, and met Tom Monohan, then the new principal bass of the TSO. Ed was chosen to lead the NYO Canada bass section through the Western Canada tour, and after that summer, Ed continued to study alongside his classical bass freelance work, for two years before joining the National Arts Centre Orchestra in 1968. The rest is history. in 1970, he joined the TSO as Tom Monohan\u2019s stand partner for 22 years. \u201cThe NYO played a huge part in my success in finding my way into a leading Canadian orchestra. Six years after I got serious about playing the instrument, I had achieved my goal,\u201d says Ed.<\/p>\n

Ed served as faculty member from 2004 to 2013, He considers it a great honour, and beautiful bookends for his career. Without NYO Canada, where would Ed be today? For him, that\u2019s unimaginable \u2014 he would not change anything in his life, and Ed appreciates NYO Canada\u2019s pivotal role in every step of his journey.<\/p>\n

The 2020 Session That Wasn\u2019t<\/h3>\n
\"NYO
NYO Canada, Festival of the Sound, Parry Sound. (Photo: Mark Rash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I<\/span>nitially scheduled<\/span> for five weeks<\/a> of summer training (starting with a two-week intensive chamber program, NYO Canada Chamberfest, and the three-week Orchestral Institute under the baton of Michael Francis<\/a><\/span>), followed by a three-week Generations Tour with European stops in Germany and Croatia, to celebrate NYOC\u2019s 60th year, the NYOC 2020<\/a><\/span> session is now cancelled<\/a><\/span> due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In lieu of the cancellation, NYOC is working to adapt, including offering the first right of refusal for 2020 members without having to reaudition for the 2021 session. They are also working toward a reduced program for late fall or early winter 2020, as well as building an online program for the summer.<\/p>\n

These changes demand quick adaptation from all involved, including various levels of donors and supporters. The organization explained its position in a media release.<\/p>\n

\u201cNYO Canada are extraordinarily grateful to our donors for their steadfast support at this time but we are not actively soliciting new donors right now as we recognize that Canada must first attend to those needing emergency support to weather the crisis. What we are doing is supporting our orchestra and audiences as best we can and working to keep the lights on and do the most with what we have.<\/p>\n

We have been in touch with all of our existing donors and virtually all recognize how important it is to keep the NYO strong and moving on and to be actively planning for next year and beyond. It is very moving to have such loyalty and support as we make our way through this\u2026 Our board and staff continue to give and we are working actively with our government partners to ensure NYO remains healthy and looking ahead. This is our 60th anniversary year and we and our donors share the belief that we need the arts now perhaps more than ever!\u201d<\/p>\n

Currently facing the biggest challenge since its inception, there\u2019s no doubt that the NYO Canada will continue to provide the pursuit of excellence for an upcoming generation of Canadian musicians. An orchestra is built beyond itself. the individuals, families and friends, teachers, colleagues and the audiences \u2014 the way that the music world weaves its intricate web is complex and whimsical. NYO Canada\u2019s best day is yet to come, and along with patient young musicians, we look forward to witnessing the next stage of its evolution.<\/p>\n

#LUDWIGVAN<\/em><\/h3>\n

Want more updates on classical music and opera news and reviews? Follow us\u00a0on <\/em>Facebook<\/b><\/a><\/em><\/span>, <\/em>Instagram<\/b><\/a><\/em><\/span> <\/b>or <\/em>Twitter<\/b><\/a><\/em><\/span> for all the latest.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We take a look back at 60 years of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":68309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[33451,35839,4967],"tags":[36678,5652,36677],"yst_prominent_words":[7070,36671,7712,19767,20633,36675,19718,36672,6616,19765,9035,19737,20754,36673,6613,30186,36674,7549,7487,9043],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/NYOC-feature-image.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-hLK","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68308"}],"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=68308"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68308\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":68355,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68308\/revisions\/68355"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68308"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=68308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}