{"id":99674,"date":"2023-10-12T13:38:32","date_gmt":"2023-10-12T17:38:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=99674"},"modified":"2023-10-12T13:38:32","modified_gmt":"2023-10-12T17:38:32","slug":"interview-artistic-director-nurhan-arman-talks-sinfonia-toronto-past-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2023\/10\/12\/interview-artistic-director-nurhan-arman-talks-sinfonia-toronto-past-future\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | Artistic Director Nurhan Arman Talks About Sinfonia Toronto, Past And Future"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Nurhan
Nurhan Arman conducts Sinfonia Toronto (Image courtesy of the artist)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sinfonia Toronto will launch a celebratory 25th season on October 21 with a programme anchored by Beethoven\u2019s Fifth Symphony. During its 24 seasons so far, Sinfonia Toronto has covered a lot of ground. That includes a JUNO Award, along with an ongoing recording programme.<\/p>\n

In terms of repertoire, the chamber orchestra has championed new works as well as offering the usual blockbusters of the genre. That includes 42 world premieres, 28 of them by Canadian composers. They’ve toured Ontario from Brockville to Sault Ste-Marie to Sarnia, and gone on international tours to Germany, Spain, Florida, and South America (Argentina, Peru and Uruguay). Most recently, Sinfonia Toronto toured China in 2019 pre-pandemic.<\/p>\n

We spoke to conductor and artistic director Nurhan Arman about the orchestra, the new season, and the future.<\/p>\n

The Interview<\/h2>\n

Arman formed Sinfonia Toronto not long after he came to the city. \u201cI think the city of Toronto had just lost a chamber orchestra, only two three seasons before I came,\u201d he recalls. \u201cI always liked chamber orchestras.\u201d<\/p>\n

Arman spent his childhood in Turkey. \u201cI grew up in Istanbul,\u201d he says. The city was visited by touring orchestras from all over Europe. \u201cI always admired the intimacy of chamber orchestras,\u201d he says. It was an idea that would live in the back of his mind for some time before it was put into practice.<\/p>\n

What keeps him going after so many years is that enduring love for the art form. \u201cSeason after season, that’s still a goal,\u201d he says of the quest for the perfect season. \u201cI think the orchestra now is very fine,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Many things have changed over the years; funding issues have always been a problem. \u201cIt’s a problem in North America in general,\u201d he observes. \u201cI think music itself keeps me going.\u201d<\/p>\n

There have been many highlights in the 24 seasons so far.<\/p>\n

Touring has provided many of Sinfonia Toronto\u2019s memorable moments. \u201cWhen we do these tours […] it’s a great experience,\u201d he says. The ensemble is exposed to many different audiences and concert halls. \u201cThe orchestra is playing literally every night.\u201d It amounts to an intense collaboration. \u201cThat results in some unique performances.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although they didn\u2019t know it at the time, the pandemic had already started during their tour of China in late 2019. Luckily, no one was affected.<\/p>\n

Naturally, home ground has also made for special moments. \u201cThe concerts that we play in Toronto are very special \u2014 that’s our home audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking back, he also recalls some of the soloists that have performed with Sinfonia Toronto, some of them making their Canadian debuts through the chamber orchestra.<\/p>\n

The mix of new and traditional pieces has been part of Sinfonia Toronto\u2019s programming since the beginning. \u201cWe always programme new music juxtaposed with the classics,\u201d Arman says. It\u2019s important to introduce new repertoire.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m not a big fan of separating periods. When I started this orchestra, I didn’t want to specialize in one period,\u201d he says. As he points out, Toronto\u2019s classical music scene already includes period music specialists.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, juxtaposing it, we see the old and the new within a frame of a couple of hours, [and it] is a totally different experience than just hearing constantly the same thing.\u201d He likens it to juxtaposing different languages in music.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I first started doing some new Canadian composers works, by the second season, I remember that a few subscribers started complaining to me. But, what happened was, little by little, people started getting the message.\u201d He found that inviting the composers on stage to talk about their works added to their popularity. He reports that the same subscriber who\u2019d complained about unfamiliar pieces became an avid follower of the new composer talks.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt helps to develop the audience. Sometimes, we take risks in programming.\u201d<\/p>\n

Balancing familiar repertoire with new works is important. \u201cWhen you go outside the household names, there is always some resistance,\u201d he says. \u201cBut we have to go outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Nurhan
Nurhan Arman and Sinfonia Toronto (Image courtesy of the artist)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Future<\/h3>\n

In the wake of the collapse of the Kitchener-Waterloo Orchestra, and more bad news from the Winnipeg<\/a>, it\u2019s impossible not to contemplate the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the future of Sinfonia Toronto will also be depending a lot on the future of classical music and live concerts,\u201d says Arman. \u201cAt the moment, I’m quite concerned about the future.\u201d The pandemic took its toll. Sinfonia Toronto kept the music going digitally, but found interest in music on the screen waned over time. Since then, classical music\u2019s older audience demographics have led to a slower return to live performance. \u201cIt’s difficult to bring the audiences back. It’s not back to where it used to be. We need to go back there very quickly, or we will be losing quite a number of organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Is there anything to be hopeful about?<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m hopeful there are more people studying classical music all over the world,\u201d he notes.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy concern is not that classical music is dying,\u201d he adds. It\u2019s certainly true that a new generation is falling in love with timeless classical music, but with a difference. They\u2019re streaming it online, and neoclassical\u2019s social media fuelled stars don\u2019t perform on the concert hall circuit. They\u2019re more likely to be found in smaller and alternate venues.<\/p>\n

\u201cA grassroots movement can be much more agile and flexible,\u201d he says. \u201cThe difficulty is that if audiences stop [supporting] established forms of consuming classical music, we are in trouble.\u201d As he points out, it\u2019s also a labour issue in that orchestras provide stable pay and conditions at union rates.<\/p>\n

Music schools are turning out so many talented classical music artists on a yearly basis. \u201cI just hope there are jobs for them,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The Season Opener<\/h3>\n

For the anniversary season, the idea is to include a celebratory note in each programme. There will be two world premieres on the programme, including Louis Sauter’s Regard de l\u2019anniversaire XXV world premiere, written for the occasion.<\/p>\n

Sauter also wrote a piece commemorating the orchestra\u2019s 20th anniversary. \u201cIt’s actually based on Happy Birthday,\u201d Arman explains. Sauter reworked the well known theme using the harmonies of Olivier Messiaen. \u201cIt’s going to be fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Toronto composer Frank Horvat was also commissioned to write a piece for the anniversary season. \u201cI had asked him to write something for the orchestra’s anniversary, and we share the same passion for the environment,\u201d says Arman. Horvat searched out a 250 year-old oak tree, reputed to be the oldest tree in Toronto. It inspired the composition of Magnificent Roots.<\/p>\n

Violinist Elisso Gogibedaschwili joins the orchestra for Taktakishili’s Violin Concerto No.2 in a Canadian premiere. \u201cNobody knows the name,\u201d says Arman. \u201cHe was Georgian, a friend of Shostakovich. It\u2019s a beautiful piece. Even at first hearing, it\u2019s accessible.\u201d It will be the Canadian premiere of the concerto.<\/p>\n

Elisso Gogibedaschwili first performed with Sinfonia Toronto when she was only 13. She returns now in her 20s as an international performing artist. \u201cShe is an amazing violinist,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Naturally, the lynch pin is Beethoven\u2019s beloved Symphony No. 5, however it too will incorporate a North American premiere in its arrangement for string orchestra by violinist and composer Sreten Krsti\u010d, who wrote it for the Zagreb soloists. \u201cI heard it online, and like it very much.\u201d Sinfonia Toronto had already peformed Beethoven\u2019s 6, 7 and 8, and 5 seemed a logical choice. \u201cThe fifth works remarkably well in this version.\u201d He got in touch with Sreten Krsti\u010d personally to get the arrangement. \u201cWe’ll be the first orchestra to play this version in North America.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sarasate’s Gypsy Airs rounds out the programme, the only non-premiere on the list.<\/p>\n

Tickets to the new season, and more information, [HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/p>\n

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