Synopsis
For this landmark event, twenty-five musicians from Ottawa, Toronto, and Montreal were brought together. Members of the various ensembles featured throughout the evening included musicians from the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, Central Band of the Canadian Forces, and freelance jazz musicians from Ottawa, Toronto, and Montreal.
Small group performances focused mostly on the music of Charles Mingus while the orchestra performed major works by Duke Ellington and John Coltrane that had never been performed in Canada before. The entire concert was a critical success and received rave reviews.
The concert programme notes are now available. As always, the extensively researched notes were a big hit with the audience and featured background and history by Pastor Deborah Ann Taylor and musical analyses by Professsor Andrew Homzy. The original format for the programme notes was a 36-page 5.5′ x 8.’5 booklet printed double-sided with four booklet pages per letter page (two per side). A single-sided reproduction is available for downloading below .
The 2006 season moved away from the cool style of swing presented in the 2005 season and focused on the African influence in jazz. The featured ensemble was the twenty-five-piece neophonic orchestra – an expanded jazz orchestra with extensively doubled reeds (saxophonists also playing clarinet, bass clarinet, piccolo, flute and alto flute), French horns, tuba, latin and symphonic percussion and a single violin. The marriage of classical music and jazz introduced at the end of the IJO’s 25th Ottawa International Jazz Festival performance was expanded upon with presentations of music that incorporated themes by Beethoven, Grieg, Paganini and Tchaikovsky.
The season began with a two-part celebration of Black History Month bringing together forty artists from Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal. Voices in a Strange Land celebrated songs of the African American/Canadian experience with a fine collection of vocal talent. Suite Freedom recalled jazz of the civil rights movement with seminal works by Charles Mingus and the Canadian premieres of John Coltrane’s five-movement Africa/Brass and Duke Ellington’s six-movement “Liberian Suite.”
The season ended with a performance by the neophonic orchestra at the 26th Ottawa International Jazz Festival. Those lucky enough to attend this show were treated to a preview of some of the music from future IJO programmes. This concert was the first for the IJO since become officially established in March 2006 and set the stage for an exciting future for the orchestra.
A Celebration Of The Past
In just eighteen months, IJO Founder and Artistic Director Adrian Cho presented five critically acclaimed concerts of repertory jazz. That was just the beginning. Join us to celebrate those successes and discover the new incorporated IJO and the growing team of talented and energetic volunteers behind it. Together we’re working to make the IJO an even bigger success and we want you to be a part of it.
And A Preview Of The Future
As always, we’ll perform amazing, rarely heard music that will challenge you as much as it will challenge our musicians. We’ll preview each of the incredible concerts in our 2007-2008 season that will include a tour and innovative collaborations with twenty music, dance and theatre guest artists.
You’ll hear music never performed before in Ottawa or even in Canada including new compositions and arrangements written especially for the IJO and music by Duke Ellington, Gil Evans, Bill Holman and Johnny Richards. We’ll also unveil our new Supporters Programme and its many benefits including our coolListening Parties.
In A Unique Venue
This concert will take place in the spacious Crowne Plaza International Ballroom. You’ll see why we’ve decided to make this venue the orchestra’s home. Relax in “cabaret style” seating with drinks available from a cash bar. After the show, join our volunteers and musicians for a reception.
Featuring A Superb Array of Artists
Led by Adrian Cho, twenty-eight of Ottawa’s finest jazz and symphony orchestra musicians will perform in our seventeen-piece repertory and twenty-seven-piece neophonic orchestras. They will be joined by a number of collaborating artists including Ottawa dancers and our special guest, Toronto-based trumpeter Lina Allemano.
