Author Archives: barczablog

They Can’t Kill Us All

Posted on March 25, 2017 by barczablog

I may seem to lead a divided life, vanishing into realms of violins and sopranos, opera and oratorio, without much apparent connection to the struggles of people in the 21st century: with the possible exception of the singers trying to … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Politics | 2 Comments

Lintu Finesses TSO

Posted on March 24, 2017 by barczablog

I don’t know if Hannu Lintu is a candidate to succeed Peter Oundjian or not, but I wish he were.  The Finnish conductor enticed some of the finest playing I’ve heard all season out of the Toronto Symphony in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | 2 Comments

COC’s 2017 Revival of Louis Riel: “from a more inclusive perspective”

Posted on March 19, 2017 by barczablog

CANADIAN OPERA COMPANY’S 2017 REVIVAL OF LOUIS RIEL FEATURES VOICES NOT HEARD BEFORE A Uniquely Canadian Contribution to Opera Revisited for the 21st Century Toronto – Louis Riel, composed by Harry Somers with libretto by Mavor Moore, is a uniquely … Continue reading →

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Schönberg and Sicilia: two more from Straub /Huillet

Posted on March 18, 2017 by barczablog

Tonight’s installment of TIFF’s retrospective “Not Reconciled: the films of  Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet” must have seemed like a remarkable opportunity to James Quandt and the team assembling the schedule.  Each film is almost exactly an hour long, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Politics, Reviews | 5 Comments

Too Early/Too Late: you say you want a revolution?

Posted on March 17, 2017 by barczablog

Too Early/Too Late (1980), the latest installment in “Not Reconciled“, TIFF’s Straub-Huillet retrospective, is aptly titled for at least a couple of reasons.  As a study of revolutions co-opted or hijacked by others, the title is about timing.  But the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Politics, Reviews | 1 Comment

Moses,Aaron, and a few others at TIFF

Posted on March 13, 2017 by barczablog

Today TIFF presented two musically-oriented films from their Straub-Huillet retrospective, introduced with a live performance by Against the Grain Theatre. AtG have boldly gone where opera has not often gone before, taking their productions into bars, TV studios, and now … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Opera, Reviews | 1 Comment

New Creations Festival Finale: Miller, Bjarnason & Lizée

Posted on March 12, 2017 by barczablog

Tonight’s Toronto Symphony New Creations Concert to close the festival was a demonstration of the old maxim “less is more”, an epithet I used to use as a personal motto (at least for its pun-potential).  If I had any objection … Continue reading →

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Straub & Huillet’s History Lesson

Posted on March 10, 2017 by barczablog

I saw History Lesson (or Geschichtsunterricht ) at TIFF tonight, a 1972 film by Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet that’s my latest instalment in the retrospective “Not Reconciled”. Straub & Huillet adapted an incomplete fragment of a novel by Bertolt … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | 1 Comment

Louis Riel returns to Canadian Opera Company

Posted on March 9, 2017 by barczablog

LOUIS RIEL RETURNS TO CANADIAN OPERA COMPANY WITH  INCLUSIVE AND EXPANSIVE HISTORY RESTORED A Contentious and Provocative Celebratory Work to Honour Canada’s History Toronto – Canadian history comes to life on the stage of the Four Seasons Centre for the … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Press Releases and Announcements | Leave a comment

Pallett – Ehnes TSO #NCF17

Posted on March 9, 2017 by barczablog

Tonight’s New Creations Festival Concert by the Toronto Symphony gave us a closer look at the co-curator Owen Pallett, who stepped into the spotlight with a premiere of his own, alongside two other world premieres and a recent composition from … Continue reading →

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