PRESS KIT

Since its creation in 1981 in Montreal, Arion has remained connected to the creative energy of baroque composers, like Bach and Vivaldi, playing their works on period instruments and rediscovering the shine of the original colours of those masterpieces. Thanks to the artistic vision of Claire Guimond, it is now the figurehead of the world of ancient music on period instruments in Quebec and Canada.

The Orchestra offers a prestigious Montreal concert Series featuring more than twenty musicians and with the participation of internationally known guest conductors. Arion has hosted such celebrated conductors as Stefano Montanari, Jaap ter Linden, Monica Huggett, Christophe Rousset, Barthold Kuijken, Rachel Podger and Alexander Weimann, to name just a few. Arion has been awarded many prizes and grants and tours regularly in the United States, Mexico, Europe and Japan, as well as Quebec and Canada. Arion now holds an impressive discography of 30 titles.

In 2001, Claire Guimond founded early-music.com, dedicated to furthering excellence on period instruments in early music. Largely centered on Arion recordings, early-music.com contributes undeniably to the prestige of these artists thanks to its international diffusion. For Arion's discography, please browse through the early-music.com website.

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DISCOGRAPHIE

ARION HOLDS AN IMPRESSIVE DISCO GRAPHY O F 31 TITLES, A LARGE NUMBER OF WHICH HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED THROUGH E ARLY- MUSIC. COM AND DISTRIBUTED INTERNATIONALLY .

DERNIÈRES SORTIES :

REBELLES BAROQUES (2017) Alexander Weimann, chef d´orchestre et clavecin, Claire Guimond et Alexa Raine-Wright, flûtes, Jean-Louis Blouin, alto Arion Orchestre Baroque « Très vivant…remarquable. » -Extrait de la chronique de Frédéric Lambert pour l´Émission Médium large « Le concerto qui ouvre le CD se démarque par un finale brillant, tempétueux comme du Haydn. » -Christophe Huss, Le Devoir

BACH : MAGNIFICAT BWV 243 (2016)

Alexander Weimann, chef d’orchestre, Johanna Winkel et Johannette Zomer, sopranos, James Laing, contreténor, Zachary Wilder, ténor et Matthew Brook, baryton-basse, Arion Orchestre Baroque « His (Zachary Wilder) singing of Bach’s ‘Et misericordia’ (with countertenor James Laing) and ‘Deposuit potentes’ and Kuhnau’s ‘Ich huld’ge dir, grossmächt’ger Prinz’ exudes confidence and absolute comfort with both composers’ idioms.” - Joseph Newsome, Voix des Arts

LES TRÉSORS CACHÉS D’ITALIE (2014) Stefano Montanari, chef d'orchestre Prix Opus (2015)

« L’orchestre et le soliste font une interprétation fervente et passionnée Toronto » - Benoit Bergeron, Rreverb.com

PRIMA DONNA (2012) Karina Gauvin, soprano Alexander Weimann, directeur Arion Félix (2013), Prix Juno (2013), Prix Opus (2014)

« This album is a treat from beginning to end. » - John Teraud, Musical Toronto “ Throughout, the Arion Orchestre Baroque (…), is never less than ideal. This is a stunner.” – Robert Levine, Classics Today

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J.S. BACH – LA PASSION SELON SAINT JEAN (2011) Les Voix Baroques Alexander Weimann, clavecin Arion Nomination au gala de l’ADISQ 2012 : « Disque de l’année, Classique/Vocal » Nomination au gala des Prix Opus 2013: « Disque de l’année, Baroque »

« Gorgeously balanced new Canadian recording of Bach St. John Passion » - John Terauds, Musical Toronto

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DISTINCTIONS

ARION HAS RECEIVED A NUMBER OF DISTINCTIO NS OVER THE YEARS :

· Opus Prize for "Bach and the Bernardinis" given by the Quebec Counsel for Music in the Category « Concert, Medieval Music, Renaissance and Baroque » (Quebec), 2017

· Nomination for an Opus Prize for "Beyong the Four Seasons!" by the Quebec Counsel for Music in the Category « Concert of the year - Medieval Music, Renaissance and Baroque » (Quebec), 2017

· Opus Prize for "Coucou" given by the Quebec Counsel for Music in the Category « Concert of the year - Medieval Music, Renaissance and Baroque » (Quebec), 2016

· Opus Prize for "Trésors cachés d’Italie" given by the Quebec Counsel for Music in the Category «Medieval Music, Renaissance and Baroque » (Quebec), 2015

· Opus Prize for "Prima Donna" given by the Quebec Counsel for Music in the Category « Medieval Music, Renaissance and Baroque » (Quebec), 2014

· Félix Prize "Album of the year - Classical Vocal Album" for "Prima Donna" awarded by ADISQ (Quebec), 2013

· JUNO Award in the category "Album of the year - Vocal/Choral" for the album "Prima Donna", 2013

· Nomination for the album "La Passion selon Saint Jean" for the Félix in the category "Album of the year - Orchestras and large ensembles", ADISQ (Quebec)2012

· Nomination for the album "La Passion selon Saint Jean" for the Félix in the category "Album of the year - Orchestras and large ensembles", ADISQ (Quebec), 2012

· Audience award - Concert of the year, received from the Conseil des Arts de Montréal for the tour "Vivaldi - Chiaroscuro" in Montreal during Fall 2005 as part of the CAM on tour

· Second prize - International Handel Recording Prize for "Handel - Love duets" (United Kingdom), 2002

· Nomination as a finalist in the Grand-Prix of the Conseil des arts de Montréal, which highlights “the excellency of its artistic direction, the exceptional influence of the group, as well as its vision for the future” (Canada), 2002

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CONCERT LOCATIONS

SINCE 1981, ARION HAS PRESENTED ITS C ONCERTS IN QUEB EC, IN C ANADA ET INTERNATIONALLY .

CANADA FRANCE Fredericton, New Brunswick Fêtes musicales de Savoie Mission, White Rock, Salt Spring, British Colombia Rencontres et Musique de Valmorel, Edmonton, Alberta Haute-Savoie Early Music Vancouver Early Music Society of Victoria, B.C. SPAIN Festival international de musique Baroque de Lamèque, Zaragoza Nouveau-Brunswick Festival international de musique de chambre d’Ottowa, Bilbao Ontario Fondation Arte Musica, Salle Bourgie, Montréal BELGIUM Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra Bruxelle, Centre Woluwe-St-Pierre et Toronto Series, Festival de Bruges Ottawa, Festival du Brabant Wallon Regina Musical Club Sint Truiden Winnipeg, MusikBarock Anvers Calgary Pro Musical Society, Roeselare Whitehorse Concerts (YK) Spa Women’s Musical Club of Toronto

Early Music Society of the Islands, Victoria GREAT BRITAIN Edmonton Chamber Music Society Bath, Michael Tippett Centre Oakville Londres, Southbank Centre Winnipeg Bach Festival, Manitoba Londres, City Music Society Many villages in Québec: Alma, Rimouski, Valleyfield, Stamford Arts Centre Sainte-Thérèse, Ville Mont-Royal, Sept-îles, Shawinigan, University of Southampton St-Jérôme, St-Hyacinthe, L’Assomption, Longueuil, Tonbridge, Tuedeley Festival Montréal, Terrebonne, Québec, etc. Canterbury Festival

UNITED STATES IRELAND San Diego, Californie Early Music Network« Lycée français de Los Angeles Frick Collection, New York ITALY Chamber Music Society of Grand Rapids Festival Muscia Antiqua a Magnano Boston Early Music Festival Cambridge Society for Early Music JAPAN

Sasayama (Koukyo Hall) MEXICO Tokyo (Dai-ichi Seimi Hall) Festival Internacional Cervantino Nagoya (Shirakawa Hall) BRAZIL Shizuoka (Ongakukan AOI Hall Conservatorio Brasileiro de Musica, Rio de Janeiro

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INDEX DES ARTICLES

1. EXCERPTS OF REVIEW p. 7 - 8

2. SN TRAVEL AND ARTS WITHOUT BORDERS, February 17th, 2017, Nancy Snipper, The scent of the French – Musically flavored p. 9 - 11

3. LE DEVOIR, January 13th, 2017, Christophe Huss, Arion file un très bon coton p. 12

4. LE DEVOIR, November 11th, 2016, Christophe Huss, Fascinant Lorenzo Coppola p. 13 - 14

5. VANCOUVER SUN, August 6th, 2016, David Gordon Duke, Small is beautiful when it comes to Bach p. 15 - 16

6. LE DEVOIR, October 10th, 2015, Christophe Huss, Onofri, meneur plutôt que soliste p. 17

7. EMAG, Winter 2014, Karen Cook, CD Trésors cachés d’Italie p. 18

8. LE SOLEIL, May 19th, 2015, Josianne Desloges, Arion et La Chapelle : un requiem printanier p. 19

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REVIEWS

WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING…

J.S. Bach’s Mass in B minor was designed to be the centrepiece of this year’s Vancouver Bach Festival. It played to a sold out Chan Centre Friday, with Alexander Weimann directing a complement of singers with Montreal’s Arion Baroque Orchestra....I can’t recall a faster or more exhilarating rendition of the Cum Sancto Spiritu that ends the Gloria.... A memorable performance and a practical demonstration of Weimann’s deep, loving understanding of the whole. - Vancouver Sun

There was some beautiful playing from the Arion Baroque Orchestra, particularly the solos by concertmaster Chantal Rémillard, flautist Claire Guimond, Nicolas Isabelle on baroque trumpet, and Pierre-Antoine Tremblay on horn. - Ottawa Citizen

C’est un privilège que d’enregistrer de si beaux projets. Arion a un niveau qui est bien supérieur aux autres orchestres baroques canadiens et certainement plusieurs autres… Les cordes sont devenues idéales sans compter tous les autres. Aucune partie faible. - Johanne Goyette, ATMA Classique

Remarquable! Il n’y a pas d’autre mot pour décrire la force de la prestation offerte par Arion orchestre baroque vendredi dernier dans le cadre du concert d’ouverture Coucou! de la série montréalaise de l’orchestre à la Salle Bourgie au Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal. - Premières en affaires

Never before have I witnessed an ensemble produce such a remarkable and unified sound, such impeccable phrasing, such unparalleled expression of stunning sonority, phrasing and brilliant beat punctuations as I did in Bourgie Hall during Arion’s kick-off 2014/15 concert titled « Coucou! » - Nancy Snipper, Arts & Opinion

Malgré l’excellent programme, c’est certainement l’interprétation phénoménale des solistes et de l’ensemble qui restera dans les mémoires et qui explique pourquoi les spectateurs avaient des fourmis dans les mains à force d’applaudir. - Martin Prévost, pieuvre.ca

The [C.P.E. Bach] flute concerto isn’t just well-written and expertly performed – it is really exciting and leaves you delighting in the expressive technique and truly spectacular ensemble work […]. - David Vernier, Listen

Arion Orchestre Baroque deliver outstanding Vivaldi programme. - Richard Todd, Ottawa Citizen

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One could relish the impeccable intonation of the strings and their collective instinct for appropriate texture. Judging by this concert, Arion is in great shape. - Arthur Kaptainis, The Gazette

Le sentiment de majesté et de grandeur qu’on pouvait éprouver devant une telle plénitude sonore était à vous donner la chair de poule. - Richard Boisvert, Le Soleil

On y admirait la pose des notes, la tenue des nuances piano et la douceur fondue des coloris orchestraux. - Christophe Huss, Le Devoir

Ce groupe de musique ancienne, qui joue dans le style et sur des instruments d’époque, est l’un de ceux qui ont fait de Montréal une capitale du Baroque. - L’Actualité

L’Ensemble montréalais Arion a étendu ses ailes pour devenir un orchestre baroque de premier ordre. Il travaille avec une brochette colorée et impressionnante de chefs invités, ce qui est certainement un des secrets de son succès. Sur ce très beau disque, c’est le Néerlandais Jaap ter Linden qui dirige ces lectures bouillonnantes et fort inspirées d’œuvres bien connues du grand Bach. - The National Post C'est ma 2e expérience avec Arion, c'est la 2e fois que le chef et soliste invité fait preuve d'un talent, d'une fougue et d'une passion remarquable.

- Jonathan Blanchet, Voir Un duo eccezionale : l’orchestra di Arion famosa per i suoi strumenti di epoca in Québec che fa di essa uno dei più illustri portavoce québécois e tra le migliori orchestre barocche sul piano internazionale. - Il Cittadino Canadese Arion nous offre une musique vivante par son interprétation énergique et disciplinée et la clarté cristalline de son jeu. - Takaaki Aosawa, Japon

In the intervening years Arion has matured to cultivate its own distinctive sound: bright, energic, high-profile rhythmically, with not too homogenized a blend so that the delicious timbres of the instruments come through with splendid impact. It is a current style-setter for what the music of the Baroque era must have been like. - Atlanta Audio Society

There is absolutely nothing small about Arion’s sound, and its tone is as full and rich as an orchestra many times its size”. - Mike D. Brownell, allmusic.com

Le Concerto op. 3 n°8, en fin de première partie, fut le bijou absolu d´une soirée fort agréable dans l´ensemble. - Christophe Huss, Le Devoir

Every allegro demanded bionic energy, titanium-like talent spinning speedily in unenviable tempi braced in impeccable clarity and unbridled emotion. The effect was dazzling. - SN Travel and Arts Without Borders

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ARTICLES

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KAREN COOK, EMAG

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JOSIANNE DESLOGES, LE SOLEIL

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