Dazzling French Soprano SANDRINE PIAU Makes Toronto Debut Jan 31 – Feb 3 Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra Directed by Jeanne Lamon Sandrine Piau, Soprano
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Dazzling French Soprano SANDRINE PIAU makes Toronto Debut Jan 31 – Feb 3 Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra Directed by Jeanne Lamon Sandrine Piau, soprano “Only a voice this pure, with intonation so flawless, could seem to linger long after it had sounded.” —San Francisco Classical Voice "Sandrine Piau is one of today’s most celebrated singers in the world of early music." —Music Web International “A magnificent singer with … pure timbre, even line, flawless musicality, and touching fragility.” —Classiqueinfo Toronto, Canada, January 11, 2013 … One of the most remarkable stars of the French opera scene, soprano Sandrine Piau joins Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra for her highly anticipated Toronto debut from January 31 to February 3, 2013. Piau is also renowned worldwide for her performances and recordings of baroque music, by Handel and Vivaldi in particular. She makes her Tafelmusik debut in a programme of virtuoso operatic arias and motets by these two composers, singing excerpts from Handel’s Giulio Cesare and Il trionfo del tempo, and Vivaldi’s thrilling and technically demanding In furore iustissimae irae. Known for her “clear and deeply expressive voice, nuanced phrasing and immaculate control,” (The New York Times) Piau regularly performs with celebrated conductors such as William Christie, Philippe Herreweghe, Christophe Rousset, Gustav Leonhardt, Ivor Bolton, Ton Koopman, René Jacobs, Marc Minkowski and Nikolaus Harnoncourt. Highlights of Piau’s current season include a debut recital tour to Japan, her Boston Symphony Orchestra debut, performances with RAI Orchestra in Turin, Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande at La Monnaie, Brussels, and a Mozart recital and performance of Britten’s Les Illuminations at Wigmore Hall in London. Piau’s recent opera engagements include Cleopatra in Handel’s Giulio Cesare, Ännchen in Weber’s Der Freischütz, Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, the title role in Monteverdi’s L’Incoronazione di Poppea, and Sandrina in a new production of La Finta giardiniera at La Monnaie. Piau’s wide-ranging discography for the Naive label includes music that spans several centuries, from the baroque period to the present day. Her 2009 album Handel: Between Heaven and Earth with L’Accademia Bizantina under frequent Tafelmusik guest director and violinist Stefano Montanari, was awarded the 2010 MIDEM prize for best baroque recording featuring a singer. Likewise, her 2010 recording of Vivaldi’s motet In furore received high praise from the BBC’s Classical Music.com: “Piau is on impeccable form, judging each interval to perfection and settling on the highest peaks of an unusually wide tessitura with all the ease and precision imaginable.” Dates + Times: Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre Thu Jan 31, Fri Feb 1* & Sat Feb 2 at 8pm Sun Feb 3 at 3:30pm *On Friday Feb 1, Tafelmusik’s young audience membership programme Tafelscene will be hosting an event at intermission, complete with snacks and free beverages. Ticket Prices Regular: $39 – $89 65+: $35 - $79 Ages 35 & Under: $20 - $79 Venue: Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre, 427 Bloor Street West Box Office: 416.964.6337 | www.tafelmusik.org Website: www.tafelmusik.org / www.facebook.com/tafelmusik.org Programme: Brescianello Orchestral suite in G Minor Vivaldi Motet “In furore iustissimae irae”, RV 626 (Piau) Vivaldi Concerto for 4 violins in B Minor, op. 3, no. 10 Handel From Il trionfo del tempo Accompagnato "Pure del cielo" & Aria "Tu del ciel ministro eletto" (Piau) Veracini Orchestral suite in F Major Handel From Giulio Cesare Sinfonia bellica Accompagnato "Che sento" & Aria "Se pietà" (Piau) Aria "Da tempeste" (Piau) -30- Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, led by Music Director Jeanne Lamon and founded in 1979, is one of the world’s leading period performance ensembles. The orchestra performs over 50 concerts a year at home in Toronto, tours extensively around the world, has released over 80 CDs and has received nine JUNO Awards and a Grammy Award nomination. Tafelmusik Media, the choir and orchestra’s multi-platform recording label, was launched in January 2012. Tafelmusik is the Baroque Orchestra-in- Residence at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto where it hosts its annual Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute. The Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, under the direction of Ivars Taurins, was formed in 1981 to complement the Orchestra. The 2012/13 touring season brings Tafelmusik’s two most recent multi-media concerts, The Galileo Project and House of Dreams, to audiences across North America. Season Presenting Sponsor: Feb 1 & 2 concerts sponsored by: Tafelmusik gratefully acknowledges the support of its partners in government: Tafelmusik’s Season Radio Sponsor is The New CLASSICAL 96.3 FM. Sandrine Piau photo credit: Sandrine Expilly/Naive For media information or to arrange an interview, please contact: Luisa Trisi, Media Relations Manager, tel: 416 481‐1161 | e‐mail: [email protected] High‐resolution photos of Sandrine Piau and Tafelmusik are available for download in the Media Room at www.tafelmusik.org .