Simon Rivard | Photo: TamPhotography
LET’S TANGO!
December 7
7:30 p.m.
Simon Rivard,
Jonathan Goldman, bandoneon
Pierre Rancourt, baritone
Bryant et Faye Lopez, Argentine tango dancers
Gardel and Piazzolla, two of the greatest tango masters, will be featured in this third concert. What do these experts have in common with bandoneon player Jonathan Goldman and the young conductor Simon Rivard? That’s our secret—you’ll find out when you attend this rather unique concert! Revel in the joy and sensuality conveyed by our I Musici players in this concert featuring solo violinist Julie Triquet, Montreal’s own baritone Pierre Rancourt, and two leading dancers. This concert is surely not for the faint of heart!
– Jean-François Rivest
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Program
Gardel
Excerpts from the show “Carlos Gardel: Dialogue avec le roi du tango” Co-produced with I Musici and “Le Volier” (with video projection)
Duration: approx. 30 minutes
Por una cabeza (strings and dancers)
Duration: approx. 30 minutes
Piazzolla
Tres tangos (bandoneon, piano, harp, percussion, strings)
Duration: approx. 17 minutes
La muerte del ángel (bandoneon, piano, harp, percussion, strings)
Duration: approx. 3 minutes
Adiós Nonino (bandoneon, piano, harp, percussion, strings, dancers)
Durée: approx. 8 minutes
(BIS) Oblivion (bandoneon and strings)
Duration: approx. 3 minutes
Vallières
Christmas medley for I Musici
Duration: approx. 10 minutes
Simon Rivard | Photo: TamPhotography
Simon Rivard
Guest conductor
Biography
Simon Rivard is a highly sought-after conductor in Canada’s music scene, known for his excellence in leading both orchestra and opera. Recent highlights include his debut at the Edmonton Opera for Puccini’s La Bohème, and subsequent return for their production of Puccini’s Tosca, as well as Handel’s Messiah with both the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Orchestre Classique de Montréal.
Rivard has held several podium positions including Resident Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, the RBC Resident Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and the Resident Conductor of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. In 2023, Simon was appointed Edmonton Opera’s first Music Director, beginning his tenure in their 23/24 season. He has conducted orchestras across North America and Europe, including the Orchestre symphonique de Québec, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, and the Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra. His 22/23 season included debuts with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, and engagements with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestre symphonique de Sherbrooke.
An accomplished choral conductor, he has worked with the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir as Associate Conductor and Artistic Collaborator, leading them in Against the Grain’s Juno Award-nominated Messiah/Complex. He was also the Musical Director of the TBSO Symphony Chorus and Assistant Conductor of the Choir of St. Andrew and St. Paul and the Ottawa Choral Society.
Named in 2017 one of the CBC’s “30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30,” Simon has been an Equilibrium Young Artist and an invited participant for the first Conducting Mentorship Program at the Verbier Festival Academy (Switzerland). Born in Montréal, Rivard studied violin performance with Anne Robert and orchestral conducting with Raffi Armenian at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal. He completed an MMus in Orchestral Conducting at McGill University under Alexis Hauser and Guillaume Bourgogne.
Jonathan Goldman | Photo: Laurence Labat
Jonathan Goldman
Bandoneon
Biography
A passionate advocate of the bandoneón, award-winning musician Jonathan Goldman was a member of Quartango, Canada’s first tango band from 2007 to 2017. Their 2014 recording, Encuentro won a Juno Prize for best instrumental album and an Opus Prize (Album of the year – World music) in 2015. He picked up another Opus prize with Quartango for the CD J’aime les nuits de Montréal (2018). He has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Regina and Saskatoon Symphony Orchestras, Symphony Nova Scotia, I Musici de Montréal, the Orchestre symphonique de l’Isle, and the Signature Symphony of Tulsa. He has performed with world-renowned performers including the Alcan (Saguenay) String Quartet, James Ehnes, Sergio Tiempo, the Emily Carr String Quartet, Linda Lee Thomas, Lara St. John, Yehonatan Berick, Matt Haimowitz, Mark Fewer and Juan Sebastian Delgado. His composition for bandoneon, cello and electronics, Notas de viaje was premiered in 2021 through a grant from the Conseil des arts de Montréal. His arrangement of Astor Piazzolla’s Double Concerto hommage à Liège was published by Éditions Henry Lemoine (France). Jonathan Goldman is Professor of Musicology in the Faculty of Music of the Université de Montréal and has published widely in the field of twentieth-century music, including his 2011 book The Musical Language of Pierre Boulez (Cambridge University Press; prix Opus pour livre de l’année). He was the editor of the journal Circuit, musiques contemporaines from 2006 to 2016.
Pierre Rancourt | Photo: Pierre-Étienne Bergeron
Pierre Rancourt
Baritone
Biography
Baritone Pierre Rancourt is a regular guest soloist with numerous Quebec ensembles, including Opéra de Montréal, Clavecin en concert and Opéra bouffe du Québec. A frequent figure within the network of Montreal’s Maisons de la culture, he is a creator of performance events that have been presented throughout the Greater Montreal area. His production entitled Carlos Gardel : Dialogue avec le roi du tango (Carlos Gardel: Dialogue with the King of Tango) was awarded the Prix du public by the Conseil des arts de Montréal en tournée.
In addition to his stage activities, Mr. Rancourt is an avid promoter of the benefits of music. For over ten years, often in collaboration with institutions such as Opéra de Montréal or Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, he has led workshops that have been attended by thousands of young people.
Rancourt has premiered works by composers such as Éric Champagne, Alain Gagnon, Alfred La Liberté and Auguste Descarries, among others. He joined the Trio Hochelaga in a recording of arrangements of the latter’s chamber music on the ATMA Classique label, and another album of music by Lionel Daunais has been released recently (Centredisques).
Bryant Roberto Lopez
Bryant Roberto Lopez
Argentine tango dancer
Biography
Bio to come…
Faye Lavin | Photo: Alma
Faye Lavin
Argentine tango dancer
Biography
Bio to come…
