Thursday, February 7, 2013

The Bishop's University Chamber Orchestra is back!

The orchestra will perform at Bandeen Hall.


The Bishop's University Chamber Orchestra has risen from the ashes.
In 2003, the Bishop's music department started the orchestra with direction from professor Andrew MacDonald. However, MacDonald had to give up conducting to work on a composition of his own, and after a few years, the chamber orchestra found itself too low on string players to continue.
"After a break of several years, I'm delighted to return to developing the chamber orchestra at Bishop's," MacDonald says. "We have a really good core of string players and we're very excited about the repertoire we're working on."
The orchestra is still looking for players, especially for the string section. Right now, the orchestra consists of 17 players altogether, including woodwinds and strings. MacDonald is aiming for 25 players for the final concert in April. "Strings sound wonderful in Bandeen Hall," MacDonald says of the chamber's acoustics.
MacDonald would like to welcome players of all ages, whether in attendance at Bishop's or residents of the surrounding community, to rehearse with the orchestra and take part. He describes the chamber orchestra as "good community music-making" and encourages anyone with an instrument to come try it out.
The Chamber Orchestra will make its second debut in concert on April 7 at 3 p.m.. They will play selections from Holst, Grieg, Respeghi, and Mozart. "I've always wanted to perform this music," MacDonald tells us, looking happy to be back up at the stand. "We're going to put on a fantastic concert."
Anyone wishing to join the chamber orchestra should contact Dr. Andrew MacDonald at amcdona@ubishops.ca.
By the end of the interview, he'd convinced me to dust off my violin and get back on stage. We hope to see you too!

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