The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) is launching its Classical Spree week with the big free concert on the Esplanade du Parc olympique on Wednesday, August 14, followed by events at Place des Arts on the weekend. With only eight indoor concerts, in the face of a slew of free activities, the event’s configuration has been remodeled.
When Rafael Payare opens the day on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at the Maison symphonique, it will be with a program that seems inspired by Jordi Savall. In fact, alongside the “Egyptian” Concerto by Saint-Saëns, played by Cédric Tiberghien, a work by Dimitrie Cantemir, the composer that Savall had brought to light in his fascinating album Istanbul. Dimitrie Cantemir. The Book of the Science of Music in 2009.
Enlargement
These original associations are the fruit of the OSM’s first collaboration with the Constantinople ensemble. Rafael Payare, who opened the Virée, once the OSM’s fortress, to other ensembles such as Obiora, further broadens the palette.
“We did the Americas. This year, the theme is the Mediterranean and all around; there is Italy, Spain, but also beyond. This will be my first interaction with Constantinople. It is very important that the Spree is a platform, a window for ensembles. The goal is to bring music to everyone,” says Rafael Payare, who has invited for the third time Obiora, the orchestra from cultural diversity, which he will conduct on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. in a program in which works by Albéniz and Tchaikovsky will frame compositions by oud (a type of oriental lute) player Joseph Tawadros.
Several ensembles are also requested as part of the free shows at the Complexe Desjardins, at the Espace culturel Georges-Émile-Lapalme or at the Esplanade tranquille, events opened by the Orchestre symphonique des jeunes de Montréal at the Complexe Desjardins on Friday at 7:30 p.m. (concert repeated on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.).
These initiatives will also involve the Mount Royal Youth Orchestra, a Virée Youth Harmony and, most importantly, the Virée Symphony, an orchestra where amateur instrumentalists from across Quebec come together under the direction of Adam Johnson. During their concert at Complexe Desjardins on Saturday at 6 p.m., Rafael Payare will make a short detour to conduct the Overture to Nabucco.
In the free section, in addition to the many educational, interactive activities and entertainment, we will notably see the presence of the vocal ensemble Les Rugissants, on Saturday at 4:30 p.m., with Voices of SpainSpanish music program of the XXe and XXIe centuries, accompanied by a guitar and a flamenco dancer; the presentation of the Four seasons by Vivaldi, with Andrew Wan, Saturday at 7 p.m., and the alliance between OSM musicians and the electronic music of Guillaume Coutu Dumont, a partnership with the MUTEK festival, Saturday at 9 p.m.
The end of Olympism
This abundance and strengthening of free activities contrasts with the drastic change in the paid offer. Gone is the quasi-Olympic race for the number of concerts, modeled on the concept of the “Folle journée” invented by René Martin in France, where music lovers rushed from one venue to another to see performances lasting 45 minutes to an hour, between symphonic concerts, recitals and chamber music concerts. Usually, a Virée featured several star soloists who played a concert with orchestra, another solo and chamber music with musicians from the OSM.
Except that after the pandemic, the instrumentalists were exhausted for an audience insufficient for this musical Stakhanovism, especially in 2022, where Rafael Payare had not yet taken the measure of things and had introduced a lot of new South American repertoire.
This year we find seven programs and eight concerts, with a Requiem Verdi’s performance is offered twice (Friday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.). Of these seven programs, three are given at the Fifth Hall: a concert of Moroccan music, chamber music with the Concert by Chausson around Cédric Tiberghien, and a recital by guitarist Miloš. So the Maison symphonique still has the Obiora concert, and therefore, quite reasonably, three OSM programs: the concert with Constantinople (Saturday 1:30 p.m.), the Requiem by Verdi, and on Saturday evening, a concert with a Hispanic flavor with excerpts from Carmen and the Aranjuez Concerto by Miloš.
This decision of moderation and prudence, after the 2022 and 2023 editions which had highlighted the risk of an oversupply of the offer, an element that many interlocutors highlighted to explain the drop in attendance, contrasts with the line adopted by other classic festivals, as we have previously discussed in The Duty with Marc Boucher (Classica), Denis Brott (Chamber Music Festival), Mathieu Lussier (Domaine Forget) or Renaud Loranger (Lanaudière).
“In your latest articles, you have raised many fundamental points regarding the reflections of the music community in general. There is a before, during and after the pandemic,” concedes Marianne Perron, Senior Director of the Artistic Sector at the OSM. “The pandemic has led us to think more about how to present our concerts, the number of concerts, etc. These reflections existed before, but the pandemic has forced us to delve into them.”
Reflections
Marianne Perron mentions the need for adjustments that affect formats, for example. “La Virée is no exception to this. La Virée was, in its DNA, designed to create a link with the community and involve the community in the programming. In the current context, we wanted to increase this element and develop the activities and concerts offered free of charge. That is why there are even more this year, with a real diversity of offerings, that is to say as much for families, for audiences with special needs, with the participation of amateur, professional and emerging artists. We have 70 activities, with artists from different backgrounds,” M tells us.me Perron, who hopes to respond to a desire for access to different types of music. Hence the presence, also, of the Mezghena orchestra from Montreal, a specialist in traditional Algerian music.
The changes to the 2024 vintage do not only affect the number of concerts: “You saw with [l’ensemble] Constantinople that can be played on the type of programs. The concerts are also longer, for example the Requiem of Verdi. In the hall, there are fewer concerts, but 8 is already a respectable number, when we offer 70 free quality activities,” emphasizes the director of programming.
Is this formula here to stay? “This is the approach we are trying this year. We believe a lot in this format. But like most orchestras and institutions, we are in a process of adaptation. We preserve our priorities on what we want to share, our values, and we work on the way of presenting things, the formats, etc. We think about this on a daily basis.”
The “reformatting” » is not tinged with any doom and gloom. Let us recall that the figure of -40% in attendance for classical music published recently concerned the year 2022. As the Festival de Lanaudière showed, 2024 has nothing to do with it, even if there is no reason to sweep the problems under the carpet: “The public generally returns to the regular season, but that does not exempt us from thinking about how to present concerts and how we communicate. I have been with the OSM and in the music industry for a long time. And this is one of the most exciting periods, because, yes, there are challenges. But it is so interesting to rethink the way of doing things. It is not about changing the nature of what we do, but on the “how”, the period is fascinating,” concludes Marianne Perron.
Before his Requiem Verdi in theaters on Friday and Sunday, Rafael Payare will also celebrate Italy at the Olympic Park with, in particular, Francesca da Rimini by Tchaikovsky, The Roman Carnival of Berlioz and The Pines of Rome by Respighi.