The Cambridge Symphony Orchestra (CSO) invites everyone to be uplifted and inspired with works from three great classical masters for the launch of its 2023-24 season.
On Oct. 21 at 7 p.m., CSO will open the season with ‘Masterworks I’ featuring orchestral masterpieces by Beethoven and Brahms at St. Peter’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Cambridge. Pianist Ken Gee will join the symphony for Mozart’s popular Elvira Madigan concerto.
“We invite everyone to come out to our first concert of the season. We are very excited. It's full steam ahead for us,” said Cambridge Symphony Orchestra music director, Sabatino Vacca.
“Our concerts cover a wide gamut of styles, but everyone is pretty keen to perform in this concert with the these three great masters.”
Vacca has been the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra music director since 2007.
“We are coming up to our 20th season next year, which is very exciting for us. I think a lot of people still don’t realize that there is an orchestra here in Cambridge. I encourage people, if they haven’t checked us out, to do so,” Vacca said.
Vacca says, since the pandemic, it is amazing to be back and perform live again.
“Like many other orchestras during the pandemic, we struggled along and tried to put videos together. But nothing takes the place of live, personal interaction,” he said.
It is still a shock for Vacca, after hearing the news that after 78 years, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony filed for bankruptcy last month.
“It’s such an unfortunate situation. It was cancelled right before their first opening concert which was such a surprise for many people,” Vacca said.
“This hasn’t really affected us in terms of the upcoming season, but we are happy to see some of the youngsters enroled in the K-W youth orchestra, interested in our budding youth orchestra program.”
The Cambridge Youth Orchestra (CYO) was formed to give young performers an opportunity to develop orchestral ensemble and musical skills. CYO has since grown and evolved, and occasionally performs with the CSO at community events.
"For any Kitchener-Waterloo subscribers, who are looking around for another orchestra to follow and attend concerts, give us a try,” Vacca said.
Following the symphony orchestra’s Masterworks I performance, a second concert is scheduled for Nov. 20 at Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto.
The CSO will accompany Joey Niceforo and Sara Papini for Harmonizing Hearts: Music for a Cause, benefiting the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research. Tickets can be purchased at Ticketmaster or on the Roy Thomson Hall website.
“We are honoured and excited about this concert and being able to perform at Roy Thompson Hall. Joey Niceforo sang with us for a Valentine’s concert last season, and this was extremely well received,” Vacca said.
“We are having him back with one of his singing partners again for a Valentine's celebration this season. But for this concert, he invited us to perform with him in Toronto, and all for a very good cause.”
On Friday Dec.1, at 7 p.m., a ‘Joy to the World’ concert will be held at Forward Church in Cambridge with soprano Shantelle Przybylo, Southern Ontario Lyric Opera (SOLO) Chorus and the Cambridge Youth Orchestra.
“We invite everyone to join us as we bring the community and families together to celebrate the sounds of the season along with a special guest soloist, choir, and Cambridge Youth Orchestra for a very family-oriented concert," Vacca said.
Vacca says the the community has much to look forward to this season, starting with works from three classical greats.
“I think our symphony orchestra has a lot to offer. We see people come for the first time, and they are really quite surprised and quite taken with our level of playing. And then we see them coming back on a regular basis, which is really great to see,” Vacca said.
“For our first concert, if you are a really die hard classical fan, you will be pleased with the program that includes Beethoven, Brahms, and Mozart. You just can’t go wrong with such a great repertoire.”
