TSO Trip

By: D'Arcy Murphy

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On Wednesday, May 6th, over 40 students from Holy Trinity, along with Mr. Harkin and Mrs. Mascarin (a retired HT teacher) travelled to Toronto for an exciting trip. The annual music department field trip did not disappoint this year with stops at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), Eaton Centre, and Roy Thomson Hall to see the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) play live.

The students left Holy Trinity at 11:30 for the start of their long day trip. When the bus arrived at the AGO, students had a few hours of free time to browse the galleries. Highlights of the trip to the art gallery included contemporary displays on the AGO’s recently renovated upper levels, a collection of model ships, and a viewing of the featured work of Jean-Michel Basquiat. To cap it off, some students enjoyed a cup of gelato in the gallery’s espresso bar.

At the second stop of the trip, the Eaton Centre, there was lots of time for fun and relaxation. Three hours to shop ‘til they dropped was a fun way for band members to spend the afternoon with friends in the city. After meeting up to catch the bus in Yonge & Dundas square, everyone was ready for the main purpose of the trip.

The group from HT arrived at Roy Thomson Hall (one might recognize it as the building on the Grade 10 math textbook) for the evening’s concert. Despite a delay at the entrance due to technical difficulties from the ticket-taking device, they made it to their seats in time for the performance.

The TSO’s President and CEO, Jeff Melanson, introduced the evening’s programme before concertmaster Jonathan Crowe entered and led the orchestra in their final tuning before the first piece. Conductor Peter Oundjian then made his way onto the stage to begin the first piece on the programme, Kevin Lau’s Treeship. This contemporary composition had an epic and layered sound that sought to contrast the two monumental objects in the title, the tree and the ship. The audience applauded, as the composer himself was in attendance and bowed on stage with the rest of the orchestra.

After a brief break, the orchestra re-assembled for Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64. This striking piece of music was played by the talented Augustin Hadelich and received a resounding standing ovation. Hadelich remained on stage to play an encore before the intermission.

The evening concluded with Anton Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7 in E Major. This grand and powerful piece was definitely the most anticipated of the programme. Bruckner, who was a friend of Richard Wagner, composed the symphony as an ode to him following his death. Fittingly, Bruckner wrote for a quartet of Wagner tubas, instruments of his friend’s own invention. Although following a conventional structure for a symphony, Bruckner’s Seventh stands out as a work of genius.

A bus ride home following the concert gave the band the chance to rest before getting back to Holy Trinity. The band will perform at the Bishop’s Sounds of Joy music festival on Tuesday, May 26th, less than a week after the annual Spring Music Night at HT on Thursday, May 21st. Stay tuned for ticket information!