Four excellent reasons to take advantage of the OSM Classical Spree
The eagerly awaited Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM) Classical Spree is a highlight of summer. This year, it offers 31 classical concerts at prices very easy on your pocketbook. You won’t want to miss this series, from August 7 to 11!
“Summertime, and the livin’ is easy,” says the famous opening line of George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess. This summer, why not enjoy the pleasure of listening to high-calibre artists play classical masterpieces? The OSM Classical Spree concerts are the perfect opportunity. Every summer, this classical music festival offers about thirty diverse and affordable concerts and many free musical activities designed to please audiences of all ages. Place des Arts, in the heart of the metropolis, is the venue for most of these musical encounters. Here are four inescapable reasons to attend.
1. Enjoy great classics at low prices
The Classical Spree concerts are tremendous opportunities to enter the Maison symphonique, an architectural and acoustic gem, and hear the vibrations of immortal works. Compositions by Beethoven, Mozart and Ravel will be on hand to add passion and inspiration to your summer. On Saturday, August 10, attend the concert From Mozart to Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain, conducted by Kent Nagano. The same evening, extend your enjoyment with Kent Nagano Conducts Bartók and Ravel. And on Sunday, August 11, let yourself be swept away by A Chorus of Voices, a concert bringing together the OSM, choirs of the Alliance chorale du Québec and the Grand Orgue Pierre-Béique in Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, all conducted once again by none other than Kent Nagano! A grand weekend at a low price, because the tickets for each concert cost between $17.25 and $51.74.
2. Admire the talent of internationally renowned soloists
Violinists Vadim Repin and Baiba Skride, along with pianist Herbert Schuch, will join the OSM at the Maison symphonique to offer us outstanding programs. The Classical Spree is the ideal opportunity to hear these artists, driven by a taste for excellence and beauty. Vadim Repin will display his virtuosity in Respighi’s Magic Toyshop and Bruch’s Violin Concerto no. 1, while Baiba Skride will demonstrate her immense talent in a performance of Mozart’s Violin Concerto no. 3. Herbert Schuch will dazzle us with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 and Bizet’s Farandole.
3. Enjoy remarkable encounters with maestro Kent Nagano
Kent Nagano has directed the OSM with panache for over 15 years, and his work has made the Montréal ensemble one of the world’s most illustrious orchestras. When you attend an OSM concert conducted by the charismatic maestro, you are always left with imperishable memories. Arrange for this before his mandate ends next year! In addition, Kent Nagano and the OSM will combine their talents with many artists, including the much loved Montréal tenor Marc Hervieux. The OSM and its famous conductor will accompany the singer in a promising interpretation of Britten’s song cycle Les Illuminations, setting the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud to music.
4.Discover works that go off the beaten path
Born explorers will also take advantage of the OSM Classical Spree to engage in exotic incursions into the repertoires of world music and jazz – all with big band, choir or organ. In other words, the event offers programs in every style for every taste! The concerts The Incomparable Canadian Brass and The OSM and Kent Nagano: from Prokofiev to Glenn Miller will set your heart ablaze, while A Journey in Style: Jazz, Organ and Beyond will captivate you with its music combining folklore from the Balkans, klezmer, jazz and a sprinkling of Latin flavour.
With its rich and affordable program, the OSM Classical Spree has everything to delight you. Get your tickets fast: several concerts are almost sold out!
The OSM Classical Spree is being held from August 7 to 11, 2019.