Album marks end of ‘quite a ride’ for ensemble
JANUARY 17, 2020
BY DEBORA VAN BRENK
Many months and thousands of kilometres since they started their cross-country project to bring new Canadian classical music across cultures and languages, Ensemble Made in Canada is showcasing its work in a special concert at Western on Jan. 21.
Later in the week, it will release its CD, The Mosaïque Project, in St. Catharines.
“It’s been quite a ride,” said Sharon Wei, leader of Ensemble Made in Canada, Western’s Ensemble-in-Residence.
The CD is already being touted by CBC Music producer Robert Rowat as one of the must-listens of Canadian new classical releases.
The group has also won a fan in former Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson, who called the Mosaïque project a “unique, vivid, artistic expression.”
The ensemble commissioned works from 14 composers to reflect and celebrate Canadian diversity: music in a variety of genres and from a range of cultures. And then, in a three-year journey, they performed the pieces in concerts in 50 communities across the country, including audiences in the experience by inviting them to draw mosaic squares representing their Canadian perspectives.