The popular RBC Foundation Music@Noon series is returning this fall with another stellar lineup of free recitals in downtown St. Catharines, beginning Oct 2.

Generously sponsored by the RBC Foundation, and hosted by the Department of Music, the series features noon-hour performances by faculty, guests and music students that take place at the Cairns Recital Hall of the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre most Tuesdays throughout the year.

The 2018-19 season will open with a performance by Brock’s own flute instructor, Patricia Dydnansky.

Currently performing with the Niagara Symphony Orchestra as the Second Flute and Piccolo, Dydnansky has also performed with the Shaw Festival Orchestra, the Stratford Festival Orchestra and the Hamilton Philharmonic. A veteran performer in the Music@Noon series, Dydnansky said patrons can look forward to hearing repertoire from around the world in her recital.

“This program includes music by composers inspired by the Native American flute and Japanese shakuhachi, a set of Celtic tunes on my new Windward Irish flute, and a delightful set of short dances for piccolo inspired by British folk songs,” Dydnansky said. “Ibert’s gorgeous Pièce pour Flûte Seule is on the bill, as well as pieces by the Baroque composers Telemann and Marais, both displaying the ability of a solo instrument to play polyphonically.”

The series will continue with performances by Music faculty members Gordon Cleland, Zoltan Kalman, Tim Phelan, Karin Di Bella and Devon Fornelli, and conclude with student performances at the end of each semester.

Music Chair Matthew Royal said this allows students studying at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) to watch their instructors perform on stage before having the opportunity to perform in a professional environment themselves later on in the year.

“We are so grateful for our generous sponsors, the RBC Foundation, that allow us to host these concerts every year,” he said. “They provide a great opportunity for students to learn all that’s involved in performing in a professional-level recital, and for our talented faculty and students to showcase the hard work they have put into their performances with the local community.”

A line-up of talented guest performances will also round out the programming this year, including Maltese-Canadian flutist Rebecca Hall, who will perform with Brock pianist Karin Di Bella on Jan. 8.  The performers first connected over their shared interest in the work of Jack Behrens, a Canadian composer, and will be continuing to work together after their early 2019 show.

On Jan. 29, percussionist Devon Fornelli will perform with pianist John Sherwood. Fornelli, a percussion instructor at Brock, has a wide range of experience performing as a soloist, an orchestral percussionist and as a chamber instrumentalist, and Sherwood, the piano tuner at Brock, is listed as being among the top jazz pianists in Ontario.

Royal encourages both students and those from around the community to come and experience the talented musicians that Brock University has to offer. 

The Music@Noon Recital series is generously sponsored by the RBC Foundation and will run most Tuesdays at noon throughout the academic year. The concerts are performed in the Cairns Recital Hall at FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre. This is a free event that is open to the public.

For more details about future performances, please visit brocku.ca/miwsfpa/music/concerts

2018-19 RBC Foundation Music@Noon Series:

Oct. 2: Patricia Dydnansky (flute)
Oct. 16: Gordon Cleland (cello)
Oct. 23: Zoltan Kalman (clarinet) and Gary Forbes (piano)
Oct. 30: Piano, vocal and instrument students
Nov. 6: Tim Phelan (guitar)
Nov. 20: Voice, guitar and piano students
Nov. 27: Instrumental students
Dec. 4: Piano students
Jan. 8: Rebecca Hall (flute) and Karin Di Bella (piano)
Jan. 29: Devon Fornelli (percussion) and John Sherwood (piano)
Feb. 5: Voice, guitar and piano students
Feb. 12: Instrumental students
Feb. 26: Karin Di Bella (piano)
March 5: Walker String Quartet: Vera Alekseeva and Anna Hughes (violins), Faith Lau (viola) and Gordon Cleland (cello)
March 12: Piano students
March 19: Instrumental students
March 26: Voice, guitar and piano students
April 2: Piano students