Did you know that the Gryphon Trio’s violinist Annalee Patipatanakoon was born and raised in Calgary? We asked her six questions about her musical upbringing in Calgary, and we learned that she attended Calgary Pro Musica concerts growing up! The Gryphon Trio returns to Calgary on November 19 & 20 for its 30th anniversary concert and its fourth CPM appearance (after previous concerts, all in November, in 1996, 2014 and 2016). Read Annalee’s responses below.    

Q: How did growing up in Calgary shape your musical development?

A: Growing up in Calgary at the time was a unique opportunity. The Suzuki Program was just beginning and my mother wanted her daughters (I was the oldest) to learn a musical instrument. I met my first influential teacher, Alison Sloan, through the program, and she then introduced me to Dr. Lise Elson, the teacher most formative for me from the ages of 7 to 16. Dr. Elson encouraged me to travel and play for other performers and pedagogues during the year and in the summers; some of these people became my mentors after I left for University. I also met at a young age fellow musicians whom I continue to encounter, perform or work with as colleagues to this day. 

Q: What is special about Calgary as a training ground for classical musicians? 

A: What I needed for my musical development at the time was available in Calgary. Talent is evident everywhere in young people, but what helps a person shine is being in the right place at the right time with inspired guidance and mentorship. I feel lucky to have been where I was, when I was.

Q: As Associate Professor of Violin at the University of Toronto, what perspectives or reflections might you offer about the training you received from Dr. Lise Elson and in the Mount Royal Conservatory Young Artists Program?

A: I was one of the lucky ones that benefitted from exceptional training from Dr. Elson and rigorous instruction through the various courses at the Mount Royal Conservatory. I now reflect more so on how the musical scene has changed from when I was a student. That requires a personal awareness of how my musical education and subsequent career were very different from my mentors and an acknowledgement that it will also be very different for my students. Training today involves more than just the important fundamentals – it must also include the tools to navigate an ever-changing musical world.

Q: How much of a role did the Banff Centre play in the musical life of Calgary during your musical development?  

A: The Banff Centre was one of those places that provided what I needed when I needed it. As a teenager I met and worked with informative pedagogues from around the world (some of whom I went on to study with at Indiana University and elsewhere). In my early professional career, Banff provided a space for me to reflect and work as part of intensive residencies. Later on, Banff Centre was where the Gryphon Trio recorded two celebrated albums and eventually workshopped and premiered in concert a new work by celebrated composer Christos Hatzis. It was also a place from where some of my most important friendships were formed and where musical colleagues and connections emerged from. The Centre has changed from when the incredible team of Tom and Isobel Rolston were at the helm, but for me – it was the right place at the right time.

Q: Calgary Pro Musica was founded as a concert series in 1976 by Talmon Hertz, the cellist of the Calgary-based Hertz Trio. Did you know about Calgary Pro Musica while you were growing up? Did you hear the Hertz Trio, and did you ever attend a CPM concert before your Gryphon Trio performances here?

A: Yes, Yes and yes!

In its early years CPM primarily presented the Hertz Trio, so this society began as a series highlighting the piano trio. Did you know about Calgary Pro Musica while you were growing up? Did you ever hear the Hertz Trio, and did you ever attend a CPM concert before your Gryphon Trio performances here?  

Q: What might surprise Calgary’s audiences about your upcoming 30th anniversary concert?

A: I think I can safely say what is unique about our group and the 30 year anniversary – I don’t know of many groups that can claim to be the same founding members since its inception. The more interesting question might be “How have you remained together for so long?”! For that answer one has to come to the concert to find out!

Curious to learn more about Annalee? Here is another another article that discusses Annalee’s musical beginnings in Calgary: 
https://artsfile.ca/chamberfest-of-gryphons-and-scar-tissue-with-annalee-patipatanakoon/.    

We are absolutely thrilled to congratulate Calgary Pro Musica’s Education Advisor Samantha Whelan Kotkas [link to yadp page] and her team on winning a Rosie for Best Musical, or Variety Program or Series for her magnificent film “Wandering with Wonder” at the AMPIA awards in Edmonton on Saturday, September 30.

Writer/Producer/Performer Samantha assembled an extensive all-star cast of musicians, composers, performers, artists, producers and technical directors to create this stunning musical film with live orchestra. Wonder, a magical young (puppet) woman loses her song, but while wandering through nature, her friends Turtle, Bear, Beaver and Eagle help her find it again. 

This gorgeous film is available to stream for free on YouTube, but only until Saturday, October 14. Set aside an hour in the coming week to be transported by Samantha’s heartwarming story, “Wandering with Wonder”’s glorious original score, the beauty of Alberta’s Foothills and so much more. Discover the magic of “Wandering with Wonder.”

Created, performed and produced by Samantha. Calgary Pro Musica Artistic Director Dean O’Brien played principal viola, Green Fools Artistic Director Dean Bareham directed this film and Young Artists Development Program violinist Isaac Willocks performed with the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Claude LaPalme. 

Visit Samantha’s website page “Wandering with Wonder: The Orchestral Experience”  to better appreciate the scope of this amazing project and her band of exceptional collaborators. 

Catch the full film as well as more of the Red Deer Symphony’s performances on their YouTube channel

@claude_lapalme
@matteppmusic
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@walterwhitebear
@indigenousmusic
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@jordanandrew.music
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@anni.christina36
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@Red Deer Symphony
@Roadwest Pictures

Friday, October 27 – Talmon Hertz Legacy Series MASTERCLASS

**New time** 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM Masterclass with Joel Frederiksen at the Rozsa Centre

Saturday, October 28 – CONCERT 

7:15 PM Pre-Concert Talk with Joel Frederiksen in the CIBC Hub Room
7:30 PM Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall Opens to Ticket Holders
8:00 PM Concert at Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall (1 intermission)
9:45 PM Post-Concert Reception in the Rozsa Centre Lobby

* The concert is ticketed ($45 Adults, $35 Seniors/Students, $5 Student Rush Tickets up to 30 minutes before the concert). Buy individual tickets or a subscription on our website.

* This concert is the first of our three Horizons Series concerts. Subscriptions to all three concerts are available for $95 for Adults or $75 for Seniors/Students and can be purchased on our website. Pro-rated Masters Series and Combo subscriptions are still available. Call CPM’s office at 403 244 8277.  

* All Calgary Pro Musica masterclasses are free and open to the public.

All events take place at the Rozsa Centre, University of Calgary.