With TMC Artistic Director and conductor Noel Edison on sabbatical this fall, guest conductor Ivars Taurins of Tafelmusik will lead the choir for this first concert of the season. Although various editions of the piece have generated controversy, Mozart’s Requiem is considered to contain some of Mozart’s finest choral writing. The evening will also include selections from two of Mozart’s less well-known works, Davidde Penitente and Thamos Konig in Ägypten. Sookhyung Park (soprano), Anita Krause (mezzo-soprano), Eric Shaw (tenor), Thomas Goerz (bass-baritone) and the Festival Orchestra will be featured soloists.

On December 6, 2006 at 8:00 PM, the season continues with TMC’s Festival of Carols, an annual holiday favourite presenting choral works, seasonal anecdotes and audience sing-alongs, again at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church. Under the direction of guest conductor Paul Halley, the evening will include narration by John Fraser, Master of Massey College, the playing of organist Matthew Larkin, the Festival Brass, and a special performance by the Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir.

Two weeks later, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra will join the TMC for another celebration of Mozart’s 250th birthday with a rare performance of Handel’s Messiah as reinterpreted by Mozart. Conducted by Nicholas McGegan, this holiday tribute will take place at 8:00 PM on December 20, 2006, at Roy Thomson Hall and will include performances by Meredith Hall (soprano), Jill Grove (mezzo-soprano), John Tessier (tenor) and Hugh Russell (bass-baritone).

On March 16, 2007, at 8:00 PM the TMC will introduce Sacred Music for a Sacred Space. Taking place at the magnificently restored St. Paul’s Basilica, the concert will mark the return of Artistic Director Noel Edison from his fall sabbatical. Edison and the choir will be joined by The Victoria Scholars to present an evening of unaccompanied choral works suited to the acoustics of this grand space. Concert repertoire will include Thomas Tallis’s 40-part motet, Spem in alium, as well as excerpts from Rachmaninoff’s Vespers, Samuel Barber’s Agnes Dei and works by Henryk Górecki and John Cameron.

In April, the TMC will celebrate Good Friday with a presentation of Passio by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt. This spellbinding version of the Passion of St. John, written in 1980, is revered for its minimalist harmonies and rhythmic language. Featuring soloists Michael Colvin (tenor) and Andrew Tees (baritone), Passio will take place at 8:00 PM on Good Friday, April 6, 2007 at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church.

The TMC will conclude its 2006-2007 season on May 11, 2007, with a performance of Mendelssohn’s hidden masterpiece, Lobgesang (Hymn of Praise), at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church at 8:00 PM. First performed to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the invention of the printing press, Lobgesang is one of Mendelssohn’s loveliest and loftiest works. The evening will feature Alto Rhapsody, Schicksalslied and Nänie by Johannes Brahms. Featured soloists will include Leslie Fagan (soprano), Susan Platts (mezzo-soprano) and Lawrence Wiliford (tenor).

The Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir will present its own series of concerts in 2006-2007 at Christ Church Deer Park. Under the direction of educator and conductor Lynn Janes, the youth choir will offer three performances. A holiday performance of A Baroque Christmas will launch the season and will feature the motets of Gabriel Charpentier on December 9, 2006. To celebrate African Heritage Month, the TMYC will present African Celebration on February 24, 2007, with percussionist Andy Morris. The TMYC will close its season with The Music of Paul Halley on May 5, 2007.

Single tickets for the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir’s 2006-2007 season range from $30 to $80; subscriptions start at only $60. Subscriptions are flexible: they may include all concerts in the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and the Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir season, or a minimum of three concerts may be selected to create a "Flex-Pack." Tickets and subscriptions are available at 416-598-0422 ext. 24, or the public can visit www.tmchoir.org for more information.
The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Council, as well as by a dedicated group of individual and corporate donors.