Music News Digest, Dec. 13, 2019

By FYI Staff

On Dec. 16, Make Music Matter and its record label  A4A Records (Artists for Artists), in collaboration with Warner Music Canada, will host a vinyl pop-up event, 5-9 pm, at The Peach Gallery in Toronto (722 College St). The exhibition showcases recordings from the Healing in Harmony program for survivors of sexual violence and other trauma survivors. Healing in Harmony: Greatest Hits Vol. 1 on vinyl will be available for purchase, with all proceeds going to support the program. The evening will also feature live music, a silent auction, and an opportunity to meet with MMM founder Darcy Ataman and Grammy-winning producer David Bottrill, co-founder of A4A Records. Reserve your free tickets here 

— U.S. Girls, the Toronto-based project led by Meg Remy, has announced a North American tour, playing three shows in Feb. 2020 in Toronto, Montreal, and New York City. The group’s latest live configuration will feature seven singers. In 2018, U.S. Girls made the shortlist for the Polaris Prize for their LP In a Poem Unlimited, and the album landed at No. 115 on Pitchfork's “The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s” list.

— Lance Anderson returns as MD at Mariposa’s annual Blues & Gospel Show with the 9^th annual to be staged at St. Paul’s Centre in Orillia on Feb. 8. Performers named include pianist David Vest, Monkeyjunk multi-instrumentalist Steve Marriner, R&B singer Angelique Francis, and drummer Al Webster. Tickets are $30 advance, available online at mariposafolk.com or at the Mariposa Foundation office, 10 Peter Street South, Orillia.

— Jully Black is the lead in the musical Caroline, Or Change that runs Jan. 30 through Feb. 15 at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto.

— Andy Kim is the first to have his name on Montreal’s Walk of Fame. Bill Brownstein at the Montreal Gazette has the story.

— On Tuesday night, the audience at a show by US rapper DaBaby at Rebel in Toronto got quite the bonus surprise when hometown hero Drake came onstage. The two performed a few songs together, including Drake hit God's Plan, and Drizzy was very complimentary about his young peer. Source: Blog TO

— Last week, SOCAN reps attended Our Night: The First Annual Tegan and Sara Foundation Celebration in the performance space of the Warner Music Group offices in Los Angeles. The night included a DJ Set by Samantha Ronson and an acoustic performance by Tegan and Sara. Proceeds from the event went to support Camp Brave Trails, a leadership summer camp for LGBTQ+ youth and their allies, ages 12-18, located in California and Maryland.

— Toronto singer/songwriter Melanie Peterson has released an original Christmas single and a lyric video worthy of attention. Christmas Breaks My Heart, a digital-only release, was produced by multiple Juno-winning producer/musician Michael Wojewoda, who also played numerous instruments on the track. The song is now available on all online channels including melaniepeterson.ca, iTunes and Bandcamp.

— Today (Dec. 13) is the final deadline to apply for Creative Manitoba’s Careers in the Arts Group Mentorship Program, one offering youth (ages 16-19) the chance to participate in a choice of four different programs, running from late February to May. Submit here

— Folk vocal harmonies trio Boreal comprises noted singer-songwriters Tannis Slimmon, Katherine Wheatley, and Angie Nussey. They're out touring their show Songs For The Snowy Season and play Toronto's Hugh's Room Live on Dec. 15 and Guelph's River Run Centre, Dec. 21.

— Freshly added to the Mariposa folk fest lineup are Julz Parker, Tre Burt, award-winning veteran David Francey, and up and coming act The Pairs. The fest runs July 3-5 in Orillia.  Ticket prices go up Jan. 1.

— Cassandra Popescu has left her role as the Marketing & Communications Manager at Unison Benevolent Fund for a position in Digital Communications with Strut Entertainment.

— The deadline for submissions to perform at the 2020 TD Toronto Jazz Festival is Dec. 15. Apply here

Obit

Simon Streatfeild, the classical music violist and conductor, died on Dec. 7, aged 90.

Over his nearly seven-decade long career, Streatfeild had a major impact on the classical music scene in Canada and beyond. His engagements included guest conducting positions with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Danish Radio Symphony, the Oslo Philharmonic, the Symphony Orchestra of Norwegian Radio, the Belgian Radio Symphony and the Seoul Philharmonic of Korea.

Born in Windsor, England, Streatfeild first made his mark as a violist with the London Philharmonic, the Wells Orchestra, and the London Symphony Orchestra.

After moving to Canada, in 1965, he rose to prominence as principal viola of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. He moved into conducting roles for the VSO between 1965-77, also serving as conductor and director of the Vancouver Bach Choir (1969-81). He was the founder of the influential Purcell String Quartet, which disbanded in 1991.

Streatfeild then began dividing his time between leading the Regina Symphony Orchestra (1981-84), and the Quebec Symphony Orchestra as conductor and director. He stayed with the QSO until 1991. He served the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Principal Guest Conductor and Artistic Advisor of between 2004-2007.

Streatfeild was awarded the Canadian Music Council Medal in 1987. Source: Ludwig Van,  Slipped Disc