Mattina Musica returns to the Comox Valley for an exciting third season, beginning Sept. 24.
Italian for “morning music”, Mattina Musica is a five-concert series of classical music taking place on select Monday mornings. Each event begins with a pre-concert reception in the Sid Williams Theatre lobby.
Co-presented by the Sid Williams Theatre Society and pianist Sarah Hagen, the series includes performances by flautist Krzysztof Kaczka, cellist Ariel Barnes, harpist Heidi Krutzen, violinist Martin Chalifour, tenor Ken Lavigne, and violist Vaida Rozinskaite.
For the opening concert, Kaczka will travel from China, where he is principal flautist of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra.
Kaczka and Hagen first met on the dance floor at a party at the Banff Centre, and their friendship was sealed when they ran into each other several months later on a bridge in Paris. They will highlight their program with the gorgeous Sonata for Flute and Piano by Cesar Franck.
Born in Torun, Poland, Kaczka made his New York debut at the Carnegie Recital Hall as the IBLA Grand Prize winner. As first prize winner at the Australian Flute Festival and Competition in Adelaide, he was praised by jury chairman Jean Ferrandies for his "beautiful sound, high technical skills, and great understanding of the style of the music he played.”
Kaczka has studied at the Musikhochschule Munich, the Mozarteum in Salzburg, the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna and at the Conservatoire de Paris. He is a laureate of the prestigious Young Poland Award of the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Poland in Warsaw and has released four CDs for the Acte Prealabe Label.
As principal flautist of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Kaczka has performed with Krzysztof Penderecki, Stephane Denéve, Maxim Vengerov, Yo Yo Ma, Lang Lang, Sarah Chang and Midori, among others.
From the Comox Valley, Hagen has been heard in concert halls and on the airwaves to critical acclaim throughout North America and Europe. As well as hosting four recital series in B.C., Hagen enjoys a busy and varied concert schedule as both a soloist and collaborator.
Highlights of her 2012/2013 season include a solo recital at Christ Church Cathedral in Vancouver, a Project Sound performance with Squamish photographers and a Home Routes concert tour with cellist Rebecca Wenham.
Individual tickets are $20 (SWTS members) and $25 (regular). Subscribe to the whole series: $90 (members) and $115 (regular). Coffee and tea is served at 9:45 a.m. and music begins at 10:30.
For more information on the Mattina Musica series and other performances, visit www.sidwilliamstheatre.com or call 250-338-2430.
— Sarah Hagen