Kingston Symphony
The Kingston Symphony (KS) is a Canadian orchestra based in Kingston, Ontario. Since 2014 the principal conductor of the symphony has been Evan Mitchell.{{cite web|url=http://www.thewhig.com/2014/03/06/new-music-director-for-kingston-symphony|title=New Music Conductor for Kingston Symphony|work=Kingston Whig|date=March 6, 2014|accessdate=2014-03-06}} The ensemble performs most of its concerts at The Grand Theatre.[https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/kingston-symphony-emc/ "Kingston Symphony"]. The Canadian Encyclopedia.{{cite book|author=Warren R. Bland|title=Retire in Style: 60 Outstanding Places Across the USA and Canada|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781932919196|url-access=registration|year=2005|publisher=Next Decade, Inc.|isbn=978-1-932919-19-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781932919196/page/55 55]}}
History
The orchestra was founded in 1953 under the name the New Symphony Association of Kingston. The first principal conductor was Graham George; he led the orchestra's debut concert of Joseph Haydn's The Creation on 12 April 1954 at The Grand Theatre with the Kingston Choral Society and baritone James Milligan. For its first three years the orchestra performed only two concerts a year, but the number of concerts increased steadily beginning in 1957.
Principal conductors for the next few years were William Hill (1957–1959), and Edouard Bartlett (1960–1965). The ensemble was renamed the Kingston Symphony in 1963 with the formation of a new umbrella organization the Kingston Symphony Association. Some of the concerts were held at the Kingston Gospel Temple.{{cite book|author=William Closson James|title=God's Plenty: Religious Diversity in Kingston|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tu4pvH2LvFYC&pg=PA89|date=20 September 2011|publisher=MQUP|isbn=978-0-7735-8634-5|page=89}}
Alexander Brott was brought in as conductor in 1965, and during his tenure the orchestra was able to hire a number of professional string and wind players.{{cite book|author1=Friedemann Sallis|author2=Robin Elliott|author3=Kenneth DeLong|title=Centre and Periphery, Roots and Exile: Interpreting the Music of István Anhalt, György Kurtág, and Sándor Veress|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zobZAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT113|date=6 August 2012|publisher=Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press|isbn=978-1-55458-296-9|page=113}} Kingston's newly renovated Grand Theatre became the orchestra's main concert venue.{{cite book|author=Helmut Kallmann|title=Mapping Canada’s Music: Selected Writings of Helmut Kallmann|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T43ZAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA117|date=25 May 2013|publisher=Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press|isbn=978-1-55458-892-3|page=117}}
Brian Jackson was hired as conductor in 1982, and remained in this post until 1991. By this time the Symphony was performing about twelve concerts per year.
In 1992 Glen Fast took over as conductor. Under his direction, the KS made a change towards playing new works by Canadian composers. The orchestra has given the world premieres of Chan Ka Nin's Violin Concerto (1998); Marjan Mozetich's Piano Concerto (2000); Srul Irving Glick's last work, Isaiah (2002); John Burge's Clarinet Concerto (2004); István Anhalt's The Tents of Abraham (2005);{{cite book|author=Alan M. Gillmor|title=Eagle Minds: Selected Correspondence of Istvan Anhalt and George Rochberg (1961-2005)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5dHfAgAAQBAJ&pg=RA1-PA2004|date=31 July 2009|publisher=Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press|isbn=978-1-55458-689-9|page=1}} and Peter Paul Koprowski's Tapestries of Love: Symphony for Soprano and Orchestra (2007).{{cite book|author=Samuel Mitchell|title=Partnerships and Coalitions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_aIjAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA164|date=24 September 2013|publisher=Author House|isbn=978-1-4918-1248-8|page=164}}
Fast remained with the Symphony until 2014, at which time Evan Mitchell became conductor.
References
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Further reading
- {{cite book|author=Malcolm Williams|title=The Kingston Symphony 1954-2004|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VhnQAQAACAAJ|year=2004|publisher=Kingston Symphony Association|isbn=978-0-9735014-0-7}}
External links
- [http://www.kingstonsymphony.on.ca/ Kingston Symphony Orchestra website]
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Category:Orchestras in Ontario
Category:Musical groups from Kingston, Ontario
Category:Organizations based in Kingston, Ontario