Symphony and Opera Workshop make a French Connection

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on March 22, 2023.

Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman University of Lethbridge Opera Workshop singers Paisley Parrett, Tanner Lapointe, Sophia Makela, Franz Faeldo and Olivia Earl perform with the Lethbridge Symphony Monday night at Southminster United Church.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

The Lethbridge Symphony Orchestra was joined by the University of Lethbridge Opera Workshop during their Series V French Connection concert Monday to showcase the works of prominent French composers.

The program focused on France in the latter part of the 19th century and early 20th century, showcasing pieces from ballet to opera and instrumental works, beginning with the thrilling fanfare to Paul Dukas’ ballet La Péri, moving into the French operetta of Jacques Offenbach and the fairy-tale opera Orphée aux enfers, Emmanuel Chabrier’s Suite Pastorale, and ending with the enchanting Flower Duet from Lakmé and Georges Bizet’s greatest masterpiece, Carmen.

A member of the University of Lethbridge Opera Workshop, Tanner Lapointe said it was great to be able to sing with the Lethbridge Symphony once again, after a three-year hiatus.

“It’s been I think since 2020 that we have been able to do something like this, so it’s been really fun to put it all together again and collaborate with the Lethbridge Symphony and shared this beautiful music with the audience,” said Lapointe.

He said the workshop received the music in December 2022 and started rehearsing in January this year.

“And here we are at the end of March finally sharing it with everyone,” said Lapointe.

Lethbridge Symphony’s music director, Glenn Klassen, said the program came together thanks to a collaboration between the symphony and the Opera Workshop director Sandra Stringer. He said Stringer was instrumental in helping him choose the repertoire because she knows the singers.

“We had to make that work together, to make sure that it wasn’t just something that I thought I would like to do, but then there wasn’t a singer available to do it so then it’s very much a collaboration and it just worked out. The selection really blended into a beautiful program,” said Klassen.

He said they had five rehearsals with the singers, two with just the piano, two with the whole orchestra and then the dress rehearsal, with each session being about two to two-and-a-half hours long.

“We spent a significant amount of time putting this all together. We started rehearsing February 13 and then I didn’t meet the singers until the end of February, but of course Doctor Stringer had done a lot work with them already, so when I saw them they already knew their stuff,” said Klassen.

He said during their rehearsals, they had to be very careful of volume to not overpower the singers, and they spent a lot of time making sure they were balanced.

“We have to be very careful as an orchestra that we are playing soft, and it takes probably more effort for these players to play a pianissimo, something soft, than it is to play something loud,” said Klassen.

He said it takes a tremendous amount of concentration and work to get that same energy but at a lower volume.

As for what is next for the symphony, Klassen said they have a collaboration with the Shakespeare Society coming up.

“It’s going to be so wonderful because there’s so much great music that has been inspired by Shakespeare, and so all the pieces that we’ll be playing are all based on Shakespeare plays,” said Klassen.

 He said the Shakespeare Society is going to set each one up by doing a short scene of something from the play.

 “They will set it all up and then we will play the music that the composer has written about the same play, so we’re going to cover six of them,” said Klassen.

Other events taking place include Intima III: composers who happened to be women by the Museaus String Quartet joined by Deanna Oye at Casa on April 22 at 7:30 p.m., The Symphony Soiree on April 29 at the Sandman Signature Hotel at 6:00 p.m. and Series VI: Brillance of the Bard concert at Southminster United Church on May 8 at 7:30 p.m.

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