Trombones & Bassoon from Winter 2024
Repertoire for 20th Anniversary Concert
Tchaikovsky, Romeo and Juliet overture
Verdi overture to Nabucco
Smetana, the Moldau
Reinecke, Concerto for Flute
Brahms Academic Festival Overture
The orchestra is directed by well known local conductor Daniel Warren, and the flute solo in the Reinecke piece will be performed by Laurel Swinden, who teaches flute at UWaterloo and Wilfred Laurier University.
History
The Orchestra@UWaterloo was the brainchild of Professors Anna Lubiw and Romy Shioda, along with others in the Math Faculty and elsewhere. Its purpose from the beginning was to give all students at UWaterloo the opportunity to play in a symphony orchestra, because so many were interested in classical music despite being in a non-music field. The inaugural meeting was held in June of 2004, with Erna Van Daele as the founding conductor. The inaugural concert was held on December 2nd, 2004 featuring Haydn’s Symphony no. 8 and the Peer Gynt Suite.
Under Erna Van Daele’s direction, the orchestra grew to 70 plus players per term and the concerts in the Humanities Theatre were well attended. Its great strength has been to provide a musical home for many students, staff, and faculty from across campus. Professor David Taylor, alternating with Phyllis and James Forsyth, started sponsoring a Concerto and Aria Competition in 2005. In 2023, over 20 students competed to a very high standard. The winner of the 2023 competition was Catherine He, a pianist who is studying Computer Science at the University of Waterloo. She performed Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, opus 11 at the Fall 2023 end of term concert. The judges described her performance as an "absolutely flawless and poignant" performance of Chopin Concerto #1. The next competition will take place in February 2025.
In 2017, the orchestra became the responsibility of the UWaterloo Music Department. Continued funding from the University, courtesy of the Associate Provost Chris Read, has made the continuation of the orchestra possible. Well known trumpeter and director Daniel Warren became the director at this point, continuing the successful trajectory of this project. UWaterloo students, staff, and faculty interested in joining the orchestra can find audition and rehearsal information on our Ensemble webpage.
Admission
Admission to orchestra concerts is free, although donations are gratefully accepted. You may give donations online or at the concert in the lobby.