The CPO’S Year in Review

With another year approaching, staff at the CPO thought it would be fun to take a look back at 2013. The Orchestra kept incredibly busy in the last year, and even welcomed some new faces to the CPO family, including Resident Conductor Adam Johnson. Here are some of the highlights from 2013:

Exciting Concerts

The CPO is always striving to present music that fits all musical tastes, and this year was no exception. We welcomed popular musicians from both the classical and pop worlds, including Anton Kuerti, Jonathan Biss, James Ehnes, and Chantal Kreviazuk. The CPO performed such classical masterpieces as The Planets and Verdi’s Requiem, but also had a bit of fun with tributes to the Beach Boys, Elvis and AC/DC.

The Orchestra also celebrated some of the best music from movies and television, performing the score to The Fellowship of the Ring live with the film, along with music from Disney, scores from such Italian films as The Godfather and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and music from Sci-Fi favourites, including Avatar, Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek.

 

Fundraising

2013 was a good fundraising year for the CPO, with the annual Cork & Canvas Art & Wine Festival bringing in more than $300,000 in support of the Orchestra. We also added a couple new fundraisers this past year, including the Father/Daughter Princess Ball and a special Italian Gala, held exclusively as part of our Italian Festival.

 

Out and about in the Community

The musicians at the CPO are constantly venturing outside the concert hall to entertain people with beautiful music. Places visited in 2013 include the Calgary Public Library, the Alberta Children’s Hospital, Suncor Energy Centre, the Calgary Women’s Emergency Shelter, Western Canada High School, and the Salvation Army.

When the June flood devastated High River and parts of Calgary, our home at the EPCOR CENTRE remained safe and dry, thanks to the dedication of the EPCOR CENTRE staff. But some members of our Orchestra, Chorus and staff were personally affected, and others in our group wasted no time in helping them out.

 

Fun and Games

Herr Handel, Liberace, and … zombies? There was a lot of fun being had this year, both in and out of the concert hall. Just this month, we welcomed back Ivars Taurins and his feisty alter-ego, Herr Handel, for Handel’s Messiah and Sing-Along Messiah. And earlier in the year, we even brought Liberace to the stage! Impersonator Martin Preston, in all his sequined glory, brought the glitz, glamour and bright lights of Las Vegas to the Jack Singer Concert Hall at our Viva Las Vegas concert.

To help spread the word about our Rush Hour concert series, we resurrected some of the world’s best composers – de-composers, you might call them – to wander Calgary’s downtown streets.

 

Overall, 2013 was a resounding success for the Orchestra. We’re looking forward to an even better year in 2014, and we wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.