On November 6,7 and 8 Looking at the Stars delivered three classic music gifts to the residents of Northwood Long Term Care institution in three different locations – Chester, Halifax and Beaverbank, Nova Scotia.
Over 100 residents had a chance to relax and enjoy brilliant performances of the works by Bach, Chopin, Albeniz, and Ravel by unique Canadian pianist Walter Delahunt.
We hope to return to Nova Scotia in Spring 2024.
The 2023 Beethoven Prize for human rights has been awarded to the Latvian violinist and ensemble leader Gidon Kremer.
Kremer, 76, has been outspoken in his opposition to Russia’s wars of aggression in Chechnya and Ukraine. He has also played in jails and other places of despair.
The award, worth 10,000 Euros, is given by the Beethoven Academy in Bad Honnef.
Past winners include Maria João Pires (2021), Igor Levit (2019) and Gabriela Montero (2018).
Photo of Gidon Kremer taken during his performance of “Preludes to a Lost Time,” at Pacific Institution Regional Treatment Centre, Abbotsford, BC on January 29, 2020.
Our extraordinary team of international artists and technicians travelled to Izium, Ukraine, to record an open air performance of classical music as a gift to honour the dead and inspire the living. A stunning white grand piano is a beacon in the grey anguish of this ravaged landscape. The scarred earth is a bleak reminder of the russian invader’s attempt to subjugate the Ukrainian people. Yet Ukraine remains steadfast in their resistance.
The beautiful white grand piano did not survive the production. Moisture took its toll, as you can hear during the final musical sequences. Overcome by the pathos of the moment, the piano gave up its spirit and died. Yet the spirit of the piano lives on in this phenomenal recording of a celebration of the Ukrainian people’s courage and commitment.
Sponsored and organized by Looking at the Stars Foundation – a Canadian federal charity. (www.lookingatthestars.org) with invaluable support from All-Ukrainian Forum for Democracy (DEMFORUM) https://demforum.org/en/
We are continuing our work with Ukrainian refugees in Eastern Canada. On June 10 and 11 Peter Lambert will be moderating two concerts in Halifax and Moncton respectively (pianists Walter Delahunt and Anna Sagalova will present the program of western and Ukrainian composers).
The third concert of the series will take place at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto on June 12, 2023.
https://holyblossom.org/event/mondays-in-the-mishkan-2/
