The Main Series:

Dame Evelyn Glennie | Oct. 6, 2016

The world’s premier solo percussionist, Scottish virtuoso and 2015 Polar Music Prize winner Dame Evelyn Glennie joins the renowned Manitoba Chamber Orchestra for an unforgettable evening featuring new Canadian music including Mirage? by Christos Hatzis and Kaluza Klein by Michael Oesterle. Glennie has a prolific performance and collaboration history, touring globally and collaborating with artists from Bjork to Fred Frith to Bobby McFerrin.

Slowind Quintet  | Dec. 1, 2016

Slovenia’s Slowind Quintet is made up of the principal winds (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and horn) of the Slovene Philharmonic, an orchestra with a history more than 300 years long. The quintet, however, focus their attentions on contemporary and commissioned compositions; their performance will feature new works by Robert Aitken, Toshio Hosokawa, Vinko Globokar, and more.

Duel of the Duos: Blackwood & Stealth | Mar. 11, 2017

Halifax’s Blackwood Duo (Jeff Reilly, bass clarinet and Peter Togni, organ) join forces with KW’s Stealth Duo (Kathryn Ladano, bass clarinet and Richard Burrows, percussion) to perform new works that fuse composition and improvisation, including “The Land Sings” by Jana Skarecky, written specifically for this concert, and the world premiere of Nick Storring’s “Spurious Correlations” for bass clarinet and percussion. Also featuring the newly formed NUMUS String Orchestra as guests.

Instruments of Happiness | April 3, 2017

Tim Brady’s new electric guitar quartet takes the stage during its inaugural tour. Featuring new works by Emily Hall, Scott Godin, and Tim Brady, this concert seeks to explore Brady’s vision of extending the boundaries of the electric guitar, treating this project as the next step in the evolution of the instrument.

This Land | May 31, 2017

A commemorative musical-theatrical work for Canada’s 150th anniversary, This Land is a multi-media interdisciplinary work which opens a dialogue about what it means to be Canadian in 2017. Threaded together by the Indigenous Creation story, poetry from diverse regions and perspectives is set to music, illustrated by dramatic movement, and accompanied by visual projections of iconic Canadian paintings re-envisioned in real time. The performance will feature Anishinaabe storyteller and Ojibwa elder Rene Meshake reciting his own version of the creation story, called Aki.

This Land is something of a NUMUS all-stars event, bringing together mezzo-soprano Kimberly Barber, TorQ Percussion Quartet, harpist Angela Schwarzkopf, and many others.

The Mix Series:

Nick Fraser Quartet | Oct. 1, 2016

Drumheller founding member and Toronto-improvisation lynchpin Nick Fraser brings his inexhaustible left-of-centre perspective on contemporary jazz to bear on a set of sketches that will serve as points of departure for truly inspired group improvisations. Fraser will be joined by some of the best creative musicians in the Toronto scene (and his regular associates): Rob Clutton on bass, Andrew Downing on cello, and tenor and soprano saxophonist Tony Malaby.

Friendly Rich & The Lollipop People | Nov. 18, 2016

(Friendly) Rich Marsella, the self-proclaimed “mad composer from Oakville,” brings his  experimental cabaret orchestra, the Lollipop People, to Kitchener for a performance that will be many things – eclectic, entertaining, unusual, possibly unspeakable – but never predictable.

Emerging Soloists: Linsey Wellman | Jan. 27, 2017

This concert introduces some of the most exciting new Canadian talent in solo improvisation! Linsey Wellman, a cornerstone of the Ottawa improvised music scene (and JUNO nominated artist with calypso outfit Kobo Town), heads the bill with his saxophone, his flute, and his talent for the unusual. This concert will also feature the winner of our 4th annual NUMUS Emerging Improviser Contest.

Esmerine | Apr. 8, 2017

Born from the ashes of Canadian post-rock icons Godspeed You! Black Emperor and A Silver Mt. Zion, Montreal’s JUNO winning chamber rock collective (Rebecca Foon, Bruce Cawdron, Jamie Thompson, Brian Sanderson, and Jeremi Roy) bring their stunning sonic palette to our series. A compelling hybrid of classical figures, post-rock influences, and vast soundscapes, this music absorbs, surrounds, challenges, engages, and should not be missed.

Emerging Curators II | Apr. 27, 2017

In the not too distant year of 2017, James Reesor, winner of the 2016 Numus Emerging Curator Contest, and the Seagram Synth Ensemble will take you on an Electro-Acoustic exodus. They synthesize vibrations that will take you surfing through the farthest reaches of space and time. Join us for an evening of good music and better beer. This concert will feature the electronic sounds of the Seagram Synth Ensemble, as well as original works by James Reesor and James Dowbiggin.