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October 10, 2006

Canada Post raises curtain on six Canadian opera greats

Ottawa - They are bigger than life; their powerful voices soar effortlessly from the foot of the opera house's orchestra pit right up to the back rows of the largest arenas. On October 17, Canada Post will issue a set of five domestic rate (51¢) stamps to celebrate great Canadian opera singers.

It wasn't until after World War II that Canadians showed a growing appreciation for opera. A number of factors contributed, namely the expansion of broadcasting and recording, the influx of European immigrants for whom attendance at the opera had been a habit, and the growing prosperity of the 1950s and 1960s. Also important is the opera presentations of the CBC, in the 1940s and 1950s on radio and television.

Just this summer the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts opened in Toronto. This venue is Canada's first purpose-built opera house, the new home of the Canadian Opera Company and the new performance venue for The National Ballet of Canada. It is also fitting that the issue of the Opera stamps will coincide with the Centre's official first opera of the 2006-2007 season.

The five stamps will feature six Canadian opera greats with international opera houses most associated with their performances. Edward Johnson, Raoul Jobin, Jon Vickers, and Maureen Forrester are all featured individually on the stamps, however, the married couple Pierrette Alarie and Léopold Simoneau are paired on the fifth stamp.

Paul Haslip, partner at HME Design in Toronto, says "It was a delightful surprise that this charming and whimsical approach won the stamps design approval. It really was a bit of a leap visually." The colour palette reflected the sense of the spectacular and the flamboyance that Opera embraces. The high contrast portraits suggested an air of drama and the calligraphy's illustrative elements lent a personalized touch to each of the Opera greats.

The stamps measure 48 mm x 27.45 mm (horizontal). Canadian Bank Note printed 3 million stamps in panes of 10 (two of each stamp). The stamps will be printed using lithography in 11 colours and PVA gum on Tullis Russell Coatings paper. They are general tagged on all four sides, with 13+ perforations. The Official First Day Cover will read: TORONTO, ON.

Additional information about Canadian stamps can be found in the Newsroom section of Canada Post's website, and downloadable high-resolution photos of the Canadian Opera Greats commemorative stamps are in the Newsroom's Photo Centre. Stamps and Official First Day Covers will be available at participating post offices, can be ordered online by following the links at Canada Post's website www.canadapost.ca, or by mail-order from the National Philatelic Centre. From Canada and the USA call toll-free: 1 800 565-4362 and from other countries call: 902 863-6550.

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