April 05, 2006 -

Ottawa, Canada -- Still only 26 years old, American violinist Hilary Hahn is a Grammy Award winner and was named “America’s Best” young classical musician by Time Magazine in 2001. She appears regularly with the world’s great orchestras in Europe, Asia and North America, and will now make her National Arts Centre Orchestra debut performing the Glazunov Violin Concerto in Ovation Series concerts on Wednesday, April 19 and Thursday, April 20 at 20:00 in Southam Hall. These concerts mark the Canadian debut of Norwegian conductor Arild Remmereit in place of Pinchas Zukerman, who will still be on leave for these dates in April.

The change in conductor has led to changes in the orchestral portion of the programme. Maestro Remmereit will lead the NAC Orchestra in works by fellow Scandinavians: a suite from Grieg’s Peer Gynt filled with the sights, sounds and folklore of Norway, and Sibelius’s towering Symphony No. 2,one of the most magnificent creations in the orchestral repertoire.

CBC National Music Producer Jill LaForty will present free pre-concert talks in English both evenings entitled “Sibelius, a Northern Light”.

Hilary Hahn’s best-selling recordings have won such honours as the “Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik”, two “Diapasons d'Or” for Record of the Year, a Grammy nomination, the Echo Klassik award, Gramophone Magazine's “CD of the Month”; the Deutsche Schallplattenpreis and the Cannes Classical Award, as well as a Grammy Award, Gramophone’s “Editor's Choice” and Monde de la Musique’s “Choc” for her 2001 recording of the concertos of Brahms and Stravinsky. Hilary Hahn is now an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist. Her current season includes recital tours in the United States, Europe, and Asia, including New York’s Carnegie Hall, Paris, Berlin and Tokyo, and performances with the Los Angeles and Luxembourg Philharmonics, the Montreal Symphony, and the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia. Last season took the young violinist to Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Russia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, England, Ireland, and 15 states within the U.S.

Conductor Arild Remmereit began the current season with a debut at the storied Teatro alla Scala, where he conducted Tchaikovsky’s opera Cherevicki. His most recent engagements include critically acclaimed debuts with the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Baltimore Symphony, Milan’s Filarmonica della Scala, the Vienna Symphony, and the Munich Philharmonic significantly raising his international profile. He has led a number of orchestras throughout Europe including the Oslo Philharmonic, the Bergen Philharmonic, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, the Copenhagen Philharmonic, the NDR Radiophilharmonie in Hanover, the Rheinland-Pfalz Philharmonic, the Bern Symphony, the Mozarteum Orchestra in Salzburg and the Gulbenkian Orchestra in Lisbon, among others. In Asia he is a frequent guest conductor with the Seoul Philharmonic.

Tickets for these Ovation Series concerts on April 19 and 20 are on sale now at $27.00, $47.50, $58.00 and $60.00, with box seats at $79.00 (GST and Facility Fee included) at the NAC Box Office (Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 21:00), and through Ticketmaster (with surcharges) at 613-755-1111. Ticketmaster may also be accessed through the NAC’s web-site at www.nac-cna.ca.

Groups of 10 and more save 15% to 20% off the regular price of tickets to NAC Music, Theatre and Dance performances. To reserve your seats call 947-7000 ext. 384 or email grp@nac-cna.ca. Half-price tickets for students in all sections of the hall are on sale in person at the NAC Box Office upon presentation of a valid student ID card.

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For more information please contact:
Jane Morris, Communications Officer,
National Arts Centre Orchestra
(613) 947-7000, ext. 335
jmorris@nac-cna.ca