October 31, 2006 -

Ottawa, Canada -- Music Director Pinchas Zukerman will take on the double role of conductor and violin soloist when he leads the National Arts Centre Orchestra in some of the repertoire that will be performed on the Orchestra’s upcoming Quebec Tour in Ovation Series concerts on Wednesday, November 8 and Thursday, November 9 at 20:00 in Southam Hall. The programme features Maestro Zukerman leading Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 from the violin and conducting Symphony No. 3 by renowned Quebec composer Jacques Hétu. These NAC Orchestra concerts conclude with Haydn’s dazzling Symphony No. 99. (The Haydn symphony will be replaced on tour with Brahms’s Symphony No. 2.)

The National Arts Centre Foundation gratefully acknowledges support for the Quebec Tour by Major Sponsor Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. Programme Sponsors and Donors Gaz Métro, Enbridge and NAC Friends - Quebec. Media partners are Gesca Limitée, notably through La Presse, Le Soleil and Le Droit, and the National Post.

Mozart’s third violin concerto offered a remarkable new depth and richness compared to his first two composed only months before. Its slow movement has been described by musicologist Edward Downes to be “of such ravishing beauty that one can only bow one’s head and be thankful.”

Composer Jacques Hétu was born in Trois-Rivières – one of the places that the NAC Orchestra will visit on tour – and gained his initial musical training at the University of Ottawa. His Symphony No. 3, a piece that Maestro Zukerman has long admired, was recorded by the NAC Orchestra under Franco Mannino, and is among a number of works by the prolific composer in the Orchestra’s repertoire.

Haydn’s Symphony No. 99 was the first of the symphonies he composed upon his return to London after an immensely successful sojourn there. It was thus highly anticipated, and didn’t disappoint! It was described by the press as “one of the grandest efforts of art we ever witnessed. It abounds with ideas, as new in music as they are grand and impressive; it rouses and affects the emotion of the soul.”

Tickets for these Ovation Series concerts on Wednesday, November 8 and Thursday, November 9 at 20:00 are on sale now at $18.82, $38.64, $58.45, 68.36 with box seats at $82.22 (6% 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 website at www.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. Same-day Live Rush tickets (subject to availability) for full-time students (aged 13 to 29) are $10 at the NAC Box Office between 14:00 and 18:00 on the day of performance only, upon presentation of a valid Live Rush card.

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.  Subscriptions for the season are also still available by calling the Subscription Office at 613-947-7000, ext. 620.

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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