May 15, 2006 -

Ottawa (Canada) -- MusicFest Canada, North America's largest annual event dedicated to developing young musical talent, comes tomorrow to the National Arts Centre.

Over 8,000 young people aged 12-25 from across the country will descend on the NAC May 16-20 to participate in MusicFest at the national level. They were invited to attend after securing top adjudications at the regional level in concert band, orchestra, choral, vocal jazz or instrumental jazz categories. Though it is the first time the NAC has hosted the national week-long music festival the NAC will now host it every second year. MusicFest is also partnering with the University of Ottawa.

MusicFest adjudicated performances taking place at the Government Conference Centre (concert bands), Christ Church Cathedral (choral), the NAC Fourth Stage (jazz ensembles and combos) and the University of Ottawa (vocal jazz) are free and open to the public. No tickets are required.

Evening showcase events at Southam Hall are for MusicFest participants only and are not open to the public.

For more detailed schedule information, visit www.musicfest.ca.

For more than 33 years, MusicFest Canada has given young musicians across the country the opportunity to perform for expert adjudicators, attend workshops and make new friends. In preparing for the festival, participants also learn about music, the value of practice and the thrill of performing and playing in bands and choral ensembles.

MusicFest adjudicators are some of the top musical experts in their field, including Ottawa choral conductor and University of Ottawa Associate Professor of Music Laurence Ewashko, jazz saxophonist Alex Dean of the Boss Brass, Gordon Foote, Professor of Performance at the McGill University Faculty of Music, Dr. Gillian MacKay, Associate Professor of Music Education and Performance at the University of Toronto, and Dr. Cynthia Johnston Turner, Director of Wind Ensembles at Cornell University.

Yamaha Canada Music Ltd. will present approximately 70 hours of clinics and workshops. These will take place in the Salon and Fountain Room of the NAC. Clinicians and workshop facilitators include:

• Sandra Britten, flute (Halifax)
• Dr. Stan Fisher, clarinet (Halifax)
• Jeff Goodspeed, saxophone (Halifax)
• Al Kay, trombone (Toronto)
• Chase Sanborn, trumpet (Toronto)
• Colin Traquair, trombone (NAC Orchestra)
• Doug Burden, bass trombone (NAC Orchestra)
• Jeff Nelson, French horn (New York)
• Nick Atkinson, tuba (NAC Orchestra)
• Ken Simpson, percussion (NAC Orchestra)

Zildjian Corporation and Yamaha will sponsor rhythm section clinics (bass, guitar, piano, drums) featuring world renowned drummer Steve Fidyk.

The festival and sponsors will be giving out approximately $100,000 in scholarships and awards at the festival.

SCHEDULE OF PUBLIC EVENTS

CONCERT BAND/ORCHESTRA

Concert band, orchestra and chamber ensemble adjudicated performances are scheduled for Tuesday, May 16 through Saturday, May 20, 7:30 AM to 9:30 PM. Performances on Tuesday, May 16 run from 9:30 AM to 7:00 PM. All concert band performances, clinics and sight-reading sessions will take place at the Government Conference Centre, 2 Rideau St.

VOCAL JAZZ

Vocal Jazz and combination choir adjudicated performances are scheduled for Wednesday, May 17, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Performances will take place at the University of Ottawa, Academic Hall, Theatre Building, 133-5 Seraphin-Marion.

CONCERT/CHAMBER CHOIR

Adjudicated performances for choirs are scheduled for Thursday, May 18 through Saturday, May 20, from 8:30 AM to 6:30 PM. All concert choir and chamber choir performances will take place at Christ Church Cathedral, 439 Queen St.

JAZZ ENSEMBLES

Jazz ensembles adjudicated performances are scheduled for Tuesday, May 16 through Saturday, May 20, from 7:30AM and ending at 11:00PM. All jazz ensemble performances will take place at the National Arts Centre Fourth Stage.

JAZZ COMBOS

Jazz combos adjudicated performances are scheduled primarily in the evenings, following jazz bands, from Tuesday, May 16 through Saturday, May 20 from approximately 8:30 PM to 11:00 PM. All jazz ensemble performances will take place at the National Arts Centre Fourth Stage.

MusicFest Canada

MusicFest Canada began in 1972 with a handful of Canadian musicians who created the country's first jazz band festival. Today, MusicFest Canada is a five day annual national event that brings together more than 10,000 of Canada's finest young musicians who perform for recognition as the country's foremost musical ensembles. Participants range in age from 12-25 years and are drawn from the elementary, high school, college and university levels. The festival is held each year in May, usually near the holiday weekend.

Today, MusicFest Canada annually engages the participation of over 450,000 young people in regional festivals nationwide for an opportunity to perform at the national festival. It is the first-ever event of its kind to provide an artistic venue for so many young people and is North America's largest annual event dedicated to developing young musical talent.

Staged in a major Canadian city each year, MusicFest Canada is the ultimate experience in combining music and education and is a moving force in the cultural life of Canada's youth. These young musicians perform in over 400 ensembles and attend showcase concerts, clinics, feature cabarets and workshops for an intense, non-stop five days.

The NAC, youth and education

The NAC holds “youth and education” as one of its top priorities. Each of its four disciplines—Music, English Theatre, French Theatre and Dance—reaches out to young people across the country in order to help strengthen arts education, support young artists and build young audiences.

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For more information:
Mary Gordon
Communications Advisor
National Arts Centre
Tel. (613) 947-7000 x 524

Chris Bell
Operations
MusicFest Canada
(613) 991-5013
www.musicfest.ca