January 14, 2003 -

Ottawa, Canada -- A chamber music concert featuring members of the National Arts Centre Orchestra and former winners of the NACO Bursary will take place on Sunday, January 19 at 14:00 in the afternoon in the Salon of the NAC. Organized by the NACO Bursary Committee, the NACO Bursary Benefit Concert will raise funds for prizes for future Bursary winners, some of whom will go on to pursue careers in professional orchestras.

A wide variety of chamber music will be performed by ensembles of musicians ranging from string and wind to brass ensembles, from the Baroque to the 20^th century, and from the sublime to the witty. Former winners of Bursary Competition prizes to perform are Leah Roseman, winner of the 1990 NACO Bursary; cellist Thaddeus Morden, winner of the 2001 New Sun Orchestral Student Bursary; tuba player Martin Labrosse, winner of the 2002 New Sun Orchestral Student Bursary; and horn player Elizabeth Simpson, winner of the 1985 NACO Bursary. They are joined by NAC Orchestra concertmaster Walter Prystawski; principal musicians Donnie Deacon (second violin), Joanna G'froerer (flute), Charles Hamann (oboe), Karen Donnelly (trumpet), Lawrence Vine (horn) and Gerald Corey (bassoon); and NACO players Sally Benson (viola), Margaret Munro-Tobolowska (cello), Jill Kirwan (horn), Donald Renshaw (trombone), and Marjolaine Laroche (double bass).

The programme includes Handel's Passacaglia String Duet arranged from the Harpsichord Suite No. 7 by Halvorsen, Mozart's Flute Quartet in D major, Britten's Phantasy, Ewald's 1^st Brass Quintet, and Boismortier's Sonata and 3 Tripperies arranged by Shaw. The concert will finish on a comic note with T. Bor's McMozart's Eine Kleine Bricht Moonlicht Nicht Musik, and Peter Schickele's The Schleptet in E-flat.

The first NACO Bursary Competition was in 1981. It provides recognition and financial support to help further the development of young Canadian orchestral musicians who have connections to the National Capital Region. The first year, one prize of $1,000 was awarded. Thanks to the generosity of additional organizations and individuals, other prizes have been added for a total in 2002 of $16,000.

Tickets are $15.00 (GST and Facility Fee included) and are on sale now 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.

The full programme follows:

HANDEL/HALVORSEN: Passacaglia String Duet from Harpsichord Suite No. 7
Walter Prystawski, violin/violon
Donnie Deacon, viola/alto

MOZART: Flute Quartet in D Major
Joanna G'froerer, flute/ flûte
Leah Roseman* violin/violon
Sally Benson, viola/alto
Margaret Munro-Tobolowska, cello/violoncelle

BRITTEN: Phantasy, Op. 2
Charles Hamann, oboe/hautbois
Donnie Deacon, viola/alto
Sally Benson, viola/alto
Thaddeus Morden*, cello/violoncelle

EWALD: 1^st Brass Quintet
Karen Donnelly, trumpet/trompette
Manon Lafrance, trumpet/trompette
Jill Kirwan, horn/cor
Don Renshaw, trombone/trombone
Martin Labrosse*, tuba/tuba

BOISMORTIER: arr. Shaw Sonata
SHAW, L: 3 Tripperies
Lawrence Vine, horn/cor
Jill Kirwan, horn/cor
Elizabeth Simpson*, horn/cor

BOR, T: McMozart's Eine Kleine Bricht Moonlicht Nicht Musik
Walter Prystawski, violin/violon
Leah Roseman*, violin/violon
Sally Benson, viola/alto
Margaret Munro-Tobolowska, cello/violoncelle
Marjolaine Laroche, bass/contrebasse

SCHICKELE: The Schleptet in E flat
Joanna G'froerer, flute/ flûte
Charles Hamann, oboe/hautbois
Gerald Corey bassoon/basson
Lawrence Vine, horn/cor
Walter Prsytawski, violin/violon
Donnie Deacon viola/alto
Thaddeus Morden*, cello/violoncelle

* Former winners

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