There may not be any lions, tigers and bears, but there will be “Stravinsky, Spohr and Still - oh my!” at the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra’s season opening concert this week. The performance  marks not only the return of the orchestra to Westminster United Church but the audience as well. 

MCO_Sept2021Concert

“It feels like it’s been forever,” says MCO oboist Caitlin Broms-Jacobs. “It’s going to be incredible to be there with real people in the seats again.”  

The first in-person concert in nearly a year, the program features a variety of composers — Barber, Stravinsky, Spohr and Still — showcasing the superb talents of the MCO musicians. 

Audiences won’t just hear the fantastic playing of Broms-Jacobs but also her creativity as an arranger. Tackling the music of Igor Stravinsky in its original form is never an easy feat; wrestling the orchestral score of Pulcinella down to a quintet of players could be considered a task even more challenging.

Scored for flute, oboe, violin, viola and cello, Broms-Jacobs notes the fine balance required when finessing a score as dazzling as Stravinsky’s down to a smaller group of players. “While still being a chamber ensemble, it has enough instruments with enough different colours to — I felt — encompass the range of ideas that go on in this amazing piece,” 
 
MCO’s “Stravinsky, Spohr and Still - oh my!” takes place 7:30 pm at Westminster United Church Tuesday, September 21 with a second performance on Wednesday, September 22. 

Audiences are required to purchase tickets in advance online (www.themco.ca) or over the phone (204.783.7377).
 
In the full conversation with Caitlin Broms-Jacobs, learn more about her experience as an arranger and the first piece she arranged (hint: definitely not classical); for whom her arrangement of Pulcinella was done; and, what she plans to mix up next!