In memory of Glenn Gould

PERFORMERS:
Soloist: Lucas Debargue (piano)
The Mariinsky Orchestra
Conductor: Valery Gergiev

PROGRAMME:
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Suite from the opera The Golden Cockerel

Maurice Ravel
Piano Concerto No. 1 in G major

Sergei Prokofiev
Piano Concerto No 2 in G Minor, Op. 16

The Glenn Gould Foundation was established in Toronto in 1983 and is a registered Canadian charitable organization. The Foundation not only seeks to extend awareness of Glenn Gould as an extraordinary musician, communicator and thinker, but also to extend his legacy through initiatives that realize the transformative impact of the arts on individual lives and society.
The mission of The Glenn Gould Foundation is to honour Glenn Gould’s spirit and legacy by celebrating brilliance, promoting creativity and transforming lives through the power of music and the arts with the Foundation’s signature activities, including The Glenn Gould Prize and a wide range of other artistic, cultural, educational and social initiatives. The Glenn Gould Foundation, in the spirit of Glenn Gould, inspires, supports and celebrates artistic endeavour by globally implementing its mission.
Both a national and international cultural institution, The Glenn Gould Prize is recognized as one of the world’s premier honours in celebration of artistic excellence. The Prize resonates strongly across borders and cultures because of its connection to one of the world’s pre-eminent musical icons, making it a gift from Canada to the world.
The $100,000 Cdn Glenn Gould Prize is awarded to an individual for a unique lifetime contribution that has enriched the human condition through the arts. Candidates are nominated by the public and Laureates are selected by an international jury of distinguished artists and arts professionals. The Glenn Gould Prize promotes the vital connection between artistic excellence and the transformation of lives. Each Glenn Gould Prize Laureate also chooses an outstanding young artist to receive the $15,000 Cdn City of Toronto Glenn Gould Protégé Prize. The ideals of The Glenn Gould Prize are expressed by the motto, "From Celebration, to Inspiration, to Transformation."
The Glenn Gould Foundation’s laureates include Yehudi Menuhin, Oscar Peterson, Yo-Yo Ma, Pierre Boulez and Philip Glass among others.
For more information, visit www.glenngould.ca

About the Concert

Canadian pianist Glenn Gould is a legendary figure in 20^th century music.

In 1957 he became one of the first western musicians of the post-war period to visit the Soviet Union, appearing in Moscow and Leningrad. Here he performed music not only by Bach and Beethoven, but also – for the first time following a de facto years-long ban – Schoenberg, Berg, Webern and Krenek, accompanied by commentaries by Gould himself. Together with Van Cliburn, who one year later enchanted the Moscow public with his appearance at the I Tchaikovsky Competition, Gould became a herald of the "thaw". The pianist never returned to the USSR, though he did retain fond memories of his visit and wrote several essays about Russian music.

Interest in Gould was sustained not just through his dazzling skill, but also his eccentric performing style (including at the piano – Gould frequently sang during his performances). At the height of his career, he stopped appearing on the stage and limited himself to studio recordings.

Instead of the traditional romantic repertoire, Gould preferred lesser known works – harpsichord music by maestri before the time of Bach (Orlando Gibbons, Jan Sweelinck and William Byrd), piano opuses by Bizet, Sibelius and Richard Strauss and composers of the New Viennese School. We know of his recordings of Beethoven's piano sonatas and concerti. The majority of his repertoire, however, consisted of music by Bach – Gould recorded almost all of his keyboard music. Gould's discography is framed by two recordings of the Goldberg Variations (1955 and 1981). Several documentary films have been made about Gould, and even today his recordings remain incredibly popular.

Age category 6+