Forty on Friday

May 30, 2025   8:00 pm

May 30, 2025
Hugh’s Room Live

296 Broadview Avenue
Toronto, Ontario M4M 2G7

We celebrate the art of contemporary chamber music with Moonlight on the Bluff, a Continuum commission from 2005 by Toronto’s own Martin Arnold, a world premiere by Toronto composer Jason Doell, and works by Tyshawn Sorey and Joanna Bailie. This concert will also feature the 9th Teen Composer Award in pre-concert format.

Jason Doell (CA)
wracked thorns trawl and hale (for Linda Catlin Smith)*

Martin Arnold (CA)
Moonlight on the Bluff

Tyshawn Sorey (US)
For Fred Lerdahl

Joanna Bailie (UK)
Artificial Environments 1-5

* world premiere

Tonight’s Musicians

Leslie Newman, flute / alto flute

Leslie is the principal flute with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, a post she has held since 2008. As guest principal flute, she has played with the Hallé Orchestra under Kent Nagano, the Bournemouth Symphony, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra, National Ballet Orchestra and Esprit. She has toured through Brazil, Argentina, Japan, Europe and the U.S. with Sir Simon Rattle and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

As soloist, Leslie has performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra, Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, Sinfonia Toronto and the Montreal Chamber Orchestra. She has presented recitals across the UK, with numerous BBC Radio 3 broadcasts, including two live recital broadcasts from the world-famous Wigmore Hall, and throughout Canada, including Jeunesses Musicales and Debut Atlantic tours and numerous national and regional CBC broadcasts. Other notable recital engagements include at the Phillips Collection in Washington D.C., the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series in Chicago, Taipei’s National Concert Hall and the National Museum in Bogotá, Colombia. Festival appearances include Banff, Belle-Ile (France), Bogotá, Salzburg, Sorrento, Sweetwater, the Stratford International Flute Festival (UK), Ottawa’s Chamberfest and the Oregon Bach Festival.

Leslie lives in Toronto and teaches at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music.

Anthony Thompson, clarinet / bass clarinet

As a freelance clarinetist, Anthony Thompson performs with many Toronto-based ensembles. As an orchestral musician, Anthony has appeared with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Canadian Opera Company, and the Esprit Orchestra.

Anthony has a deep passion for contemporary music, performing regularly with many of Canada’s premier new music ensembles. He has toured across Canada and parts of Asia with Soundstreams, Continuum Contemporary Music, and the Thin Edge New Music Collective.

In addition to his performance career, Anthony has a large private teaching studio. Away from the clarinet, he enjoys spending time with his family, practicing yoga, and triathlon training.

Carol Lynn Fujino, violin

Carol Lynn Fujino joined the TSO in 1991 and made her solo début with the Orchestra two years later, playing in Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins. Prior to her joining the TSO, Carol served as Assistant Concertmaster for the National Ballet of Canada orchestra.

Carol has concertized throughout North America, Europe and Asia. She has also been heard on CBC Radio as a soloist with Esprit Orchestra and is an active chamber musician, performing regularly as a member of the Accordes String Quartet and Continuum Contemporary Ensemble.

Aside from playing in the violin section, Carol’s duties also involve keeping her colleagues well caffeinated backstage. She also enjoys spending great amounts of time discussing and making baked goods.

Catherine Gray, viola

Paul Widner, cello

An active cellist in Toronto, Paul Widner is resident cellist of several contemporary music ensembles, including Continuum Contemporary Music and Arraymusic. He is also principal cellist of the Esprit Orchestra and performs regularly with New Music Concerts.

He has toured throughout Canada and Europe with these groups and appears on several recordings of contemporary Canadian music.

Paul is also the assistant principal cellist of the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra and performs with the Amadeus Ensemble and the National Ballet Orchestra.

Gregory Oh, piano / keyboard

Gregory Oh tends to wander the genres, appearing in places from the legendary Berlin techno club Berghain to Lincoln Centre. He conducted RUR A Torrent of Light (Nicole Lizée/Nic Billon) for which he received the 2022 Dora Mavor Moore award for Outstanding Musical Direction, as well as The Cave (Tomson Highway/John Millard) and Bearing (Michael Greyeyes/Signal Theatre) for the Luminato Festival, and the recording Ride the Wind with Roscoe Mitchell and the Montreal-Toronto Jazz Orchestra. On piano he premiered Scott Good’s Hands of Orlac with the London Symphonia and Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, toured Rwanda and the UK with Neema Bickersteth and Century Song (Volcano), and was featured as conductor and pianist at the Shanghai New Music Festival. He has worked with hundreds of composers including Steve Reich, Phillip Glass, Kaija Saariaho and Jörg Widmann. He teaches at the University of Toronto and NYO Canada and programs Summer Music in the Garden at Harbourfront Centre.

Ryan Scott, percussion

Dr. Ryan Scott (he, him) has performed extensively as a marimba and multi-percussion soloist in contemporary music festivals in Europe, Japan, China, Indonesia, South Africa, the UK and The Netherlands. He has also performed as guest soloist in over 25 different percussion concerti with the Esprit Orchestra, the National Arts Centre Orchestra, The Hyogo Performing Arts Centre Orchestra, The Austin Symphony and numerous other orchestras and chamber ensembles across North America.

Ryan is a stalwart figure in the Toronto contemporary music community and has performed in over 400 world premieres. In addition to his work as a regular guest artist with NEXUS, Principal Percussionist of the Esprit Orchestra and Percussionist in the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra since 1996, he is also a sought-after chamber musician and teacher. A core member of Continuum Contemporary Music (founded 1985), he also serves the organization as Artistic Director.

Michael Murphy, percussion

Hailed as “brilliant” (Opera Canada, 2024), “excellent” (New York Times, 2022) and “captivating” (Myanmar Times, 2018), Michael Murphy is a Chinese-Canadian percussionist who has toured North America, Scandinavia, Europe, and Asia. As an orchestral musician, he has performed with the Toronto Symphony, the National Ballet of Canada, the Esprit Orchestra, the Hamilton Philharmonic, and the Philharmonisches Orchester Freiburg. In the contemporary music world, he is regularly involved in groups such as New Music Concerts, Continuum, Arraymusic, Soundstreams, Freesound, Ensemble Scope, and with festivals such as Nuit Blanche, the New Creations Festival, 2D2N in Odessa, and Frau* musica nova.

As an advocate of Canadian music and in charge of most of his programming, Michael has brought Canadian music to international waters. He has worked closely with Canadian composers such as Alice Ping Yee Ho, Kotoka Suzuki, among many others, his international connections have brought about new works for percussion from the USA, Hong Kong, Poland, Ukraine, China, Japan, and Germany. Not just as a solo performer, but as a chamber musician in groups such as Duo Holz (with Aysel Taghi-Zada), shshcc (two shōs and accordion), the Freesound Collective, and various ad hocs, he is an avid commissioner.

Brian Current, conductor