Stradivarius BaROCK
Alexandre Da Costa with his jazz trio and the Penrith Youth Orchestra
What would the music of the Baroque period have been like if Bach and Vivaldi wrote with today’s rock, jazz and electro-pop?
For anyone new to classical music or who wants to hear it in a completely different way – don’t miss internationally acclaimed ‘rockstar’ of the violin, Alexandre Da Costa, live on stage with jazz trio and the Penrith Youth Orchestra, for one show only.
Armed with his 1701 Stradivarius, this electrifying concert takes you on an exhilarating journey to revisit the composers who lived in the time of Louis XIV.
From Vivaldi as rock, jazz-tinged Bach and Pachelbel’s famous Canon with a backbeat, these are the classics as you have never heard them before – with some contemporary favourites by Queen, Hendrix and Leonard Cohen.
A unique fusion of genres, this symphonic celebration will delight, excite, and inspire music lovers of all ages.
Cast & Creatives
Alexandre Da Costa / Violin
John Martin / Piano
Nicole Murray-Prior / Double Bass
Jess Ciampa / Drums
Penrith Youth Orchestra
- Key Info:
- Dates & Times
- Tickets
12 Mar 2023 3:00 pm
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
SONY Classical artist and JUNO Award-winner, violinist Alexandre Da Costa was born in Montréal, Québec. Among his many accolades, Da Costa also counts the prestigious Virginia-Parker Prize, one of Canada’s highest cultural distinctions, the Sylva Gelber Foundation Award from the Canada Council for the Arts, and first prize in the International Violin Competition Pablo Sarasate.
Since becoming Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Longueuil (OSDL) in Montréal in 2019, Da Costa’s multi-dimensional artistic vision has brought increasing renown as conductor, often directing from the violin, and including the orchestra’s successful, first, six-city tour of South America in 2022. Notable for his compassion and drive, during the COVID-19 pandemic Da Costa lead the orchestra to tour locally and regionally, bringing music and warmth to hospitals and aged care homes in Canada, and galvanized support for artists in collaboration with leading Canadian music icons. Accepting a rare five-year extension of his contract, Da Costa will remain at the helm of the OSDL through to the 2028-2029 season, while retaining Artistic Directorship of the Stradivaria Festival (Québec).
As violin soloist, Da Costa has performed in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Australia with the world’s leading orchestras including London’s Royal Philharmonic, the Berlin, Royal Seville, Montreal and Toronto Symphony Orchestras, National Orchestra of Argentina under conductors such as Lorin Maazel, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Keri-Lynn Wilson, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Leonard Slatkin, Vasily Petrenko, Matthias Bamert, Alondra de la Parra, and Johannes Wildner. Da Costa has given world premieres of works by Elliott Carter, Michael Daugherty (for which he won the 2012 JUNO award), Lorenzo Palomo, Paul Sarcich, Jean Lesage and Airat Ichmouratov.
Recent engagements include as soloist with the Royal Philharmonic as soloist in a concert for Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in 2022, Montreal Symphony Orchestra (Canada), Vienna Symphony Orchestra (Austria), Colorado Philharmonic Orchestra (USA) and Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra (Columbia) with cond. Josep Caballé-Domenech, Royal Seville Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Axelrod playing S. Wagner’s violin concerto, McGill Chamber Orchestra (Montréal), Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra (cond. Keri-Lynn Wilson), and the Toronto Sinfonia. Da Costa also performed in collaboration with cellist Denis Brott, Canadian chanteur Bruno Pelletier, and gave masterclasses at Royal Northern College of Music (UK).
Touring annually in Australia until the pandemic, highlights have included three concerts as soloist with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra (cond. Asher Fisch), in recital for Musica Viva and at Huntington Estate Music Festival, national touring for Selby & Friends, Willoughby Symphony Orchestra (cond. Nicholas Milton), Zelman Symphony Orchestra (VIC), at City Recital Hall Angel Place, with the Orava Quartet at the Sydney Opera House, Port Fairy Spring Music Festival and Darwin Entertainment Centre.
As a recording artist, he has made 25 albums with Sony Classical, Warner Classics, JVC/Victor, Naxos, Acacia Classics/Universal, ATMA, XXI-21 and Octave/Universal, among them the world premiere recordings of the violin concertos by Portuguese composers Luis de Freitas Branco and Armando José Fernandes. The Washington Post selected his recording of the Beethoven concerto with Klezmer cadenzas by A. Ichmouratov as one the ‘Best CDs of the Year’ in 2013. In 2019, SONY Classical released Da Costa’s recording of works by Richard and Siegfried Wagner with Staatskapelle Halle and conductor Josep Caballé-Domenech, following the success of his album, ‘Stradivarius at the Opera’ with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, which he directed from the violin; Da Costa’s ground-breaking latest release, ‘Stradivarius BaROCK’ toured successfully in North America with its sights firmly set on the ‘crossover’ market, bringing classical music into the worlds of jazz, rock and pop.
Da Costa is also active as a chamber musician, performing alongside acclaimed chamber musicians such as Menahem Pressler, Elisabeth Leonskaja, Matt Haimowitz and Hélène Mercier. A frequent guest of chamber music festivals, recent appearances include Ottawa Chamber Fest, Musique et Autres Mondes, Canberra International Music Festival, Musica Viva’s Huntington Estate Music Festival, Port Fairy Spring Music Festival and more. His live performance broadcasts have aired on the BBC, WestDeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), CBC, NPR, ORF, ABC Classic FM and more.
Da Costa gives violin masterclasses around the world and was Head of Strings at Edith Cowan University (WAAPA, Perth, Australia) from 2014 – 2018. He plays the ‘Deveault’ Stradivarius of 1701.
