Why Don’t Canadians Like Canadian Composers?
It’s always a chore to include Canadian music on symphony concert programs
Nationalistic pride is common in classical music from all eras. When you think of French music, Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy likely come to mind. When you think of Italy, you may think of Antonio Vivaldi and Gioachino Rossini, among others. In the United States, there are many well-known and frequently performed composers such as Samuel Barber, George Gershwin, Aaron Copland, and John Philip Sousa.
What about Canadian composers? As a Canadian musician, I am familiar with the concept of putting the token Canadian piece on a concert program. We are always thrilled at the prospect of performing pieces by Beethoven, Brahms, or essentially any other composer. However, as soon as it’s required to include a Canadian work, everyone grumbles about it.
Recently, I performed R. Murray Schafer’s String Quartet №10 “Winter Birds” in my orchestra’s online concert series. It was definitely not a piece I ever imagined I’d play, let alone enjoy playing.
At first, I had no idea what was going on, but it made more sense as we worked on it more. The piece did not focus on discernable melodies or harmonies, rather an atmospheric depiction of a Canadian winter scene. There were many…
