by Danny & Terry Gaisin
Mar. 4, ’18
Last evening the Oakville Chamber Orchestra presented an evening of vocal and instrumental classics. Works by Tchaikovsky and Schumann were to be highlighted. No doubt, conductor Charles Demuynck would have prefaced the former’s ‘Serenade for Strings’ by explaining the sonatina format, and undoubtedly would have advised the audience to watch for the reiterations within the work. Hopefully, he would have spoken about the unusual term larghetto elegiaco. Assuredly, the guest soloist’s violin played by Tiffany Leung was faultless.

Bernie Altschuller

        Fifty-five years ago, I was introduced to a close friend of my fiancee’s -Elaine Langer, who was going to be one of Terry’s bridesmaids.  Unlike some of my future wife’s family; Elaine took me as an immediate friend. When she and Bernie Altschuller married four years later; a gracious (and hospitable) foursome developed that has lasted for almost six decades. More…

Review by Danny Gaisin

It occasionally surprises me as to the way things connect. My original interest in Joseph Haydn wasn’t his compositional talent…it was his connection to the Esterhazy family and especially Ferdinand Esterhazy who was the actual traitor for whose crimes Alfred Dreyfus was sent to Devil’s Island. Zola’s “J’Accuse”was collegiate compulsory reading. That the man had written 14 masses; 5 operas; 22 arias; 125 symphonies; 30 concerti & 77 string quartets; 40 piano trios ; 66 wind & string pieces etc. obviously tweaked my curiosity. Quite an output for six decades! Socially, the man married the sister of his lover and lived unhappily ever after.

The bassoon soloist Eric Hall performing with the HPO

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