The Esprit Orchestra, our country's only full-sized orchestra devoted exclusively to new music, is a collaboration between Sunnyside Avenue couple Alex Pauk, its founding director, and classical composer Alexina Louie. On Feb. 6, Esprit Orchestra presents Breathless, a concert that features renowned Canadian composers, including Louie, one of Canada's most frequently performed classical composers and a two-time Juno award-winner of international renown.
"Esprit is really Alex's brainchild," said Louie, sitting at her kitchen table with her husband. "It's the only orchestra of its kind to play new music from living composers."
Getting feedback from the composers is one of Pauk's greatest motivators. Performing their music the way they intended it to sound is extremely satisfying, he said. Breathless boasts music by two composers, recipients of the Grawemeyer Award in composition, the biggest prize in contemporary music, which comes with not only the prestige, but also $200,000, Unsuk Chin's Double Concerto for piano, percussion and ensemble and Thomas Ades's Three Studies from Couperin.
"The opportunity to have them on the same stage is quite amazing," Pauk said.
Speed, texture, colour and virtuosity are the musical elements that Breathless is comprised of so it's fitting that Louie's piece, 'Infinite Sky with Birds' was inspired by the sight of a large flock of birds taking flight. Much of Louie's music is inspired by nature.
"It's full of colour, sensuality and texture," Pauk said. "It's vivid, vibrant."
The self-described black sheep of her family, Louie has been playing the piano since she was seven years old. The Vancouver native credits "a couple of incredible" teachers, who have led her on this path. When she was little, she recalled, she was insecure.
"I couldn't express myself in public," she said. "I created my own world at the piano. I learned to express myself, to develop my voice through music."
When Louie suffered an injury to her hand and couldn't play, she said she was forced to shift her means of expression into composing.
"When you come to a roadblock, you find another way," she said.
Not only has Louie written works for the concert halls, she has also written major works for theatre, including opera and ballet. The Toronto Symphony Orchestra is set to premiere her concerto for string quartet and orchestra to be performed by the Tokyo String Quartet and the TSO in the next few weeks. She and her husband also collaborate on film scores. They've recently been working on a film entitled Inside Hannah's Suitcase based on the book by Karen Levine. The Esprit Orchestra can take credit for recording the orchestra soundtrack for the Paul Gross film Paschendale.
Pauk got his start playing accordion as a kid and moving on to different bands throughout high school and university. It was at Humberside Collegiate that his music teacher Frank Styles first put a conductor's baton in his hand in Grade 9. There was no turning back. In addition to the Esprit Orchestra, Pauk has conducted the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony, CBC Vancouver Radio Orchestra, Hamilton Philharmonic and the Winnipeg Symphony as well as smaller orchestras and ensembles throughout Canada. With the Esprit Orchestra, he has recorded five CDs of Canadian music for CBC Records,
The Esprit Orchestra performs at its home theatre, the Jane Mallett Theatre, St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, Feb. 6. For details, call the box office at 416-366-7723.