Great music and grand mountains will be sure to enrapture audiences attending the Banff Festival Orchestra series at this year’s Banff Summer Arts Festival.

On July 25 and August 1, the Banff Festival Orchestra performs under the baton of Bramwell Tovey. A conductor of international stature, Bramwell Tovey is currently the music director of the Vancouver Symphony and past music director of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. During his distinguished career, he has conducted orchestras as diverse as the London Philharmonic, the Belgian National Orchestra, Israel Sinfonietta, and Australia’s Adelaide Symphony. The festival orchestra includes 56 musicians assembled from around the world.

On Friday, July 25, the Banff Festival Orchestra performs with pianist Pallavi Mahidhara, with a special guest appearance by the Daedalus Quartet, winners of the 2001 Banff International String Quartet Competition. On August 1, the Orchestra performs with soloists from the summer music program including Patrick Hanudel, clarinet, and Mark Gaydon, bassoon. And on Saturday, August 9 don’t miss the grand finale concert with performances by Heather Schmidt, Aleksandr Tsiboulski, Dan Carlson, and Amir Amiri.

The Summer Music series is presented by CBC and is just one of the fabulous features of this year’s Festival running from July 11 to August 10. Other offerings include Festival Dance July 16 to 19; the presentation of the new Canadian opera Filumena with music by John Estacio and libretto by John Murrell, OC, AOE, August 6, 8, and 10; and Cultural Journalism Conversations throughout July.

Detailed concert programs:

Banff Festival Orchestra Concert. Eric Harvie Theatre
Pianist Pallavi Mahidhra performs Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini with the Banff Festival Orchestra conducted by Bramwell Tovey. Also tonight, a guest appearance of the Daedalus Quartet, winners of the 2001 Banff International String Quartet Competition. Pre-show chat in the Eric Harvie Theatre Lobby at 7:15 pm.

Banff Festival Orchestra Concert. Rolston Recital Hall
The Banff Festival Orchestra performs with soloists from the summer music program. Tonight's program includes a performance of the Rondo from Strauss's Concertino with soloists Patrick Hanudel, clarinet, and Mark Gaydon, bassoon. Also on the program, orchestral works by Mozart and Hovhaness.

Banff Festival Orchestra Grand Concert. Eric Harvie Theatre
The grand finale final concert of the summer featuring the Banff Festival Orchestra conducted by Bramwell Tovey. The concert includes performances of Heather Schmidt's 2nd Piano Concerto performed by Heather Schmidt; Adagio from Joaquin Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez performed by Aleksandr Tsiboulski; Bizet's Carmen Fantasy performed by violinist Dan Carlson; John Estacio's orchestral work Solaris; and, a performance by santour player Amir Amiri. Pre-show chat in the Eric Harvie Theatre Lobby at 7:15 pm.

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