The Georgian Bay Symphony is the recipient of the 2017 Vida Peene Orchestra Award from the Ontario Arts Council (OAC). The $5,000 award was presented at their French Melody concert on Saturday, October 21 at 7:30 p.m., at the OSCVI Community Auditorium in Owen Sound.
The Georgian Bay Symphony was founded in 1972 by a group of dedicated musicians from Grey and Bruce Counties. Over the past 45 years, it has grown to include more than 50 amateur musicians, in addition to its core group of professionals.
Since 2015, the orchestra has been led by Musical Director and Conductor François Koh.
The orchestra presents five main concerts each season, performing for audiences of approximately 650 community members.
It has premiered work by several Canadian composers, and featured many high-profile Canadian musicians, such as Shauna Rolston and Alain Trudel, as guest artists.
The Georgian Bay Symphony supports emerging local musicians through annual bursaries, scholarships and awards, which are funded in part by the orchestra's subscribers.
"We are very impressed by the Georgian Bay Symphony's artistic excellence and strong community relationships [...]" stated the award jury that selected the orchestra for this award. The jury also praised their commitment to Canadian repertoire and to nurturing the next generation of classical musicians.
The Vida Peene Orchestra Award is given out biennially to assist Ontario orchestras. Vida Peene was a Hamilton-based arts patron whose remarkable legacy continues to support the arts in Ontario and Canada.
The award alternates between professional and semi-professional /community-based orchestras. Past recipients include the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra & Chamber Choir (2015), the North Bay Symphony Orchestra (2013) and the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra (2011).
The Ontario Arts Council administers the jury process for the Vida Peene Orchestra Award. This year's jury consisted of Romina Di Gasbarro (Vaughan), Nathanaël Larochette (Ottawa), Geoff McCausland (Sudbury) and Gerard Yun (Waterloo).
OAC Media Release
