INSPIRATION • A BREATHTAKING SYMPHONIC JOURNEY • 70^thCONCERT SEASON

MARCH 2027 • SOLOISTS SERIES

Saturday, March 27 2027 • 7:30pm | PC Ho Theatre (Toronto/Scarborough)
Sunday, March 28 2027 • 3pm | Regent Theatre (Oshawa)

ROMANTIC TREASURES

An unforgettable performance of musical passion as the Ontario Philharmonic presents Romantic Treasures • Witness the breathtaking virtuosity of Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto, alongside Tchaikovsky’s monumental Fourth Symphony, for an evening of pure Late-Romantic fire. Adding to the brilliance of the evening, Canada's own rising international piano star and multiple global competition winner, Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, takes the stage to bring Rachmaninoff's towering masterpiece to life. From the legendary, bell-like opening chords—written as a triumphant victory over severe writer's block—to Tchaikovsky’s raw, explosive battle against the forces of destiny, this concert delivers the ultimate journey from deep shadow into radiant, ecstatic triumph. Do not miss the chance to experience these two beloved Russian masterpieces brought to life with thrilling, heart-stopping intensity by your Ontario Philharmonic and one of the world's most exciting young virtuosos.

Sergei RACHMANINOV

Piano Concerto No.2 in C Minor, op.18
• Soloist: Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, pianist

INTERMISSION

Piotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY

Symphony No.4 in F Minor Op. 36

MAR 27 • tickets mar 28 • TICKETS

JAEDEN IZIK-DZURKO • biography

“In a world of competition, hype and promotion, Jaeden Izik-Dzurko stands apart. He is a sincere artist and deserves our attention”. (Bachtrack)
Canadian pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko is the 2024 Gold Medal winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition and a current recipient of the prestigious Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship. That same year he took gold in Leeds, Jaeden made history as the first Canadian to receive the Grand Prize at the Concours Musical International de Montréal.

The 2025/26 season features high profile debut performances at London’s Wigmore Hall, San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall, the Leipzig Gewandhaus (Mendelssohn-Saal), and Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie. Jaeden will also make his debut as soloist with both the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, and makes returns to the Kamloops Symphony Orchestra, Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra. His repertoire this season includes works by Chopin, Brahms, Grieg, and Rachmaninoff, with collaborations alongside conductors Jessica Cottis, Gemma New and Alexander Shelley.

Jaeden has performed solo recitals at leading international venues, such as Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Salle Cortot in Paris, and the Auditorio Nacional de Música in Madrid. Other notable engagements include performances with the Vancouver Recital Society, Münchner Künstlerhaus, and Sociedad Filarmónica de Bilbao. His orchestral highlights include appearances with the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa, and the RTVE Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Domingo Hindoyan, John Storgårds, and Joseph Swensen.

Jaeden has earned top prizes at the Hilton Head, Maria Canals, and Paloma O’Shea Santander International Piano Competitions, where he was also awarded the Canon Audience Prize and Chamber Music Award.

Born in British Columbia with Hungarian-Ukrainian heritage, Jaeden studied under Dr. Corey Hamm at the University of British Columbia before pursuing further studies at the prestigious Juilliard School. He currently trains with Jacob Leuschner at the Hochschule für Musik Detmold and Benedetto Lupo at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.

MARCO PARISOTTO • biography

Born in Montreal of Italian lineage, Marco Parisotto is among Canada's foremost conductors on the international scene. A guest with orchestras around the globe, with unrelentingly high standards of performance, he continues to thrill audiences with his passionate music making. He is the winner of seven major international competitions and crowned these achievements at the1997 “Besançon International Competition for Conductors”, being awarded both the Grand Prix as well as the Prix du Public - a historical first at this elite event.

As Artistic Director of the Ontario Philharmonic (OP), a title he has held for over two decades, he has earned praise for the orchestra’s development and adventurous performances, and he is credited with building OP to the high standard it enjoys today. Under his leadership, Ontario Philharmonic has received superlative audience and media recognition.

“…a fantastic orchestra [Ontario Philharmonic] being led by a first-rate conductor” • Musical Toronto.

Marco Parisotto’s close association with orchestras is manifested through the strong relationships he has maintained with ensembles under his leadership. In 2013, he was unanimously elected as Music Director of the Jalisco Philharmonic, transforming this ensemble into one of Latin America’s most distinguished orchestras. Under his direction, the Jalisco Philharmonic garnered international attention with its virtuosic performances and participated in recordings, tours, international festivals and major events such as Operalia, The World Opera Competition. During his tenure, the orchestra undertook major concert tours eliciting great critical and public acclaim as they visited Germany, Austria, the USA and Mexico in leading concert halls of Berlin, Munich, Essen, Vienna, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Busan and Mexico City. As well, through Maestro Parisotto, the orchestra completed significant commercial recording projects, starting with the Philharmonic’s first release under the SONY Classical label.

“Amidst this exciting pillar of sound growing constantly, stands Marco Parisotto. Under his control, directing the orchestra with the greatest finesse, like an architect he gives precise instructions that develop into a majestic edifice of sound… He ingeniously manages the full spectrum of colors of his orchestra… We hope that this fantastic orchestra with this dynamic conductor will visit our German concert halls more frequently, bringing with them their style of spicy and fiery music-making.” • Klassik Begeistert, Raphael Eckardt

Following a special concert celebrating Canada-China relations in 1999 at the Grand Theatre in Shanghai, Marco Parisotto was appointed Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, a position he held until 2003.

Marco Parisotto has won critical and public praise for his interpretations of the great Austro-German repertoire - as R. Strauss, Bruckner, Wagner, and as an avid Mahlerian. He has also been acclaimed for his readings of Russian masters as Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, Stravinsky, and for his passionate performances in the operatic field. He has led productions including, among others, Pagliacci, Cavalleria Rusticana, Carmen, Otello, Madama Butterfly, Tosca, La Boheme, Aida, Rigoletto, Don Giovanni and Turandot.

“The star of the evening was without a doubt Marco Parisotto…inspired, passionate and in a virtual state of grace, impressing a supreme flow and agility to this extremely challenging opera [Puccini’s Turandot].” • Opera World.

Marco Parisotto has appeared in major concert halls throughout the world, conducting many leading orchestras including the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Philharmonia Orchestra of London, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano "La Verdi", Orchestra Haydn di Bolzano, New Jersey Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, Edmonton Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa, Orchestre symphonique de Québec, Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá, Busan Philharmonic, Osaka Philharmonic, Tokyo Symphony, Tokyo Philharmonic, Seoul Philharmonic, Louisiana Philharmonic, Erfurt Philharmonic, Belgrade Philharmonic, Georges Enescu Philharmonic, Janacek Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Opéra de Bordeaux, Opéra de Marseille, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg and Philharmonique de Liège. He was received with great enthusiasm at the international Festivals of Evian, Menton, Besançon, Festival Cervantino, Wieniawski International Festival (Poland), May Festival of Guadalajara, Festival of Opera in Jalisco, Skaneateles Festival New York, Busan Maru International Music Festival and Bolzano Festival; at the Montreal Opera, Shanghai Opera, Opera Giuseppe Verdi di Trieste, Serbian National Theatre; in Mexico with the Mexico City Philharmonic, Orquesta Filarmonica de la UNAM, Orquesta Sinfonica Sinaloa de las Artes, Orquesta Sinfonica de UANL, Camerata de Coahuila, Sinfonica Carlos Chavez, Camara de Bellas Artes, Orquesta de Baja California; in China with the Shanghai Symphony, China National Symphony and Gui Yang Symphony. He has also led to acclaim the Polish National Radio Symphony, Monte-Carlo Philharmonic, Orchestra Nazionale della RAI of Torino, Orquesta de Cordoba, Orchestre de Bayonne Côte-Basque. On several occasions, at Théâtre des Champs Élysées in Paris, he was a guest of Orchestre des Concerts Lamoureux.

Marco Parisotto is the winner of seven important international competitions. Aside from his noteworthy awards at the prestigious Besançon Competition, joining the ranks of maestros like Seiji Ozawa and Michel Plasson, other top prizes have included the Tokyo International Conductors' Competition in Japan, Constantin Silvestri Competition in Romania and the Antonio Pedrotti in Italy. He was moreover honored with all other special awards at these events.

He took his training both as a violinist and pianist and studied conducting with eminent maestros including Leonard Bernstein, Carlo Maria Giulini, Leonard Slatkin, Charles Brück, Yuri Temirkanov, Georg Tintner and, initially, with Raffi Armenian at the Conservatoire de Musique du Québec in Montreal.
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PROGRAM NOTES
by John Green‍

Sergei RACHMANINOFF (1873–1943)
Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18
Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18 is the definitive masterpiece of late-Romantic Russian music. Celebrated for its sweeping, melancholic melodies and intense emotional depth, the work represents a triumphant personal recovery for the composer. Following the disastrous 1897 premiere of his First Symphony, Rachmaninoff plunged into a severe three-year depression and writer's block. He found himself completely unable to compose. He sought help from Dr. Nikolai Dahl, a pioneer in hypnotherapy. Under a daily regimen of therapeutic suggestions ("You will begin to write your concerto... It will be of excellent quality"), Rachmaninoff’s confidence returned.

He wrote the piece in 1900–1901 and dedicated it to Dr. Dahl. The full premiere on October 14, 1901, with Rachmaninoff as the soloist, was an instant triumph that cemented his international fame.
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I. Moderato
The concerto begins without orchestral introduction. The solo piano strikes eight ominous, crescendoing chords. They mimic the heavy, distant tolling of Russian church bells. The piano then shifts into rolling waves of sound while the strings surge forward with a dark, folk-like melody. A second theme, played by the French horn, offers a yearning contrast before a march-like drive pushes the movement to a defiant close.
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II. Adagio sostenuto
The music shifts from dark C minor to a warm, pastoral E major. Muted strings establish a delicate texture before the flute and clarinet introduce a floating, aching nocturne melody. The soloist engages in an intimate chamber-music dialogue with the woodwinds. This serene atmosphere eventually accelerates into a passionate, glittering piano cadenza before returning to a quiet, peaceful rest.
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III. Allegro scherzando
A sharp, fast orchestral march breaks the dream. The piano enters with agitated, virtuosic flourishes. the oboe and violas soon unveil one of the most famous melodies in classical music—a languid, swooping theme that blooms with deep romance. After an intense tug-of-war between rhythm and romance, the concerto abandons its C minor sadness. It ends with a triumphant, blindingly bright surge into C major.

Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840–1893)
Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36
A Crisis of Fate: The creation of the Fourth Symphony coincided with the most turbulent year of Tchaikovsky’s life. In 1877, seeking to silence rumors about his homosexuality and achieve social stability, the composer entered into a disastrous marriage with Antonina Miliukova, a former student. The union lasted only a few weeks, driving Tchaikovsky to a nervous breakdown and an alleged suicide attempt.

He fled Russia for Europe, financed by a wealthy widow named Nadezhda von Meck. Von Meck became his patroness under one strict condition: they must never meet in person. This symphony is dedicated to her, affectionately inscribed as "To My Best Friend." Through their extensive letters, Tchaikovsky left behind a detailed, movement-by-movement psychological roadmap of the piece, revealing that its central theme is the inescapable grip of Fate.
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I. Andante sostenuto — Moderato con anima
The symphony opens with a terrifying, brassy fanfare. Tchaikovsky explicitly identified this as the "Fate" motif—"that fatal power which prevents our quest for happiness from reaching its goal." This dark, cyclical theme acts as the spine of the entire symphony. The main body of the movement shifts into an unstable waltz rhythm in F minor, mimicking a feeling of emotional vertigo, alternating between deep despair and fleeting, dreamlike illusions of happiness.

II. Andantino in modo di canzona
The second movement offers a melancholic reprieve. Introduced by a plaintive, rustic solo from the oboe, this movement captures the bittersweet nature of nostalgia. Tchaikovsky described it as the feeling of sitting alone at home at night, exhausted from work, while memories of youth, happy moments, and sad losses pass through the mind.

III. Scherzo: Pizzicato ostinato — Allegro
This movement is a masterclass in orchestral color and instrumental separation. For the first section, the string section lays down its bows entirely, playing exclusively pizzicato (plucked strings). This creates a playful, ticking texture. Suddenly, the woodwinds interrupt with a whimsical, folksy melody, followed by a brash march from the brass. The three distinct instrument families interact like passing street musicians in a hazy, waking dream.

IV. Finale: Allegro con fuoco
The finale erupts with an explosive, frenetic burst of raw orchestral energy. Tchaikovsky incorporates the famous Russian folk song "In the Field Stood a Birch Tree," driving the orchestra through a rustic, manic celebration. Just as the celebration reaches its peak, the terrifying "Fate" fanfare from the first movement crashes the party one final time. However, the interruption is brief. The music surges back into the festive frenzy, concluding with a triumphant, thundering coda. As Tchaikovsky wrote to Von Meck: "If you cannot find reason for joy in yourself, look at others. Rejoice in the happiness of others and you can still live."
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INSPIRATION • A BREATHTAKING SYMPHONIC JOURNEY • 70th CONCERT SEASON