Sinfonia Toronto

Sinfonia Toronto is one of Canada’s finest chamber orchestras.  The orchestra performs its Masterpiece Series in three of Toronto’s finest concert halls, CBC’s Glenn Gould Studio, where many of its concerts have been recorded for national broadcast, the Meridian Arts Centre, and the Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre.  The orchestra has recorded on its own label and for Marquis Classics EMI, Cambria and Analekta.

Sinfonia Toronto consists of virtuoso strings who perform standing, in the tradition of great European chamber orchestras, blending each musician’s soloistic energy and passion into a brilliant ensemble style under Nurhan Arman’s inspired direction.  The orchestra’s repertoire includes all the major compositions for string orchestra from the Baroque through the Classical, Romantic and contemporary periods.  Sinfonia Toronto has premiered many new works, and has been recognized by the Canada Council for the Arts for its commitment to performing music by Canadian composers.

Sinfonia Toronto’s recordings are heard frequently on radio broadcasts. Their world premiere of the rediscovered Bach aria ‘Alles Mit Gott’ was recorded by Analekta and released on iTunes.  The title work of the orchestra’s Marquis Classics CD of music by Canadian composer John Burge, Flanders Fields Reflections, won a national JUNO Award for Best Recording of a New Classical Work. The Hollywood Flute CD, with flutist Louise DiTullio and Premieres, featuring violinist Conrad Chow, were recorded by Cambria and are distributed by Naxos.

The orchestra tours regularly throughout its home province of Ontario, playing on series in Brockville, Kingston, Lindsay, Midland, Port Hope, Sarnia, and annually in Barrie and Sault Ste-Marie.

Sinfonia Toronto has enjoyed great success in international tours. Its 2008 tour in Germany drew headlines like ‘’Sinfonia Toronto Inspires,’’ and ‘’Sinfonia Toronto Thrilled the Audience.”  Its 2010 tour of Spain was greeted with calls for encores at every concert, including a thrilling four encores demanded by the audience at the renowned hall l’Auditori in Barcelona.  The orchestra performed in Florida in 2015, and in April 2018 for a two-week tour in Peru, Argentina and Uruguay.  Every concert in South America received standing ovations, demands for multiple encores, superb reviews and requests to return. In the fall of 2019 Sinfonia Toronto toured throughout China playing many concerts and holding masterclasses.

The Musical Tribune in Buenos Aires hailed Sinfonia Toronto’s performances of a Mozart Divertimento and the famous Dvorak Serenade in the great hall of the Centro Cultural Kirchner as “definitive performances” and went on to say, “Here we were able to appreciate not only the high technical quality of the instrumentalists but also the unity of phrasing the director has achieved and his musicality.”

Sinfonia Toronto’s performances have been acclaimed by critics at home as well.  The Toronto Star noted “a remarkable range of colour,” “ample eloquence” and “gripping authority,” and praised Grieg’s Holberg Suite and the Dvorak Serenade, “both of which Arman led in an affectionate, unhurried manner, with an appreciation of their singing qualities.”  The Barrie Advance headlined “A Treasured Experience” and described a performance with “tender longing” and “gusto.”

Sinfonia Toronto has collaborated with outstanding soloists of national and international reputation. Among guest artists who have shared the stage with Maestro Arman and the orchestra are pianists Andre Laplante, Janina Fialkowska, Richard Raymond, Jane Coop, Robert Silverman and Alexander Ghindin; violinists Lara St. John, Dmitri Berlinsky, Corey Cerovsek, Jasper Wood, Judy Kang and Haik Kazazyan; cellists Shauna Rolston, Stéphane Tétreault and Narek Hakhnazaryan; clarinetist Julian Milkis; sopranos Nathalie Paulin and Aline Kutan.