About
Beethoven’s 9th Symphony
Spend a morning with us at FirstOntario Concert Hall and watch the HPO in rehearsal. This is a fantastic opportunity to give your students a behind the scenes look at the inner workings of professional orchestral life.
Enter through our stage door, and get a glimpse of backstage before joining us in a conference room to learn about what you are about to hear. Composer-in-Residence, Abigail Richardson-Schulte introduces students to the composers and pieces planned for the day’s rehearsal.
After learning about the pieces, schools are escorted to the first balcony where they have the opportunity to watch a rehearsal in progress from the best vantage point in the house. We have a microphone set up so that students hear the feedback the conductor is giving to the orchestra, and get an opportunity to see first-hand how that feedback then sounds in the orchestra.
Our rehearsal experiences are available on a first-come, first-served basis. We can accommodate 2 schools at a maximum of 50 students per school.
Educational Connections with this program:
Beethoven’s 9th symphony is an epic composition that is bound to impress students.
Planned for this morning’s rehearsal is the 4th movement. The 4th movement, of course, includes Ode to Joy. This melody is included in so many method books, teachers may want to have students play it prior to joining us, so that they are reminded of the familiar tune.
For this rehearsal, we plan to have our vocal soloists with us, but no choir. For schools with vocal music programs, this is an excellent opportunity to bring your vocal students along as well.
For those of you who have been joining us throughout the years, this will be Gemma New’s last concert with the HPO as resident music director, and might be a wonderful opportunity for schools to see her one last time.
Contact Music Education Manager Megan Benjafield at mbenjafield@hpo.org to reserve your rehearsal.
Please note: Our bookings are based on the planned rehearsal schedule. Students may not see all repertoire being rehearsed, and the repertoire is subject to change without notice.