Koerner Hall’s 2022.23 Concert Season Announced

The Royal Conservatory of Music’s 2022.23 season has been revealed. Today, Dr. Peter Simon, Michael and Sonja Koerner President & CEO of The Royal Conservatory, Mervon Mehta, Executive Director of Performing Arts, and James Anagnoson, Dean of The Glenn Gould School, announced details of the events that will make up the 14th concert season since the opening of Koerner Hall in 2009.

“We are very pleased to welcome audiences back to Koerner Hall for a remarkable new season of richly diverse concert performances," said Dr. Simon. “The Royal Conservatory is immensely grateful for the generosity of our donors and patrons who support and share our passion for bringing internationally acclaimed artists to Toronto, for developing future generations of musicians, and who understand the unique power that music has to connect people at the most profound level.”

Mr. Mehta said: “After two long years of stopping, starting, and postponing, Koerner Hall will once again be brimming with great artists across multiple genres. Our season will feature artists from 22 countries, six provinces, and six First Nations; and more than 30 new works will receive premieres. Some of the biggest names on the international music scene will sit comfortably beside emerging Canadian artists who are making their mark. We invite you to join us in the belief that music can bond our fractured society by bringing people together in a shared experience.”

Over the past two years, concerts have been livestreamed on our RoyalConservatory.Live platform. Koerner Hall will continue streaming select performances, ensuring that Canadians as well as international audiences have access to the finest ‘live’ concert experience.

Highlights of this season’s uniquely curated concerts include:

• A special Truth & Reconciliation event featuring Tomson Highway, singer Rebecca Cuddy, Sarain Fox, and more – to honour the lives and knowledge of Indigenous people.
• Music Mix concerts feature the one and only Bruce Hornsby and concerts by Punch Brothers, Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, The Shuffle Demons, and more.
• The Quiet Please, There’s a Lady on Stage concert series features a double-bill with Dominique Fils-Aimé and Allison Russell, and concerts with Jazzmeia Horn, Lisa Fischer with Ranky Tanky, Laila Biali and Friends, and Cécile McLorin Salvant.
• Classical concerts include Power Corporation Vocal Concerts, a piano concerts series, chamber ensembles, and international string stars in recital, as well as performances by world-renowned faculty and talented Glenn Gould School students. Some highlights include performances by Emerson String Quartet, Takács Quartet with Jeremy Denk, Fazil Say, Daniil Trifonov, Alisa Weilerstein, and many more. 
• A Jazz series celebrating great jazz composers in performances by Kellylee Evans and Jackie Richardson, Ravi Coltrane, Joshua Redman 3x3, Hilario Durán and David Virelles, Mingus Dynasty Band and MONK’estra Quartet.
• A Global Music concert series featuring Ukraine’s DakhaBrakha, legendary South African ensemble Soweto Gospel Choir, singer Somi, Armenian pianist Tigran Hamasyan joined by Syrian-Canadian clarinetist Majd Sekkar, and more to discover.
• Two season gala concerts: Jan Lisiecki with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in October, and “Rhapsody and the Blues” with Jens Lindemann, Jon Kimura Parker, and the Yamaha All Star Big Band in February.
• 21C Music Festival  in December and January with a spotlight on Kronos Quartet and fascinating performances by Jean-Michel Blais, Fred Hersch and Andrew McAnsh, Ian Cusson and Stewart Goodyear, tenor Karim Sulayman, Esprit Orchestra, Susan Hoeppner, The GGS New Music Ensemble, and more.