8:00PM CONCERT
7:15PM PRE-CONCERT MUSICAL INSIGHTS WITH ALEXINA LOUIE & GUESTS

Dieter Ammann’s No templates, as its title suggests, embraces freedom and adapts wide-ranging idioms. Esprit brings Toronto its first performance of Uzbekistani composer Aziza Sadikova’s music with Angelo di fuoco (Angel of Fire), reflecting her hope that the Angel will fight for justice amid global unrest. Aziza’s Heat Efficiency, commissioned for a climate project, evokes mechanical sounds, pipes, and waves of heat. Ma’s work reveals fresh explorations of technique, orchestration, and emotional impact. Vivier’s iconic Orion, reflecting his “eternal homecoming”, conjures enigmatic experiences like “sitting still on an airplane… remaining in the same place yet going from Cairo to Kuala Lumpur.” His advice for understanding: “Go and find out for yourself!”

featuring

Alex Pauk Conductor
Nils Mönkemeyer Viola

PROGRAMME

Nicholas Ma
Memory of a Breath* (2026)

Claude Vivier
Orion (1979)

Aziza Sadikova
Heat Efficiency** (2023)

Dieter Ammann
No templates (Viola Concerto)*** (2024)
Nils Mönkemeyer Viola

Aziza Sadikova
Angelo di fuoco** (2022)

*World Premiere, commissioned by Esprit Orchestra
**Canadian Premiere 
***North American Premiere, co-commissioned by Esprit Orchestra, Basel Symphony Orchestra, Munich Chamber Orchestra, Lucerne Festival & Tongeyeong International Festival