LJYO in the News

Febuary, 2010

Youth Orchestra presents Cello Suites gala at Capitol Theatre.

      A best-selling author and an award-winning cellist, playing a Stradivarius cello, team up for a gala evening on behalf of La Jeunesse Youth Orchestra, Thursday March 25 at the Capitol Theatre in Port Hope.
      Eric Siblin discusses his bestselling book The Cello Suites: J.S. Bach, Pablo Casals, and the Search for a Baroque Masterpiece. Rachel Mercer performs selections from the Suites on the 1696 ‘Bonjour’ Stradivarius cello. The evening opens a window into compositions that have been shrouded in mystery, nearly forgotten for centuries, and now rank among Bach’s most loved works.
     Eric Siblin’s career as a journalist includes writing TV documentary screenplays as well as a stint as pop music critic for the Montreal Gazette. His attendance at a Bach recital in 2000 sent him on a lengthy – and highly successful – quest for greater insight into the music that moved him so deeply. After years of research, tracing the footsteps of J.S. Bach and pioneering Spanish cellist Pablo Casals, Siblin’s book The Cello Suites was published to rave reviews on both sides of the Atlantic. “To vivify music in words is not easy,” said a review in The Economist. “But Mr. Siblin rises to the task.”
      Edmonton-born Rachel Mercer now calls Toronto home, but she spends most of her time touring. She is a member of the Aviv String Quartet, headquartered in Tel Aviv, and she founded the Mercer-Oh Trio with sister Akemi and pianist Gregory Oh. She is principal cello with the Via Salzburg Chamber Orchestra, and guest cello with the Canadian Opera Company for Georges Bizet’s Carmen. All these projects give her ample opportunity to showcase the rich sound of one of the world’s most valuable instruments – the ‘Bonjour’ Stradivarius, valued at $7.5 million – which is hers to play for three years due to her winning performance in a Canada Council competition.