Fall Pops - Silver Screams

MESSAGE FROM THE MAYOR On behalf of the City of St. John’s, I am pleased to extend warm greetings to the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra as you launch your 2025/2026 season, Obsessed, Onstage, Onfire.

This year’s theme reflects the passion, dedication, and energy the NSO brings to our community year after year.

Through inspiring performances, meaningful education prog rammes, and steadfast community engagement, the NSO cont inues to ignite a love of music that enriches the cultural fabric of our city.

My sincere thanks go to the musicians, staff, volun teers, patrons, and sponsors who make each season possible. Your commitment ensures that the symphony not only thrives, but also continues to inspire audiences of all ages.

On behalf of Council, I congratulate the NSO on another exciting season and wish you every success as you share your extraordin ary talent with our community.

Warm regards,

Danny Breen Mayor of St. John’s

Message fro

m the Lieute

nant Govern or

As Honorary Patron of the Newfo undland Symphony Orchestra, it is my great pleasure to extend greetings and very best wishes for the 2025-2026 season.

The NSO is a wonderful orc hestra, which has served to cultivate and profile many of the exceptional artists we have in our province. The gift of the NS O’s rich orchestral music has become an integral part of the cul tural fabric of Newfoundland and Labrador. Again this year, a variety of performances are planned, sure to delight audiences and inspire us all.

This season is the first under the artistic leadership of Music Director Simon Rivard. Congratu lations on your new role, and welcome!

I hope you will enjoy the perfor mances the NSO has in store this year.

To everyone involved: the musici ans, staff, crew, and all who hav e a hand in producing this season, I thank you and wish you the best.

Joan Marie J. Aylward, O.N.L

dor

Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland and Labra

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We acknowledge the province of Newfoundland and Labrador as the traditional territory of diverse Indigenous groups, and we acknowledge with respect the diverse histories and cultures of the Beothuk, Mi’kmaq, Innu, and Inuit of this province. We strive for respectful relationships with all the peoples of this province as we search for collective healing and true reconciliation and honour this beautiful land together.

FALL POPS

SILVER SCREAMS

Friday, October 24, 2025 • St. John’s Arts & Culture Centre Presented by the Newfoundland Power and NTV

Martin MacDonald, conductor

PROGRAMME Modest Mussorgsky

Night on Bald Mountain

Johann Sebastian Bach

Toccata and Fugue in D minor

Hector Berlioz

Dies Irae from Symphonie Fantastique (The Shining)

Bernard Hermann

Psycho Suite (Psycho)

Kyle Dixon, Michael Stein

Stranger Things Theme (Stranger Things)

Danny Elfman

Wednesday Theme (Wednesday)

Mike Oldfield

Tubular Bells (The Exorcist)

John Williams

Devil’s Dance (The Witches of Eastwick) INTERMISSION

John Williams

Suite from Jaws (Jaws)

John Carpenter

Theme from Halloween (Halloween)

Camille Saint-Saëns

Danse Macabre (Horror of Dracula)

Ray Parker Jr.

Ghostbusters (Ghostbusters)

Danny Elfman

Beetlejuice Main Theme (Beetlejuice)

Danny Elfman

This is Halloween (The Nightmare Before Christmas)

Jerry Goldsmith

Gremlins Suite (Gremlins)

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CONDUCTOR

MARTIN MACDONA LD

Martin MacDonald is one of Canada’s most dynamic and outstanding conductors and has been awarded both the Heinz Unger Award and the Jean-Marie Beaudet Award for orchestral conducting. In January 2022, Martin was named Music Director of the Cathedral Bluffs Symphony Orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Most recently, Martin was named Artistic Partner of the Brott Music Festival based in Hamilton, Ontario where he conducted several programs throughout the 2024 summer and fall season and will continue for the 2025 season. Martin has guest conducted extensively across Canada having worked with the orchestras of Toronto, National Arts Centre, Vancouver, Victoria, Kamloops, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Kingston, KitchenerWaterloo, London, Niagara, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Windsor, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland. He has served as a Cover and Guest Conductor for the National Ballet of Canada for several productions, and has worked with the Minnesota Ballet, Atlantic Ballet, and Halifax Dance. Martin has recorded extensively for the CBC and for several commercial recordings. Most notably, Martin has served as Resident Conductor, Associate Conductor, and a regular guest conductor of Symphony Nova Scotia since 2008 with over 200 performances in a diverse range of programs and artists. Previously, Martin served as Associate Conductor of the National Academy Orchestra of Canada, and has participated in several international conducting workshops and competitions.

Recently, Martin has led several live orchestra to film productions and has produced orchestral and opera livestreams and recordings for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Against the Grain Theatre.

Martin has a Master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting from McGill University. At McGill, he studied conducting with Alexis Hauser, served as assistant conductor to the McGill Symphony Orchestra, and worked with both Opera McGill and the McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble as well as several other orchestral and chamber music activities. Martin has a Bachelor’s degree in Cello from Memorial University. Martin further studied conducting with Bernhard Gueller, Boris Brott, and Michael Jinbo; and in workshops with Kenneth Kiesler, Gustav Meier, Jorma Panula, and Johannes Schlaefli. Martin’s conducting activities have been generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts. As a cellist, Martin has performed extensively with many orchestras and chamber music ensembles throughout Canada.

Cape Breton born, Martin is the youngest of twelve children and has a diverse musical background with a strong Celtic music tradition including extensive touring and performing with members of his family throughout Europe and North America.

Martin resides in Toronto, Ontario with his wife, Kristen and their daughter, Frances.

AMS

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MUSICIANS

VIOLIN 1

Heather Kao (concertmaster) Dominic Greene (asst. concertmaster) Andy Kao Anastasia Kiseleva BASS Whit Fitzgerald Frank Fusari (principal) Claire Boudreau Denise Lear Lauren Smee Nick Howlett Jim Vivian VIOLIN 2 Nancy Case-Oates (principal) FLUTE Elena Vigna Sarah Comerford (principal) Ilyas Duissen Donna Spurvey Jacquelyn Redmond Gillian Morrissey Amanda Yee (OCP) Zhongli Hu OBOE/ Stewart Gillies

VIOLA Kate Read (principal) Ema Shiroma-Chao Chantelle Jubenville Rosaura Aguilar Emily Pynn Jonathan Stevenson

CELLO Nathan Cook (principal) Nulibeth Ortiz (asst. principal) Amy Collyer-Holmes Sandra Pope Laura Ivany Katherine Shipley

TRUMPET Katie Sullivan (principal) Jill Dawe Christian Berglander

TROMBONE

ENGLISH HORN

Darren McDonald (principal) Erin Sullivan

Annie Corrigan (principal) Kathy Conway

BASS TROMBONE

CLARINET

Andrew Cooper (principal)

Glenn Rice (principal) Brenda Gatherall

TUBA

BASSOON

PERCUSSION

Grant Etchegary (principal) Gabriel Theriault Chris Williams (contra)

Rob Power (principal) Etienne Gendron Jenna Grant (OCP) Amy Parsons (OCP) J Benson

Catherine Tansley (principal)

HORN Emily Dunsmore (principal) Libby Brennan Michelle Stevenson David Natsheh

PIANO Brian Way (principal)

HARP Sarah Veber (principal)

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UPCOMING CONCERTS

NOV. 21

DEC. 5-6

A STANDING

OVATION

FOR OUR SUPPORTERS

NSO Staff Simon Rivard, Music Director Martin MacDonald, Principal Pops Conductor Hugh Donnan, CEO Lynn Ann Pye, Patron Relations Jennifer Brennan, Education & Outreach Coordinator Maria Penney, Marketing & Development Manager Dominic Greene, Personnel Manager Steve Power, Production Manager/Video Production/Editing Jenny Griffioen, Librarian Kyle McDavid, Graphic Designer

NSO Board Tom Hickey (Chair) Jessica Chapman (Vice-Chair) Paul McDonald (Past Chair) Douglas Wright (Treasurer) Conor Stack (Corporate Secretary) Michelle Davis (Exec. Committee Member) Heather McKinnon Andrea Rose Duncan Fitzpatrick Glenn Colton

Alana Walsh-Giovannini Aimee Letto Robert Decker Jennifer Massey Jing Xia Karen Bulmer Chris Williams Amanda Mann Robert Thompson Charlie Byrne

P.O. Box 23125 St. John’s, NL A1B 4J9 709-722-4441 nso@nsomusic.ca

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