Last seen in the Okanagan when he performed Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in 2006, David Greenberg is returning to Vernon to perform with the Okanagan Symphony, Sunday.
Conducted by OSO musical director Rosemary Thomson, Greenberg and the symphony will serve up a toe-tapping mix of music: from Renaissance to modern times, Monteverdi to Vivaldi to Mozetich, from 16th century Venice to modern Maritime Canada.
“David will be joined by local violin phenoms Alicia Venables, Colleen Venables and Rebecca Ruthven in Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins in B minor, a fitting showcase for the wonderful talent we have in the valley,” said the symphony’s general manager Scott Wilson.
Renowned for both his inspiring interpretations and his Cape Breton and 18th century Scottish-style fiddling, Greenberg has also been praised as one of the best baroque violin soloists in Canada.
His unique musical duality will be highlighted in the concert program.
Greenberg describes the repertoire he’ll play as French dance music, tender airs, Scottish dance music, musical prayer, Italian dance music, postcards from the sky, English dance music, and a trip to the underworld.
“Although liveliness predominates, in Dances With David we journey through a wide variety of emotional predicaments, and feelings bubble over into body language,” he said.
Along with a performance with Armstrong’s Venables sisters, and Kelowna’s Ruthven, Greenberg plans to perform what he calls, “strange and wonderful composers you’ve never heard of from hundreds of years ago: Oswald, Rebel, Mackintosh, Merula, Gow. And perhaps a few you have heard of: Monteverdi, Purcell, Vivaldi.”
Originally from Maryland, Greenberg studied baroque violin at Indiana University’s Early Music Institute and moved to Canada in 1988 to join the Toronto-based baroque orchestra Tafelmusik.
He became a Canadian citizen in the 1990s and has lived in Halifax since 2000.
Greenberg has co-founded several music ensembles, including the Medieval Quintet, Puirt A Baroque, Ferintosh, Tempest Baroque Ensemble, and Vortex 3.
Currently, he performs mainly with Chris Norman, David McGuinness, and Red Priest.
He is also featured on dozens of recordings, including those with Seattle Baroque, Apollo’s Fire, Ensemble Caprice, Les Voix Humaines, La Nef, Toronto Consort, Symphony Nova Scotia, Doug MacPhee, Suzie LeBlanc, and Concerto Caledonia.
His latest release (2010) is entitled Let Me In This Ae Night, with Chris Norman.
Dances with David takes place Sunday at 7 p.m. in the Vernon Performing Arts Centre. Tickets are available at the Ticket seller box office, 549-7469.
