Rink Cycle the maestra’s parting gift to community
PREVIEW
What: Rink Cycle II: Victoria Symphony Celebrates Canada 150 When: Sunday, 2:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m.) Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre Tickets: $5-$16 through the Save-onFoods Memorial Centre box office (1925 Blanshard St.), by phone at 250-220-7777, or online at selectyourtickets.com
As she prepares for the biggest endeavour in the 75-year history of the Victoria Symphony, maestra Tania Miller is bursting with nervous excitement. And for good reason. Miller and the Victoria Symphony orchestra will join more than 1,200 students at Save-onFoods Memorial Centre on Sunday for Rink Cycle II. The showcase for local music students plays into a greater theme: Canada’s ongoing sesquicentennial celebrations. And the orchestra’s fearless leader couldn’t be happier with how the second instalment of the event she conceived is working out.
“I can guarantee you that this is the largest gathering of musicians that Victoria has ever seen or experienced,” she said. “It’s a Victoria record, for sure.”
String, choral, brass, band, wind and dance students from 14 schools in the Victoria and Sooke school districts will perform a variety of exclusively Canadian offerings, including works from First Nations, Francophone and Chinese-Canadian composers.
This instalment is a significant expansion from the first edition in 2007, both in size and scope. “This Rink Cycle has reached a greater diversity of students in our school districts, because we’ve got a lot of kids singing and dancing as well this weekend,” Miller said. “This gives schools an opportunity to bring all classrooms together.”
Elementary, middle and high school students will be in the performing area of the arena, while choir students will be in the bowl seats, Miller said. Teachers will conduct their respective students, with each teacher following Miller’s baton.
Without the opportunity for a full rehearsal, Miller is unsure of how it will all come together. She is certain, however, that the room will be buzzing.
“The chaos will be so fun, but so loud,” she said with a laugh. “I love the energy. It won’t be artistically perfect, but the energy and the sound and experience will imprint on the kids forever. It’s really diverse and celebratory of everyone in our community, but mostly cherishes the kids and their future. It’s a celebration of how music can bring them together to do something meaningful.”
She is thrilled to produce a community event with familyfriendly appeal. She has fond memories of attending the symphony as a child, and as an adult with a family of her own. “I envisioned the concert to be a little bit like the experience I had at the opening night of the [2010 Vancouver] Olympics. There’s a sense of uplifted celebration, in terms of the repertoire being about Canada and written by Canadians.”
Miller has announced she will leave the symphony for good later this month, bringing to a close her 14-year tenure. To that end, Rink Cycle is her parting gift to the community, particularly future generations.
“How important it is for young people to experience music firsthand is something that I want to underline. You can enjoy music your whole life, but if you have the opportunity to perform and learn music, it gives you the understanding to appreciate music for life in a very deep way.”