Performers with strong Ottawa connections won JUNO awards Saturday evening.
The Gryphon Trio of Roman Borys (cello) Jamie Parker (piano) and Annalee Patipatanakoon picked up a statue in the classical album of the year: solo or chamber category for their CD, The End of Flowers: Works by Clarke & Ravel. In doing so they beat out another Ottawa performer Angela Hewitt who was up for her recording of Scarlatti Sonatas. Borys is the artistic director of Ottawa Chamberfest and Parker and Patipatanakoon are artistic advisors with the festival which will announce its 2019 event lineup midnight Monday.
It’s been a big 25th anniversary year for the Gryphons who have recently been appointed to lead the Banff Centre‘s summer classical music program starting in 2020.
Montreal composer Ana Sokolovic picked up a JUNO for the work Golden Slumbers Kiss Your Eyes which was a commission by the National Arts Centre Orchestra.
Several Ottawa performers were nominated for JUNOs this year including: The National Arts Centre Orchestra which has been on a recording binge under music director Alexander Shelley. One of those releases New Worlds/Nouveaux Mondes was beaten out by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s recording of music by Vaughan Williams. Meanwhile the soprano Barbara Hannigan took home a JUNO over Ottawa’s glamorous sopranos Joyce El-Khouri, nominated for her recording Echo, and Miriam Khalil for her recording Ayre: Live.
Other Ottawa area nominees included singer-songwriter David Francey for his album The Broken Heart of Everything. And the former Ottawa-based rapper Belly.
