We’re getting pretty excited to launch our inaugural HPO Gallery Series tonight at the Nathaniel Hughson Gallery. Hosted by our Composer-in-Residence Abigail Richardson-Schulte, principal flutist Leslie Newman and harpist Erica Goodman perform classical works that span the centuries. But before the music starts, we thought you might like to get our musicians for the evening.
Leslie Newman
Leslie Newman made her professional debut with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at the age of 18, performing Carl Nielsen’s Flute Concerto under the baton of Sir Andrew Davis. Following graduate studies at Yale University and Juilliard, Leslie settled in England where, in the space of a few short years, she presented solo BBC Radio broadcasts from almost every major centre including the world-famous Wigmore Hall, where her two solo recitals were broadcast live by the BBC’s Radio 3. She has performed with orchestras throughout Canada and in the U.S. and U.K., and has presented recitals in New York, Montreal, at the Phillips Collection in Washington D.C., the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series in Chicago, the National Museum in Bogotá and Taipei’s National Concert Hall as well as touring Canada.
A native of Alberta, Leslie won First Prize in the Canadian National Competitive Festival of Music at the age of 17. Upon completion of her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toronto, she was awarded a prestigious Canada Council Grant to study with Thomas Nyfenger at Yale University. While still a student at Yale, Leslie won Top Prize in the woodwind category of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s National Young Performers’ Competition. Following the completion of her Master’s degree at Yale University, where she was named Outstanding Performance Major, Leslie moved to New York where she continued her studies with Julius Baker at the renowned Juilliard School.
She currently lives in Toronto, where she is on the Flute Faculty at the University of Toronto and the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Glenn Gould School. Leslie holds a Juris Doctor (Law) degree from the University of Toronto.
Erica Goodman
A native of Toronto, Erica Goodman is acclaimed as one of the world’s outstanding solo harpists. Already a concert performer in her teens, Erica played under the baton of Igor Stravinsky when he recorded in Toronto. While at Curtis Institute of Music, she was a concerto soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. She has appeared as a soloist at numerous international festivals, as well as with leading orchestras and ensembles in Canada, the United States and Europe. Erica made her New York debut as a soloist with the National Arts Centre Orchestra during that orchestra’s American debut concert at the Lincoln Centre in 1972.
As Canada’s foremost studio harpist, Erica has played in hundreds of radio and TV productions, commercials and film scores. In addition Erica has performed on stage and national television with such stars as Percy Faith, Tony Bennett, Henry Mancini, Hagood Hardy and Gene DiNovi. Erika can be heard on several recordings for the BIS, Marquis, Opening Day and CBC labels with such artists as Robert Aitken, Paul Brodie, James Campbell, the Amadeus Ensemble and in solo concert. In 1995, Erica won a Juno for her solo album, “Erica Goodman Plays Canadian Harp Music.”