Dreams and Fantasies for Clarinet and Piano

Don Ross and Spencer Kryzanowski play pieces for clarinet and piano from all over, tied together by feelings of dreams and mysticism.

Classics include a masterpiece by Saint-Saens, a lush piano solo by Schumann, an epic bit of romantic flash by Barat, and the Art Nouveau tendrils of Florent Schmitt.

When COVID cancelled the Music of the Mountain Festival, the organizers asked all of the bands to record one another’s pieces. Don’s Balkan band, the Gadjo Collective, drew Prince George rocker Britt AM. This is Don’s manic arrangement of her Enough. New York jazz pianist Isacoff evokes the spirits of John Coltrane and Miles Davis in Jazz Time. The etudes that Don wrote for his intermediate students, Collard Greens, The Long Dusty, Doot’n Doodily Bonk Bonk and Later... each create a distinct mood while working a particular technique.

Program:

DON ROSS 
Clarinetist Don Ross plays some 150 shows a year, split between classical, jazz, world and experimental music. He plays regularly with such groups as Saint Crispin’s Chamber Ensemble, the Gadjo Collective gypsy band, New Music Edmonton, the Alberta Symphony, Crescendo Orchestra, Opera Nuova, The Billie Zizi Swing Band, Mile Zero Dance and many others. He teaches clarinet at the University of Alberta, MacEwan, Concordia, King’s and MusiCamp Alberta. His work as a composer and project leader have won multiple grants from the Canada Council, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts and the Edmonton Arts Council. He studied at the Universities of Alberta and Toronto and at Northwestern in Chicago.

Spencer Kryzanowski is a collaborative pianist, répétiteur, and teacher based in Edmonton. In addition to collaborating with choirs across Alberta, Spencer’s recent répétiteur and music direction credits include, Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin (Opera Nuova, 2017), Michael Cavanaugh’s Y2K Black Death Oratorio (Pop Goes the Opera, 2018), Puccini’s Suor Angelica (Pop Goes the Opera, 2019), David Rush’s Rebecca and the Bad Wizard: A Children’s Opera (Il Duo Productions, 2019), Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi (Pop Goes the Opera, 2019), and Puccini’s La bohème (Mercury Opera, 2019 & 2020). Currently, Spencer is a mentor with Opera InReach, the resident répétiteur for Pop Goes the Opera, a répétiteur with Mercury Opera, and a staff pianist at the University of Alberta. Spencer also runs a thriving piano and theory studio from his home in Edmonton. Starting in September 2021, Spencer looks forward to pursuing an Artistic Diploma (Operatic Repetiteur) at the University of Toronto.