The Oceanside Classical Concerts Society (OCCS) is celebrating the start of its upcoming 10th anniversary season with two special ticketed events.
The first will be held June 15, ahead of the start of the 2024-25 subscription series in October, according to a news release by the OCCS.
The first special ticketed concert features Jeremy Potts, an exciting young violinist from Vancouver Island who is a two-time Juno Award nominee and performs regularly with the Victoria Symphony.
He has been a member of the American Wild Ensemble and the Ton Beau String Quartet and has performed with such organizations as the National Ballet of Canada, Canadian Opera Company, and Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.
Potts and pianist Jany Lu, who studied piano performance in both Victoria and Toronto and is on the faculty of the Victoria Conservatory of Music, will perform sonatas by Brahms, Ravel and Faure.
Also performing on stage and by video will be OCCS scholarship winners: soprano Sabrina Blaase (2023 winner, currently studying at the University of Victoria), soprano Paige Kaps (2021 winner, currently at the University of Toronto), and the winner of the 2024 scholarship.
In a 2017 article on the OCCS in the Oasis Parksville Qualicum Beach Life Magazine the then president of the society stated, “I want this to last. One of the things that is very important to me is sustainability”.
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Now going into its 10th anniversary season, founding president and artistic director David Douglas got his wish. The society has gone from strength to strength since 2015.
Current president Pam May-Straka and artistic director Calvin Dyck, along with a strong board of eight dedicated volunteers decided to celebrate by adding two special (individually ticketed) concerts to the society’s standard four concert subscription series.
The 2024-25 subscription series, which begins in October, features the Bella Musica Trio (Calvin Dyck, violin; Carmen Hollett, piano; Alison Nystrom, soprano), virtuoso Spanish classical guitarist Jacob Cordover, the Couloir Duo (cellist Ariel Barnes and harpist Heidi Krutzen), and award winning young Canadian pianist and composer, Kevin Chen.
All concerts are held at Knox United Church in Parksville.
A limited number of subscriptions are available for purchase on the OCCS website (oceansideclassicalconcerts.ca) or in person at the McMillan Arts Centre box office (133 McMillan St.) in Parksville.
The cost is $130 per person for all four concerts. Subscription cards are transferable to enable those who may be unable to attend a concert to offer their seats to friends.
Tickets for the special ticketed event are $30 for the general public or $15 for students. They are available online via Eventbrite or at the MAC box office.
— NEWS Staff
