Network: CBC Television Network
Broadcast Run: 1962
Broadcast Medium: Television
Aired Sunday afternoons at 3 PM from January 7 to May 13, 1962
This hour-long program featured classical music from different Canadian cities and offered viewers everything from symphonies to opera. The show was restricted to 37 weeks but featured some of the country’s finest musical talent. The CBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Mario Bernardi, was featured on six shows while another show featured Glenn Gould talking about Russian composers. Gould also did a show from Toronto, about J.S. Bach.
During the season, three opera’s were produced: Bluebeard’s Castle by Bela Bartok, Savitri by Gustav Holst and Riders to the Sea by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Composer Benjamin Britten hosted a lecture and recital from Vancouver. The CBC’s commitment to bringing classical music to television was comparable to that demonstrated by NBC with their Toscanini series. The CBC series, in the early days of television, presented orchestras in Winnipeg, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto specifically assembled for the show.
Written by John Corcelli – May, 2005