Ottawa's NAC Orchestra puts music archive online

Dozens of performances by the National Arts Centre Orchestra will be available on the internet for free, starting Canada Day.

The NACO has chosen more than 150 recordings from its own past for an online project it calls NACO Musicbox.

It gives listeners a chance to hear how the orchestra has evolved from its days under Mario Bernardi through to current conductor Pinchas Zukerman.

"We do have this large archive that is there. It's like a museum or art gallery that never opens its doors," said Douglas Sturdevant, who helped select the music to be made public.

Sturdevant, a former principal trumpet in the orchestra, is now a manager at the arts centre.

"The idea was to really represent the important people on the podium," he told CBC News, adding that the project will educate the public about some NACO milestones.

There are excerpts from the first NACO concert under Bernardi's baton on Oct. 7, 1969 as well as Franco Mannino conducting the NACO in a performance of Beethoven's Seventh Symphony.

Other significant performances include R. Murray Schafer's East, Madama Butterfly with Leona Mitchell and Richard Margison, Itzhak Perlman performing the Brahms Violin Concerto and Maureen Forrester performing Harry Somers's Five Songs for Dark Voice.

Podcast histories available

Two six-part podcasts, one in English and one in French, give a history of the orchestra.

Renowned writer-broadcaster Eric Friesen, a former CBC host, introduces the English programs, joined by special guests and music superstars Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, Yefim Bronfman, Angela Hewitt, Jon Kimura Parker and Anton Kuerti.

Performances by these artists are among the material to be heard online, with a player that allows users to search and create playlists with the musical selections.

Jean-Jacques Van Vlasselaer, musicologist and longtime music critic for Le Droit newspaper, hosts the French version.

The website also offers related photos, essays, listening tips and educational activities.

Maurizio Ortolani, head of new media at the NAC, says online media offers significant opportunities to build an audience for classical music.

"This is the label of the future; streaming audio is the label of the future. And so the NAC wants to make sure that an orchestra like the NAC Orchestra that belongs to all Canadians is accessible by all Canadians," Ortolani told CBC News.

Some orchestras in the U.S. offer performances you can pay to download.

The NAC is charting its own path by getting the rights to post the music for free, he said.

The archive of recordings is just a beginning. There are also plans for the NAC to put the orchestra's concerts online just hours after a performance up to 20 per season.