PHOTOS, PRESS QUOTES/REVIEWS, REPERTOIRE
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PRESS QUOTES/REVIEWS
"Mercer's playing is absorbing and sensitive, full of insightful phrasing, reflective subtlety, and, when suggested, joie de vivre...The cellist stretches notes judiciously and breathes with the arc of the phrases...what's most significant is the organic and urgent artistry Mercer brings to the music. As she savours the transcendent unfolding of material, Mercer draws the listener deeply into Bach's singular galaxy."
- Donald Rosenberg, Gramophone review of Bach Suites
"Mercer reminds us that the interpreter can be as much of a creator, not just a re-creator, as the composer. She also reminds us that, with enough preparation, a fine artist can make the most challenging material come across with the ease of natural breathing. Mercer achieves this effortless quality. Much of the music sounds like it could have been recorded between conversations over steaming cups of green tea. Nothing on Mercer’s album sounds like work. The timeless music, emerges relaxed and deeply connected with the Baroque dance styles that informed Bach’s writing. At first listen, Mercer’s style is almost wanton in its desire to dance and sing, but by the time the two hours are up, she has us in her arms, dancing along. Recorded in 2011, while she had possession of a prized Stradivarius cello from the Canada Council’s Musical Instrument Bank, this album is worth savouring over and over again."
- John Terauds, Musical Toronto review of Bach Suites
"Mercer strikes me as a very pure type of chamber musician. Her reading of many passages was quite personal, but did not assert the player's will as a distinct force working upon the music. She gave herself in perfect service to whatever she made of the score, and never once resorted to a grand gesture to get our attention.”
- Robert Everett-Green, The Globe and Mail
“Two talented and critically loved soloists teamed up for a Music Toronto recital at Jane Mallett Theatre on Thursday night. Both are technically flawless, artistically sensitive musicians in their own right. Both are avid collaborators in chamber ensembles...Mercer and [Minsoo] Sohn were perfectly matched in timing and a deeply elegant sense of musical phrasing...Mercer sounded silky in quiet passages...Mercer was there, carving out her notes with as much attention as the pianist...there were moments of pure magic...”
- John Terauds, The Toronto Star
“Rachel Mercer...brings a clear and always intelligent focus to the depths.”
Peter Grahame Woolf – Musical Pointers
“Rachel and Akemi's performance was amazing. My workmates and I had a great time. Rachel was really kind and gave us a special shout out! I loved the idea of seeing the performance in a small space, it felt like we could reach out and touch the music. People on the sidewalk would also stop to hear Rachel and Akemi perform. They were simply amazing. Thank you so much for introducing me to Rachel.”
- new audience member after a Mercer Duo performance at Dave's Gourmet Pizza
“I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed your concert on Thursday. My daughter Emma, who just turned 12 yesterday, demanded that I show her the music for the Vocalise. It was the most beautiful performance that I can remember, and she was totally inspired.”
- Mary Fisher – fellow cellist
REPERTOIRE
*Canadian works
Concerti
Beethoven Triple Concerto
Boccherini Concerto in B flat
Brahms Double Concerto
Dvorak Concerto in b minor
Elgar Concerto
*Stewart Goodyear Cello Concerto
(co-commission and world premiere by Rachel & The National Arts Centre Orchestra)
Haydn Concerti in D major and C major
*Kevin Lau "Foundation" for cello and orchestra
(commissioned and premiered by Rachel)
Saint-Saens Concerto no 1 in a minor
Schumann Concerto
Shostakovich Concerto no 1
Tchaikovksy Rococo Variations
Vivaldi Concerti: RV 404 in D major
Recital suggestions 2020-2022
SOLO BLOCH
The Three Solo Suites by Ernest Bloch
Suite Hebraique by Srul Irving Glick *
MUSIC OF GABRIEL FAURE
Sonatas 1 & 2
Short pieces including Papillon, Après un rêve & Sicilienne
THE BEETHOVEN SONATAS
The complete sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven in 2 one-hour concerts
BERICK-MERCER DUO
(violin & cello)
Duo concertante by Adrien-François Servais
Rebekah Cummings Our Strength, Our Song or Jocelyn Morlock Serpentine Paths *
Zoltan Kodaly Duo
Svante Henryson Carmen Bullfighter
THE BRAHMS SONATAS
Sonatas in e minor, D major and F major
THE CHARMING CELLO
Short selections for cello and piano, including Kreisler, Tchaikovsky, Bloch, Liszt, Elgar, Saint-Saens, Faure, Kapustin, Dvorak, Rachmaninov and Piazzolla