The world premiere of David Jaeger’s Fantasia: Conjure You will take place on January 23rd, 2026 at the University of Toronto New Music Festival. Featuring the acclaimed Canadian cellist Noemie Raymond, with Sinfonia Toronto.
The performance will be held at, Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre, 427 Bloor St. West, Toronto.
Tickets are available from the Sinfonia Toronto website.
Notes from the composer:
Fantasia Conjure You has its origins at a Sinfonia Toronto concert. My friend and collaborator, the wonderful cellist Noémie Raymond and I were enjoying a performance two seasons ago, when the idea sprang up in both our minds: why not compose a work for Noémie’s cello and Sinfonia Toronto! She had already recorded her marvelous interpretation of my unaccompanied cello work, Constable’s Clouds. The next step in our creative relationship seemed to point to something larger.
In the meantime, I had begun setting the remarkably musical poetry of the Scottish author, David Cameron, for various voices and instruments. One of the melodies I had created was a setting of Cameron’s poem, Conjure You. This is a short poem whose message is the conjuring of the artist’s Muse. I decided this would be a perfect source for the work for Noémie, and set out to compose variations on the original melody. The result is the current Fantasia. The work is dedicated to Noémie Raymond and to Maestro Nurhan Arman. – David Jaeger