Edward Cansino

Edward Cansino, a composer and conductor who led the eclectic vocal and instrumental ensemble I Cantori, has died. He was 63. Cansino died of cancer Sunday at his home in Altadena, said his wife, Gina Di Massa Cansino. I Cantori (Italian for "the singers") provided a showcase for early music, which generally includes compositions covering the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods until 1750, but didn't stop there. "Our philosophy was to explore the relationship between new music and old music," said Jeannine Wagner, director of the Roger Wagner Ensemble who founded I Cantori with Cansino in 1975.

Edward Cansino, a composer and conductor who led the eclectic vocal and instrumental ensemble I Cantori, has died. He was 63. Cansino died of cancer Sunday at his home in Altadena, said his wife, Gina Di Massa Cansino. I Cantori (Italian for "the singers") provided a showcase for early music, which generally includes compositions covering the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods until 1750, but didn't stop there. "Our philosophy was to explore the relationship between new music and old music," said Jeannine Wagner, director of the Roger Wagner Ensemble who founded I Cantori with Cansino in 1975.

About the concert of Renaissance vocal music given by I Cantori at Pasadena Presbyterian Church, this listener had but one complaint: that such programs are such a rarity. I Cantori itself is somewhat of a rarity--a fully professional vocal ensemble. And though it does perform music from all periods, much of its work is presenting "early" music--something we need to hear more often. Sacred works occupied the first part of the evening Wednesday. Thoughtful probing of textual meaning and artful phrasing of musical lines brought telling impact to the group's readings of works by Josquin, Lassus and others.

Christmas is a great time for choral music, but I Cantori's debut CD "A Choir of Angels" (Civic Classics) is not exactly a Christmas album--despite its title. Instead, it's a disc that attempts to answer the question: What is the classical music of L.A.? And it shows how this region, broadly speaking, has been a crossroads of culture since, oh, 1610 or so. Formed in 1975, I Cantori (Latin for "the singers") is a veteran performing group whose repertory is eclectic, to say the least.

What is the most effective way to attract and provoke the next generation of classical-music audiences? Ask Edward Cansino, founder and leader of I Cantori, the splendid vocal octet that began its new season Friday night in Thorne Hall at Occidental College. Challenge the young, Cansino would probably say; entertain them with first-rate music, then maintain visual communication to balance aural input by offering attractive sights as well as stylish sounds.

A descendant of flamenco dancers, Edward Cansino has a strong personal interest in promoting Baroque Mexican and Latin American music. For the past 10 years, he and his vocal group I Cantori have struggled to make this long-neglected music better known, while also performing new and modern repertory. "It's been a long haul, but now we've found a niche," Cansino said in a recent interview. I Cantori will present a sampling of this repertory at a candlelight Christmas concert at 7:30 p.m.

Christmas is a great time for choral music, but I Cantori's debut CD "A Choir of Angels" (Civic Classics) is not exactly a Christmas album--despite its title. Instead, it's a disc that attempts to answer the question: What is the classical music of L.A.? And it shows how this region, broadly speaking, has been a crossroads of culture since, oh, 1610 or so. Formed in 1975, I Cantori (Latin for "the singers") is a veteran performing group whose repertory is eclectic, to say the least.

Well known for its adventuresome repertory and catholicity of taste, I Cantori took on Hildegard of Bingen's 12th-Century morality play, "Ordo Virtutum," Sunday afternoon at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena. Conjecture remains a significant part of any staging of Hildegard's visionary drama and director Edward Cansino came up with some satisfactory and engaging answers for this one.

Fine in ensemble but often characterless in individual voices, Edward Cansino's I Cantori offered a curious program that emphasized its weaknesses Saturday at Thorne Hall, Occidental College. Partial scenes from Strauss' "Die Fledermaus" and Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro" brought members of the group who normally blend in with poise and focus into undistinguished prominence. Perhaps the oddest casting choice was countertenor James Truher as a particularly vocally heftless Count Orlofsky.

Many concerts entertain; others uplift; still others enlighten. Particularly gratifying is a program that does all three, as was the case Saturday evening at First Congregational Church in Pasadena, where the Early Music Ensemble of Los Angeles performed music from colonial Latin America. Gaspar Fernandes and Tomas Pascual do not even appear in Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, but their works, as well as the compositions of 12 others represented, show remarkable skills.

What is the most effective way to attract and provoke the next generation of classical-music audiences? Ask Edward Cansino, founder and leader of I Cantori, the splendid vocal octet that began its new season Friday night in Thorne Hall at Occidental College. Challenge the young, Cansino would probably say; entertain them with first-rate music, then maintain visual communication to balance aural input by offering attractive sights as well as stylish sounds.

About the concert of Renaissance vocal music given by I Cantori at Pasadena Presbyterian Church, this listener had but one complaint: that such programs are such a rarity. I Cantori itself is somewhat of a rarity--a fully professional vocal ensemble. And though it does perform music from all periods, much of its work is presenting "early" music--something we need to hear more often. Sacred works occupied the first part of the evening Wednesday. Thoughtful probing of textual meaning and artful phrasing of musical lines brought telling impact to the group's readings of works by Josquin, Lassus and others.

A descendant of flamenco dancers, Edward Cansino has a strong personal interest in promoting Baroque Mexican and Latin American music. For the past 10 years, he and his vocal group I Cantori have struggled to make this long-neglected music better known, while also performing new and modern repertory. "It's been a long haul, but now we've found a niche," Cansino said in a recent interview. I Cantori will present a sampling of this repertory at a candlelight Christmas concert at 7:30 p.m.

Bernardo Feldman, Enrique Gonzalez Medina, A. Jo Duell-Gonzalez, Edward Cansino, Hector Armienta, Raymond Torres Santos, Miguel del Aguila and Dell Hake wrote the music for the second of a three-part showcase series being presented by the Pacific Composers Forum this spring and summer. This installment took place at the delightful and sometimes forgotten Plaza de la Raza in Lincoln Park, across the lake from County-USC Medical Center, on Saturday night.