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THURSDAY, MAY 25, 2017 • WATERLOO CHRONICLE • 19 Taking his � nal bow Outgoing symphony artistic director promises something innovative with his grand � nale By Bob Vrbanac Chronicle Sta� Edwin Outwater, the outgoing artistic director of the K-W Symphony, laughed as he wondered about the bind in which he put himself as he prepared for his grand � nale with the orchestra this weekend. He could have played it safe, gone with some crowd favourites and revelled in the adulation that is his due after a brilliant decade of guiding the symphony in interesting and innovative ways. But that's not his style. Instead, he was push- ing his creative vision until the end to make his big send-o� at the Centre in the Square this week- end a memorable one. "We did 10 years of work to get this orchestra in a really good and happy position," said Outwa- ter. "Leaving at the top was always my hope, and I'm glad to be able to do it." � ere was just the little matter of getting on the same page with the orchestra and 200 mem- bers of the Grand Philharmonic Choir and the Amadeus Choir of Greater Toronto. "It's all starting to happen really fast and I only started rehearsals for my last concert last night with the chorus," said Outwater from a board- room overlooking King Street at the symphony's headquarters at the Conrad Centre for the per- forming arts. "I'm happy with how things are going and how I planned my graceful exit. I'm trying to enjoy it and I really am, actually, I'm hav- ing fun." But what else would one expect from an artist commissioned by the K-W Symphony board to bring the orchestra and its programming into the modern age, which he accomplished in bold new ways including the Intersections and Pops series, where the orchestra performed with everyone from rock bands to tap dancers to sitar players. He even explored the area of mindfulness and music, bringing in a yoga instructor in one memorable event to get audience members out of their seats and to feel the performance perco- late through their whole body. They even went a little pop culture, staging two concerts with local show choir K-W Glee, which seemed to be a thrill for the orchestra as much as the young artists who joined them. And who could forget the partnership he struck up with the Institute for Quantum Com- puting to explore music and physics, culminating in a 2012 performance that looked at music at the frontier of science? Outwater said it's a relation- ship that continues to this day. But it didn't come without some challenges. � e symphony was on the brink of bankruptcy when he � rst joined it a decade ago. But with support from the symphony board and a commitment to the innovation and exper- imentation he envisioned, in the last 10 years subscriptions to the symphony have gone up 40 per cent while donations have gone up by 60 per cent, leaving the organization on solid � nancial footing. "We've experienced tremendous growth," said Outwater. "In the arts there are always tre- mendous challenges to be sure, but I think we were able in the last 10 years to open the doors and make the orchestra appealing to a larger group of people and to make people realize how important it was to have an orchestra in town and what we can do." Outwater was feted for all he brought to the orchestra and the community during a special presentation at City of Kitchener council last week, including the � nancial success the orches- tra has seen. Mayor Berry Vrbanovic said Outwater has left a lasting legacy on the community which includes the release of the orchestra's � rst record- ing in more 10 years, entitled From Here On Out on the Analekta label, including music from Nico Muhly, Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood, and Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry. "And I think that type of recording speaks to the innovative and unusual programming that Edwin brought to the Kitchener Waterloo Sym- phony, where he developed Hack the Orchestra, the world's first orchestral hack-a-thon which took place at Centre in the Square in May of 2015," he said. Community engagement was a big part of that outreach, whether it was a music partnership the symphony struck with a school in challenged neighbourhoods like Cedarbrae in Waterloo, or performing to seniors in senior centres. "Sometimes we did unexpected things like being a huge part of arts education in this com- munity and going into places like Cedarbrae to work with people with Alzheimer's," said Out- water. "We had all sorts of tendrils in the com- munity. "When I got here I think that was less the case, and I think it was really important to change that. "We're an orchestra for everyone, and part of our job is to uphold this tradition of music that is over 1,000 years old that is being played live that inspires people. The other thing is that we are also an army of musicians and people who can inspire others, and we tried to � nd every possible way we could inspire all the di� erent parts of the community." Outwater said there are more people to reach and he's sure that creativity will continue with his successor as artistic director, Andrei Feher. He will be watching with interest, as he has been named the symphony's Music Director Laureate. "My name will still be on the letterhead," he said. "I'm sure that creativity will continue after I leave." So, will he miss anything as he departs to direct summer concerts with his hometown San Francisco Symphony, and a summer festival in northern California and Chicago? "I'll miss going across the street for a beer at Beertown," said Outwater. "I've got to know a lot of the local craft brewers, and I'll miss the food from the Vietnamese place down the street." � e � nal performance will also feature a new composition by Richard Reed Parry called Out- water Fanfare that will make its world première this Friday. "We've done things no orchestra has done before," said Outwater. ARTS FOCUS WATERLOO CHRONICLE Taking his � nal bow WATERLOO CHRONICLE Edwin Outwater is pushing to the end with his � nal show as musical director with the K-W Symphony, Grand Finale: Edwin's Farwell, set for May 26 and 27. LARRY WILLIAMSON PHOTO