The show goes on rain or shine!

I love summer in Ottawa. We’re lucky to live in a city that relishes life in the summer heat as much as we tolerate our harsh and rugged winters. We’ve got some great beaches and rivers and lakes to cool down in. There are patios aplenty for an after-work beverage. And of course there is one great festival after another come the beginning of June.

The National Arts Centre and the National Capital Commisson are pleased to add to the outdoor music-listening landscape with our free Orchestras in the Park series, running July 22-25 in LeBreton Flats Park (psst… that’s next week!)

We have four spectacular free concerts with themes from opera to Gershwin and fantastic guest artists like Nikki Yanofsky and Isabel Bayrakdarian.

Oh, and did I mention the concerts are FREE?

The concerts go ahead rain or shine (you know… that whole thing about how the show must go on?) so come prepared! Bring your family, bring the dogs, bring a picnic, bike down to the park—whatever you do, just get there and enjoy the music.

New this year: text your vote! In a history-making move for a major Canadian orchestra YOU the audience will get to choose between two pieces for the encore for the July 24^th concert by voting through text messaging on your cell phones. Participate in this great initiative by bringing your cell phone to the concert (OK folks, be sure to turn it OFF or on SILENT MODE during the performance) and voting using the instructions in the program booklet (standard text messaging rates may apply).

Continuing a great tradition from last year’s concerts we are running a Photo Contest during Orchestras in the Park this year. There are several different categories and you could win some great prizes from the NAC. Not to mention the honour of being in the company of folks like this and this. It’s easy to enter our contest—see the rules here and don’t forget to bring your camera to the park!