Christopher Weait

Weait, Christopher

Christopher (Robert Irving) Weait. Bassoonist, teacher, composer, b Surrey, England, 27 Mar 1939; B SC music education (State U of New York) 1961, MA (Columbia) 1966. He studied with Charles Robert Reinert at State U College and with William Polisi. He was co-principal bassoonist of the TS 1968-85 and performed as concerto soloist with the orchestra in 1973, 1976, and 1983. He has been a member of the Toronto Winds (Toronto Woodwind Quintet) and Toronto Baroque Trio. Weait taught 1972-4 at Queen's University and 1973-84 at the University of Toronto and was woodwind coach of the TS Youth Orchestra 1974-84. As vice-president 1975-6 of the International Double-Reed Society, he organized its fifth annual meeting in Toronto in 1976. Weait lectured 1977-84 on 'Getting a Job in a Symphony Orchestra' for the ACO. Weait, his wife Margaret Barstow (cello), and Monica Gaylord (piano) formed the Canzona Trio, which performed in England and Austria in 1978. He founded the Toronto Chamber Winds in 1979 and was its director until 1985. He was visiting professor of bassoon at the University of Rochester (1981) and the Indiana U School of Music (1986). He guest conducted 1980-4 for the National Music Camp of Canada, the University of Toronto Wind Symphony and Concert Band, the University of Victoria, the RCMT, and the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra. He began to teach bassoon at Ohio State U in 1984 and became the conductor of the Ohio State U Wind Ensemble in 1989. He began teaching also at Ohio Wesleyan U in 1988.

Weait has recorded two of his compositions, Variations for Solo Bassoon (1972 on Pyramid) and Lonely Island for Solo Bassoon (1974 on Melbourne). Variations (published by Harmuse in 1975) has also been recorded by Liu Qi, bassoon and the Central Philharmonic Orchestra, Beijing. Weait's arrangement of 'The Jolly Raftsmen' has been recorded by the York Winds (ERA 105) and his transcriptions of works by Bach, Dandrieu, and di Lasso have been recorded by the Phoenix Wind Quintet (Kaibala 20B01). Weait edited Schubert's Wind Octet in F major, D72 (McGinnis & Marx 1983), transcribed Four Marches from the American Revolution (McGinnis & Marx 1973), and arranged a Suite of Early American Tunes (Christlieb 1968). He has written articles for the TS News, The Canadian Encyclopedia, and EMC.

Writings

Bassoon Reed Making: A Basic Technique (New York 1970, 1980)

The New Symphony Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony: A Master List of Personnel, 1922-1972 (Toronto 1972)

- and Shea, John. 'Vibrato: an audio-video fluorographic investigation of a bassoonist,' Applied Radiology, vol 6, Jan-Feb 1977 (repr in CME, vol 20, Autumn 1978)

Student's Guide to the Bassoon (Agincourt 1979)

- and Reid, Wendy. Auditions are Just the Beginning: A Career Guide to Orchestras. (Toronto 1981)