Exultate choral milestone part of an embarassment of riches tonight for Toronto music lovers

It's great to live in a city where the classical music and opera worlds are alive, well and overflowing with possibilities. It's end-of-season concert time, and tonight's harvest is particularly succulent.

Once upon a time, Toronto was known as a choral city, and still has numerous excellent choirs. One of them, the Exultate Chamber Singers, marks a major milestone with the retirement of founding director, John Tuttle, after 30 years, tonight at the acoustically excellent and aesthetically pleasing Grace Church-on-the-Hill. (The picture I chose is from 2003.)

Tuttle is going out in deep sonic style, in a programme anchored in Rachmaninov's All-Night Vigil -- one of the masterpieces of the a cappella repertoire. The choir is also offering up the premiere of a new work by Toronto composer Derek Holman (who gets to celebrate his own musical anniversary with a concert celebrating his 80th birthday on June 1 -- details to come).

The tickets ($25-$40) for tonight's concert include admission to the choir's 30th anniversary/Tuttle retirement reception afterward. You can pick them up at the door, or call 416-971-9229

Here, to give a taste of the Rachmaninov, is Edmonton's fabulous Pro Coro Canada choir, under director Richard Sparks, performing at Edmonton's Winspear Centre. This is the "Great Doxology":