'Da Vinci Code' author to join young N.B. musicians on stage

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Students from Sistema New Brunswick will be sharing the stage with bestselling author Dan Brown in June for a series of concerts in the province.

Sistema announced on Monday that 120 Sistema students under the age of 14 will be playing Wild Symphony, a symphony composed by Brown, who is known for novels such as The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons.

In a video message, Brown said he had a love of music since he was a child, and he wrote Wild Symphony with 21 musical pieces to portray different animals. Those animals were featured in a children’s book he wrote that follows Maestro Mouse, who is preparing for a symphony with his animal friends.

Along with the introduction of each animal, including ostriches, kittens, kangaroos and beetles, are life lessons and hidden codes throughout the book. As millions of fans worldwide of The Da Vinci Code know, Brown is known for using codes in the plots of his adult novels.

Brown said he will be joining Sistema New Brunswick for several concert performances, and providing the narration of his book as part of the concert.

“It doesn’t matter how old you are, what language you speak, or where you’re from, music has enormous power to bring people together,” Brown said.

Ken MacLeod, outgoing president and CEO of Sistema New Brunswick and the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra, said he first saw Wild Symphony a couple of years ago on his social media page.

“I saw that and I thought, ‘that can’t be the same Dan Brown’,” he said.

Instantly, he wanted Sistema to be able to perform the symphony, which at the time was only being performed by professional orchestras like the Seattle Symphony and the Toronto Symphony.

He also wanted Brown to be part of the project. It took several months, but he finally got confirmation Brown would be participating in the concerts.

“When I got the answer, I did a happy dance,” he said, noting the New Brunswick concerts are the only ensemble Brown will be attending in person.

Alex Zhang, a Grade 7 student who attends Harry Miller Middle School in Rothesay and plays violin with Sistema, said he was aware of The Da Vinci Code, but did not know Brown was a composer. He never knew he would be playing in a concert alongside the famous author.

Alex Delgado, 11, who studies at École Le Sommet and plays cello with Sistema in Moncton, said this will be his biggest concert. His favourite piece to play in the Wild Symphony is “Maestro Mouse,” based on the book’s main character.

“It’s going to be really fun. I’m going to have all my friends and all my family come watch me play this amazing music,” he said.

Two daytime shows are taking place in Moncton on June 11 for Anglophone East School District and Francophone Sud School District students, with an evening show for the community. On June 12, a concert will take place at the Kira Amphitheatre at Kingsbrae Garden in St. Andrews. There will also be a livestream of the Moncton concert.

Roughly 5,000 students will have the ability to watch the live performances.

Bill Hogan, minister of Education and Early Childhood Development, announced the department was partnering with Brown and Sistema to create a curriculum package based on Wild Symphony that will be taught in New Brunswick schools. Copies of Brown’s book in both English and French were purchased for each school.

“What a wonderful opportunity for our young people both here and across the province,” said Hogan.

MacLeod said the goal of Wild Symphony was to generate interest in orchestral music that can be shared with parents and children, which suited the purpose of Sistema.

Sistema has nine orchestra locations around the province, and serves under resourced students in both rural and urban areas. It is the largest youth music program in Canada with over 1,100 children attending Sistema programs after school.

The aim is to grow Sistema over the next few years and generate more social change. The Wild Symphony concerts will serve as a fundraiser for the program.