Blending music and dance has been commonplace for centuries. But it鈥檚 less common for Ballet 琉璃神社 and the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra, who joined forces to celebrate Canada鈥檚 150th birthday.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a collaboration on a scale I don鈥檛 think this community has seen, and we really hope through our partnership we create a model for organizations to move forward together,鈥� said Simone Orlando, artistic director and CEO of Ballet 琉璃神社.

The OSO brought the magic of live music celebrating Canadian music icons including R. Murray Shafer, Gordon Lightfoot, and Oscar Peterson, with a specially commissioned arrangement by Lance Anderson and guest performances by local jazz ensemble The Neville Bowman Trio and renowned blues artist Shakura S鈥橝ida.

鈥淚t鈥檚 almost like the corners of the nation are coming together and meeting and dispersing forward,鈥� said Orlando.

鈥淚t really has a sense of momentum.鈥�