You wouldn’t think a solid grounding in calculus could make someone rich, but in the case of mathematician, James Stewart, his textbooks for high school and university students made him rich beyond imagining. Looking for something to do with his money, he purchased a property (194 Roxborough Drive) in the heart of Rosedale, leveled the house that was already there, and commissioned the Toronto firm Shim-Sutcliffe Architects to design what the director of MOMA has described as “one of the most important private houses built in North America in a long time.” The result is Integral House.
I visited Integral House on the weekend to attend a fundraiser. I sing in the Orpheus Choir of Toronto which sponsors the Sidgwick Scholars Program. The program encourages young vocalists by providing choral experience, solo opportunities, and money of course. To raise the money that funds the program, Orpheus hosts an annual event where the scholars perform, and the guests are so impressed that their hands are seized by an involuntary impulse to write cheques for large amounts.
Integral House is an ideal venue. James Stewart was a violinist and he stipulated that the house include a performance space. When you enter the house, immediately you find yourself in a lobby that overlooks a space that can seat 150. The acoustics are excellent. This may have something to do with the curved walls. It may also have something to do with the fact that there are few materials to absorb the sound. Mostly, it’s concrete, glass, and oak.
James Stewart died in December of 2014 and the estate has listed the property for sale with Sotheby’s. Depending on the inclinations of its new owner, the 2015 Sidgwick Salon could well be one of the last such events in this space.
