What's on at the Independent?

Ultima Thule Ambient Music is Australia's foremost radio programme of ambient and atmospheric music; it has been broadcast weekly by 2MBS-FM since 1989, and also reaches a national and global audience counted in the many tens of thousands via satellite, streaming audio and podcast.

MCO will open their 2012 season with the overture Mozart famously wrote in one evening Don Giovanni, followed by Carl Maria von Weber Clarinet Concerto no 1, considered to be a gem in the clarinet repertoire. After an acclaimed debut as soloist with MCO performing one movement from the work in a gala concert in 2011, Andrew Doyle will leave his regular position at the back of the orchestra as MCO Principal Clarinet, to play the complete concerto in this wonderful first MCO concert for 2012.

Ludwig Beethoven remains as one of the best known composers in the modern world, no doubt made possible by his ground-breaking symphonies. Over the past 3 years MCO has performed symphonies 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8 and will continue their journey through the cycle in 2012, starting with Symphony no 2 in this first program. Written at a time where the composer knew that the terror of complete silence was closing upon him, this work has been referred to as 'a heroic lie,' for the mood of the symphony is one of both strength and joy.

MCO will open their 2012 season with the overture Mozart famously wrote in one evening Don Giovanni, followed by Carl Maria von Weber Clarinet Concerto no 1, considered to be a gem in the clarinet repertoire.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano
I once thought that I possessed creative talent, but I have given up this idea; a woman must not desire to compose – not one has been able to do it, and why should I expect to? It would be arrogance…
Clara Schumann

Fortunately Clara continued to compose after saying this, as have many women after her, and this program is a testament to their at times unrecognised talent.
Gayeneh Tchebodarian’s energetic and powerful Piano Trio features driving rhythms and exotic melodies inspired by the music of her native Armenia, while Elena Kats-Chernin’s Gypsy Ramble shows the influence of Eastern European folk music within her uniquely engaging, ebullient style.

We are also very excited to premiere a work another Australian, Ann Carr-Boyd, has written especially for us - Fantasy for Strelitzia, composed this year.
American composer Jennifer Higdon explores the idea of colour and mood in her 2003 Piano Trio, in which she shows the dramatic differences between ‘Pale Yellow’ and ‘Fiery Red’ in two opposing movements.
Finally we hear from Clara Schumann, whose distinctively Romantic Piano Trio in G minor is now being recognised and performed alongside those of her husband and male contemporaries.

World Renown UK Spirit Medium and author Tony Stockwell will be joining Sydney based medium Louise Hermann for an afternoon of Mediumship.
Tony is known for his television work including The Psychic Detectives, Street Psychic, Best of British Mediumship, Sixth Sense, Mystery of Body 115, Psychic Private Eyes and Legend Detectives. Tony has demonstrated across the UK, Europe and the US.

Both Tony and Louise endeavour to provide you with comfort that your loved ones do survive the process of physical death and continue to live on in spirit form.

Written by Frederick Knott

A successful play on Broadway in 1952, this masterful and gripping suspense thriller has many unexpected twists and turns, keeping the audience ever alert as they try to piece together all the clues. A lesson in how to plan the perfect murder, but as in real life things never turn out as planned.
A nostalgic treat and an entertaining cliffhanger, it became a film classic directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

MCO Concertmaster Dan Russell will show his Gypsy Flair in Pablo de Sarasate most popular work Zigeunerweisen to open this program which is sure to set toes-tapping, hearts yearning and pulses racing. Rounding out the first half of the program is Anton Dvoak Czech Suite. Less well-known than his Slavonic Dances, the five movements of the Czech Suite are equally filled with gorgeous melodies and felicitous orchestration.

Gabriel Faur haunting Pavane and Gustav Holst lively and warmhearted St Paul Suite set the mood in the 2nd half for Sergei Prokofiev's Classical Symphony, a piece of music that seems to ask the question: "What if Haydn had been alive and composing in the early twentieth century?" The result is a charming little piece written in what is essentially the Classical style with some interesting modern twists an exciting conclusion to this fabulous program.

MCO Concertmaster Dan Russell will show his Gypsy Flair in Pablo de Sarasate most popular work Zigeunerweisen to open this program which is sure to set toes-tapping, hearts yearning and pulses racing. Rounding out the first half of the program is Antonín Dvorak Czech Suite. Less well-known than his Slavonic Dances, the five movements of the Czech Suite are equally filled with gorgeous melodies and felicitous orchestration. Gabriel Faur haunting Pavane and Gustav Holst lively and warmhearted St Paulâ Suite set the mood in the 2nd half for Sergei Prokofiev's Classical Symphony, a piece of music that seems to ask the question: "What if Haydn had been alive and composing in the early twentieth century?" The result is a charming little piece written in what is essentially the Classical style with some interesting modern twists an exciting conclusion to this fabulous program.
Concerts held at Leichhardt Town Hall are part of Leichhardt Council's 'Site and Sound Autumn' program.

Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

The Goldner String Quartet are justly celebrated for their Beethoven interpretations, recently captured in an award winning recording of the complete string quartets.

To open the series they have selected the first (chronologically) that Beethoven ever wrote for publication. It has ambition stamped all over its attention grabbing melodies and vigorous rhythms, whose energy still lifts the spirits of listeners, more than two centuries later.

Bartok's second quartet has captivating folk-like elements, set alongside touching movements which the composers friend Kodaly described as life episodes: peace, joy, suffering.'

'Sizzlingly intense'The West Australian

Program:
Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartet in C minor, op 18 no 3
Bartok's String Quartet no 2, Sz67

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

Willems and Sorkin, not the types to shy away from a challenge such as climbing the musical Mt Everest, offer a unique opportunity to hear the Integral Beethoven Sonatas for Piano and Violin.

The first concert of the Beethoven Violin Sonata Cycle was written in Beethoven's early period in Vienna as he was about to embark on a sparkling career as a virtuoso pianist. Hence these sonatas are the perfect vehicle of virtuosic display for both piano and violin. The sonatas abound in optimism, positiveness and a degree of youthful vigour for both performers.

Three Sublime concerts. Concert One:
Romantic Indian Summer

Bridget Bolliger - flute
Alexandre Oguey - oboe
Francesco Celata - clarinet
Andrew Barnes - bassoon
Euan Harvy- horn


In 2004, the New Sydney Wind Quintet was formed by five Australian wind players of international acclaim. It is now recognised as the country's leading wind quintet and performs throughout Australia and Asia, making regular appearances for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Musica Viva Australia.

The players teach at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, are members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and have held major positions in European and American orchestras.

About QUINTOPIA, the latest NSWQ CD release:
'Imaginative program. Superbly played!'
Vladimir Ashkenazy, November 2010

"NSWQ stand their ground against even the Berlin Phil quintet's recording"
Limelight magazine - December 2011

* This concert will be held at Leichhardt Town Hall.* Concerts held at Leichhardt Town Hall are part of Leichhardt Council's 'Site and Sound Autumn' program.

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

This program deals with the two most well known Sonatas for piano and violin.
The ‘Spring’ represents the transition into Beethoven’s middle period. This work abounds in youthful freshness and clarity of vision whilst the latter is more dramatic, deep in concept and grand in scale, reflecting Beethoven’s connection to humanity and expresses his universal vision and sense of destiny.
This exceptional concert, featuring two of Australia's preeminent musicians, is not to be missed.

The Concertante Ensemble is a string ensemble of 13 players which has performed a regular series of concerts since 1996.

The repertoire spans three centuries and includes many of the major works for string orchestra and also works by living Australian composers.

Concertante attracts soloists from interstate and abroad and has been part of the Crossroads International Chamber Music Festival in 2010 and 2011.

Core Players:
Rowena Watts, clarinet
Melissa Woodroffe, bassoon
Freya Franzen, violin
Tara Houghton, viola
Adam Szabo, cello
Hugh Kluger, double bass

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius wrote six pieces as incidental music for the play Kuolema (Death). Valse Triste (Sad Waltz) was originally written as part of this, but after he reworked the piece for full orchestra, it became an instant hit with the public and took on a life of its own.



The Pastoral is commonly regarded as the most beautiful of Beethoven's symphonies, a masterpiece depicting in music a country stroll with birds, brooks and storms. You may have heard this work live before, but you haven't heard it in the intimate setting that is an MCO concert. Let MCO transport you to the countryside of Vienna, which inspired Beethoven.'How happy I am to be able to walk among the shrubs, the trees, the woods, the grass and the rocks! For the woods, the trees and the rocks give man the resonance he needs.'

Written by David Williamson

This is not one of Williamson’s rollicking comedies but a serious conflict between an idealistic young writer and a world famous and charismatic foreign correspondent. It exposes the fact that ‘non-political reportage’ is often biased by the beliefs of the writer. Rich with humour, it is a rare attempt to illuminate propaganda.
As with all of David Williamson’s plays it is highly topical and eminently enjoyable.

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius wrote six pieces as incidental music for the play Kuolema (Death). Valse Triste (Sad Waltz) was originally written as part of this, but after he reworked the piece for full orchestra, it became an instant hit with the public and took on a life of its own. Opening this program, this reworked version has become one of the composer's most popular works with its distinctive blend of grave nostalgia and wistful sadness.

Katherine Lukey is the appointed Assistant Concert Master with the Sydney Symphony. She is also a core player with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra and appears as a guest musician with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra is delighted to welcome her as soloist for Felix Mendelssohn Violin Concerto, one of the most popular violin concertos of all time.

The Pastoral is commonly regarded as the most beautiful of Beethoven's symphonies, a masterpiece depicting in music a country stroll with birds, brooks and storms. You may have heard this work live before, but you haven't heard it in the intimate setting that is an MCO concert. Let MCO transport you to the countryside of Vienna, which inspired Beethoven.'How happy I am to be able to walk among the shrubs, the trees, the woods, the grass and the rocks! For the woods, the trees and the rocks give man the resonance he needs.'

With James Crabb Classical accordion.
Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

Renowned classical accordionist James Crabb brings a new colour to Coffee Concerts in this remarkable collaboration with the Goldners. His instrument is surprisingly versatile, bringing out the folk character of Dvorak's delightful Bagatelles, and the sensual qualities of Piazzolla as well as the picturesque pleasure of two miniature French Baroque ˜conversations".

Schulhoff's dance-inspired Five Pieces for string quartet make perfect companions to this distinctive program.

Program:
Antonín Dvorak Five Bagatelles, op 47

Erwin Schulhoff Five Pieces

Jean-Philippe Rameau Conversation with the muses and Conversations of birds from Pieces for Keyboard

Astor Piazzolla Three Tango Sensations

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Puccini's The Cloak (Il Tabarro) and Holst's The Wandering Scholar in a double bill.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Puccini's The Cloak (Il Tabarro) and Holst's The Wandering Scholar in a double bill.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

In Night Songs we explore music which conjures images of the night all its various forms.

Bloch in his Three Nocturnes expresses both nocturnal tranquillity and then the danger of a night chase, while Schubert’s popular Notturno is sublimely serene.
American Kenji Bunch’s work, Swing Shift takes us on a musical club crawl, capturing, as the composer says, 'the unique essence of New York City at her most exciting time of day—the hours between dusk and dawn'.
Peter Sculthorpe’s atmospheric work Night Song is poignant, mournful and deeply expressive, while Beethoven’s famous ‘Ghost Trio’ – so named because of its dark and eerie second movement – has, whether Beethoven intended it or not, become forever linked with the night time fear of the unknown.

Seraphim Trio explores the intersections between Shakespeare, Mendelssohn and Beethoven, alongside a new trio by Australian composer Alan Holley.

Benjamin Martin’s new arrangement of Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream captures Shakespeare at his most effervescent. Beethoven’s ‘Ghost’ Trio, inspired by Macbeth, speaks to the Bard’s more serious side.
The program concludes with Mendelssohn’s dramatic Trio in C minor, in which Beethoven’s influence is everywhere apparent, not least in his signature key.

Unusual beauty and radiance... A sparkly performance full of graciousness, bonhomie and entertainingly witty melodrama.
THE AUSTRALIAN, OCTOBER 2011

Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

The Goldner String Quartet brings two pillars of the quartet repertoire to life in this quintessential program. Weber's beautiful, intense work is a reminiscence of a passionate summer love affair.

Schuberts last string quartet retains its captivating power even today, as he shifts effortlessly between joy and heartbreak. Who else could have imagined the endless emotional satisfaction to be found in a simple change of harmony from major to minor? The musicians revel in the programs outspoken appeal to the senses, its contrasts of darkness and light.

Program:
Anton Webern Langsamer Satz (Slow Movement) (c 1905)
Franz Schubert String Quartet no 15 in G major, D887

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

Core Players:
Rowena Watts, clarinet
Melissa Woodroffe, bassoon
Freya Franzen, violin
Tara Houghton, viola
Adam Szabo, cello
Hugh Kluger, double bass

Written by Noel Coward.

We enter Noel Coward's world of elegance, good manners and emotional understatement; where we can relax and laugh at the gentle humour.
When a former lover of the two "Angels" appears whilst their husbands are away they have grave concerns that their past secrets will be revealed. A truly delightful comedy from one of the most stylish writers of the 20th. century.

Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

This concert highlights some individual talents lying within the Goldner String Quartet. Dimity Hall and Julian Smiles are leading Australian musicians in their own right, and partners in marriage as well as in music.

Julian brings the sparkling inventiveness of Bach's Cello Suite No: 3 into the solo spotlight: a work whose secular status belies its ability to touch the spirit. Kodaly's Duo for violin and cello likewise provokes admiration for the breadth of expression and variety it achieves with such limited forces.


Program:
Johann Sebastian Bach Cello Suite no 3 in C major, BWV 1009

Zoltan Kodaly Duo for violin and cello, op 7

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

MCO Principal Flutist Svetlana Yaroslavskaya is joined by Guest Clarinetist David Rowden for Saint-Sans brilliant Tarantella to show off these two fabulous wind instruments. We then take you to Fantasia on a theme of Thomas Tallis which is Ralph Vaughan Williams signature composition. In this intimate concert, you will feel like you are inside the ebbing, surging waves of this glorious music.

MCO Principal Flutist Svetlana Yaroslavskaya is joined by Guest Clarinetist David Rowden for Saint-SaÃns brilliant Tarantella to show off these two fabulous wind instruments. We then take you to Fantasia on a theme of Thomas Tallis which is Ralph Vaughan Williams signature composition. In this intimate concert, you will feel like you are inside the ebbing, surging waves of this glorious music.

If you have not heard Johannes Brahms enchanting Serenade no 1 before, you are not alone it is rarely performed. Brahms almost called this serenade a symphony and had he done so we would probably be hearing it all the time. It is a buoyantly fresh, inventive, spirited, and touching piece a beautiful conclusion to this varied program.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

Stuart Greenbaum’s 800 Million Heartbeats refers to the idea that the average length of any mammals life can be measured in that same common number of heartbeats – 800 million. The fast heartbeat of a hummingbird means that they live a much shorter (and arguably more intense) life, compared to other animals. In reality, if humans only had this number of heartbeats, we would also live much shorter lives too.
Greenbaum uses this as 'a heightened metaphor for a life, measured in heartbeats, and the journeys that fill its course'.

In this program, we feature two glorious trios by Mozart and Mendelssohn, both of whom wrote extraordinarily accomplished and meaningful music at a very young age, yet within unfortunately short lives.
Mozart and Mendelssohn are often compared as child prodigies – by the age of 15, both had completed their first symphonies and had published astonishingly mature works –yet both made their prolific and lasting contributions to the music we play today within lives that spanned only 35 and 37 years.
In this program we will also feature a specially commissioned work by Newcastle based Composer and Pianist, Andrew Chubb.

Written by Robert Hewett

AA confronting theme is made lyrical by the use of bird puppets. The seagulls are a metaphor for the dreams of the entrapped Bill who has been brain damaged by a teenage accident. He is cared for by his sister and it is their relationship which is the central thread of the play. This award winning Australian play affirms without sentimentality the power of loyalty and love.

Three sublime concerts. Concert Two:
La Fete Francaise

Bridget Bolliger - flute
Alexandre Oguey - oboe
Francesco Celata - clarinet, Andrew Barnes - bassoon
Euan Harvy - horn

In 2004, the New Sydney Wind Quintet was formed by five Australian wind players of international acclaim. It is now recognised as the country's leading wind quintet and performs throughout Australia and Asia, making regular appearances for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Musica Viva Australia.

The players teach at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, are members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and have held major positions in European and American orchestras.

About QUINTOPIA, the latest NSWQ CD release:
'Imaginative program. Superbly played!'
Vladimir Ashkenazy, November 2010
"NSWQ stand their ground against even the Berlin Phil quintet's recording"
Limelight magazine - December 2011

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

The three sonatas to be performed show the diversity of Beethoven’s nature. The Op 23 whilst in a minor key, is a joyful work. It harks back to his early period, when life was simple.
In the three Sonatas Op 30, Beethoven delves into the depth and uncertainties of life, being aware that the answers to life are not so straightforward. Op 30 No 1 is beautifully lyrical and No 2 is epic and dramatic.

Symphony No. 38 in D ‘Prague’ for oboe and piano trio In this enchanting Czech-inspired program, Seraphim Trio performs Dvorak’s beloved Dumky Trio and a recent work by Andrew Ford. The astonishing Australian oboist Diana Doherty joins the group for Martinu’s graceful oboe quartet, concluding with Hummel’s brilliant arrangement of Mozart’s Prague Symphony.

Unusual beauty and radiance... A sparkly performance full of graciousness, bonhomie and entertainingly witty melodrama.
THE AUSTRALIAN, OCTOBER 2011

Piers Lane Piano
Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

The Goldner String Quartet players are joined by their friend, fellow Australian and leading international pianist Piers Lane in a delightful excursion into British Romanticism. The Gramophone Classical Music Guide described a recent recording by the musicians as rapturously beautiful, the blending of voices between Piers Lane and the Goldners simply could not be bettered.
This is an unmissable opportunity to experience their partnership in the spontaneity of live performance.

Frank Bridge is now remembered as the teacher of Benjamin Britten, but his own gift for melody and lyricism steps straight out of the soul-stirring world of Elgar to create a concert glowing with golden fin-de-sie`cle warmth.
We want to sound like one 16-string instrument. Dimity Hall

Program:
Edward Elgar String Quartet in E minor, op 83 Frank Bridge Piano Quintet (H49a)

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

MCO welcomes David Montgomery to present this program which includes his composition Air and the Void. Principal Percussionist of Queensland Symphony Orchestra, David is also a vibrant composer having works commissioned by Opera Queensland, Queensland Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre, Queensland Symphony, Isorhythmos and ABC Radio. 'Air and the Void' takes as its point of departure the final chapters in Miyamoto Musashi's book 'Go Rin No Sho' (translated as 'The Book of Five Rings'). While the work has nothing to do with Samurai or sword fighting, it does comment on the idea of moving towards separation from one's body.

One of the best known and most loved cello concertos in the repertoire is that of Camille Saint-Saens. Joining MCO to perform this piece is well-known cellist Patrick Murphy, founding member of the Tankstream Quartet and Cello Performance Fellow at the University of Queensland School of Music.

Wrapping up this wonderful program is a Symphony that is rarely performed, Mendelssohn Symphony No: 1, which he wrote at the age of 15. It is indubitably a young man's creation: energetic, muscular and bursting with rambunctious high spirits.

MCO welcomes David Montgomery to present this program which includes his composition Air and the Void. Principal Percussionist of Queensland Symphony Orchestra, David is also a vibrant composer having works commissioned by Opera Queensland, Queensland Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre, Queensland Symphony, Isorhythmos and ABC Radio. 'Air and the Void' takes as its point of departure the final chapters in Miyamoto Musashi's book 'Go Rin No Sho' (translated as 'The Book of Five Rings'). While the work has nothing to do with Samurai or sword fighting, it does comment on the idea of moving towards separation from one's body.
Wrapping up this wonderful program is a Symphony that is rarely performed, Mendelssohn Symphony No: 1, which he wrote at the age of 15. It is indubitably a young man's creation: energetic, muscular and bursting with rambunctious high spirits.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Rossini's The Silken Ladder.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Rossini's The Silken Ladder.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

In Fire and Fantasy we explore four powerful and passionate works for Piano Trio by composers from very different backgrounds.
Schumann is known for his emotionally volatile style of music in which he is able to create an intense emotional atmosphere within short pieces, which then switch quickly between intense despair and ecstatic exuberance. He shows this in particular in his Fantasiestücke, and this set is one of four he wrote during his life for various instruments.
American composer Robert Muczynski’s short but powerful First Piano Trio, written in 1966-7, is fiery, dramatic and rhythmically exciting, while Rachmaninoff’s virtuosic and broodingly romantic Trio Elegaique No. 1, written in 1892, burns more slowly towards its climax.
Finally, Spanish composer Joaquin Turina’s Piano Trio No.1 is sure to appeal with its quintessentially Spanish mix of drama, passion, fire and fantasy.

Written by Ernest Thompson

An autumnal play of ageing and loving. Set in the summer house of an erudite couple the 80th birthday of Norman propels the couple into an attempt to build bridges with their daughter who has become distant. Nostalgia is the mood but there are great moments of joy, intelligent humour and love. The play became an Academy award winning film in 1981.

One performance in Sydney only
Geoffrey Saba has worked with Maria Curcio and Peter Feuchtwanger initially in London, and then with Vlado Perlemuter in Paris, and Stefan Askenase.
He made his London début in 1972 at Wigmore Hall to much critical acclaim, and premiered in that programme a work specially written for the occasion by the Brisbane composer Colin Brumby. In 1974 he was awarded a bronze medal at the First Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, and he began to concertize internationally throughout Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, India, Japan, North America and South East Asia, incorporating regular return visits to his native Australia.

Geoffrey's best-selling recordings for Carlton Classics have achieved tremendous critical acclaim. His annual London solo recitals since 2001 are recorded and released by Carnegie Concerts, and his discography to 2011 comprises fourteen releases, with repertoire from Bach to Bartok, including the complete Debussy Preludes and Beethoven's Diabelli Variations.

His recent Mozart recording elicited these remarks from the reviewer in Limelight: 'This is real classical playing of a kind rarely encountered now. Saba's playing of Mozart's great Rondo K511 can stand comparison with that of Artur Schnabel ... one of his great strengths is his controlled rhythm throughout ... his performances are refreshingly free from the personalised distortions that have crept into Mozart playing ...'

geoffreysaba.com

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

This final program is the culmination of the cycle. The Sonata Op 96 clearly represents the start of Beethoven’s final creative period. It is a work of immense depth, purity of structure, awareness of the fermate combined with a reflection back to his youth with the landler theme in the finale.
This sonata is preceded by the joyful and transparent Op 30 No3.

The Concertante Ensemble is a string ensemble of 13 players which has performed a regular series of concerts since 1996.

The repertoire spans three centuries and includes many of the major works for string orchestra and also works by living Australian composers.

Concertante attracts soloists from interstate and abroad and has been part of the Crossroads International Chamber Music Festival in 2010 and 2011.

MCO finishes the 2012 season with its largest orchestra for the year when they perform two of the great romantic symphonies.

Symphony no 8 was a half-finished masterwork lost for decades which has become arguably Schuberts most popular work. The music is strikingly fresh and dramatic, full of life and warmth with many commentators waxing quite poetically when describing the splendour of the two movements of this amazing work. MCO will let the music speak for itself when performed in the wonderful intimate environments of The Independent Theatre and Balmain Town Halls.

Amazingly, MCO has never performed a Brahms Symphony. As their Beethoven Cycle is almost at completion and Brahms first symphony has also been nicknamed ˜Beethovens 10th", it seems like a fitting time and place for MCO to begin its Brahms journey. It took Brahms decades to perfect his first symphony which is both monumental in musical scope while firmly establishing Brahms as an heir to the master composers of his past. There are many similarities to Beethoven in this fantastic work, particularly the big string melody and epically powerhouse 4th movement which were written as a direct homage to his hero.

Join MCO for this sublime end to our 2012 season!

MCO finishes the 2012 season with its largest orchestra for the year when they perform two of the great romantic symphonies.

Three sublime concerts. Concert Three:
Dance!

Bridget Bolliger - flute
Alexandre Oguey - oboe
Francesco Celata - clarinet, Andrew Barnes - bassoon
Euan Harvy - horn

In 2004, the New Sydney Wind Quintet was formed by five Australian wind players of international acclaim. It is now recognised as the country's leading wind quintet and performs throughout Australia and Asia, making regular appearances for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Musica Viva Australia.

The players teach at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, are members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and have held major positions in European and American orchestras.

About QUINTOPIA, the latest NSWQ CD release:
'Imaginative program. Superbly played!'
Vladimir Ashkenazy, November 2010
"NSWQ stand their ground against even the Berlin Phil quintet's recording"
Limelight magazine - December 2011

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

In our final program of the year we present four works which have made a lasting impression on us – the centrepiece being Tchaikovsky’s epic Piano Trio in A minor. Despite previously refusing requests to compose a Piano Trio, Tchaikovsky was moved by the death of his great friend and mentor, Pianist Nikolai Rubinstein, to compose this work and to subtitle it, In Memory of a Great Artist. It stands as one of the largest scale works for Trio and one of the most challenging for the Pianist in the entire repertoire.
Like Tchaikovsky, Suk wrote his Elegy in honour of someone who had made a lasting impression on him – in this case the Czech poet and novelist Julius Zeyer, whose poetry inspired a number of Suk’s pieces. After Zeyer died in 1901, Suk arranged this Elegy for Piano Trio as his contribution to a Festival in Prague in memory of the poet.
The Haydn Trio in C Major on this program is one of the forty-five he wrote in his lifetime. Haydn’s contribution to the Piano Trio genre has been immense and long lasting, both in terms of his prolific output and in the way that he put the Piano Trio on the musical map, laying the foundations on which future composers would build.
American Paul Moravec is one such composer who has contributed strongly to the genre of Piano Trio in modern times, composing four trio works so far and one, Tempest Fantasy which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2004.

Ultima Thule Ambient Music is Australia's foremost radio programme of ambient and atmospheric music; it has been broadcast weekly by 2MBS-FM since 1989, and also reaches a national and global audience counted in the many tens of thousands via satellite, streaming audio and podcast.

MCO will open their 2012 season with the overture Mozart famously wrote in one evening Don Giovanni, followed by Carl Maria von Weber Clarinet Concerto no 1, considered to be a gem in the clarinet repertoire. After an acclaimed debut as soloist with MCO performing one movement from the work in a gala concert in 2011, Andrew Doyle will leave his regular position at the back of the orchestra as MCO Principal Clarinet, to play the complete concerto in this wonderful first MCO concert for 2012.

Ludwig Beethoven remains as one of the best known composers in the modern world, no doubt made possible by his ground-breaking symphonies. Over the past 3 years MCO has performed symphonies 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8 and will continue their journey through the cycle in 2012, starting with Symphony no 2 in this first program. Written at a time where the composer knew that the terror of complete silence was closing upon him, this work has been referred to as 'a heroic lie,' for the mood of the symphony is one of both strength and joy.

MCO will open their 2012 season with the overture Mozart famously wrote in one evening Don Giovanni, followed by Carl Maria von Weber Clarinet Concerto no 1, considered to be a gem in the clarinet repertoire.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano
I once thought that I possessed creative talent, but I have given up this idea; a woman must not desire to compose – not one has been able to do it, and why should I expect to? It would be arrogance…
Clara Schumann

Fortunately Clara continued to compose after saying this, as have many women after her, and this program is a testament to their at times unrecognised talent.
Gayeneh Tchebodarian’s energetic and powerful Piano Trio features driving rhythms and exotic melodies inspired by the music of her native Armenia, while Elena Kats-Chernin’s Gypsy Ramble shows the influence of Eastern European folk music within her uniquely engaging, ebullient style.

We are also very excited to premiere a work another Australian, Ann Carr-Boyd, has written especially for us - Fantasy for Strelitzia, composed this year.
American composer Jennifer Higdon explores the idea of colour and mood in her 2003 Piano Trio, in which she shows the dramatic differences between ‘Pale Yellow’ and ‘Fiery Red’ in two opposing movements.
Finally we hear from Clara Schumann, whose distinctively Romantic Piano Trio in G minor is now being recognised and performed alongside those of her husband and male contemporaries.

World Renown UK Spirit Medium and author Tony Stockwell will be joining Sydney based medium Louise Hermann for an afternoon of Mediumship.
Tony is known for his television work including The Psychic Detectives, Street Psychic, Best of British Mediumship, Sixth Sense, Mystery of Body 115, Psychic Private Eyes and Legend Detectives. Tony has demonstrated across the UK, Europe and the US.

Both Tony and Louise endeavour to provide you with comfort that your loved ones do survive the process of physical death and continue to live on in spirit form.

Written by Frederick Knott

A successful play on Broadway in 1952, this masterful and gripping suspense thriller has many unexpected twists and turns, keeping the audience ever alert as they try to piece together all the clues. A lesson in how to plan the perfect murder, but as in real life things never turn out as planned.
A nostalgic treat and an entertaining cliffhanger, it became a film classic directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

MCO Concertmaster Dan Russell will show his Gypsy Flair in Pablo de Sarasate most popular work Zigeunerweisen to open this program which is sure to set toes-tapping, hearts yearning and pulses racing. Rounding out the first half of the program is Anton Dvoak Czech Suite. Less well-known than his Slavonic Dances, the five movements of the Czech Suite are equally filled with gorgeous melodies and felicitous orchestration.

Gabriel Faur haunting Pavane and Gustav Holst lively and warmhearted St Paul Suite set the mood in the 2nd half for Sergei Prokofiev's Classical Symphony, a piece of music that seems to ask the question: "What if Haydn had been alive and composing in the early twentieth century?" The result is a charming little piece written in what is essentially the Classical style with some interesting modern twists an exciting conclusion to this fabulous program.

MCO Concertmaster Dan Russell will show his Gypsy Flair in Pablo de Sarasate most popular work Zigeunerweisen to open this program which is sure to set toes-tapping, hearts yearning and pulses racing. Rounding out the first half of the program is Antonín Dvorak Czech Suite. Less well-known than his Slavonic Dances, the five movements of the Czech Suite are equally filled with gorgeous melodies and felicitous orchestration. Gabriel Faur haunting Pavane and Gustav Holst lively and warmhearted St Paulâ Suite set the mood in the 2nd half for Sergei Prokofiev's Classical Symphony, a piece of music that seems to ask the question: "What if Haydn had been alive and composing in the early twentieth century?" The result is a charming little piece written in what is essentially the Classical style with some interesting modern twists an exciting conclusion to this fabulous program.
Concerts held at Leichhardt Town Hall are part of Leichhardt Council's 'Site and Sound Autumn' program.

Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

The Goldner String Quartet are justly celebrated for their Beethoven interpretations, recently captured in an award winning recording of the complete string quartets.

To open the series they have selected the first (chronologically) that Beethoven ever wrote for publication. It has ambition stamped all over its attention grabbing melodies and vigorous rhythms, whose energy still lifts the spirits of listeners, more than two centuries later.

Bartok's second quartet has captivating folk-like elements, set alongside touching movements which the composers friend Kodaly described as life episodes: peace, joy, suffering.'

'Sizzlingly intense'The West Australian

Program:
Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartet in C minor, op 18 no 3
Bartok's String Quartet no 2, Sz67

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

Willems and Sorkin, not the types to shy away from a challenge such as climbing the musical Mt Everest, offer a unique opportunity to hear the Integral Beethoven Sonatas for Piano and Violin.

The first concert of the Beethoven Violin Sonata Cycle was written in Beethoven's early period in Vienna as he was about to embark on a sparkling career as a virtuoso pianist. Hence these sonatas are the perfect vehicle of virtuosic display for both piano and violin. The sonatas abound in optimism, positiveness and a degree of youthful vigour for both performers.

Three Sublime concerts. Concert One:
Romantic Indian Summer

Bridget Bolliger - flute
Alexandre Oguey - oboe
Francesco Celata - clarinet
Andrew Barnes - bassoon
Euan Harvy- horn


In 2004, the New Sydney Wind Quintet was formed by five Australian wind players of international acclaim. It is now recognised as the country's leading wind quintet and performs throughout Australia and Asia, making regular appearances for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Musica Viva Australia.

The players teach at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, are members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and have held major positions in European and American orchestras.

About QUINTOPIA, the latest NSWQ CD release:
'Imaginative program. Superbly played!'
Vladimir Ashkenazy, November 2010

"NSWQ stand their ground against even the Berlin Phil quintet's recording"
Limelight magazine - December 2011

* This concert will be held at Leichhardt Town Hall.* Concerts held at Leichhardt Town Hall are part of Leichhardt Council's 'Site and Sound Autumn' program.

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

This program deals with the two most well known Sonatas for piano and violin.
The ‘Spring’ represents the transition into Beethoven’s middle period. This work abounds in youthful freshness and clarity of vision whilst the latter is more dramatic, deep in concept and grand in scale, reflecting Beethoven’s connection to humanity and expresses his universal vision and sense of destiny.
This exceptional concert, featuring two of Australia's preeminent musicians, is not to be missed.

The Concertante Ensemble is a string ensemble of 13 players which has performed a regular series of concerts since 1996.

The repertoire spans three centuries and includes many of the major works for string orchestra and also works by living Australian composers.

Concertante attracts soloists from interstate and abroad and has been part of the Crossroads International Chamber Music Festival in 2010 and 2011.

Core Players:
Rowena Watts, clarinet
Melissa Woodroffe, bassoon
Freya Franzen, violin
Tara Houghton, viola
Adam Szabo, cello
Hugh Kluger, double bass

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius wrote six pieces as incidental music for the play Kuolema (Death). Valse Triste (Sad Waltz) was originally written as part of this, but after he reworked the piece for full orchestra, it became an instant hit with the public and took on a life of its own.



The Pastoral is commonly regarded as the most beautiful of Beethoven's symphonies, a masterpiece depicting in music a country stroll with birds, brooks and storms. You may have heard this work live before, but you haven't heard it in the intimate setting that is an MCO concert. Let MCO transport you to the countryside of Vienna, which inspired Beethoven.'How happy I am to be able to walk among the shrubs, the trees, the woods, the grass and the rocks! For the woods, the trees and the rocks give man the resonance he needs.'

Written by David Williamson

This is not one of Williamson’s rollicking comedies but a serious conflict between an idealistic young writer and a world famous and charismatic foreign correspondent. It exposes the fact that ‘non-political reportage’ is often biased by the beliefs of the writer. Rich with humour, it is a rare attempt to illuminate propaganda.
As with all of David Williamson’s plays it is highly topical and eminently enjoyable.

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius wrote six pieces as incidental music for the play Kuolema (Death). Valse Triste (Sad Waltz) was originally written as part of this, but after he reworked the piece for full orchestra, it became an instant hit with the public and took on a life of its own. Opening this program, this reworked version has become one of the composer's most popular works with its distinctive blend of grave nostalgia and wistful sadness.

Katherine Lukey is the appointed Assistant Concert Master with the Sydney Symphony. She is also a core player with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra and appears as a guest musician with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra is delighted to welcome her as soloist for Felix Mendelssohn Violin Concerto, one of the most popular violin concertos of all time.

The Pastoral is commonly regarded as the most beautiful of Beethoven's symphonies, a masterpiece depicting in music a country stroll with birds, brooks and storms. You may have heard this work live before, but you haven't heard it in the intimate setting that is an MCO concert. Let MCO transport you to the countryside of Vienna, which inspired Beethoven.'How happy I am to be able to walk among the shrubs, the trees, the woods, the grass and the rocks! For the woods, the trees and the rocks give man the resonance he needs.'

With James Crabb Classical accordion.
Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

Renowned classical accordionist James Crabb brings a new colour to Coffee Concerts in this remarkable collaboration with the Goldners. His instrument is surprisingly versatile, bringing out the folk character of Dvorak's delightful Bagatelles, and the sensual qualities of Piazzolla as well as the picturesque pleasure of two miniature French Baroque ˜conversations".

Schulhoff's dance-inspired Five Pieces for string quartet make perfect companions to this distinctive program.

Program:
Antonín Dvorak Five Bagatelles, op 47

Erwin Schulhoff Five Pieces

Jean-Philippe Rameau Conversation with the muses and Conversations of birds from Pieces for Keyboard

Astor Piazzolla Three Tango Sensations

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Puccini's The Cloak (Il Tabarro) and Holst's The Wandering Scholar in a double bill.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Puccini's The Cloak (Il Tabarro) and Holst's The Wandering Scholar in a double bill.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

In Night Songs we explore music which conjures images of the night all its various forms.

Bloch in his Three Nocturnes expresses both nocturnal tranquillity and then the danger of a night chase, while Schubert’s popular Notturno is sublimely serene.
American Kenji Bunch’s work, Swing Shift takes us on a musical club crawl, capturing, as the composer says, 'the unique essence of New York City at her most exciting time of day—the hours between dusk and dawn'.
Peter Sculthorpe’s atmospheric work Night Song is poignant, mournful and deeply expressive, while Beethoven’s famous ‘Ghost Trio’ – so named because of its dark and eerie second movement – has, whether Beethoven intended it or not, become forever linked with the night time fear of the unknown.

Seraphim Trio explores the intersections between Shakespeare, Mendelssohn and Beethoven, alongside a new trio by Australian composer Alan Holley.

Benjamin Martin’s new arrangement of Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream captures Shakespeare at his most effervescent. Beethoven’s ‘Ghost’ Trio, inspired by Macbeth, speaks to the Bard’s more serious side.
The program concludes with Mendelssohn’s dramatic Trio in C minor, in which Beethoven’s influence is everywhere apparent, not least in his signature key.

Unusual beauty and radiance... A sparkly performance full of graciousness, bonhomie and entertainingly witty melodrama.
THE AUSTRALIAN, OCTOBER 2011

Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

The Goldner String Quartet brings two pillars of the quartet repertoire to life in this quintessential program. Weber's beautiful, intense work is a reminiscence of a passionate summer love affair.

Schuberts last string quartet retains its captivating power even today, as he shifts effortlessly between joy and heartbreak. Who else could have imagined the endless emotional satisfaction to be found in a simple change of harmony from major to minor? The musicians revel in the programs outspoken appeal to the senses, its contrasts of darkness and light.

Program:
Anton Webern Langsamer Satz (Slow Movement) (c 1905)
Franz Schubert String Quartet no 15 in G major, D887

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

Core Players:
Rowena Watts, clarinet
Melissa Woodroffe, bassoon
Freya Franzen, violin
Tara Houghton, viola
Adam Szabo, cello
Hugh Kluger, double bass

Written by Noel Coward.

We enter Noel Coward's world of elegance, good manners and emotional understatement; where we can relax and laugh at the gentle humour.
When a former lover of the two "Angels" appears whilst their husbands are away they have grave concerns that their past secrets will be revealed. A truly delightful comedy from one of the most stylish writers of the 20th. century.

Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

This concert highlights some individual talents lying within the Goldner String Quartet. Dimity Hall and Julian Smiles are leading Australian musicians in their own right, and partners in marriage as well as in music.

Julian brings the sparkling inventiveness of Bach's Cello Suite No: 3 into the solo spotlight: a work whose secular status belies its ability to touch the spirit. Kodaly's Duo for violin and cello likewise provokes admiration for the breadth of expression and variety it achieves with such limited forces.


Program:
Johann Sebastian Bach Cello Suite no 3 in C major, BWV 1009

Zoltan Kodaly Duo for violin and cello, op 7

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

MCO Principal Flutist Svetlana Yaroslavskaya is joined by Guest Clarinetist David Rowden for Saint-Sans brilliant Tarantella to show off these two fabulous wind instruments. We then take you to Fantasia on a theme of Thomas Tallis which is Ralph Vaughan Williams signature composition. In this intimate concert, you will feel like you are inside the ebbing, surging waves of this glorious music.

MCO Principal Flutist Svetlana Yaroslavskaya is joined by Guest Clarinetist David Rowden for Saint-SaÃns brilliant Tarantella to show off these two fabulous wind instruments. We then take you to Fantasia on a theme of Thomas Tallis which is Ralph Vaughan Williams signature composition. In this intimate concert, you will feel like you are inside the ebbing, surging waves of this glorious music.

If you have not heard Johannes Brahms enchanting Serenade no 1 before, you are not alone it is rarely performed. Brahms almost called this serenade a symphony and had he done so we would probably be hearing it all the time. It is a buoyantly fresh, inventive, spirited, and touching piece a beautiful conclusion to this varied program.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

Stuart Greenbaum’s 800 Million Heartbeats refers to the idea that the average length of any mammals life can be measured in that same common number of heartbeats – 800 million. The fast heartbeat of a hummingbird means that they live a much shorter (and arguably more intense) life, compared to other animals. In reality, if humans only had this number of heartbeats, we would also live much shorter lives too.
Greenbaum uses this as 'a heightened metaphor for a life, measured in heartbeats, and the journeys that fill its course'.

In this program, we feature two glorious trios by Mozart and Mendelssohn, both of whom wrote extraordinarily accomplished and meaningful music at a very young age, yet within unfortunately short lives.
Mozart and Mendelssohn are often compared as child prodigies – by the age of 15, both had completed their first symphonies and had published astonishingly mature works –yet both made their prolific and lasting contributions to the music we play today within lives that spanned only 35 and 37 years.
In this program we will also feature a specially commissioned work by Newcastle based Composer and Pianist, Andrew Chubb.

Written by Robert Hewett

AA confronting theme is made lyrical by the use of bird puppets. The seagulls are a metaphor for the dreams of the entrapped Bill who has been brain damaged by a teenage accident. He is cared for by his sister and it is their relationship which is the central thread of the play. This award winning Australian play affirms without sentimentality the power of loyalty and love.

Three sublime concerts. Concert Two:
La Fete Francaise

Bridget Bolliger - flute
Alexandre Oguey - oboe
Francesco Celata - clarinet, Andrew Barnes - bassoon
Euan Harvy - horn

In 2004, the New Sydney Wind Quintet was formed by five Australian wind players of international acclaim. It is now recognised as the country's leading wind quintet and performs throughout Australia and Asia, making regular appearances for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Musica Viva Australia.

The players teach at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, are members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and have held major positions in European and American orchestras.

About QUINTOPIA, the latest NSWQ CD release:
'Imaginative program. Superbly played!'
Vladimir Ashkenazy, November 2010
"NSWQ stand their ground against even the Berlin Phil quintet's recording"
Limelight magazine - December 2011

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

The three sonatas to be performed show the diversity of Beethoven’s nature. The Op 23 whilst in a minor key, is a joyful work. It harks back to his early period, when life was simple.
In the three Sonatas Op 30, Beethoven delves into the depth and uncertainties of life, being aware that the answers to life are not so straightforward. Op 30 No 1 is beautifully lyrical and No 2 is epic and dramatic.

Symphony No. 38 in D ‘Prague’ for oboe and piano trio In this enchanting Czech-inspired program, Seraphim Trio performs Dvorak’s beloved Dumky Trio and a recent work by Andrew Ford. The astonishing Australian oboist Diana Doherty joins the group for Martinu’s graceful oboe quartet, concluding with Hummel’s brilliant arrangement of Mozart’s Prague Symphony.

Unusual beauty and radiance... A sparkly performance full of graciousness, bonhomie and entertainingly witty melodrama.
THE AUSTRALIAN, OCTOBER 2011

Piers Lane Piano
Dene Olding Violin
Dimity Hall Violin
Irina Morozova Viola
Julian Smiles Cello

The Goldner String Quartet players are joined by their friend, fellow Australian and leading international pianist Piers Lane in a delightful excursion into British Romanticism. The Gramophone Classical Music Guide described a recent recording by the musicians as rapturously beautiful, the blending of voices between Piers Lane and the Goldners simply could not be bettered.
This is an unmissable opportunity to experience their partnership in the spontaneity of live performance.

Frank Bridge is now remembered as the teacher of Benjamin Britten, but his own gift for melody and lyricism steps straight out of the soul-stirring world of Elgar to create a concert glowing with golden fin-de-sie`cle warmth.
We want to sound like one 16-string instrument. Dimity Hall

Program:
Edward Elgar String Quartet in E minor, op 83 Frank Bridge Piano Quintet (H49a)

Morning tea will be served from 10am.
Concert starts at 11am. Duration 1 hour.

MCO welcomes David Montgomery to present this program which includes his composition Air and the Void. Principal Percussionist of Queensland Symphony Orchestra, David is also a vibrant composer having works commissioned by Opera Queensland, Queensland Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre, Queensland Symphony, Isorhythmos and ABC Radio. 'Air and the Void' takes as its point of departure the final chapters in Miyamoto Musashi's book 'Go Rin No Sho' (translated as 'The Book of Five Rings'). While the work has nothing to do with Samurai or sword fighting, it does comment on the idea of moving towards separation from one's body.

One of the best known and most loved cello concertos in the repertoire is that of Camille Saint-Saens. Joining MCO to perform this piece is well-known cellist Patrick Murphy, founding member of the Tankstream Quartet and Cello Performance Fellow at the University of Queensland School of Music.

Wrapping up this wonderful program is a Symphony that is rarely performed, Mendelssohn Symphony No: 1, which he wrote at the age of 15. It is indubitably a young man's creation: energetic, muscular and bursting with rambunctious high spirits.

MCO welcomes David Montgomery to present this program which includes his composition Air and the Void. Principal Percussionist of Queensland Symphony Orchestra, David is also a vibrant composer having works commissioned by Opera Queensland, Queensland Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre, Queensland Symphony, Isorhythmos and ABC Radio. 'Air and the Void' takes as its point of departure the final chapters in Miyamoto Musashi's book 'Go Rin No Sho' (translated as 'The Book of Five Rings'). While the work has nothing to do with Samurai or sword fighting, it does comment on the idea of moving towards separation from one's body.
Wrapping up this wonderful program is a Symphony that is rarely performed, Mendelssohn Symphony No: 1, which he wrote at the age of 15. It is indubitably a young man's creation: energetic, muscular and bursting with rambunctious high spirits.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Rossini's The Silken Ladder.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Sydney Independent Opera is pleased to present Rossini's The Silken Ladder.

Sydney Independent Opera is a chamber opera company presenting small-scale operas in English with chamber orchestra.

Founded in 2011, Sydney Independent Opera, under the direction of Artistic Director Steven Stanke, will present vibrant and innovative performances of chamber operas and operas in chamber settings from composers such as Mozart and Rossini to Britten, Holst, Menotti and others.
The company aims to be one of Sydney's leading small opera groups, known for high-quality performances and imaginative programming, and featuring some of Sydney's finest operatic artists.

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

In Fire and Fantasy we explore four powerful and passionate works for Piano Trio by composers from very different backgrounds.
Schumann is known for his emotionally volatile style of music in which he is able to create an intense emotional atmosphere within short pieces, which then switch quickly between intense despair and ecstatic exuberance. He shows this in particular in his Fantasiestücke, and this set is one of four he wrote during his life for various instruments.
American composer Robert Muczynski’s short but powerful First Piano Trio, written in 1966-7, is fiery, dramatic and rhythmically exciting, while Rachmaninoff’s virtuosic and broodingly romantic Trio Elegaique No. 1, written in 1892, burns more slowly towards its climax.
Finally, Spanish composer Joaquin Turina’s Piano Trio No.1 is sure to appeal with its quintessentially Spanish mix of drama, passion, fire and fantasy.

Written by Ernest Thompson

An autumnal play of ageing and loving. Set in the summer house of an erudite couple the 80th birthday of Norman propels the couple into an attempt to build bridges with their daughter who has become distant. Nostalgia is the mood but there are great moments of joy, intelligent humour and love. The play became an Academy award winning film in 1981.

One performance in Sydney only
Geoffrey Saba has worked with Maria Curcio and Peter Feuchtwanger initially in London, and then with Vlado Perlemuter in Paris, and Stefan Askenase.
He made his London début in 1972 at Wigmore Hall to much critical acclaim, and premiered in that programme a work specially written for the occasion by the Brisbane composer Colin Brumby. In 1974 he was awarded a bronze medal at the First Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, and he began to concertize internationally throughout Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, India, Japan, North America and South East Asia, incorporating regular return visits to his native Australia.

Geoffrey's best-selling recordings for Carlton Classics have achieved tremendous critical acclaim. His annual London solo recitals since 2001 are recorded and released by Carnegie Concerts, and his discography to 2011 comprises fourteen releases, with repertoire from Bach to Bartok, including the complete Debussy Preludes and Beethoven's Diabelli Variations.

His recent Mozart recording elicited these remarks from the reviewer in Limelight: 'This is real classical playing of a kind rarely encountered now. Saba's playing of Mozart's great Rondo K511 can stand comparison with that of Artur Schnabel ... one of his great strengths is his controlled rhythm throughout ... his performances are refreshingly free from the personalised distortions that have crept into Mozart playing ...'

geoffreysaba.com

Gerard Willems, piano
Eugeny Sorkin, violin

This final program is the culmination of the cycle. The Sonata Op 96 clearly represents the start of Beethoven’s final creative period. It is a work of immense depth, purity of structure, awareness of the fermate combined with a reflection back to his youth with the landler theme in the finale.
This sonata is preceded by the joyful and transparent Op 30 No3.

The Concertante Ensemble is a string ensemble of 13 players which has performed a regular series of concerts since 1996.

The repertoire spans three centuries and includes many of the major works for string orchestra and also works by living Australian composers.

Concertante attracts soloists from interstate and abroad and has been part of the Crossroads International Chamber Music Festival in 2010 and 2011.

MCO finishes the 2012 season with its largest orchestra for the year when they perform two of the great romantic symphonies.

Symphony no 8 was a half-finished masterwork lost for decades which has become arguably Schuberts most popular work. The music is strikingly fresh and dramatic, full of life and warmth with many commentators waxing quite poetically when describing the splendour of the two movements of this amazing work. MCO will let the music speak for itself when performed in the wonderful intimate environments of The Independent Theatre and Balmain Town Halls.

Amazingly, MCO has never performed a Brahms Symphony. As their Beethoven Cycle is almost at completion and Brahms first symphony has also been nicknamed ˜Beethovens 10th", it seems like a fitting time and place for MCO to begin its Brahms journey. It took Brahms decades to perfect his first symphony which is both monumental in musical scope while firmly establishing Brahms as an heir to the master composers of his past. There are many similarities to Beethoven in this fantastic work, particularly the big string melody and epically powerhouse 4th movement which were written as a direct homage to his hero.

Join MCO for this sublime end to our 2012 season!

MCO finishes the 2012 season with its largest orchestra for the year when they perform two of the great romantic symphonies.

Three sublime concerts. Concert Three:
Dance!

Bridget Bolliger - flute
Alexandre Oguey - oboe
Francesco Celata - clarinet, Andrew Barnes - bassoon
Euan Harvy - horn

In 2004, the New Sydney Wind Quintet was formed by five Australian wind players of international acclaim. It is now recognised as the country's leading wind quintet and performs throughout Australia and Asia, making regular appearances for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Musica Viva Australia.

The players teach at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, are members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and have held major positions in European and American orchestras.

About QUINTOPIA, the latest NSWQ CD release:
'Imaginative program. Superbly played!'
Vladimir Ashkenazy, November 2010
"NSWQ stand their ground against even the Berlin Phil quintet's recording"
Limelight magazine - December 2011

Victoria Jacono-Gilmovich Violin
Eleanor Betts Cello
Evgeny Ukhanov Piano

In our final program of the year we present four works which have made a lasting impression on us – the centrepiece being Tchaikovsky’s epic Piano Trio in A minor. Despite previously refusing requests to compose a Piano Trio, Tchaikovsky was moved by the death of his great friend and mentor, Pianist Nikolai Rubinstein, to compose this work and to subtitle it, In Memory of a Great Artist. It stands as one of the largest scale works for Trio and one of the most challenging for the Pianist in the entire repertoire.
Like Tchaikovsky, Suk wrote his Elegy in honour of someone who had made a lasting impression on him – in this case the Czech poet and novelist Julius Zeyer, whose poetry inspired a number of Suk’s pieces. After Zeyer died in 1901, Suk arranged this Elegy for Piano Trio as his contribution to a Festival in Prague in memory of the poet.
The Haydn Trio in C Major on this program is one of the forty-five he wrote in his lifetime. Haydn’s contribution to the Piano Trio genre has been immense and long lasting, both in terms of his prolific output and in the way that he put the Piano Trio on the musical map, laying the foundations on which future composers would build.
American Paul Moravec is one such composer who has contributed strongly to the genre of Piano Trio in modern times, composing four trio works so far and one, Tempest Fantasy which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2004.