SSO’s choral contrasts reviewed

David Vance reviews the SSO conducted by David Zinman:

David Vance reviews the SSO conducted by David Zinman:
Omega Ensemble Mahler’s Fourth City Recital Hall Monday July 20 at 7.30pm Now in their tenth year, Sydney’s Omega Ensemble continues to live up to its stellar reputation. Artistic director/clarinettist David Rowden and his all-star squad of chamber musicians draw from a vibrant and diverse palette of styles, and are just as at home with…
Così fan tutte – Mozart Opera Australia, Joan Sutherland Opera Theatre, Sydney Opera House, 19 July 2016 Several years ago Opera Australia commissioned the Scottish director Sir David McVicar to direct the three Mozart/Da Ponte operas over three years. Don Giovanni was premiered in 2014, The Marriage of Figaro appeared last year and this year…
Possibly the most challenging aspect of writing about my evening at Giasone, Pinchgut Opera’s 2013 production, has been to decide which of the many facets of this beautifully integrated production was the most memorable – was it the casting or the singing? The musical direction or the orchestra? Was it was the inventive staging…
Hemispheres is a gem of a CD, which, like many independent recordings, has slipped under the radar of the mainstream press. Described as ‘Mystical journeys through four continents’ Hemispheres was recorded by flautist Sally Walker with pianist Philip Mayers, both prodigiously gifted Australian musicians with impressive international careers. The anthology represents eleven 20th century composers…
Composers in Exile Nexas Saxophone Quartet The Independent Theatre, North Sydney May 28, 2017 Nexas Saxophone Quartet: Soprano – Michael Duke/ Alto – Andrew Smith/ Tenor- Nathan Henshaw/ Baritone -Jay Byrnes / Voice and piano- Peter Coleman-Wright AO (Baritone) Written by Victoria Watson A bold and intelligent theatricality pervaded this concert of cabaret music from the Weimar period and its aftermath….
Handel & Delirious Love Australian Haydn Ensemble/ Sara Macliver Verbrugghen Hall, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, 29 September 2019 With the concert season nearly at an end for 2019, it is safe to say that the Australian Haydn Ensemble’s Handel & Delirious Love programme was decidedly one of the highlights of my musical year. Performing on…