Discovering Brett Dean
Sydney gets a touch of the Grawemeyers with works by two of its composition award winners being performed over the next week. On Monday October 10th, the Sydney Symphony conducted by Richard Gill, performs Brett Dean’s Etudenfest.In 2009 Brett Dean was awarded the Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition for his 4 movement concerto for violin and orchestra The Lost Art of Letter Writing.
On Saturday the 8th of October, Circus Maximus and Mr Tambourine Man: Seven Poems of Bob Dylan John Corigliano will be performed at the Sydney Town Hall on Saturday (see post). Corigliano was awarded the 1991 Grawemeyer for Music Composition for his Symphony No1.
The list of recipients for the Grawemeyer Music Composition Award is formidable. Pierre Boulez (2001), Thomas Ades (2000), Tan Dun (1998), John Adams (1995), Birtwistle, Penderecki,Takemitsu, Ligeti….the list goes on. Charles Grawemeyer (1912-1993) established the awards in five areas of the humanities and performing arts through his Alma Mater, the University of Louisville, Kentucky. The award for music composition was first presented in 1985. Today it attracts over 100 entrants from all over the world.
Dean’s Etudenfest was commissioned by the Australian Chamber Orchestra and premiered in 2000. It takes the listener through virtuoso orchestral playing, exploring the spectrum of possibilities that are available to a string orchestra. To place it in context, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra will also perform the 1st movement of JS Bach’s 3rd Brandenburg Concerto – also a virtuosic piece for string orchestra, to enable a perspective of Dean’s style, influenced by the European tradition.
Tickets: Adult $49 – $69 , Concession $44 – $62, Group of 8+ $55 – $30 CRH VIP $44-$62
Call 8256 2222 or on-line at www.cityrecitalhall.com or in person at The City Recital Hall, 2 Angel Place, Sydney.
