Nexas Quartet With Coleman-Wright Present Composers In Exile

Virtuosic saxophone ensemble the Nexas Quartet presents the latest Sunday afternoon musical treat as part of the popular Prelude in Tea concert series at the Independent Theatre, North Sydney.

Nexas Quartet will present a programme entitled Composers in Exile, featuring adaptations of cabaret works by composers from the Weimar Era until World War II.  The performance is a ‘sneak preview’ of their new show set to premiere at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival in June 2017. The musicians will be dressed as the composers Kurt Weill, Eisler, Schrecker, Korngold, and Stolz and will talk (in character) about their lives as composers in turbulent times.

Nexas will again be collaborating with international operatic baritone Peter Coleman-Wright AO to perform finely crafted interpretations specially arranged for saxophone quartet and voice. Featuring hits such as ‘September Song’, ‘Stempellied Song’ (Song of the Worker/Stamp Song), the repertoire is taken from a new CD featuring all five artists and recorded for ABC Classics under the title Ballads of the Pleasant Life.

Formed in 2002, Nexas Quartet comprises Michael Duke (soprano sax), Andrew Smith (alto sax), Nathan Henshaw (tenor sax) and Jay Byrnes (baritone sax). The quartet promotes the diversity of the saxophone, showcasing its versatility and ability to cross genres. Successfully combining personalities, virtuosic saxophone skills, and an ability to program concerts with wide appeal, the ensemble has collaborated with some of Australia’s finest musicians including pianists Gerard Willems AM, Daniel Rojas, jazz vocalist Nicky Crayson, jazz saxophonists and bandleader David Theak and SSO clarinettist Frank Celata, in their annual concert series. They have also collaborated with composer and sound artist Drew Crawford on the Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of Jumpy and performed Elena Kats-Chernin’s From Anna Magdalena’s Notebook at the World Saxophone Congress in Strasbourg. Nexas was recently nominated for Performance of the Year in the 2017 Art Music Awards for their realisation of Matthew Orlovich’s Slipstream, a work specially written for the Quartet.

Australia’s Peter Coleman-Wright is one of the most versatile singers on the international circuit, performing in opera, concert and recital. He has performed in the major classical venues around the world, including the Royal Opera Covent Garden, La Scala, the Met in New York, the Sydney Opera House and the Aldeburgh Festival.  

Tickets – $47 adult | $30 conc | $22 student |$16 children

Bookings ph: 02 9955 3000 or on-line at www.theindependent.org.au­