Latest news
Time to start thinking about the Sydney Eisteddfod
Time again to start thinking about the Sydney Eisteddfod, an annual festival of music competition stretched over two months from June to August. Whether you’re an opera singer or a tap dancer; an orator, rock ensemble or violinist, there are categories for a wide variety of talent. There are events for classical and contemporary piano, instrumental, dance and…
Operation Opera
Does opera have to develop a two tier format to attract new audiences whilst continuing to present the art form in its purest sense to traditional opera lovers? The current productions of The Marriage of Figaro and The (abbreviated) Magic Flute have generated some very strong opinions and audience reactions. Opera Australia CEO Adrian Collette talks to…
Flying with instruments
Qantas announces its new instrument friendly travel plan: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/qantas-finally-in-tune-with-frustrated-musicians-on-luggage-issue/story-e6frg8n6-1226284405463
Satsuki Odamura on the koto
Don’t look now but there could just be a vibrant new genre of music unfolding. One that makes a statement about Australia’s standing in the world – both musically and geographically. At one level it is another concert in Sydney’s smorgasbord of events. But step back and look at the bigger picture – it is music that embodies antipodean…
The week’s concerts in review…
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra plays Beethoven and R Strauss: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/leaders-note-clash-of-the-titans-strikes-a-timely-chord-20120223-1tqj0.html http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/exhilarating-climb-in-strausss-alps/story-e6frg8n6-1226275087259 The Australian Brandenburg Orchestra’s Venice Secrets: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/a-stumbling-seasonal-start-will-take-time-to-settle-down-20120223-1tq9t.html http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/consistently-inconsistent-solos-mar-vivaldi-concertos/story-e6frg8n6-1226279859757
Marko Letonja takes up the beat with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra
For a number of years in the recent past, Sydneysiders were treated to performances by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra during the first week of August. This annual tour was inaugurated by its Chief Conductor and Artistic Director Sebastian Lang-Lessing, under whose leadership, the TSO also amassed an impressive discography which included the complete Schumann and Mendelssohn symphonies. After…
Latest reviews
What’s in a name? Nicknamed music on CD
Try referring to a piece of music by its key and opus number and you can be met with a blank look until you hum the tune or refer to it by its nickname. Opus numbers and keys are an essential part of the identity of a work, but nicknames can be a welcome aide…
extraordinary tale – extraordinary singing from the idea of north
As always, The Idea of North delight listeners with their new CD. Their freshness, purity of tone and unerring pitch, blend like the strands of a braid that start and end their journey together, meandering their own part in between, independent, but never losing sight of being part of the single design. Extraordinary Tale (ABC…