Partridge String Quartet are performing in the beautiful library of the Melbourne Athenaeum Theatre. Performing a collection of works by Harrison, Mendelssohn and Spruance. More info and bookings
Ian Munro is one of Australia’s most distinguished and awarded musicians with a career that has taken him to thirty countries in Europe, Asia, North America and Australasia. As a composer, Ian is the only Australian to have been awarded the Premier Grand Prix at the Queen Elisabeth Competition for Composers (2003), and was in ... Read more
MUSIC AS A STORY Pithy, sharp, served with a twist—who doesn’t love a good story? Three remarkable musical authors reveal three very different musical stories. An intense, revealing conversation between cello and piano from Beethoven, three heartfelt confessions from Clara Schumann, and a thrilling piece of noir theatre from Shostakovich launch our Festival. With guest ... Read more
One of Australia’s most eminent chamber ensembles, Firebird Trio performances reflect the energy, colour and splendour of the Firebird, taking their name from Stravinsky’s iconic ballet. In this program they present Rachmaninov’s Trio Elegie in D minor, a work which evokes the virtuosic, brooding colours of late 19th century Russian music. Firebird is also delighted ... Read more
TEMPO QUEER 5 Coady Green, piano With special guest Adrian Tamburini, bass-baritone Tempo Queer Artistic Director and pianist Coady Green presents a program of world premieres, Australian premieres and beloved classics by LGBTIQ+ composers from across the world. With music by Tchaikovsky, Connor d'Netto, Nico Muhly, Ned Rorem, Jane Hammond, Meta Cohen and many more. ... Read more
SECRET PASSIONS Chamber music for the secret dreams of the soul. The luminous sound of the French horn is the unusual star of Brahms’ beloved trio, by turns ardent, expansive, and athletic, with guest artist, Peter Luff. Principal Viola Merewyn Bramble shines in Rebecca Clarke’s rich Passacaglia, while Principal Bass Emma Sullivan performs charming, rare ... Read more
THE IN-BETWEEN Eliza Shephard (flute) and Alexander Meagher (percussion) make up the Eclectus Duo. The In-Between explores the dreamlike state of meditation with contemporary classical music for flute and percussion by a diverse range of Australian and international composers. The listener will be taken on a journey through various forms of dreaming, highlighting bizarre imaginations ... Read more
QUINTET CELEBRATIONS Joy, triumph, theatre & fireworks! Two spectacular quintets bring our 2023 Festival to a winning close. Italian Romantic composer Bottesini’s Gran Quintetto overbrims with Italian melodies and brio, and Robert Schumann’s iconic Piano Quintet brings us home with life-affirming energy, virtuosity, and optimism. With guest artists, Kristian Chong and Peter Luff. This is ... Read more
THE BEAUTIFUL MILLER'S DAUGHTER Songmakers Australia celebrate 200 years of Die schöne Müllerin (The Fair Maid of the Mill), a song cycle based on 20 poems written by Wilhem Müller. ‘I feel myself to be the most unhappy and wretched creature in the world. Imagine a man whose health will never be right again, and who ... Read more
The Partridge String Quartet will join our resident chamber musician Elyane Laussade (piano) to play Mendelssohn's String Quartet in F Minor Opus 80, Brahms Piano Quintet in F Minor Opus 34. plus more delicious chamber music. The Partridge String Quartet have received national recognition as winners of the 2019 Queensland International Chamber Music Competition and ... Read more
THE LAST ROMANTIC Igor and Olga Piano Duo (Igor Machlak and Olga Kharitonova) present a program for two pianos celebrating the double anniversary of Sergei Rachmaninov, featuring original compositions and arrangements for two pianos by the great Russian composer as well as Olga and Igor's own transcriptions of his music. This year is significant for ... Read more
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA AND THE MUSIC OF PILGRIMAGE A program of liturgical and devotional music associated with the great European pilgrimage route commonly referred to today as 'El Camino'. The manuscript, the Codex Calixtinus, from the Cathedral of St James in Compostela, Galicia, contains polyphonic and monophonic works, and is a rare source of music ... Read more
RENAISSANCE AND BAROQUE STORIES 3: THE BLIND GENIUS Before music became a practice in the homes of connoisseurs and skilled amateurs during the 18th century, it occupied a more exclusive domain. In the Renaissance and Baroque, sounds of beauty, elevation and piety were created at enlightened courts and churches. The ANAM musicians armoured with modern ... Read more
A REQUIEM IN OUR TIME (PROGRAM 1) As the preferred instrument of both the Archangel Gabriel and Louis Armstrong, the trumpet can help us both sing with the seraphim and dance like the devil. With an all-embracing love of music that knows no boundaries, Jeroen Berwaerts leads the ANAM musicians in two separate programs on ... Read more
THE WORDS THEMSELVES Music says what words cannot, however, put the two together and you’re in for a night of astonishing storytelling. ABC Young Performer of the Year Eliza Shephard combines words and music to create an experience that deep-dives into stories both old and unfamiliar. With standard flute repertoire, their performance explores cascading lines ... Read more
SONG AND DANCE A program of original repertoire and arrangements highlighting the lyrical qualities of the saxophone, with Waltzes, Ballades, Arias and Foxtrots by Bozza, Smirnov, Tomasi, Françaix and many more. More info and bookings
A REQUIEM IN OUR TIME (PROGRAM 2) As the preferred instrument of both the Archangel Gabriel and Louis Armstrong, the trumpet can help us both sing with the seraphim and dance like the devil. With an all-embracing love of music that knows no boundaries, Jeroen Berwaerts leads the ANAM musicians in two separate programs on ... Read more
SUNWARD Concordis Chamber Choir invites you to join us for Sunward. Bask in a soul-stirring performance celebrating themes of warmth, serenity and hope. The diverse program showcases the work of several female composers including Laura Mvula’s anthem of resilience Sing to the Moon; Katerina Gimon’s Apple Tree addressing the urgency of the global climate crisis; ... Read more
Kristian Winther, violin Anna Da Silva Chen, violin Dana Lee, viola Thomas Marlin, cello PROGRAM JS BACH The Art of Fugue nos. 1, 6 and 9 LV BEETHOVEN String Quartet op.74 “Harp” Anton WEBERN 6 Bagatelles for String Quartet Alexander von ZEMLINSKY String Quartet no.4 More info and bookings
SUNWARD Concordis Chamber Choir invites you to join us for Sunward. Bask in a soul-stirring performance celebrating themes of warmth, serenity and hope. The diverse program showcases the work of several female composers including Laura Mvula’s anthem of resilience Sing to the Moon; Katerina Gimon’s Apple Tree addressing the urgency of the global climate crisis; ... Read more
THE BACH PROJECT Michelle Nicolle has forged a reputation nationally and internationally as a celebrated and creative jazz vocalist-musician. Together with Geoff Hughes on guitar, Tom Lee on bass, and Ronny Fenella on drums, the Michelle Nicolle Quartet (MNQ) has established itself as one of Australia's leading contemporary jazz ensembles since 1999, developing a truly ... Read more
THE JOY OF BAROQUE CELLO Castlemaine cellist Sam Goble and Broadford harpsichodist Peter Hagen present a programme of brilliant Dutch baroque music that is reflective of the great flowering of arts and sciences (not forgetting tulips!) in 17th and early 18th-century Holland. More info and bookings
LIEDER Pianist Andrea Katz, together with selected students from the Conservatorium Vocal Area, present a program of German Lieder masterpieces by Franz Schubert. More info and bookings
VARIATIONS In this captivating program, McIntyre invites listeners to traverse the intricate minds of these composers. Experience Haydn’s delicate deconstruction and rhythmic precision in ‘Variations in F minor, Hob.XV11:6’, Rachmaninoff’s opulent expansion of rhythm and harmony in ‘Variations on a Theme of Corelli, Op.42’ and Brahms’ expressive power and dramatic shifts in ‘Variations and Fugue ... Read more
Join us for this special Morning Music performance by the Invictus Quartet. They will perform a program of beloved string quartet pieces along with a few of their signature surprise arrangements! The Invictus Quartet is a group of four young women who are passionate about connecting with people through music of all genres. They they ... Read more
Harry Egerton (violin) Maurice Ravel and Béla Bartók are two of the finest composers from the modern era of western music: their musical voices are both distinct and utterly identifiable. While original and individual, their music also brings an openness to other soundscapes from around the world. We hear the ethnomusicological interest of both composers ... Read more
Jack Overall (cello) "Throughout this recital I am very excited to spirited and transcendental qualities of the cello. All four works in this program explore those qualities in some sense. Geminiani is brimming with Italian lyricism and effervescence, while Bach is filled with pathos. Then Beethoven enters the last stage of his career with an ... Read more
James Armstrong (violin) "Bach’s Sonata No. 2 in A minor BWV 1003 is spiritually and intellectually provocative. For me, the solo sonatas of Johann Sebastian Bach allow me to explore my musical voice and it’s such a pleasure to be able to find something new in music every time I come back to it, whether ... Read more
TROUT QUINTET WITH A TWIST! One of the most popular works of the chamber repertoire, Schubert’s Trout Quintet is not only delightful, playful and lyrical but profound and friendly. Double bassist Stevie Newton, fresh off his performances as tenor soloist with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will sing Die Forelle (The Trout) in place of the ... Read more
Pianist Aura Go joins Ilya Gringolts for the first time since collaborating at the 2016 Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival in Finland. Their shared passion for contemporary music unites them here in the Australian premiere of modern master Wolfgang Rihm’s Phantom und Eskapade, dedicated to Anne-Sophie Mutter. Rihm’s invocation of the fantastical alludes to the Schumann ... Read more
MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION St John’s welcomes much loved pianist Caroline Almonte for a program of cherished piano chamber music greats. Mozart’s flamboyant, yet dramatic G minor piano quartet is juxtaposed with the might of the Archduke; lyrical, fierce and most noble of Beethoven’s piano trios. More info and bookings
THE SPIRIT OF SONG: MAZURKAS BY CHOPIN & VIARDOT Musical kindred spirits, pianist Frédéric Chopin and mezzo-soprano Pauline Viardot were introduced to each other by their mutual friend, the writer George Sand. Chopin was flattered when Pauline presented him with transcriptions of his mazurkas arranged for voice, set to texts by the poet Louis Pomey. ... Read more
FAUNS AND FORESTS Creatures and trees and rivers and storms, bugs and fairies and dances and fauns! Be introduced to the music of Beethoven’s Pastorale Symphony and Debussy’s Afternoon of a Faun through an exciting interactive kids show with Inventi! Meet the musical instruments, hear the tales of the enchanted forest through the music, and ... Read more
Andrew Crothers (viola) More info and bookings
Shuhei Lawson (cello) "This program consists of some of my favourite works for cello. All pieces are all of different styles, and the composition "Bunraku" is a special one for me, as a reflection of my Japanese heritage." - Shuhei Lawson More info and bookings
LULLABIES Eltham-based pianist/composer Nat Bartsch has long been known for creating meditative, beautiful music that deftly walks a spectrum from classical to jazz. In 2017, Nat became a mother and recorded her acclaimed album of lullabies, Forever, and No Time At All. Her compositions are influenced by music therapy research and her son’s stages of ... Read more
Joseph Kelly (cello) "Join me and embark on a musical journey through time with Bach, Beethoven, and Prokofiev. Experience the genius of each composer from Bach’s intricate beauty to Beethoven’s revolutionary spirit and Prokofiev’s evocative storytelling." - Joseph Kelly More info and bookings
DIVINE INSPIRATION A fearless pioneer in chamber music, Syzygy Ensemble combines virtuosic talent with a bold commitment to today’s music. Lauded for their breathtaking precision and innovative repertoires, the ensemble seeks to spark visceral connections between 21st-century artists and audiences. Divine Inspiration ruminates on the significance of being insignificant. To live with wonder and awe ... Read more
HOPE Eltham-based pianist/composer Nat Bartsch performs her ARIA-nominated ABC Classic album Hope, joined by Lucy Warren (violin) and Charlotte Jacke (cello). Hope is an album for piano, strings and electronics built around Nat’s distinctive blend of gentle melodic improvisation, jazz harmony and cinematic neoclassical composition. The suite was composed in 2020, first with the smell ... Read more
COMMEMORATING BYRD & WEELKES William Byrd and Thomas Weelkes died 400 years ago in 1623 – Byrd in his 80s and Weelkes at age 47. To commemorate these two stalwarts of the repertoire, Ensemble Gombert have curated a program that celebrates a variety of their choral works. The two centrepieces of the program are Byrd’s ... Read more