SABINE MEYER & ALLIAGE QUINTETT

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1341_WESF - Arts Sponsorship Campaign 2014 - Musica Viva_Ad 2015_240x150_V2_UPDATE 03.02.15.indd 1 3/02/15 9:51 AM

1341_WESF - Arts Sponsorship Campaign 2014 - Musica Viva_Ad 2015_240x150_V2_UPDATE 03.02.15.indd 1 3/02/15 9:51 AM

SabineMeyer clarinet Daniel Gauthier soprano saxophone Hayrapet Arakelyan alto saxophone Simon Hanrath tenor saxophone Sebastian Pottmeier baritone saxophone Jang Eun Bae piano

ADELAIDEADELAIDE TOWN HALL THURSDAY 8 MARCH, 7.30PM Presented in association with Adelaide FestivalPre-concert talk, 6.45pm (Prince Alfred Room) CD signing after concert

BRISBANECONSERVATORIUM THEATRE, GRIFFITH UNIVERSITY, SOUTH BANK THURSDAY 1 MARCH, 7PMRecorded for delayed broadcast on 4MBS Classic FMPre-concert talk, 6.30pm (Board Room)Meet the Artists after concert

CANBERRALLEWELLYN HALL, ANU SCHOOL OF MUSIC TUESDAY 6 MARCH, 7PMPre-concert talk, 6.15pm (Athenaeum [foyer])Meet the Artists after concert

MELBOURNEELISABETH MURDOCH HALL, MELBOURNE RECITAL CENTRE TUESDAY 27 FEBRUARY, 7PMPre-concert talk, 6.15pm (Boardroom, Level 2)Meet the Artists after concert

SATURDAY 3 MARCH, 7PM Pre-concert talk, 6.15pm (Boardroom, Level 2)CD signing after concert

NEWCASTLEHAROLD LOBB CONCERT HALL, NEWCASTLE CONSERVATORIUM FRIDAY 23 FEBRUARY, 7.30PMPre-concert talk, 6.45pm (Room 118 – entry via foyer)CD signing after concert

PERTHPERTH CONCERT HALL MONDAY 12 MARCH, 7.30PMPre-concert talk, 6.45pm (Corner Stage, Riverside Terrace Level)Meet the Artists after concert

SYDNEYCITY RECITAL HALL MONDAY 26 FEBRUARY, 7PMRecorded for broadcast on ABC Classic FMPre-concert talk, 6.15pm (Function Room, Level 1)CD signing after concert

SATURDAY 10 MARCH, 2PMPre-concert talk, 1.15pm (Function Room, Level 1)Meet the Artists after concert

Musica Viva is assisted by the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body. Musica Viva is assisted

by the NSW Government through Create NSW.

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ADDITIONALACTIVITYSabine Meyer and the Alliage Quintett will present the following public masterclasses during this tour:

Brisbane (Sabine Meyer): Wednesday 28 February, 6.30–8pm, Ian Hanger Recital Hall, Queensland Conservatorium of Music

Melbourne (Sabine Meyer): Monday 5 March, 6–8pm, Melbourne Recital Centre

Sydney (Sabine Meyer and Daniel Gauthier): Friday 9 March, 4–6pm, Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Perth (Sabine Meyer): Monday 12 March, 10–11.30am, Callaway Music Auditorium, University of Western Australia

Daniel Gauthier will also lead a workhop at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, The University of Melbourne, during the tour.

The Musica Viva Masterclass program is supported by principal patrons Stephen Johns & Michele Bender, Wesfarmers Arts (WA) and Mary Turner oam (Newcastle).

FROMTHEARTISTICDIRECTOR

CARL VINE aoARTISTIC DIRECTOR MUSICA VIVA AUSTRALIA

We last presented the world-famous clarinettist Sabine Meyer on a national concert tour with the Modigliani Quartet in 2011. In just the last year or so Sabine has embarked on an exciting new project with an extraordinary ensemble consisting of four saxophones and a piano, the Alliage Quintett. If you suspect that you’ve never heard music played before with such an oddball ensemble then you’re probably right, and it took the collective visionary genius of the Alliage to bring us this most extraordinary program of orchestral favourites in the most scintillating arrangements imaginable for winds and piano. Most of the music you will recognise, but the arrangements should be entirely unknown as they dance and sparkle in a sensational showcase for these six inspiring musicians.

Bernstein’s Overture to Candide sits happily beside Dukas’ legendary Sorcerer’s Apprentice, while Milhaud’s charming and brilliant Scaramouche heralds Stravinsky’s phantasmagorical fairy tale of The Firebird. Rarely do we get to hear orchestral music in Musica Viva concerts, and I don’t normally

permit arrangements into the rarefied urtext world of chamber music. But the musicianship here is of such high calibre, and the arrangements so dazzling and masterful, that the norms no longer apply to this surprising feast of great repertoire and even greater virtuosity.

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FROMTHECHIEFEXECUTIVEOFFICEROn this tour, our opening for the 2018 International Concert Season, we honour the legacy of three past supporters.

As you will see from their biographies, which appear later in this concert guide, each was a leader in selfless devotion to sharing the chamber music he loved with his communities. Each has been connected with this tour for a particular reason: Steven Kinston for his pioneering of the Brisbane Musica Viva concerts is always paid tribute in the first concert of the year; Graeme Watson from Melbourne was a revered academic in French so we always try to acknowledge his legacy with a program highlighting French repertoire or performers; and Charles Berg’s son, Tony, now Patron of Musica Viva, is a former student of the clarinet.

In each case, the person acknowledged chose to provide a proportion of their estate to Musica Viva to advance our aims in encouraging the love and appreciation of chamber music. At these concerts, their memories burn brightly. They would be pleased to know you have continued their tradition of enjoying the finest chamber music at Musica Viva.

Many of you will already have heard that Carl Vine and I have announced our decisions to step down from the leadership of Musica Viva in a gradual process over the next 18 months, as part of the shared strategic planning with the Board. For each

of us it will be nearly 20 years in our roles and we are hugely proud of all that has been achieved on our watch.

We will be leaving MVA in a strong position on every front and, although we will both be incredibly sad to go, we feel 2019 will be a good time to begin our respective next chapters. Carl will remain to program and launch the 2020 season, Musica Viva’s 75th anniversary.

We both look forward to sharing this wonderful year of music with you and thank you for your continued support.

MARY JO CAPPSCHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER MUSICA VIVA AUSTRALIA

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MEETTHEARTISTS

SABINE MEYER clarinet

projects with the jazz clarinettist Michael Riessler. Her new chamber music project brings her together with the Alliage Quintett, with newly arranged music by composers such as Stravinsky and Dukas showing the brilliant colours of this unusual combination of instruments.

She is a prominent champion for contemporary music – works have been written for her by Jean Françaix, Edison Denisov, Toshio Hosokawa, Niccolò Castiglioni, Manfred Trojahn, Aribert Reimann and Péter Eötvös. In 2015 she premiered a concerto by Márton Illés at the Lucerne Festival.

Sabine Meyer has made numerous recordings for EMI Classics; she has also recorded for Deutsche Grammophon, Sony and Cavi-music. Her recorded repertoire varies from pre-classical to contemporary compositions and includes all the major works for clarinet.

She has received eight Echo Klassik Awards and is a member of Hamburg Academy of Arts. In 2010 she was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French government.

Sabine Meyer was appointed to a professorship at the Hochschule für Musik in Lübeck in 1993. Some of her students, including Julian Bliss, Shirley Brill, Sebastian Manz and Annelien van Wauwe, are starting international careers.

www.sabine-meyer.com

Sabine Meyer is one of the world’s most renowned instrumental soloists. It is partly due to her that the clarinet, a solo instrument previously underestimated, recaptured the attention of the concert platform.

Born in Crailsheim, Germany, she studied with Otto Hermann in Stuttgart and Hans Deinzer in Hanover, then embarked on a career as an orchestral musician and became a member of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. This was followed by an engagement as principal clarinettist at the Berlin Philharmonic, which she abandoned as she became more and more in demand as a soloist. For almost a quarter of a century, numerous concerts and broadcast engagements led her to all the musical centres of Europe, to North America, Japan, China and Australia.

Sabine Meyer has been a much-celebrated soloist with more than 300 orchestras internationally. She has given guest performances with all the top-level orchestras in Germany and has been engaged by the world’s leading orchestras, including the Vienna Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo, Orchestra of Suisse Romande, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and the Radio Orchestras of Vienna, Basel, Warsaw, Prague and Budapest.

Sabine Meyer is particularly interested in the field of chamber music, where she has formed many long-lasting collaborations. She has explored a wide range of chamber repertoire with such colleagues as Juliane Banse, Martin Helmchen, Daniel Hope, Nils Mönkemeyer and the Hagen, Modigliani and Schumann Quartets.

In 1983, with her husband Reiner Wehle and her brother Wolfgang Meyer, she founded Trio di Clarone, exploring some almost forgotten compositions of Mozart and many contemporary works. The trio’s repertoire has been further extended by several innovative

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ALLIAGE QUINTETT

The Alliage Quintett is one of the most creative and successful saxophone ensembles in Europe, incorporating a huge diversity in style, as well as blending different epochs and ways of playing. This approach is captured in their name: alliage is the French term for ‘alloy’, referring to the saxophone being made from an alloy of copper and zinc but also, in the broader sense, describing the musical ideal of five musicians forming one homogeneous whole in their perfectly attuned playing.

The Quintett was founded by Daniel Gauthier, who was the first professor of classical saxophone in Germany (at the Hochschule für Musik Cologne) and is the ensemble’s leader and soprano saxophonist. The ensemble plays regularly all over the world; in the 2017/18 season they return to the US as well as playing in some of the important music centres in Germany including Berlin.

With its unique program, the Alliage Quintett performs successfully on the narrow ridge between subtle chamber music and sophisticated entertainment, and can fill the major concert halls throughout Germany and Europe.

As well as regular radio broadcasts, the ensemble has made six CDs. In 2011 the Quintett started its fairytale journey through Russia with Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite

and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade. With Dancing Paris, the artists created a sweeping album which captures the magical charm of the music in Paris around the turn of the century, with compositions by Erik Satie, Darius Milhaud, George Enescu, Germaine Tailleferre, George Gershwin and Aaron Copland specially arranged for this unique quintet. This CD received the ECHO Klassik award in October 2014 – the second time the group had been so recognised (the first being for the disc Una voce poco fa in 2005).

The CD Fantasia (released on Sony in 2016) brought the Alliage Quintett together with Sabine Meyer. The ensemble’s most recent album, Lost in Temptation, with music by Respighi and Brahms, was released in February this year.

The musicians play on instruments by Henri Selmer Paris and reeds by Vandoren.

www.alliage-quintett.com

This is the first National Tour for Musica Viva Australia by the Alliage Quintett; Sabine Meyer has made one previous tour, with the Modigliani Quartet in 2011.

Daniel Gauthier soprano saxophone Hayrapet Arakelyan alto saxophone Simon Hanrath tenor saxophone Sebastian Pottmeier baritone saxophone Jang Eun Bae piano

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No history of Musica Viva could be written without paying tribute to a man whose enthusiasm for music was unbounded, and who worked tenaciously to see it flourish in Australia – the late Charles J Berg am obe.

Charles was born in Berlin in 1917, the son of a conductor who championed the works of Richard Strauss and Alban Berg. He studied violin, piano and composition, developing a deep love of music from an early age. At 16, the growing tide of antisemitism forced him to leave his studies and undertake an accountancy apprenticeship with a heavy industry firm owned by a Jewish family. This took him to London in 1937, where he became fluent in English.

In September 1937, Charles came to Australia with £200: £50 of his own and £150 borrowed. After a short period in Melbourne, he moved to Sydney, selling his beloved violin for £30 to help finance his new life. While working full time he studied accountancy at night, establishing his own practice in 1945.

On 8 December 1945, Charles attended the first Musica Viva concert at the NSW Conservatorium, never dreaming (he admitted later) that he would be involved with the organisation for so much of his life. Two years later, he joined the Committee of the fledgling company.

Difficult economic circumstances forced Musica Viva into recess from 1951 to 1954, in which year Charles and several local colleagues (including former Patron, the late Kenneth Tribe) each gave £100 as a guarantee to reinstate chamber music presentations by visiting artists. Charles acted as Committee Secretary, keeping a watchful eye on finances as the organisation began to thrive again.

Musica Viva branches were established by volunteers in Melbourne and Adelaide, and an impressive national network developed under Charles’ watchful, often conservative (but never timid) direction. He was President of the Musica Viva Society from 1962. In 1973, he stepped down to take up another challenge – the Chairmanship of The Australian Opera (now Opera Australia). He served with great personal commitment in that voluntary capacity for a record 12 years, weathering with grace the often tumultuous upheavals in any organisation’s growth to maturity.

Throughout his years at the Opera, and after his retirement as Chairman, Charles maintained a keen interest in Musica Viva. His death in 1988 was a loss to the whole Australian arts community.

Charles’ son, Tony Berg am, was Chairman of Musica Viva Australia from 1986 to 1999 and is now the organisation’s Patron.

CHARLESJBERG am obe (1917–1988)

In loving memoryThe Sydney concert on 26 February commemorates Charles J Berg’s contribution for the development of Musica Viva Australia.

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Only a series of undercover arrangements allowed him and his brother to cross the border to freedom.

Upon arriving in Brisbane, he auditioned for the ABC and was accepted on its roster of soloists. He also established a successful dental practice.

The family moved to Sydney many years later, where Steven remained a passionate supporter of Musica Viva and the arts in general. His achievements were made possible through the encouragement of his wife, Lena. Throughout their 53 years together, he was devoted to her and their two children.

Steven’s lifetime commitment to his adopted home was epitomised by one of his favourite sayings: ‘The soul of a country is expressed in its art.’

David Colville

DRSTEVENKINSTON (1908–1996)

The Brisbane concert on 1 March is presented in memory of Dr Steven Kinston.

A dental practitioner and fine pianist, Dr Steven Kinston was one of several European immigrants whose contribution to Australia’s artistic life in the 1950s and 1960s helped transform the soul of the nation.

When he and his younger brother, Paul, arrived in Brisbane in 1938 as Jewish refugees, they found a place where the arts were struggling to gain a foothold. Over the next decade, Steven contributed substantially to Brisbane’s artistic life, founding the local branch of Musica Viva.

Born in 1908 in the small town of Kolomea, Romania, Steven grew up in Czernowicz (Cernau,ti), where antisemitism and discrimination marred his childhood. Despite high intelligence and musical ability, he was barred from any local university. He travelled to Italy, where anti-Jewish feeling was less pronounced, and was welcomed into both the University of Florence and, simultaneously, the Luigi Cherubini Conservatorium of Music. In 1933 he graduated with an unprecedented two degrees: one in medicine, with a speciality in dentistry, and another from the Conservatorium, where he also won a national piano competition.

Steven knew that his family needed to find a new life if they were to survive Mussolini’s alliance with Hitler. He was granted refugee status by Australia, but before emigrating, returned to Romania to say farewell to his parents. The Romanian government immediately conscripted him into the army and prevented him from leaving.

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DRGRAEMEDOUGLASWATSON (1936–2004)

A brilliant scholar, Graeme served for some years on the editorial board of the Australian Journal of French Studies. His own publications, though not many, conveyed acute insights. He also had a wry sense of humour and a sharp wit; but opportunities for others to relish these were rare, for throughout his life he was always extremely shy and self-effacing, and in his latter years became almost a recluse.

Graeme’s attachment to France also extended to the works of French composers. His love of music began early with piano study and regular attendance at Musica Viva concerts in Adelaide. His quiet support of Musica Viva continued during his years in Melbourne and, at his death on 8 November 2004, his will bestowed upon Musica Viva a munificent bequest for its lasting benefit.

Dr Anthea Hyslop and Prof Colin Nettelbeck

Graeme Douglas Watson was born in England on 25 January 1936, the only child of Australian parents. He grew up in Adelaide, where he attended Scotch College and demonstrated outstanding ability, becoming dux of his school in humanities subjects and topping the state in French.

From 1953 to 1956, Graeme studied at the University of Adelaide, graduating with first-class honours in French and German and winning a PhD scholarship to the University of Paris. At the Sorbonne, he earned a mention très honorable for his work on the novels of Romain Rolland.

Upon graduation, Graeme joined the French Department of Britain’s University of Birmingham and was soon promoted to lecturer. He returned to Australia in 1964 to take up a lectureship in the Department of French at the University of Melbourne. He became a senior lecturer and spent the rest of his academic career there.

A benefactor of Musica Viva

The Melbourne performance on 27 February is dedicated to the memory of Dr Graeme Douglas Watson.

For a confidential discussion about making a bequest to Musica Viva or to learn more about our Custodians program, please contact Judy Duffy, Acting Director of Development, on 02 8394 6616 or jduffy@musicaviva.com.au

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‘Fantasia’

PROGRAM

LeonardBERNSTEIN (1918–1990)Overture to Candide (1956) (arr Itai Sobol) 5 min

PaulDUKAS (1865–1935)The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1897) (arr Rainer Schottstädt) 10 min

DmitriSHOSTAKOVICH (1906–1975)From Five Pieces (arr Levon Atovmyan)

I Prelude (from The Gadfly, op 97)

(1955) 2 min

II Gavotte (1933) – no 2 from Ballet

Suite no 3 (1952) 2 min

DariusMILHAUD (1892–1974)Scaramouche (1937) (arr Sebastian Pottmeier) 8 min

I Vif (Quick)

II Modéré (At a moderate pace)

III Brazileira: Mouvement de samba

(Like a samba)

I N T E R VA L

IgorSTRAVINSKY (1882–1971)The Firebird (1910) – Concert Suite for Orchestra no 2 (1919) (arr Sebastian Gottschick) 20 min

I Introduction – The Firebird and its

Dance – Variation of the Firebird

II Round Dance of the Princesses

III Infernal Dance of King Kastchei

IV Berceuse (Lullaby)

V Finale

DmitriSHOSTAKOVICH From Five Pieces (arr Levon Atovmyan)

III Elegie (Elegy) (1933) – no 4

from Ballet Suite no 3 (1952) 3 min

IV Walzer (Waltz) (1936) 2 min

V Polka (1935) – no 4 from

Ballet Suite no 1 (1949) 1 min

AlexanderBORODIN (1833–1887)Polovtsian Dances (1879) from Prince Igor (arr Stéphane Gassot / Camille Pépin) 12 min

I Introduzione: Andantino

(Introduction: At a relaxed

walking pace)

II Allegro vivo (Fast and lively)

III Allegro (Fast)

IV Presto (Very quick)

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ABOUTTHEMUSICcolour known to other instruments’; the piano guarantees ‘full-toned orchestral sonorities’; and the clarinet both stands out – adding solo accents and reaching up to take over the higher registers – and blends in perfectly.

So what we have here is an opportunity to explore the music through the aural lens of a new range of sonorities: a combination of the grandeur of the piano with that special kind of intimacy that comes from sound made of human breath and shaped by human tongues and lips.

LeonardBERNSTEIN(1918–1990)Overture to Candide (1956) (arr Itai Sobol)

When Leonard Bernstein was approached by playwright Lillian Hellman in 1956 to work on Candide, he was so excited that he set aside West Side Story to devote himself to the new project. Voltaire’s story, though 200 years old, seemed the ideal vehicle with which to hit back at McCarthyism: its satirical attacks on the Spanish Inquisition would be easily understood as referring to the House Committee on Un-American Activities, and its mockery of the bland optimism of rival philosopher Leibniz – that everything will turn out for the best, since the world that God made must by definition be the best of all possible worlds – would expose the complacency of Eisenhower’s America.

The plot chronicles the misadventures of the young man Candide and his girlfriend Cunegonde as they are struck by disasters of every kind until, at the last, they abandon the naively positive world view impressed upon them by Candide’s tutor, Dr Pangloss, and settle down to the simple practical tasks of sharing a life together.

Unlike West Side Story, Candide failed to make a lasting impression on the musical theatre stage. Its sparkling Overture, however, has been hugely successful in the concert hall: a musical depiction of cheerful optimism, starting with its fanfare-like opening and continuing in a fairground mood, with an almost Rossini-esque crescendo to the finish.

More, or less? Some ensembles are spoiled for choice. The members of a string quartet, for example, can pass their entire career without ever having to play anything that wasn’t written specifically for their instruments.

A quintet for saxophones and piano, however, is not so well served. The saxophone wasn’t even invented until the 1840s. The Belgian instrument-maker Adolphe Sax was looking for something as powerful as the brass instruments but as subtle and nimble as the winds. He modelled the mouthpiece on the clarinet, and the body on the ophicleide, a kind of bass bugle (tuba-sized, and similarly vertical).

Sax’s new instrument soon became standard in military bands, and its flexibility earned it a place in the world of jazz, though it has never really established itself in the symphony orchestra, despite notable ‘guest appearances’ in works such as Ravel’s Boléro. There are well over 300 original works for saxophone quartet – nowhere near the string quartet tally, but a sizeable repertoire, and growing all the time. So why are we hearing transcriptions here?

Just as a new translation of a well-known text can lead us to question words or phrases we have taken for granted, a piece of music translated from one medium to another can free up our ears to discover new things. So it’s not a question of what has been lost in ‘reducing’ an orchestral work to a chamber piece – and certainly not when it comes to Sabine Meyer and the Alliage Quintett! To quote from the liner notes in their CD Fantasia, the saxophone ‘can assume almost every

Adolphe Sax

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PaulDUKAS(1865–1935)The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1897) (arr Rainer Schottstädt)

Perfectionist Paul Dukas destroyed much of what he composed, and much of what survived languishes unpublished. His ‘symphonic scherzo’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is a household name, thanks largely to its appearance in Disney’s Fantasia, but his other major works – a piano sonata, the opera Ariane et Barbe-bleue and the ballet La Péri are not often performed.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is inspired by Goethe’s poem about a student magician who gets frustrated with the boring and tiring tasks assigned to him by his teacher. He sneaks a look in his master’s books, finds a spell that will command a broom to fetch the water from the stream, and sits back in delight to watch the drudgery being done for him. Unfortunately, he realises too late that he doesn’t know how to stop the spell; the floor is soon awash, the water level is rising and his desperate attempt to kill the broom by chopping it in two with an axe simply doubles the problem when both halves rise up to continue their labour. Only the return of the sorcerer saves the lad from drowning.

The music is highly evocative, but it is also carefully structured. Dukas maps the story onto the elements of sonata form: the shimmering introduction hints at the two themes that will direct the musical journey; the exposition sets these themes out in full – the jaunty but relentless ‘work song’ of the broom, and a tumbling theme that speaks of magic and spells; the development section picks out fragments of the themes to create a maelstrom which overwhelms the terrified apprentice; his axe stroke stops the chaos and allows the recapitulation to begin, and we return to the original broom theme – only to find that it now has a double. The drama emerges from the music just as much as the music emerges from the drama, and if it were possible for us to hear the piece without knowing its title, it would still have us on the edge of our seats.

DmitriSHOSTAKOVICH (1906–1975)From Five Pieces (arr Levon Atovmyan) I Prelude (from The Gadfly, op 97) (1955) II Gavotte (1933) – no 2 from Ballet Suite no 3 (1952)

We’re inclined to expect from Shostakovich music of extremes, especially of anger, pain and grief. This set of five short pieces (performed in this concert in two brackets) shows us a different side of this complex composer: music apparently joyous and carefree.

The Prelude comes from the film score he wrote in 1955 for The Gadfly, a romantic melodrama about a 19th-century Italian revolutionary. Shostakovich had learned the skills of film music from the inside, having worked as a teenager playing the piano for silent films.

The Gavotte and the Elegy both come from music written in 1933 to accompany Balzac’s play The Human Comedy. Shostakovich had had great success the previous year with a production of Hamlet which used sarcasm to criticise the play’s ‘bourgeois’ nature, and it seems he was trying the same strategy here. Unfortunately it failed this time; the play’s run was cut short but Shostakovich was able to recycle these two movements.

The Waltz probably comes from Shostakovich’s music for the cartoon film The Tale of the Priest and His Servant Blockhead. The nearly-finished project was shelved in 1936 – at least partly because of Shostakovich’s involvement, following the official panning of his opera Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District as ‘muddle instead of music’ in a Pravda editorial, which had made Shostakovich persona non grata with the authorities. All but six minutes of the footage was destroyed in a fire during the siege of Leningrad.

The Polka comes from the 1935 ballet The Bright Stream, a comedy set in a collective farm during the harvest festival. The piece was intended to champion the joy of labour by presenting farm workers as Soviet heroes; Shostakovich tried to toe the Party line with

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ABOUTTHEMUSICmusic that was simple, entertaining and easy to understand, and the ballet was a huge success at its Leningrad and Moscow premieres. However, hot on the heels of the Lady Macbeth editorial, Pravda ran a piece called ‘Ballet Falsehood’, which accused The Bright Stream of presenting Soviet farmers as ‘sugary peasants’ from a ‘pre-revolutionary chocolate box’. The choreographer was sacked; the librettist died in prison, and the ballet was not seen again until 2003. Shostakovich never wrote another ballet. Joyous and carefree the music may be, but it brought little joy to its composer.

DariusMILHAUD(1892–1974)Scaramouche (1937) (arr Sebastian Pottmeier) I Vif (Quick) II Modéré (At a moderate pace) III Brazileira: Mouvement de samba (Like a samba)

Scaramouche was first published as a piano duo, written to be performed at the 1937 Paris International Exposition. Pressed for time, Milhaud recycled. The first and last movements were based on passages from a score he had written earlier that year, for a children’s production of Molière’s comedy Le Médecin volant (The Flying Doctor) at the Théâtre Scaramouche. The more thoughtful middle movement he took from his incidental music to a play about the life of the South American revolutionary hero Simon Bolivar. According to the composer, the reworking gave him ‘enormous trouble’, but the finished work was a great success.

The simple, nursery rhyme-like central interlude of the opening movement clearly reflects the work’s original youthful audience, but the movement ends in virtuoso flourishes and there are flashes of bitonality – music sounding in two keys at the same time. The second movement offers eloquent beauty and a breathing space before the exuberant Brazileira finale, its rumba rhythms testimony to the two years Milhaud lived in Rio de Janeiro in his early twenties.

IgorSTRAVINSKY (1882–1971)The Firebird (1910) – Concert Suite for Orchestra no 2 (1919) (arr Sebastian Gottschick) I Introduction – The Firebird and its Dance – Variation of the Firebird II Round Dance of the Princesses III Infernal Dance of King Kastchei IV Berceuse (Lullaby) V Finale

Stravinsky in 1910 was an eagle just beginning to stretch his wings. Newly emerged from the shadow of his beloved teacher, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, who had died just two years before, Stravinsky was still living in St Petersburg, but was starting to look towards Paris and the cosmopolitan circle of impresario Sergei Diaghilev.

Diaghilev had commissioned Stravinsky before, for the relatively straightforward task of orchestrating a couple of Chopin piano pieces as part of the ballet Les Sylphides. Now he was entrusting him with a more formidable task: a completely new ballet score.

The scenario of The Firebird is an amalgam of several Russian fairy tales. Prince Ivan, out hunting in the forest, manages to capture the magical Firebird. He spares her life in exchange for one of her feathers, which he can use to call on her if he should be in danger. Ivan then encounters 13 princesses, playing with golden apples. He falls in love with one of them, but they are all trapped under an enchantment of the evil magician Kastchei, who sends his monstrous servants to attack Ivan. The prince summons the Firebird, who bewitches the monsters into a wild dance, after which they collapse in exhaustion. The Firebird then lulls Kastchei to sleep, and shows Ivan a casket where Kastchei’s soul is hidden inside an egg; Ivan shatters the egg, Kastchei is vanquished and everyone celebrates in a glorious dance of triumph.

Stravinsky’s writing here shows his creative mastery of the Russian school he had studied under Rimsky-Korsakov. There are resonances

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of Tchaikovsky, Liadov, Scriabin and Rimsky-Korsakov himself; folk tunes (borrowed from Rimsky-Korsakov’s own anthology of Russian traditional music); and the striking contrast between unsettlingly dissonant music to represent the magical world and simple, consonant melodies for the human characters was a tradition dating right back to Glinka’s opera Ruslan and Ludmila. But if this is not yet the groundbreaking Stravinsky of Petrushka and The Rite of Spring, it is nevertheless music of extraordinary beauty and power.

DmitriSHOSTAKOVICH (1906–1975)From Five Pieces (arr Levon Atovmyan)

III Elegie (Elegy, no 4 from Ballet Suite no 3) IV Walzer (Waltz) V Polka (no 4 from Ballet Suite no 1)

See page 11.

AlexanderBORODIN (1833–1887)Polovtsian Dances (1879) from Prince Igor (arr Stéphane Gassot / Camille Pépin) I Introduzione: Andantino (Introduction: At a relaxed walking pace) II Allegro vivo (Fast and lively) III Allegro (Fast) IV Presto (Very quick)

Borodin spent nearly 18 years, off and on, working on his opera Prince Igor, and it was left unfinished when he died. He did, however, have a reasonable excuse: a full-time and highly successful career as a research chemist and university lecturer, as well as co-founding Europe’s first medical school for women, in St Petersburg.

One section which Borodin did manage to complete, under pressure of an advertised performance and with significant help on the orchestration from Rimsky-Korsakov and Liadov, was the Polovtsian Dances. This scene comes at the end of Act II: Prince Igor and his Russian soldiers have gone out to wage war on the Polovtsi, but have been defeated and are now prisoners. The Polovtsian leader, Khan Konchak, however, treats his captives with honour, and arranges a grand spectacle of song and dance to entertain them. The festivities open in a strangely subdued mood as the Khan’s slave girls sing with longing of their distant homeland. Thereafter, however, the music is upbeat all the way, with shouts of ‘Hail Konchak!’ and ‘Mighty Khan!’

‘In an opera, as in its sets, tiny forms, details, and trifles must have no place,’ Borodin wrote in 1876. ‘Everything must be written in grand strokes – clearly, brilliantly, and as practically as possible for performance, both for voices and orchestra. The voices must be foremost, the orchestra secondary.’ True to this creed, Borodin’s music for Prince Igor is bold and bright, with melody its guiding force.

© Natalie Shea 2018

Léon Bakst: Firebird, Ballerina costume design, 1910

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16

INTERVIEWWITHSABINEMEYER

‘We all need stories’Once upon a time, in the German town of Lübeck, there lived a famous clarinettist who could paint a thousand colours in music. Her name was Sabine Meyer.

Soon bound for Australia with a program of fairy tales, it seems fitting to picture Meyer amid the gothic towers of an 875-year-old city, talking as she prepares for work at the Lübeck Academy of Music.

She’s held a professorship there since 1993 but her path was set well before then. ‘Music was a given in our family,’ she explains. ‘My father was a pianist, clarinettist and music teacher. My brother also played the clarinet and I really looked up to him, so of course I wanted to learn it, too.’

It wasn’t always clear that the clarinet would prevail. Born in Crailsheim near Stuttgart, Meyer started out learning the violin and promptly won Germany’s major young performer award, Jugend Musiziert, when she was just eleven.

‘I played violin and piano for ten years but sadly, there are only so many hours in the day. You can’t practise piano for five hours and then spend another five on the clarinet. My father felt that I had a special talent for the clarinet, and opportunities arose through youth orchestras and competitions, so everything took off from there.’

It certainly did. In fact, Meyer was soon in such demand that she famously abandoned her coveted position with the Berlin Philharmonic to focus on her solo career. Eight Echo Klassik Awards later, it’s clear that she chose wisely.

On this tour, her fellow storytellers hail from the Alliage Quintett – an ensemble founded by Germany’s first professor for classical saxophone, Daniel Gauthier. Four

saxophones and a piano may not seem an obvious match for the classical clarinet, but then the Alliage Quintett is famed for its unusual collaborations.

‘I was delighted when they approached me with the idea,’ says Meyer. ‘My father played the saxophone and I’m a huge fan. The Alliage Quintett often work with guests like gypsy violinist József Lendvay or Baroque soprano Simone Kermes, so I was excited to see what we’d create together.’ The collaboration has already produced a highly acclaimed CD, Fantasia, which forms the basis for this tour.

‘We thought long and hard about our repertoire,’ reveals Meyer. ‘We could convey so many colours, with four saxophones spanning the range, the piano providing rhythm and structure, and the clarinet adding nuance and virtuosic effects.’

‘We found that pieces like The Sorcerer’s Apprentice or Stravinsky’s Firebird worked especially well and someone suggested ‘fairy tales’ as a common theme. From there, we came up with the title Fantasia – a name understood in many parts of the world.’

But they couldn’t simply order sheet music online: ‘None of the pieces had been performed on this combination of instruments, so they all had to be arranged especially for us,’ she says. ‘The quintet members knew a composer to match each work and they’ve turned out wonderfully. In fact, people often remark that they sound better than the originals!’

The program opens with a nod to Leonard Bernstein, who would have turned 100 this year. ‘To me, he’s the “primal” musician,’ says Meyer. ‘He brought such incredible energy to everything he did.’

The intrigues of Candide then give way to a magical arrangement of Dukas’ Sorcerer’s

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Apprentice: ‘It really distils all the symphonic possibilities of the orchestra,’ she marvels.

Originally for two pianos, Scaramouche is named for a children’s theatre on the Champs-Élysées. ‘There’s an interesting story there,’ she says. ‘Milhaud had just finished Scaramouche when jazz clarinettist Benny Goodman commissioned him to compose a concerto. He duly delivered the score, then waited and waited for a premiere that never came. Finally, he plucked up the courage to ask why, and Goodman admitted that he didn’t like the piece!’

‘Milhaud was mortified. After all, he’d already been paid for the concerto. To make it up to his friend, he prepared an arrangement of Scaramouche for clarinet and orchestra instead. Goodman loved it and it’s been played widely ever since.’

Next, Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite is displayed in full flight thanks to arranger Sebastian Gottschick. ‘It’s all there,’ comments Meyer, ‘and it’s such a tremendously exciting piece to play. So are the Polovtsian Dances by Borodin. Everyone knows them and they really give the clarinet a chance to shine.’

Exquisite works by Shostakovich are the ‘sorbet between the main courses,’ according to Meyer. ‘We play them in smaller groups to add new textures. Shostakovich constantly adapted his own music, so we felt that he’d approve.’

But before the Firebird casts its spell or the Polovtsian maidens dance, Meyer must get her instruments here in perfect condition. That’s a challenge because clarinet reeds are highly sensitive to altitude and humidity. ‘It’s certainly an adventure! I’m taking plenty of materials with me,’ she says. ‘When you get up on stage, you have to be confident that everything works as it should.’

After solo engagements with more than 300 orchestras worldwide, she prefers a lighter concert schedule these days: ‘My students are my priority now, but I couldn’t say no to such a wonderful Australian tour.’

And why do fairy tales still fascinate us? ‘If you have children, you can easily understand their magic,’ she concludes. ‘We all need stories because they let our imaginations run free.’

© Adele Schonhardt 2018

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MELBOURNE INTERNATIONALCHAMBER MUSIC COMPETITION

Competition Producer Principal Partner Grand Prize PartnerStrategic Partners

1–8 JULYMelbourne Recital CentreAustralian National Academy of Music

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The Amadeus Society is a group of passionate music lovers and advocates in Sydney and Melbourne who have joined together to support the extraordinary artistic initiatives of Musica Viva.

Since 2007, their generosity has enabled such artists as Sabine Meyer, Rachel Podger, Maxim Vengerov, Eighth Blackbird and other outstanding international musicians to tour Australia with great success. In 2018, the Society will support the national tour of Tafelmusik.

If you are interested in becoming a member of this unique group of supporters in Melbourne or Sydney, please contact Judy Duffy, Acting Director of Development on (02) 8394 6616.

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MUSICAVIVAPATRONSWe thank the generous individuals and families who make an important contribution to our activities each year. Every gift is important, ensuring that Musica Viva remains at the forefront of artistic excellence and that our award-winning education program continues to reach children who would otherwise have no access to the inspirational experience of live music. To make a gift to Musica Viva, please contact Callum Close on (02) 8394 6636 or cclose@musicaviva.com.au

ACTGeoffrey & Margaret BrennanThe late Ernest Spinner

NSWThe late Sibilla BaerThe late Charles BergThe late Dr Anthony J BookallilCatherine Brown-Watt psm & Derek WattLloyd & Mary Jo CappsAndrew & Felicity CorkillThe late Moya Jean CraneLiz GeeSuzanne GleesonThe late Janette HamiltonDavid & Christine HartgillThe late Margaret HedvigThe late Dr Ralph Hockin, in memory of Mabel HockinThe late Irwin ImhofElaine Lindsay

The late Joyce MarchantThe late Suzanne MellerThe late Dr Bela MezoTrevor NoffkeThe late Michael RobinsonThe late John RobsonDr David SchwartzThe late Alison TerryThe late Kenneth W Tribe ac

Mary Vallentine ao

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Ray Wilson oam

The late Elisabeth WynhausenAnonymous (3)

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SAThe late Ms K Lillemor AndersenThe late Patricia Baker

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People who have notified us of their intention to leave a gift to Musica Viva in their will are part of a very special group of Musica Viva Custodians. A bequest to Musica Viva will enable us to continue presenting performances of the highest quality to the widest range of audiences across Australia, well into the future. To discuss, in confidence, a bequest gift, please contact Callum Close on (02) 8394 6636 or cclose@musicaviva.com.au

MUSICA VIVA CUSTODIANS

Julian Burnside ao qc (President, Melbourne) & Kate DurhamRuth Magid (Chair, Sydney) & Bob MagidTony Berg am & Carol BergMarc Besen ac & Eva Besen ao

Ms Jan Bowen am

Tom Breen & Rachael KohnDi Bresciani oam

David Constable am & Dr Ida LichterDr Cyril CurtainDaryl & Kate DixonDr Helen FergusonMs Annabella FletcherEleanore GoodridgeKatherine & Reg GrinbergJennifer Hershon & Russell Black

Penelope HughesJacqueline HuieAndrew JohnstonMichael & Frederique KatzThe Hon. Jane Mathews ao

Isobel Morgan oam

Prof. John RickardPru RobertsBarbara RowleyRay Wilson oam

The Amadeus Society exists to help bring the excitement and inspiration of the world’s most extraordinary musicians to Australian audiences. In 2017, the Society supported the national tours of Eighth Blackbird and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment & Rachel Podger. This year, the Society is proud to support the national tour of Tafelmusik. To learn more about the Amadeus Society and how you can help bring some of the world’s leading international artists to Australia, please contact Judy Duffy on (02) 8394 6616 or jduffy@musicaviva.com.au

AMADEUS SOCIETY

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MUSICAVIVAPATRONSMAJOR GIFTSNSW$100,000 +The Berg Family Foundation Katherine Grinberg in honour of Adrienne Nagy & Yolanda (Nagy) Daniel

$20,000 – $99,999Eleanore GoodridgeTom & Elisabeth Karplus Michael & Frederique KatzRuth & Bob MagidThe Hon. Jane Mathews ao

The late Michael RobinsonAnthony Strachan Jo Strutt Kim Williams am

Ray Wilson oam in memory of James Agapitos oam

$10,000 – $19,999Anne & Terrey Arcus am Ruth Armytage am John B Fairfax ao

Charles & Wallis Graham Hilmer Family Endowment Vicki Olsson Edward & Anne SimpsonDavid & Carole Singer SW Trading

Geoffrey White oam & Sally White oam

Anonymous (2)

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SA$20,000 +Anonymous (1)

$10,000 – $19,999Aldridge Family EndowmentDay Family Foundation

Lang FoundationMarsden Szwarcbord FoundationP M Menz Anonymous (1)

$5,000 – $9,999Mark Lloyd & Elizabeth Raupach

VIC$20,000 +Anonymous (1)

$10,000 – $19,999Julian Burnside ao qc

Monica Lim & Konfir Kabo

$5,000 – $9,999Di Bresciani oam & Lino Bresciani Elizabeth & Anthony BrookesDoug & Ross Hooley in memory of Beryl Hooley Peter LovellJan MinchinGreg Shalit & Miriam Faine Stephen Shanasy Wendy Taylor

WA$20,000 +Anonymous (1)

$10,000 – $19,999Deborah Lehmann & Michael Alpers

MASTERCLASSESMusica Viva’s Masterclass program is supported by principal patrons Stephen Johns & Michele Bender, Wesfarmers Arts (WA) and Mary Turner oam (Newcastle).

THE HILDEGARD PROJECT in support of women in compositionThis project is made possible by a generous gift from Katherine Grinberg in honour of the late Adrienne Nagy and her sister Yolanda (Nagy) Daniel.

Friends of Peter Burch am bm

Julian Burnside ao qc

Carnegie Hall

The Huntington Estate Music Festival CollectiveSeattle Commissioning Club

The Silo CollectiveJohn & Jo StruttKim Williams am

KEN TRIBE FUND FOR AUSTRALIAN COMPOSITION

$20,000 +Beth Brown & Tom Bruce am

Marjorie Nicholas, Patron of the Artistic Director

$10,000 – $19,999Roger Druce & Jane BentleyThe Morawetz Family in memory of Paul Morawetz

$5,000 – $9,999Joanna Baevski Peter LovellMusica Viva Victorian State CommitteeMyer Family Foundation

$500 – $4,999Mary & Arnold BramProject 11Bibi & David WilkinsonAnonymous (1)

MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER MUSIC COMPETITION

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ACT

$2,500 – $4,999Kristin van Brunschot & John HollidayAnonymous (2)

$1,000 – $2,499Dr Marian Hill Margaret & Peter Janssens Garth Mansfield oam & Margaret Mansfield oam Margaret Oates Sue Packer Craig Reynolds Dr Andrew Singer Sue Terry & Len Whyte Margot Woods & Arn Sprogis Anonymous (3)

$500 – $999Geoffrey & Margaret Brennan Dudley & Helen CreaghJudith HealyKingsley Herbert Vivien & Roger Hillman Elspeth Humphries Claudia Hyles Margaret Lovell & Grant Webeck Robyn McKay Helen Rankin Clive & Lynlea Rodger Dr Paul & Dr Lel Whitbread Anonymous (2)

NSW

$2,500 – $4,999Tony Berg am & Carol BergNeil BurnsBrian Cohen in memory of Sue Cohen John & Irene Garran Prof. Iven Klineberg am rfd & Mrs Sylvia Klineberg Kevin & Deidre McCann Alexandra Martin Mary Turner oam

Kay Vernon Dr Elizabeth Watson

$1,000 – $2,499Judith Allen Andrew Andersons ao & Sara Bennett Penny BeranBaiba Berzins The Boyarsky FamilyCatherine Brown-Watt psm & Derek WattMr & Mrs N K Brunsdon Robert Cahill & Anne Cahill oam Lloyd & Mary Jo Capps Yola & Steve Center David Constable am & Dr Ida LichterStefan CouaniIn memoriam Glendon Coulton Greg Dickson & Penny Le CouteurSarah & Tony Falzarano Kate Girdwood Cathy GrayIn loving memory of Jose Gutierrez Hope HanksRobert & Lindy Henderson Dorothy Hoddinott ao Elaine IrwinAngela IslesErvin & Judy KatzLeta Keens Mrs W G Keighley Catherine & Robert Kench Robert McDougall D M & K M Magarey Dr Dennis Mather & Mr John Studdert Michael & Mary Whelan Trust Mora MaxwellMusica Viva StaffPaul O’Donnell Andrew PageRoslyn Renwick

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$500 – $999Greta ArchboldDr Jennifer ArnoldMrs Kathrine Becker Gay Bookallil Stephen BoothJennifer Bott ao

Denise Braggett Maxine Brodie Hilary & Hugh Cairns Lucia Cascone Anna Cerneaz Michael & Colleen Chesterman Callum Close & James Tolhurst Caroline & Douglas CoulsonPamela Cudlipp Robin & Wendy Cumming Charles DavidsonGreta DavisCatherine Ellis & Alexander Drake Dr Arno Enno & Dr Anna EnnoMrs Noelene FerrierMr Robert Green Anthony Gregg & Deanne Whittleston Deryn GriffithsNeil & Pamela HardieRohan HaslamSandra Haslam Roland & Margaret Hicks

John & Barbara HirstDr Ailsa Hocking & Dr Bernie WilliamsHoffman & Koops LawyersHoward & Brigitte InsallDavid & Jennifer Jacobs Owen James Dr Esther JanssenLeslie KennedyGraham & Sue Lane Ian & Pam McGawProf. Kenneth McKinnon & Sue Walker A & E Marshall Timothy Matthies & Chris Bonnily Donald Nairn Professors Robin & Tina OfflerKim & Margie OstingaDiane Parks Merry & Robert PearsonChristina Pender The late Beryl Raymer The late Milton RenhamPaul & Marion RichmondPenny Rogers David & Mary-Anne RoseMs Vivienne SharpeShane Simpson am & Danielle SimpsonKim Slater Lidia StojanovskiRichard & Beverley TaperellTim & Vincie Trahair Douglas & Pamela TribeChristopher Whitehead & Peter Wilson Megan & Bill Williamson Brian & Fiona WilsonAnonymous (9)

QLD

$2,500 – $4,999Lyn Hamill & Ian Dover Andrew & Kate Lister

VIRTUOSI

MUSICAVIVAPATRONS

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$1,000 – $2,499George Booker & Denise BondIn memory of Anna ClendinningRobin Harvey Jocelyn LuckB & D Moore Debra & Patrick Mullins Dr Nita Vasilescu Michelle Wade & James Sinclair Anonymous (4)

$500 – $999Marie IsacksonLynn & John KellyM F Lejeune Joanne Rennick Dr Nancy UnderhillBarbara Williams & Jankees van der Have Anonymous (1)

SA

$2,500 – $4,999H & I Pollard

$1,000 – $2,499Ivan & Joan Blanchard The Hon D J & Mrs E M Bleby Beverley A Brown Dr David Bullen John & Libby Clapp Peter CliftonAnna Cox oam

Dr Michael DrewLorraine DrogemullerBrian L Jones oam Bronwen L Jones Fiona MacLachlan oam

Ruth Marshall & Tim Muecke Ann & David Matison Ms Judy Potter Trish & Richard Ryan ao Tony & Joan Seymour STARSRobert & Glenys Woolcock Anonymous (3)

$500 – $999Richard Blomfield

Christopher & Margaret BurrellJosephine Cooper Raymond & Jenny Greet Dr E H & Mrs A Hirsch Elizabeth Ho oam in honour of the late Tom Steel Alison Kinsman am Jenny & Christopher Legoe Skye McGregor Galina Mikhailovna PodgoretskyMichael SteeleJune & Brian Ward Jim & Ann Wilson Ann Woodroffe

VIC

$2,500 – $4,999Alastair & Sue CampbellCarrillo Gantner ao Peter Griffin am & Terry SwannLyndsey & Peter HawkinsMegan O’ConnorRalph & Ruth Renard Maria Sola Helen Vorrath

$1,000 – $2,499Russ & Jacqui BateHelen BrackAlison & John Cameron Mrs Maggie Cash Caroline & Robert ClementeTom Cordiner Virginia Henry Helen Imber & Ian Proctor John V Kaufman qc Irene Kearsey & Michael Ridley June K Marks Murray Sandland Sally SimpsonHywel Sims Ray Turner & Jennifer Seabrook

Dr Victor & Dr Karen Wayne Anonymous (6)

$500 – $999Dr William Abud Wendy & Michael BertramPat BurkeJohn & Mandy Collins Dr Cyril CurtainDr Judy Davey Dhar Family Lord & Lady Ebury Geoffrey & Mary Gloster Brian Goddard Barbara HamerDr Anthea Hyslop Nola JenningsAngela Kayser Diana LempriereRowena & Richard McDonaldJane MorrisDennis & Fairlie NassauGreg J Reinhardt Jacques & Susan Rich Prof. John RickardEda Ritchie am Dr Charles Su & Dr Emily LoMrs Suzy & Dr Mark Suss Philip ThielJennifer Whitehead Anna & Mark Yates Anonymous (1)

WA

$2,500 – $4,999Alan & Anne Blanckensee David Cooke David Wallace & Jamelia Gubgub

$1,000 – $2,499Alan Dodge & Neil Archibald Ms Helen Hollingshead & Mr John HollingsheadFreda & Jim Irenic

Anne Last & Steve Scudamore M E M Loton oam Mrs Frances Morrell Prichard Panizza FamilyMargaret & Rodger SearesElizabeth Syme Robyn Tamke Anonymous (3)

$500 – $999David & Minnette AmbroseHarry Anstey Fred & Angela Chaney S CherianRodney ConstantineNerida Dilworth am In memory of Raymond Dudley Dr Penny Herbert in memory of Dunstan Herbert Mr Graham Lovelock & Mr Steve Singer Megan Lowe Geoffrey MasseyJenny Mills in memory of Flora Bunning John Overton Betty Smith-GanderCisca SpencerEllie Steinhardt Christopher TylerMargaret Wallace Anonymous (2)

If you have any questions about this list, please contact Johanna Rosenthal on 1300 786 186 or jrosenthal@musicaviva.com.au

This list is complete as at 6 February 2018.

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MUSICAVIVACONCERTPARTNERS

MEDIA PARTNER GOVERNMENT PARTNERSMusica Viva is assisted by the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body. Musica Viva is assisted by the NSW Government through Create NSW.

BUSINESS PARTNERS

Law Firm Partner Chartered Accountants Partner Piano Partner

SERIES AND TOUR PARTNERS

Perth Concert Series Coffee Concert Series

HOTEL PARTNERS ARTS & HEALTH PARTNER

WINE PARTNERS

ACT Wine Partner NSW & QLD Wine Partner SA Wine Partner

VIC Wine Partner WA Wine Partners Champagne Partner

FUTUREMAKERS PARTNERS

Berg Family Foundation

MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER MUSIC COMPETITION PARTNERS

Principal Partner Strategic Partners Hotel Partner Wine Partner

Grand Prize Partner Prize Partners Car Partner

Untitled-1 1 8/02/2018 1:10 pm

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MUSICAVIVAEDUCATIONPARTNERS

ACT NT

MUSICA VIVA IN SCHOOLS Digital Innovation National Partner

QLD TAS

NSW VIC

Hamer Family Fund In memory of Anita Morawetz

M S Newman Family FoundationBallandry (Peter Griffin Family)

FundThe Marian &

E H Flack TrustGodfrey Turner

Memorial Music Trust

SA WA

Aldridge Family Endowment Carthew Foundation

Day Family Foundation FWH Foundation

Lang Foundation Marsden Szwarcbord Foundation

Coopers Brewery Foundation

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STORIESTOINSPIRE

The future of international chamber music comes to Melbourne in July

There’s nothing quite as thrilling as a competition, especially when it’s housed in Melbourne. Home to some of the world’s leading competitions of the sporting kind, every four years the city also plays host to a gathering of the world’s top young ensembles as they compete for the Grand Prize at the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition.

This year, for the first time in the Competition’s long history, Musica Viva assumes responsibility for producing the event, which will take place on 1–8 July 2018. Supported by strategic partners at

the Australian National Academy of Music and the Melbourne Recital Centre, Musica Viva will welcome 16 ensembles from eight different countries (including two from Australia) to compete for the largest pool of prizes yet seen in the Competition.

‘There are several points of peak excitement during the build up to MICMC, but surely the most exciting milestone is the selection of the competitors,’ says Wilma Smith, Artistic Director of the Competition. ‘For the first time, applications were made totally online, including videos of the required repertoire. For the panel of three

Giocoso String Quartet, winners of the Musica Viva and Audience Prizes at the 2015 Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition

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preliminary adjudicators, the quality and diversity of entries made it extremely difficult to select just 16 groups.’

The selected string quartets are the Gildas Quartet (UK), the Baum Quartett (South Korea), the Callisto Quartet (USA), the Eliot Quartett (Austria / Russia / Germany), the Goldmund Quartet (Germany), the Idomeneo String Quartet (Belgium / Hungary / Spain), Quatuor Agate (France) and the Thaleia Quartet (Japan).

The talented trios are the Amatis Piano Trio (Netherlands / Germany / UK), the Bukolika Piano Trio (Poland), the Clarendon Trio (Australia), the Merz Trio (Australia / USA), the Mosa Trio (Netherlands / Belgium), Trio Gaon

(Germany / South Korea), Trio Marvin (Russia / Kazakhstan / Germany) and Trio Sora (France / Latvia).

A stellar jury awaits them, featuring Sonia Simmenauer, director of a leading international chamber music agency; Melbourne pianist and composer Ian Munro; Simin Ganatra, first violinist of the Pacifica Quartet; Gerhard Schulz, former second violinist of the Alban Berg Quartet; Yura Lee, solo violist and first violinist of the Enso Quartet; Alasdair Tait, cellist and Chief Executive and Artistic Director of the Young Classical Artists Trust (YCAT), and Kyril Zlotnikov, cellist with the Jerusalem Quartet.

The eighth Competition is made possible by a wonderful and dedicated group of donors and volunteers, some of whom have supported every gathering in the Competition’s 32-year history. Major underwriting is provided by the State of Victoria, in recognition of the Competition’s unique place in the music world. For the first time, the University of Melbourne Conservatorium of Music is sponsoring the Grand Prize, while all other prizes have been made possible by families, foundations, corporate supporters and individuals. A full list appears on pages 21 and 24 in this guide.

The Competition’s founder, Marco van Pagee, envisioned a local chamber music scene nourished and nurtured by the event. When asked about her aspirations for the Competition, Wilma Smith said, ‘It’s simple. I want this to be the best chamber music competition in the world.’

Subscriptions for the eighth Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition are now available. For bookings, donations and more information visit www.musicaviva.com.au/competition

Giocoso String Quartet, winners of the Musica Viva and Audience Prizes at the 2015 Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition

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When performance is your passionQueensland Conservatorium continues to produce musical theatre professionals of the highest calibre.

From 2018, we are proud to also offer a Bachelor of Acting, with study across a range of genres, ensemble work, technique classes, acting for camera, industry-led workshops and public performances.

Find your place on the world stage.

griffith.edu.au/acting | griffith.edu.au/musicaltheatre

Every Sunday and Tuesday nights be transported with the best orchestral music from around the world.

Check your Foxtel guide for more details.

foxtelarts.com.au @FoxtelArts