2 012 S E A S O N

Thu 6 September 1.30pmFri 7 September 8pm Sat 8 September 2pm

Symphony for the Common Man

Copland’s Third Symphony

Thursday Afternoon Symphony

Emirates Metro Series

Great Classics

Welco me to the Em i rates Metro Ser i es

HH She i kh Ahmed B i n Saeed Al-Ma kto um

Cha i rman and Chi e f Executive

Em i rates Ai r l i ne a nd Gro up

The Sydney Symphony is a fi rst-class orchestra in one of the world’s most beautiful cities, and Emirates, as a world-class airline, is proud to be Principal Partner for another year. 2012 is a particularly special year – a cause for double celebration as the Sydney Symphony celebrates its 80th anniversary and we share our 10-year partnership.

A First Class experience is always a memorable one. Whether it be exiting your personal Emirates chauffeur-driven car at the airport, ready to be whisked away to the Emirates lounge, or entering a concert hall for an unforgettable night of music, the feeling of luxury and pleasure is the same.

Emirates in Australia has gone from strength to strength. Our growing network now features 29 exciting European destinations to be explored, including Geneva, Copenhagen and St Petersburg, launched in 2011; and most recently Dublin in January this year.

In 2012 we are proud to offer 70 fl ights per week from Australia to our hub in Dubai, as well as an additional 28 fl ights per week trans-Tasman. Flying from Sydney to Auckland with Emirates is a unique experience. We operate our state-of-the-art Airbus A380 superjumbo on this route, which offers all the luxuries that you have come to expect from Emirates – from chauffeur-driven transfers and priority check-in and world-class lounges for our Business and First Class customers, to a gourmet food and wine experience once on board, plus over 1000 channels of entertainment.

We are delighted to continue our support of the Sydney Symphony and Sydney as a whole, through sponsorships such as the Emirates Australian Open. We look forward to working with the orchestra throughout this special celebratory year, to showcase the best of the best when it comes to both music and luxury travel.

2012 seasonthursday afternoon symphonyThursday 6 September, 1.30pmemirates metro seriesFriday 7 September, 8pmgreat classicsSaturday 8 September, 2pm

Sydney Opera House Concert Hall

Symphony for the Common ManRobert Spano CONDUCTOR

Ian Cleworth, Timothy Constable, Rebecca Lagos, Colin Piper and Mark Robinson PERCUSSION

Claude Debussy (1862–1918)Prélude à ‘L’Après-midi d’un faune’(Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun)

Toru Takemitsu (1930–1996)From me fl ows what you call Timefor fi ve percussionists and orchestra

INTERVAL

Aaron Copland (1900–1990)Third SymphonyMolto moderato. With simple expressionAllegro moltoAndantino quasi allegrettoMolto deliberato (Fanfare) – Allegro risoluto

Friday night’s performance will be recorded for later broadcast by ABC Classic FM.

Pre-concert talk by Genevieve Lang in the Northern Foyer, 45 minutes before each performance. Visit bit.ly/SSOspeakerbios for speaker biographies.

Estimated durations: 10 minutes, 35 minutes, 20-minute interval, 43 minutesThe concert will conclude at approximately 3.35pm (Thu), 10.05pm (Fri), 4.05pm (Sat).

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View the ozalid piano score

http://bit.ly/Copland3Finale

Half an hour into his Third Symphony, Aaron Copland fi nally introduces the famous motif from his Fanfare for the Common Man – the effect is all the more thrilling in being given to the fl utes, playing

softly. Click the link above to view the beginning of the fi nale in piano score.

The ozalid piano score of the symphony is held in the Aaron Copland Collection of the Library of Congress and the complete score can be viewed online:

http://bit.ly/Copland3rdPianoScore

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INTRODUCTION

Symphony for the Common ManIn the last fi fteen minutes of this concert we’ll get to play, and you will hear, one of the most famous motifs in American music, the opening theme from Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man. It won’t ring out in the brass with thundering timpani – at least not at fi rst. Instead it will enter quietly, on the fl utes, and build from there. It’s a thrilling moment all the same – fully worth the hour and forty-fi ve minute wait.

But here’s the irony, when Copland composed his Third Symphony in 1946, the Fanfare was only a few years old. No television network had chosen it as a theme tune, the Rolling Stones were yet to adopt it as entrance music, the Atlanta Olympics were a long way off … The Fanfare – composed as an occasional piece during war time – was by no means famous. Copland ensured its survival by including it in what was eff ectively the Great American Symphony, only to see it eclipse the larger work in sheer popularity.

Whether by chance or by cunning design, fl utes play a key role in this concert. They introduce the Fanfare in the fi nale of Copland’s symphony. A single fl ute plays the haunting, long-breathed opening of Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun – a suggestion of pan pipes perhaps? Another fl ute solo begins Takemitsu’s From me fl ows what you call Time – here the sound evokes the traditional shakuhachi of Japan.

The Takemitsu is meditative, almost zen-like – not the fi rst quality you’d expect from a work with fi ve percussion soloists – and it off ers scope for visual and well as aural contemplation. The composer carefully specifi es the things we’ll see and the arrangement of the space as well as the sounds that we hear. Listening to this immersive music immediately after Debussy’s groundbreaking work reveals just how closely Takemitsu was infl uenced by the French composer. The impressions and poetry of the fi rst half of the program provide a foil for the epic nobility of Copland’s symphony in the second, and yet all three works share a common heritage. Not everything the orchestra

does takes place on the Sydney Opera House concert platform – for Sydney Symphony news and profi les of the musicians, turn to Bravo!, a regular feature at the back of the program books, with nine issues a year. If you miss an issue, visit sydneysymphony.com/bravo

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ABOUT THE MUSIC

Keynotes

DEBUSSYBorn St Germain-en-Laye, 1862Died Paris, 1918

In the process of establishing a palpably ‘French’ musical style, Debussy brought about the birth of modern music. He first heard the sound of gamelan music at the Paris Exposition of 1889, and this prompted him to adopt non-traditional scales and free-floating effects. He explored new instrumental and harmonic colours, and his style has often been linked with Impressionism in visual art, even though he himself hated the term.

THE AFTERNOON OF A FAUN

Debussy’s Prélude… was inspired by Mallarmé’s poem of the same name. The text is elusive and ‘blurred’, which fitted well with Debussy’s goal of forming a fresh musical language against the traditions and structures of German Romanticism (the world of Beethoven and his successors). Although Debussy was wary about comparisons between his music and the visual arts, instrumental colour is one of the most important and distinctive aspects of his style.

Claude Debussy Prélude à ‘L’Après-midi d’un faune’(Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun)

Pierre Boulez once said that modern music awoke with the premiere of Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun. On 22 December 1894, in the Salle d’Harcourt, Paris, the faun’s fl ute ushered in a new world of structure, rhythm, harmonic relations and colour, and perhaps, more than any other single work, reoriented the development of music in the succeeding century.

Debussy’s tone poem is based on Stéphane Mallarmé’s symbolist poem L’Aprés-midi d’un faune of 1876. Though Ballets Russes choreographer Vaslav Nijinsky was able to extract a storyline from Mallarmé’s atmospheric verse, it was Mallarmé’s deliberately blurred descriptions which appealed most to Debussy in the fi rst place.

Those nymphs, I want to perpetuate them. So bright,Their light rosy fl esh, that it fl utters in the airDrowsy with tangled slumbers. Did I love a dream?My doubt, hoard of ancient night, draws to a closeIn many a subtle branch, which, themselves remaining truewood, prove, alas! that all alone I off eredMyself as a triumph the perfect sin of roses.

Léon Bakst’s design for Nijinsky’s ballet (1912) on Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun.

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The elusiveness of Mallarmé’s text inspired Debussy in his attempt to escape the emphatic and assertive music of the German Romantic masters, and uncover new means of musical narrative.

Debussy’s desire to avoid the ‘polychromatic putty’ of some of the scores of 19th-century giants such as Wagner can be heard in the exposure of individual instrumental sonorities. The opening bars for example are left to the solo fl ute. A single sustained discord on clarinets and oboes followed by a weaker discord on muted lower strings underlies a mere hint of movement from French horns and a fl eeting wash of colour from the harp. Bold declamatory assertions are gone. After the opening ‘action’ there is a bar of silence. Then the minimal gestures simply resume. No concrete sense of a beat has been established. Within four bars Debussy has circumvented the periodically recurring downbeat, and escaped the ‘tyranny of the bar line’.

It is easy to see why Debussy allowed his music to be considered pointillistic (though this was mainly to counter the label of Impressionism): dabs of colour piece the opening together; there is no opening rhetorical statement. This music is not going to be argumentative, like symphonic music. More obvious overall form does become apparent later in the piece – the work could be considered to be in a broad ternary form with the accompanied repetition of the Faun melody after the more ‘passionate’ middle section – but it is important to note that this form is not enunciated, as of old, by the sculptured relationship of clear-cut tonalities.

It has been claimed that Debussy alone among the musicians of his time heard the music of the Javanese and Annamese musicians at the Paris World Exhibition in 1889 as speaking intimately to him. Perhaps this was because he, uniquely among his European peers, was ready to conceive of a music that was free from the conventions of the Austro-Germanic symphonic tradition. Debussy’s music, when it was fi rst heard, was considered ‘vague’, ‘insubstantial’, even ‘morbid’ – but that is an understandable complaint from those who had not yet adjusted to a new range of aesthetic values.

GORDON KALTON WILLIAMSSYMPHONY AUSTRALIA ©1997Excerpt from Mallarmé’s Afternoon of a Faun translated by ALAN EDWARDS

Debussy’s Prélude… calls for three flutes, two oboes, cor anglais, two clarinets and two bassoons; four horns; percussion (crotales); two harps and strings.

The Prélude… was first performed on 22 December 1894 in Paris, Gustave Doret conducting. The Sydney Symphony first performed it in 1941 under Percy Code, and most recently in 2009 in concerts conducted by John Nelson and Benjamin Northey. It was also one of the works in David Robertson’s Colour of Time lecture-concert in 2008.

…the faun’s flute ushered in a new sound world…

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Toru Takemitsu From me flows what you call Time for fi ve percussionists and orchestra

The composer writes…

The words ‘From me fl ows what you call Time’ come from a poem by Makoto Ooka entitled Clear Blue Water (translated into English by Ooka and Thomas Fitzsimmons). I fi rst read this poem after I had been commissioned by Carnegie Hall to compose a work in commemoration of its 100th anniversary. When I read the words ‘From me fl ows what you call Time’, I suddenly imagined one hundred years of time fl owing through the man-made space, so full of special meaning, called Carnegie Hall. It was as if I could hear the Hall murmuring from the numberless cracks between the layers of those years, ‘From me fl ows what you call Time’. Thus, the ‘me’ in the title is meant to be ‘Carnegie Hall’, not the composer.

The terms of the commission from Carnegie Hall were that I compose a work for the percussion group Nexus and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In From me fl ows what you call Time, the number fi ve is dominant and aff ects the construction of the entire work. The principal motif is composed of fi ve tones within a perfect fi fth, which gives birth to various sub-species as the work progresses. Nexus is made up of fi ve superb musicians. I based my decision to use the number fi ve as the keynote of the composition more than anything else on these fi ve individual performers.

As soon as I had chosen the number fi ve as the principal motif of the work, I immediately recalled the Tibetan ‘Wind Horse’ (rlung-rta). The ‘Wind Horse’ is a custom observed by the highland nomads of Tibet when they migrate in search of new land. Used like divination during a ceremony, it consists of fi ve cloth streamers, each a diff erent colour, strung up on a rope, and left to wave in the wind. Blown by the seasonal winds, the myriad wind-horses then point out the way the nomads must take to fi nd the location of their new life.

The fi ve colours of the cloth streamers – white, blue, red, yellow, green – each have separate meanings, and are the same as the colours emitted by the fi ve Buddhas who sit at the centre of a mandala. Blue is the symbol of water, red of fi re, yellow of the earth, green of the wind, and white, as the colour created by combining the other four, signifi es the sky, the air, the heavens, and fi nally ‘nothingness’.

In this work the role of each of the fi ve soloists corresponds to one of the fi ve colours of the ‘Wind Horse’.

Keynotes

TAKEMITSUBorn Tokyo, 1930Died Tokyo, 1996

Toru Takemitsu was largely self-taught as a composer, beginning his studies during convalescence from tuberculosis. He heard his first Western music during military service in the mid-1940s: a recording of a French song ‘Parlez-moi d’amour’, which prompted him to seek out more Western music and take up composition. The result is a creative voice within the Western tradition but deeply influenced by traditional Japanese music. He claimed French composer Claude Debussy as a mentor and, like Debussy, he was fascinated by instrumental sounds and colour effects. In 1959 Stravinsky heard and admired Takemitsu’s Requiem for strings, bringing him international attention.

FROM ME FLOWS WHAT YOU CALL TIME

The ‘me’ of the title is a space – Carnegie Hall – and this work was composed to celebrate the hall’s centenary. It was dedicated to the percussion ensemble Nexus, for whom it remains a signature work, and Takemitsu’s friend, the conductor Seiji Ozawa.

This visually stimulating work features a vast array of percussion instruments, both familiar and exotic. Most striking of all is the way chimes are suspended high in the auditorium and controlled by coloured ribbons. The music is performed without a pause but is in 13 sections, which Takemitsu names at the end of his program note.

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‘The ruling emotion of the work is one of prayer.’TAKEMITSU

Each soloist exists as part of an invisible whole, even while retaining his or her own individuality. For this reason, they are stationed so that they surround the orchestra, and perform on instruments suitable to their roles.

Although From me fl ows what you call Time was composed in celebration of the signifi cant 100-year history of Carnegie Hall, it diff ers considerably in mood from the superfi cial intensity and liveliness of the usual percussion concert. I have a preference for peaceful music, and at present I want to let people listen only to music I myself would wish to hear.

Because the fi ve solo performers individually assume an important role, this work is not an ordinary concerto. It is an orchestral work in which the orchestra, like nature, surrounds us limitlessly, and out of that limitlessness the soloists materialise in limited forms such as earth, wind, water and fi re, then once again dissolve into limitless nature. The ruling emotion of the work is one of prayer. And because it both stimulates and is sustained by the performers’ spontaneity, the work will always materialise in a diff erent shape (or sound) whenever it is performed.

Although From me fl ows what you call Time is performed straight through without a break, structurally speaking it has several parts. As a guide to the audience, I have drawn up a list of words indicating these sections, which have been written down here and there in the score, like signs full of meaning.

IntroductionEntrance of the SoloistsA Breath of AirPremonitionPlateauCurved HorizonThe Wind BlowsPremonitionMirageWaving Wind HorseThe Promised LandLife’s Joys and SorrowsA Prayer

© TORU TAKEMITSU

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About the composer…

Toru Takemitsu, Japan’s most prominent composer, resolved to become a composer when he was 16. After World War II, he encountered Western music of all kinds through broadcasts by the American occupying forces. Although he was essentially self-taught, he nevertheless sought contact with outstanding teachers: Toshi Ichiyanagi acquainted him with the European avant-garde of Messiaen, Nono and Stockhausen; Fumio Hayasaka introduced him to the world of fi lm music and to the fi lm director Akira Kurosawa. Takemitsu also took a great interest in modern painting, theatre, fi lm and literature, and his multimedia avant-garde group Experimental Workshop caused a sensation in the 1950s.

Takemitsu’s earliest works reveal the infl uence of Schoenberg and Berg, whereas the compositions of his second creative phase refl ect his preoccupation with French Impressionism, particularly Debussy. The work that fi rst gained him exposure was the Requiem for Strings (1957), commissioned by the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. In the early 1960s, two new elements appeared in his work: traditional Japanese music in the form of the deliberate juxtaposition of Eastern and Western musical culture (November Steps, 1967), and the musical representation of natural phenomena (ARCI, 1963–66). Representations of the art of Japanese gardens through musical metaphors are encountered in works such as A Flock Descends into the Pentagonal Garden (1977).

Although his most ambitious creations were concert works for orchestra and chamber ensembles, Takemitsu was also interested in popular forms: jazz, pop and French chansons, and he composed around a hundred fi lm scores.

In addition to the five featured percussionists, From me flows what you call Time calls for an orchestra of three flutes (with piccolo and alto flute), three oboes (with oboe d’amore and cor anglais), four clarinets (with E flat clarinet, bass clarinet and contrabass clarinet) and three bassoons (with contrabassoon); four horns, three trumpets and three trombones; two harps, celesta and strings.

From me flows what you call Time was commissioned for the centennial celebration of Carnegie Hall, New York and was premiered there on 19 October 1990 by its dedicatees: percussion ensemble Nexus, the Boston Symphony Orchestra and conductor Seiji Ozawa. The Sydney Symphony gave the Australian premiere in 1993 in the Sydney Town Hall, conducted by David Porcelijn. The soloists were members of Synergy with Philip South.

The Five Colours

The colours of the ribbons – white, blue, red, yellow, green – are the same as the colours emitted by the five Buddhas who sit at the centre of a mandala. Blue is the symbol of water, red of fire, yellow of the earth, green of the wind, and white – as the colour created by combining the other four – signifies the sky, the air, the heavens and, finally, ‘nothingness’.

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Aaron CoplandThird Symphony (1946)Molto moderatoAllegro moltoAndantino quasi allegrettoMolto deliberato (Fanfare) – Allegro risoluto

In the 1940s, Aaron Copland was at the height of his powers as a composer. He had defi ned the quest of the American composer as ‘wanting to speak with a largeness of utterance wholly representative of the country that Walt Whitman had envisaged’. With the country now embroiled in World War II, the largest utterance a composer could make would be in the form of a symphony that could embody the spirit and aspirations of a nation at war.

Although there are sketches for a large-scale symphony dating back to 1940, Copland did not begin work on his Third Symphony until the middle of 1944. It was to occupy two years, a huge undertaking made possible by the earnings from some fi lm scores and a generous commission from the Koussevitzky Foundation.

During his long tenure (1924–49) as Music Director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Serge Koussevitzky premiered a dozen Copland compositions, culminating in the Third Symphony, which the composer dedicated to the conductor’s late wife, Natalie. This titanic, four-movement work lasting over 40 minutes had Koussevitzky’s stamp all over it and Copland was not coy about revealing its paternity. ‘I knew exactly the kind of music he enjoyed conducting and the sentiments he brought to it,’ Copland recalled in 1980. ‘I knew the sound of his orchestra, so I had every reason to do my darndest to write a symphony in the grand manner.’ That sentiment was echoed by Leonard Bernstein, arguably the work’s most acclaimed interpreter. ‘The grandeur of that magnifi cent conductor must have had great infl uence on the shape and manner of the symphony,’ he told an audience in Tel Aviv in October 1948. ‘It is truly a symphony in the “Koussevitzky manner”.’

For its Boston premiere on 18 October 1946, Copland provided some characteristically off handed comments, paraphrased in later record cover notes. ‘If I forced myself, I could invent an ideological basis for the Third Symphony,’ he conceded. ‘But if I did, I’d be bluffi ng – or, at any rate, adding something ex post facto, something that might or might not have been true but that played no role at the moment of creation.’ He would only say that the work ‘intended to refl ect the euphoric spirit of the country at the time.’

Keynotes

COPLANDBorn Brooklyn, NY, 1900Died Peekskill, NY, 1990

For many, Aaron Copland’s name is synonymous with American music – you only have to think of works such as his ballets Rodeo and Appalachian Spring or the Fanfare for the Common Man. It was his pioneering achievement to shrug off the musical influence of Europe and develop a style that was recognisably characteristic of America in the 20th century, and yet distinctive to him alone.

THIRD SYMPHONY

As a long, four-movement work for a large orchestra, Copland’s Third Symphony satisfied a need in the 1940s for what you might call ‘The Great American Symphony’. At the same time, its jubilant spirit matched the mood of celebration at the end of World War II. Borrowing words from Beethoven, the conductor Koussevitzky said, ‘There is no doubt about it – this is the greatest American symphony. It goes from the heart to the heart.’

Copland himself pointed out that the symphony ‘contains no folk or popular material’. By 1946 he was anxious to shake his reputation as a composer of symphonic jazz or a ‘purveyor of Americana’. But in the last movement of the symphony, Copland borrows from himself and cements the triumphant mood by incorporating his Fanfare for the Common Man.

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Honoring the Common Man

In August 1942, Eugene Goossens, conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, invited Copland and other composers to write short patriotic fanfares for brass and percussion as ‘stirring and significant contributions to the war effort’. Most of the composers wrote fanfares for Freedom, Liberty, Paratroopers, the Signal Corps, and so on. Copland considered the Spirit of Democracy and Our Heroes, among other options but settled on the Common Man because: ‘it was the common man, after all, who was doing all the dirty work in the war and the army. He deserved a fanfare.’

Goossens had hoped that Copland’s fanfare would launch his series in October, but the score arrived late. Another date was found: 12 March 1943. ‘It deserves a special occasion for its performance,’ wrote Goossens. ‘If it is agreeable with you, we will premiere it at income tax time.’ (After World War II, the income tax deadline for Americans became April 15.) Copland had no argument with that. ‘I was all for honoring the common man at income tax time,’ he chuckled.

Given the circumstances of Copland’s personal politics around this time, something that he was reticent to discuss openly over the years, one could view Copland’s symphony as a study in social contrasts. Virgil Thomson saw it as a confl ict between the pastoral and the military, resolved only in the fi nale. The conductor Hugh Wolff takes this a step further: combining the ambiguous imagery of Blake, Britten and William Bolcom, he compares it to songs of innocence and experience, contrasting light against darkness, and suggests that it’s not impossible that Copland may have been thinking of ‘a Marxist dialectic’.

In passing, we may note that, from the early 1930s onwards, Copland was closely associated with progressive socialist politics emanating from the Village in Lower Manhattan, and he was president of the Young Composers Group, strongly infl uenced by Marxist principles and dedicated to the creation of music for the proletariat. On 25 May 1953, Aaron Copland, even then dean of American composers, was hauled before the House Un-American Activities Committee [HUAC] and grilled by Senator Joseph McCarthy and chief counsel Roy Cohn for two hours about his ‘communist sympathies’. Copland managed to maintain his dignity throughout the ordeal but it was to leave an almost indelible stain on his reputation. From that time on, he was reluctant to discuss his political beliefs openly.

All the same, Copland would not allow his music to be played at the inaugurations of Presidents Eisenhower and Nixon, but was happy to conduct a concert for President

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Carter’s inauguration in 1977. The present author attended a concert on the Capitol Lawns in 1982, when the composer conducted the National Symphony Orchestra in a free concert of his music, intended as something of an apology for his shabby treatment there decades earlier. ‘It’s on the House,’ screamed the PR blurb. ‘And the Senate too!’

Nowhere is Copland’s true feeling about America, his America – the land of Lincoln, Jeff erson, Ives and Walt Whitman – more tellingly revealed than in the fourth movement of his Third Symphony.

From the time he commenced work on the piece, he had intended to deploy the Fanfare for the Common Man (1943) as its principle thematic device. ‘Make it a really K[nock] O[ut] symphony,’ urged fellow composer David Diamond. ‘And do, please use the fanfare material.’ The Fanfare is now considered one of the most echt American pieces of music ever written, second only to Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever, but at the time it was an obscure wartime morsel, virtually unknown. Far from capitalising on its (non-existent) popularity, Copland would now bring it to centre stage.

The Fanfare is stretched almost toff ee-like throughout the 15 minutes of the fi nale of the Third Symphony, causing some of Copland’s closest supporters to wince at what Irving Fine called his ‘blatant populist tendencies’. Even Bernstein felt compelled to lecture his master on ‘excess’, and added ‘a sizable cut’ near the end of the coda. In his 1964 survey of American music, Wilfrid Mellers pointedly omitted mention of the work altogether. But Koussevitsky declared it ‘simply the greatest American symphony ever written’, and Bernstein extolled it as much ‘an American monument [as] the Washington Monument or the Lincoln Memorial’.

More recently, Copland’s Third Symphony has had to weather accusations of ‘jingoism’ and being ‘the voice of American imperialism’. Such hackneyed and ill-informed stridencies forget the circumstances of its composition. In the exuberance and sheer relief of post-War America, Copland had written, according to playwright Cliff ord Odets, ‘the loftiest [utterance] our country has yet expressed in music’.

Nearly 70 years later, that sentiment rings true for today’s America, looking inward for its sustaining values and meaning. Facing a future that can seem insecure and unnerving, many fi nd comfort in Copland’s steady, reassuring sound.

In 2001, the African-American conductor William Eddins was in Australia conducting this symphony. He knew the work well but, as he explained to writer Gordon Kalton Williams, he continued to fi nd the experience ‘absolutely

Far from capitalising on its (non-existent) popularity, Copland would now bring the Fanfare to centre stage.

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hair-raising’, especially when the Fanfare for the Common Man creeps into the course of the fi nale:

Every night, when I get to that moment, where the fl utes give you a little glimpse of the theme, every hair on my body stands straight up. There is something about it that just grabs us by the neck and shakes us around: “Pay attention to the rest of reality here. This is what your society is supposed to be all about. This is what you should be reaching for.” It’s an incredible moment for us, it really is.

ABRIDGED FROM A NOTE BY VINCENT PLUSH © 2003

Copland’s Third Symphony calls for a large orchestra comprising four flutes (including two piccolos), three oboes (one doubling cor anglais), two clarinets, bass clarinet, E flat clarinet, two bassoons and contrabassoon; four horns, four trumpets, three trombones and tuba; timpani and a large percussion section; two harps, celesta, piano and strings.

The Third Symphony was first performed on 18 October 1946 by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Serge Koussevitsky. The Sydney Symphony gave the Australian premiere on 15 November 1972, conducted by Elyakum Shapirra, and it was on the program when Aaron Copland visited Australia to conduct the orchestra in 1978. Our most recent performance of the symphony was in 2005, under the direction of Marin Alsop.

Copland in Australia

In March 1978, Aaron Copland visited Australia to conduct the Sydney and Melbourne orchestras. It was his second trip here. In 1961, he had accompanied the Boston Symphony on their tour and, when conductor Charles Munch became ill, took his place on the podium. Seventeen years later, Copland was especially excited to be conducting in the Sydney Opera House and marvelled – as has nearly every guest artist since – at the expansive view of Circular Quay and the Harbour Bridge from his conductor’s dressing room.

The 1978 performances also marked the debut appearance of a young American trumpeter, Daniel Mendelow, then principal with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He’d arrived in Sydney just in time to play Copland’s Third Symphony under the baton of the composer himself!

In rehearsal, Mendelow’s exultation turned to consternation. It soon dawned on him, and most of the orchestra, that the 77-year-old composer was a little hard of hearing. Never one to deflect from personal shortcomings, the modest maestro had his own solution to this conundrum: if he could hear something ‘too clearly’, he told Vincent Plush, ‘that player must be playing too loud.’ Consequently, Mendelow found himself being ‘shushed’ during passages which featured the famous Fanfare for the Common Man.

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MORE MUSIC

DEBUSSYFor the complete orchestral works of Debussy – including Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun – look for the 9-CD box set featuring the Lyon National Orchestra conducted by Jun Märkl. A wealth of music, including all the standard concert pieces as well as some rarities that can be more diffi cult to fi nd.NAXOS 8509002

TAKEMITSUIn May 2011 the Berlin Philharmonic performed From me fl ows what you call Time with conductor Yutaka Sado and percussionists from its own ranks. Subscribers to the orchestra’s Digital Concert Hall can watch it online, and the video has also been released on DVD (region 1) and Blu-ray. EUROARTS 2058744 (Blu-ray); 2058748 (DVD)

www.digitalconcerthall.com/concert/1643An excerpt can be found on our Pinterest pinboard for this concert: bit.ly/CommonManPinboard

Takemitsu composed From me fl ows… for the Toronto-based ensemble Nexus, and they have recorded it with the Pacifi c Symphony Orchestra and Carl St Clair. The recording also includes Twill by Twilight and the work that made Takemitsu’s reputation, Requiem for strings.SONY 63044

COPLANDProbably the greatest interpreter of Copland’s Third Symphony, Leonard Bernstein recorded the work with the New York Philharmonic. It’s available in a pairing with the much-loved Quiet City.DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 419170

Copland himself conducted the Third Symphony in Sydney in 1978. Twenty years earlier, Bernstein had invited him to conduct highlights for one of his televised Young People’s Concerts, What is American Music? You can fi nd the video online by visiting bit.ly/CommonManPinboard

The highlight everyone waits for in the Third Symphony is the quotation from the now-famous Fanfare for the Common Man. This is included in an ‘essential’ American collection from the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta, with concert suites from Copland’s ballets Rodeo and Appalachian Spring. Samuel Barber’s Adagio for strings fi lls out the disc.DECCA 478 3353

ROBERT SPANORobert Spano’s most recent recordings have been released on the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s ASO Media label (a collaboration with Naxos). Last year the orchestra collaborated with pianist Garrick Ohlsson for a recording of Rachmaninoff ’s Piano Concerto No.3 and his Symphonic Dances. ASO MEDIA 1003

With the ensemble Eighth Blackbird, the ASO and

Spano have also recorded Jennifer Higdon’s On a Wire, a thrilling concerto grosso for the modern age that fully exploits the talents and charisma of its soloists. (Eighth Blackbird has an Aussie connection in Australian fl autist Tim Munro.) Also on the disc is QED: Engaging Richard Feynman by Michael Gandolfi .ASO MEDIA 1001

More familiar American names appear on Spano’s 2003 recording, also with the ASO, of Barber’s Symphony No.1 and the suite from Copland’s Appalachian Spring. Two shorter works in a neo-romantic vein by Chris Theofanidis and Jennifer Higdon complete Spano’s ingeniously planned program.TELARC 80596

SYNERGY PERCUSSIONVintage Synergy from 1994 can be heard on Onomatopoeia, a recording of Nigel Westlake’s music for percussion ensemble and other instruments. The highlight for many listeners is the infectious rhythmic drive of Omphalo Centric Lecture, but the whole disc is a delight.TALL POPPIES 047

A disc celebrating Synergy’s 30th anniversary in 2004 was released in collaboration with the Australian Music Centre. In its re-released edition it includes music by Michael Askill, Westlake, Martin Wesley-Smith, John Cage and Bozidar Kos, as well as original and traditional compositions by Taikoz with Shakuhachi master Riley Lee, and a bonus DVD track. (Available from synergpercussion.com)VAST 001-2

Broadcast DiarySeptember

abc.net.au/classic

Friday 21 September, 8pmmystery and motionHannu Lintu conductorAngela Hewitt pianoDutilleux, Mozart, Beethoven

Fine Music 102.5sydney symphony 2012Tuesday 11 September, 6pmMusicians, staff and guest artists discuss what’s in store in our forthcoming concerts. Fine Music is the new name for the station previously known as 2MBS (Music Broadcasting Society), transmitting on 102.5FM and streaming online from www.FineMusicFM.com

For information about our webcasts on BigPond, turn to page 24.

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Robert Spano CONDUCTOR

Robert Spano is one of the brightest and most imaginative conductors of his generation. He is Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and of the Aspen Music Festival and School, where he also oversees the American Academy of Conducting. Born in Conneaut, Ohio, he grew up in a musical family, composing and playing fl ute, violin and piano. He studied conducting with Robert Baustian at Oberlin, where he is now on the faculty, and with Max Rudolf at the Curtis Institute of Music.

In his distinguished career, he has conducted the leading orchestras of North America – including those in Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Montreal, New York, Philadelphia and San Francisco – and in Europe, where he has conducted the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic and BBC Symphony Orchestra, among others. He has also conducted the New Japan Philharmonic. He is equally accomplished as an operatic conductor, and in 2005 and 2009 he conducted internationally renowned casts in Wagner’s Ring cycle at Seattle Opera.

Robert Spano regularly programs and performs music of the 20th and 21st centuries, and in the 2012–13 season he will conduct three world premieres in Atlanta and several concerts championing this repertoire at New York’s Carnegie Hall. Beyond Atlanta, his engagements will include appearances with the New World, Toronto and Cincinnati symphony orchestras.

He has served as director of the prestigious Festival of Contemporary Music at the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Tanglewood Music Center in 2003 and 2004, and from 1996 to 2004 was Music Director of the Brooklyn Philharmonic. He headed the Conducting Fellowship Program at the Tanglewood Music Center from 1998 to 2002.

He has also lectured on ‘Community’ for TEDxAtlanta and recently completed a three-year residency at Emory University, joining such illustrious company as the Dalai Lama, President Jimmy Carter and Salman Rushdie. In May 2009, he was awarded Columbia University’s Ditson Conductor’s Award for the advancement of American music, and in 2008 Musical America named him Conductor of the Year. Other accolades include honorary doctorates from Bowling Green State University, the Curtis Institute of Music, Emory University and Oberlin, and he has garnered six Grammy Awards.

Robert Spano’s previous appearance with the Sydney Symphony was in 1993.

www.robertspanomusic.com

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ABOUT THE ARTISTS

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Ian Cleworth PERCUSSION (YELLOW)

Ian Cleworth is Artistic Director of TaikOz, Australia’s premier taiko ensemble. With TaikOz, he maintains an annual schedule of performing, touring, teaching and collaborating with such artists and companies as John Bell and Bell Shakespeare, Meryl Tankard, Kodo and Eitetsu Hayashi. From 1986 to 2005, he was Principal Percussionist with the Sydney Symphony, and as a soloist with the orchestra he premiered and recorded Ross Edwards’ Yarrageh. With his colleagues in Synergy he also gave the Australian premiere of From me fl ows what you call Time.

As a member of Synergy (1987–2005), he was involved with the presentation of the latest works for percussion, including many premieres of works by Australian and international composers. He also toured Australia, the UK, Hungary, Sweden, Taiwan, Japan, Poland, Germany and Singapore, often collaborating with some of the world’s fi nest musicians, artists and choreographers. Ian Cleworth received the 2007 APRA–AMC Classical Music Award for his contributions to the advancement of Australian music.

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Timothy Constable PERCUSSION (WHITE)

Timothy Constable is an award-winning percussionist, composer, electronica producer and singer. He is the artistic director of Synergy, comprising Australia’s premier percussion group and splinter group moth. Widely recognised as one of the fi nest percussionists of his generation, he tours extensively as a solo artist, and has performed throughout Australia, as well as in New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, the UK, Ireland, Senegal, America, China, Korea, Nepal and in South-East Asia.

Recent highlights include artistic direction of Synergy’s Masterpieces of Time (2012), The Composers 1 – Steve Reich in Residence (Sydney Opera House, 2012), Xenakis’ Pleiades (Limelight Best Chamber Music Concert, 2011), City Jungle (Synergy and Speak Percussion, Melbourne Planetarium), Tonyeong International Music Festival, Seoul Drum Festival, Canberra International Music Festival, Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Aurora Festival, Big West Festival and 2011 Mona Foma. Recent composition credits include two new contemporary dance scores: Beautiful Noise (Brisbane Festival, 2011) and Supermodern (Performing Lines/SOH Spring Dance, 2012).

timothyconstable.com

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Rebecca Lagos PERCUSSION (BLUE)

Rebecca Lagos studied percussion with Richard Miller and with George Gaber at Indiana University, Bloomington. Returning to Australia, she was Acting Principal Timpani with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, and then Principal Timpani with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra. In 1987 she joined the Sydney Symphony as a member of the percussion section (she was appointed Principal in 2006), and became a member of Synergy.

Synergy highlights included a private performance for Toru Takemitsu of his percussion trio, Rain Tree, at the Huddersfi eld Contemporary Music Festival, and recording concertos by Carl Vine and Toru Takemitsu with the Sydney Symphony. She has also performed with the Seymour Group, Sydney Alpha Ensemble, Australia Ensemble, TaikOz and the Australian Chamber Orchestra (including a performance of Messiaen’s From the Canyons to the Stars, in the presence of the composer). In 2006 she gave the premiere of Westlake’s percussion concerto, When the Clock Strikes Me, which won her the APRA Classical Music Award for Best Performance of an Australian Composition. She is also the orchestra’s resident cimbalom player.

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Colin Piper PERCUSSION (RED)

Colin Piper attended the Sydney Conservatorium High School and then studied piano and percussion at the Conservatorium. He joined the Sydney Symphony in 1968, having graduated from the ABC’s National Training Orchestra program. He was a founding member of Synergy, touring extensively throughout Europe and the Asia-Pacifi c region, and with the Sydney Dance Company. He stepped aside from Synergy in 2006 and retired as Chair of its board, a position he held for 10 years. He has participated in performances of Hans Werner Henze’s El Cimarron, in the presence of the composer (1976), and in performances with Luciano Berio (1975) and Olivier Messiaen (1988).

He also works as a conductor with community and youth orchestras, and in the Sydney Symphony’s education program. He has conducted most of the state symphony orchestras, as well as conducting a studio orchestra for recordings with INXS in 1991. Colin Piper coordinated the Australian National Academy of Music’s fi rst percussion program in 1998 and was a member of the Sydney Symphony’s Board from 1996 to 2002.

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Mark Robinson PERCUSSION (GREEN)

Mark Robinson studied with Daryl Pratt and Richard Miller at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, graduating with honours, and gained a postgraduate diploma from the Royal Academy of Music. He has worked with some of Britain’s fi nest orchestras, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Bournemouth, London, and City of Birmingham symphony orchestras. He toured Europe with the LSO and performed under conductors such as Valery Gergiev and Bernard Haitink. He recorded for BBC Radio 3 and appeared in the Aldeburgh and St Endellion festivals, as well as the 2004 London Berio festival, Omaggio. He also performed alongside Bob Becker (Nexus) and Colin Currie.

In 2006 he was appointed Principal Percussion with the Ulster Orchestra, and was featured in the BBC television series, Derek’s Dreams, in which he coached a County Fermanagh farmer to play percussion for an Ulster Orchestra concert. Mark Robinson returned to Australia to join the Sydney Symphony in 2010.

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Make Music at The ConThe Open Academy at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music offers short courses and programs for everyone from 3 to 93. We continue the Conservatorium’s tradition of providing community music and training to the people of Sydney and NSW.

at our website openacademy.sydney.edu.au

22 sydney symphony

MUSICIANS

FIRST VIOLINS

Dene OldingConcertmaster

Sun Yi Associate Concertmaster

Fiona Ziegler Assistant Concertmaster

Julie BattyJennifer BoothMarianne BroadfootBrielle ClapsonSophie ColeAmber DavisJennifer HoyNicola LewisAlexander NortonElizabeth Jones°Claire Herrick°Kerry Martin*Martin Silverton*Lucy Warren†

Kirsten Williams Associate Concertmaster

Léone Ziegler

SECOND VIOLINS

Marina Marsden Emily Long A/Assistant Principal

Susan Dobbie Principal Emeritus

Maria DurekShuti HuangStan W KornelBenjamin LiNicole MastersBiyana RozenblitMaja VerunicaAlexandra D’Elia°Anthea Hetherington*Emily Qin°Kristina Zelinska*Kirsty Hilton Emma West Assistant Principal

Emma HayesPhilippa Paige

VIOLAS

Roger Benedict Tobias Breider Anne-Louise Comerford Justin Williams Assistant Principal

Robyn BrookfieldSandro CostantinoJane HazelwoodGraham HenningsStuart JohnsonJustine MarsdenLeonid VolovelskyJacqueline Cronin°Neil Thompson†

Felicity Tsai

CELLOS

Catherine Hewgill Leah Lynn Assistant Principal

Fenella GillElizabeth NevilleChristopher PidcockAdrian WallisRowena Macneish°Eleanor Betts†

Mee Na Lojewski*Rachael Tobin°Kristy Conrau Timothy NankervisDavid Wickham

DOUBLE BASSES

Kees Boersma Alex Henery Neil BrawleyPrincipal Emeritus

David CampbellSteven LarsonRichard LynnDavid MurrayBenjamin Ward

FLUTES

Janet Webb Emma Sholl Carolyn HarrisRosamund Plummer Principal Piccolo

OBOES

Shefali Pryor David PappAlexandre Oguey Principal Cor Anglais

Diana Doherty

CLARINETS

Lawrence Dobell Francesco Celata Christopher TingayCraig Wernicke Principal Bass Clarinet

BASSOONS

Nicole Tait°Fiona McNamaraJackie Hansen*Matthew Wilkie Noriko Shimada Principal Contrabassoon

HORNS

Ben Jacks Geoffrey O’Reilly Principal 3rd

Euan HarveyMarnie SebireRachel Shaw°Robert Johnson

TRUMPETS

David EltonPaul Goodchild John FosterAnthony Heinrichs

TROMBONES

Ronald Prussing Nick ByrneChristopher Harris Principal Bass Trombone

Scott Kinmont

TUBA

Steve Rossé

TIMPANI

Richard Miller

PERCUSSION

Rebecca Lagos Colin PiperMark Robinson Ian Cleworth*Timothy Constable*

HARP

Louise Johnson Genevieve Lang*

KEYBOARDS

Grace Kim*Catherine Davis*

Bold = PrincipalItalics = Associate Principal* = Guest Musician° = Contract Musician† = Sydney Symphony FellowGrey = Permanent member of the Sydney Symphony not appearing in this concert

To see photographs of the full roster of permanent musicians and find out more about the orchestra, visit our website: www.sydneysymphony.com/SSO_musiciansIf you don’t have access to the internet, ask one of our customer service representatives for a copy of our Musicians flyer.

The men of the Sydney Symphony are proudly outfitted by Van Heusen.

Vladimir AshkenazyPrincipal Conductor and Artistic Advisor supported by Emirates

Dene OldingConcertmaster

Jessica CottisAssistant Conductor supported by Premier Partner Credit Suisse

sydney symphony 23

SYDNEY SYMPHONYVladimir Ashkenazy, Principal Conductor and Artistic AdvisorPATRON Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO

Founded in 1932 by the Australian Broadcasting Commission, the Sydney Symphony has evolved into one of the world’s fi nest orchestras as Sydney has become one of the world’s great cities.

Resident at the iconic Sydney Opera House, where it gives more than 100 performances each year, the Sydney Symphony also performs in venues throughout Sydney and regional New South Wales. International tours to Europe, Asia and the USA have earned the orchestra worldwide recognition for artistic excellence, most recently in the 2011 tour of Japan and Korea.

The Sydney Symphony’s fi rst Chief Conductor was Sir Eugene Goossens, appointed in 1947; he was followed by Nicolai Malko, Dean Dixon, Moshe Atzmon, Willem van Otterloo, Louis Frémaux, Sir Charles Mackerras, Zdenek Mácal, Stuart Challender, Edo de Waart and Gianluigi Gelmetti. David Robertson will take up the post of Chief Conductor in 2014. The orchestra’s history also boasts collaborations with legendary fi gures such as George Szell, Sir Thomas Beecham, Otto Klemperer and Igor Stravinsky.

The Sydney Symphony’s award-winning education program is central to its commitment to the future of live symphonic music, developing audiences and engaging the participation of young people. The orchestra promotes the work of Australian composers through performances, recordings and its commissioning program. Recent premieres have included major works by Ross Edwards, Liza Lim, Lee Bracegirdle, Gordon Kerry and Georges Lentz, and the orchestra’s recording of works by Brett Dean was released on both the BIS and Sydney Symphony Live labels.

Other releases on the Sydney Symphony Live label, established in 2006, include performances with Alexander Lazarev, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Sir Charles Mackerras and Vladimir Ashkenazy. The orchestra has recently completed recording the Mahler symphonies, and has also released recordings with Ashkenazy of Rachmaninoff and Elgar orchestral works on the Exton/Triton labels, as well as numerous recordings on the ABC Classics label.

This is the fourth year of Ashkenazy’s tenure as Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor.

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Webcasts

Selected Sydney Symphony concerts are webcast live on BigPond and Telstra T-box and made available for later viewing On Demand. Our next webcast:symphonic abbaWatch live on Friday 14 September at 8pm

Visit: bigpondmusic.com/sydneysymphonyLive webcasts can also be viewed via our mobile app.

Sydney Symphony Live

The Sydney Symphony Live label was founded in 2006 and we’ve since released more than a dozen recordings featuring the orchestra in live concert performances with our titled conductors and leading guest artists, including the Mahler Odyssey cycle, begun in 2010. To purchase, visit sydneysymphony.com/shop

Sydney Symphony Online

Join us on Facebookfacebook.com/sydneysymphony

Follow us on Twittertwitter.com/sydsymph

Watch us on YouTubewww.youtube.com/SydneySymphony

Visit sydneysymphony.com for concert information, podcasts, and to read the program book in the week of the concert.

Stay tuned. Sign up to receive our fortnightly e-newslettersydneysymphony.com/staytuned

Download our free mobile app for iPhone or Androidsydneysymphony.com/mobile_app

Glazunov & ShostakovichAlexander Lazarev conducts a thrilling performance of Shostakovich 9 and Glazunov’s Seasons. SSO 2

Strauss & SchubertGianluigi Gelmetti conducts Schubert’s Unfi nished and R Strauss’s Four Last Songs with Ricarda Merbeth. SSO 200803

Sir Charles MackerrasA 2CD set featuring Sir Charles’s fi nal performances with the orchestra, in October 2007. SSO 200705

Brett DeanBrett Dean performs his own viola concerto, conducted by Simone Young, in this all-Dean release. SSO 200702

RavelGelmetti conducts music by one of his favourite composers: Maurice Ravel. Includes Bolero. SSO 200801

Rare Rachmaninoff Rachmaninoff chamber music with Dene Olding, the Goldner Quartet, soprano Joan Rodgers and Vladimir Ashkenazy at the piano. SSO 200901

MAHLER ODYSSEY ON CDDuring the 2010 and 2011 concert seasons, the Sydney Symphony and Vladimir Ashkenazy set out to perform all the Mahler symphonies, together with some of the song cycles. These concerts were recorded for CD, with nine releases so far and more to come.

Mahler 9 OUT NOW

In March, Mahler’s Ninth, his last completed symphony, was released. SSO 201201

ALSO CURRENTLY AVAILABLE

Mahler 1 & Songs of a WayfarerSSO 201001

Mahler 8 (Symphony of a Thousand)SSO 201002

Mahler 5 SSO 201003

Song of the Earth SSO 201004

Mahler 3 SSO 201101

Mahler 4 SSO 201102

Mahler 6 SSO 201103

Mahler 7 SSO 201104

MORE MUSIC

sydney symphony 25

BEHIND THE SCENES

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Rory JeffesEXECUTIVE TEAM ASSISTANT

Lisa Davies-Galli

ARTISTIC OPERATIONS

DIRECTOR OF ARTISTIC PLANNING

Peter Czornyj

Artistic AdministrationARTISTIC ADMINISTRATION MANAGER

Elaine ArmstrongARTIST LIAISON MANAGER

Ilmar LeetbergRECORDING ENTERPRISE MANAGER

Philip Powers

Education ProgramsHEAD OF EDUCATION

Kim WaldockEMERGING ARTISTS PROGRAM MANAGER

Mark LawrensonEDUCATION COORDINATOR

Rachel McLarin

LibraryLIBRARIAN

Anna CernikLIBRARY ASSISTANT

Victoria GrantLIBRARY ASSISTANT

Mary-Ann Mead

ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT

DIRECTOR OF ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT

Aernout KerbertORCHESTRA MANAGER

Chris Lewis ORCHESTRA COORDINATOR

Georgia StamatopoulosOPERATIONS MANAGER

Kerry-Anne CookTECHNICAL MANAGER

Derek CouttsPRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Tim DaymanPRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Ian SpenceSTAGE MANAGER

Peter Gahan

SALES AND MARKETING

DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING

Mark J ElliottMARKETING MANAGER, SUBSCRIPTION SALES

Simon Crossley-MeatesA/SENIOR MARKETING MANAGER, SALES

Matthew RiveMARKETING MANAGER, BUSINESS RESOURCES

Katrina RiddleONLINE MARKETING MANAGER

Eve Le Gall

John C Conde ao ChairmanTerrey Arcus amEwen CrouchRoss GrantJennifer HoyRory JeffesAndrew KaldorIrene LeeDavid LivingstoneGoetz Richter

Sydney Symphony Board

Sydney Symphony Council

Sydney Symphony StaffMARKETING & ONLINE COORDINATOR

Kaisa HeinoGRAPHIC DESIGNER

Lucy McCulloughDATA ANALYST

Varsha KarnikMARKETING ASSISTANT

Jonathon Symonds

Box OfficeMANAGER OF BOX OFFICE SALES & OPERATIONS

Lynn McLaughlinMANAGER OF BOX OFFICE OPERATIONS

Tom DowneyCUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVES

Steve Clarke – Senior CSRMichael DowlingDerek ReedJohn RobertsonBec Sheedy

COMMUNICATIONS

HEAD OF COMMUNICATIONS & SPONSOR RELATIONS

Yvonne ZammitPUBLIC RELATIONS MANAGER

Katherine StevensonCOMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

Janine Harris DIGITAL CONTENT PRODUCER

Ben Draisma

PublicationsPUBLICATIONS EDITOR & MUSIC PRESENTATION MANAGER

Yvonne Frindle

DEVELOPMENT

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Caroline SharpenEXTERNAL RELATIONS MANAGER

Stephen AttfieldPHILANTHROPY, PATRONS PROGRAM

Ivana JirasekDEVELOPMENT MANAGER

Amelia Morgan-Hunn

BUSINESS SERVICES

DIRECTOR OF FINANCE

John HornFINANCE MANAGER

Ruth TolentinoACCOUNTANT

Minerva PrescottACCOUNTS ASSISTANT

Emma FerrerPAYROLL OFFICER

Laura Soutter

HUMAN RESOURCES

HEAD OF HUMAN RESOURCES

Michel Hryce

Geoff Ainsworth amAndrew Andersons aoMichael Baume aoChristine BishopIta Buttrose ao obePeter CudlippJohn Curtis amGreg Daniel amJohn Della BoscaAlan FangErin FlahertyDr Stephen FreibergDonald Hazelwood ao obeDr Michael Joel amSimon JohnsonYvonne Kenny amGary LinnaneAmanda LoveHelen Lynch amDavid MaloneyDavid Malouf aoJulie Manfredi-HughesDeborah MarrThe Hon. Justice Jane Mathews aoDanny MayWendy McCarthy aoJane MorschelGreg ParamorDr Timothy Pascoe amProf. Ron Penny aoJerome RowleyPaul SalteriSandra SalteriJuliana SchaefferLeo Schofield amFred Stein oamGabrielle TrainorIvan UngarJohn van OgtropPeter Weiss amMary WhelanRosemary White

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SYDNEY SYMPHONY PATRONS

Sydney Symphony Leadership EnsembleDavid Livingstone, CEO, Credit Suisse, AustraliaAlan Fang, Chairman, Tianda GroupTony Grierson, Braithwaite Steiner PrettyInsurance Australia Grou pMacquarie Group FoundationJohn Morschel, Chairman, ANZ

Andrew Kaldor, Chairman, Pelikan ArtlineLynn Kraus, Sydney Office Managing Partner, Ernst & YoungShell Australia Pty LtdJames Stevens, CEO, Roses OnlyStephen Johns, Chairman, Leighton Holdings,

and Michele Johns

Maestro’s CirclePeter Weiss am – Founding President & Doris WeissJohn C Conde ao – ChairmanGeoff Ainsworth am & Vicki Ainsworth Tom Breen & Rachael KohnIn memory of Hetty & Egon GordonAndrew Kaldor & Renata Kaldor aoRoslyn Packer ao

Penelope Seidler amMr Fred Street am & Mrs Dorothy StreetWestfield GroupBrian & Rosemary WhiteRay Wilson oam in memory of the late James Agapitos oam

01 Roger Benedict Principal Viola Kim Williams am & Catherine Dovey Chair

02 Lawrence Dobell Principal Clarinet Anne Arcus & Terrey Arcus am Chair

03 Diana Doherty Principal Oboe Andrew Kaldor & Renata Kaldor ao Chair

04 Richard Gill oam Artistic Director Education Sandra & Paul Salteri Chair

05 Jane Hazelwood Viola Veolia Environmental Services Chair

06 Catherine Hewgill Principal Cello The Hon. Justice AJ & Mrs Fran Meagher Chair

07 Robert Johnson Principal Horn James & Leonie Furber Chair

08 Elizabeth Neville Cello Ruth & Bob Magid Chair

09 Colin Piper Percussion Justice Jane Mathews ao Chair

10 Shefali Pryor Associate Principal Oboe Rose Herceg Chair

11 Emma Sholl Associate Principal Flute Robert & Janet Constable Chair

For information about the Directors’ Chairs program, please call (02) 8215 4619.

Directors’ Chairs

01 02 03 04 05 06

07 08 09 10 11

Sydney Symphony VanguardVanguard CollectiveJustin Di Lollo – ChairKees BoersmaRose HercegDavid McKeanAmelia Morgan-HunnJonathan PeaseAnna Swan

Matthew ClarkGeorge CondousMichael CookPaul CousinsJustin Di LolloRose GalloSam GiddingsDerek HandRose HercegJennifer HoyDamian Kassagbi

Chris KeherElizabeth LeeAntony Lighten Gary LinnaneDavid McKeanHayden McLeanAmelia Morgan-HunnHugh MunroFiona OslerPeter Outridge

MembersNikki AndrewsJames ArmstrongStephen AttfieldAndrew BaxterMar BeltranKees Boersma Peter BraithwaiteAndrea BrownIan BurtonJennifer BurtonRon Christianson

Jonathan Pease Seamus R QuickMichael ReedeJacqueline RowlandsBernard RyanAdam WandJon WilkieJonathan WatkinsonDarren WoolleyMisha Zelinksy

sydney symphony 27

PLAYING YOUR PART

The Sydney Symphony gratefully acknowledges the music lovers who donate to the orchestra each year. Each gift plays an important part in ensuring our continued artistic excellence and helping to sustain important education and regional touring programs. Donations of $50 and above are acknowledged on our website at www.sydneysymphony.com/patrons

Platinum Patrons $20,000+Brian AbelGeoff Ainsworth am & Vicki AinsworthRobert Albert ao & Elizabeth AlbertTerrey Arcus am & Anne ArcusTom Breen & Rachael KohnSandra & Neil BurnsMr John C Conde aoRobert & Janet ConstableJames & Leonie FurberDr Bruno & Mrs Rhonda Giuff reIn memory of Hetty & Egon GordonMs Rose HercegMr Andrew Kaldor & Mrs Renata Kaldor aoD & I KallinikosJames N Kirby FoundationMrs Joan MacKenzieJustice Jane Mathews aoMrs Roslyn Packer aoDr John Roarty oam in memory of Mrs June RoartyPaul & Sandra SalteriMrs Penelope Seidler amMrs W SteningMr Fred Street am & Mrs Dorothy StreetMr Peter Weiss am & Mrs Doris WeissWestfi eld GroupMr Brian & Mrs Rosemary WhiteRay Wilson oam in memory of James Agapitos oamKim Williams am & Catherine DoveyJune & Alan Woods Family Bequest

Gold Patrons$10,000–$19,999Mr C R AdamsonStephen J BellAlan & Christine BishopIan & Jennifer BurtonCopyright Agency Limited The Hon. Ashley Dawson-DamerFerris Family FoundationNora GoodridgeMr Ross GrantThe Estate of the late Ida GuggerHelen Lynch am & Helen BauerRuth & Bob MagidThe Hon. Justice AJ Meagher & Mrs Fran MeagherMrs T Merewether oamMr B G O’ConorMrs Joyce Sproat & Mrs Janet CookeHenry & Ruth WeinbergAnonymous (2)

Silver Patrons $5000–$9,999Doug & Alison BattersbyMr Alexander & Mrs Vera BoyarskyMr Robert BrakspearMr David & Mrs Halina BrettMr Robert & Mrs L Alison Carr Bob & Julie ClampettHoward ConnorsEwen & Catherine CrouchIan Dickson & Reg HollowayColin Draper & Mary Jane BrodribbPenny EdwardsEdward FedermanThe Greatorex Foundation Mrs Jennifer HershonThe Sherry Hogan FoundationMr Rory Jeff esStephen Johns & Michele BenderJudges of the Supreme Court of NSW Mr Ervin KatzThe Estate of the late Patricia LanceMr David LivingstoneTimothy & Eva PascoeWilliam McIlrath Charitable FoundationDavid Maloney & Erin FlahertyRodney Rosenblum am & Sylvia RosenblumManfred & Linda SalamonJF & A van OgtropMichael & Mary Whelan TrustMs Caroline WilkinsonJill WranAnonymous (2)

Bronze Patrons $2,500–$4,999Mr Marc Besen ao & Mrs Eva Besen aoJan BowenM BulmerFirehold Pty LtdStephen Freiberg & Donald CampbellAnthony Gregg & Deanne WhittlestonVic & Katie FrenchWarren GreenMrs Jennifer HershonAnn HobanIn memory of Bernard M H KhawGary LinnaneMatthew McInnesJ A McKernanR & S Maple-BrownGreg & Susan MarieAlan & Joy MartinMora MaxwellJames & Elsie MooreDrs Keith & Eileen Ong

In memory of H St P ScarlettDavid & Isabel SmithersMrs Hedy SwitzerMarliese & Georges TeitlerDr Richard WingateMr & Mrs T & D YimAnonymous (2)

Bronze Patrons $1,000–$2,499Charles & Renee AbramsMrs Antoinette AlbertAndrew Andersons aoMr Henri W Aram oamDr Francis J AugustusRichard and Christine Banks David BarnesMichael Baume ao & Toni BaumeNicole BergerMrs Jan BiberAllan & Julie BlighLenore P BuckleIn memory of RW BurleyEric & Rosemary CampbellThe Hon. Justice JC & Mrs CampbellDr John H CaseyJoan Connery oam & Maxwell Connery oamConstable Estate Vineyards Debby Cramer & Bill CaukillMr John Cunningham SCM & Mrs Margaret CunninghamGreta DavisLisa & Miro DavisMatthew DelaseyMr & Mrs Grant DixonJohn FavaloroMr Ian Fenwicke & Prof. Neville WillsMichael & Gabrielle FieldDr & Mrs C GoldschmidtMr James Graham am & Mrs Helen GrahamAkiko GregoryJanette HamiltonDorothy Hoddinott aoThe Hon. David Hunt ao qc & Mrs Margaret HuntDr & Mrs Michael HunterMr Peter HutchisonMichael & Anna JoelAnna-Lisa KlettenbergMr Justin LamMr Peter Lazar amAssociate Professor Winston LiauwSydney & Airdrie LloydCarolyn & Peter Lowry oamDeirdre & Kevin McCann

28 sydney symphony

Robert McDougallIan & Pam McGawMacquarie Group FoundationRenee MarkovicA NhanMs Jackie O’BrienMr R A OppenMr Robert OrrellMr & Mrs OrtisMr Andrew C PattersonIn memory of Sandra PaulPiatti Holdings Pty LtdAndy & Deirdre Plummer Robin PotterPottingerErnest & Judith RapeeKenneth R ReedPatricia H Reid Endowment Pty LtdCaroline SharpenDr Agnes E SinclairCatherine StephenJohn & Alix SullivanThe Hon. Brian Sully qcMildred TeitlerJohn E TuckeyMrs M TurkingtonIn memory of Joan & Rupert VallentineDr Alla WaldmanIn memory of Dr Reg WalkerThe Hon. Justice A G WhealyAnn & Brooks Wilson amGeoff Wood & Melissa WaitesMr Robert & Mrs Rosemary WalshMr R R WoodwardIn memory of Lorna WrightDr John YuAnonymous (14)

Bronze Patrons $500–$999Mr Peter J ArmstrongMr & Mrs Garry S AshBarlow Cleaning Pty LtdMrs Margaret BellMinnie BiggsPat & Jenny BurnettMr & Mrs CoatesDr & Mrs Hannes Boshoff Arnaldo BuchThe Hon. Justice JC & Mrs CampbellDr Rebecca ChinMrs Sarah Chissick

Mrs Catherine J ClarkR A & M J ClarkeMrs Joan Connery oamJen CornishMr David CrossElizabeth DonatiThe Dowe FamilyDr Nita & Dr James DurhamMalcolm Ellis & Erin O’NeillMrs Margaret EppsIn memory of Peter EverettMr & Mrs FarrellMr Tom FrancisTony Grierson Vivienne GoldschmidtMr Richard Griffi n amIan R L HarperKen HawkingsMrs A HaywardMr Roger HenningHarry & Meg HerbertMr Joerg HofmannMrs Kimberley HoldenMr Gregory HoskingAlex HoughtonBill & Pam HughesBeauty Point Retirement ResortNiki KallenbergerMrs W G KeighleyMrs Margaret KeoghDr Henry KilhamChris J KitchingMr Aron & Mrs Helen KleinlehrerMr & Mrs Gilles T KrygerSonia LalMr Luigi LampratiDr & Mrs Leo LeaderMargaret LedermanIrene LeeAnita & Chris LevyErna & Gerry Levy amMrs A LohanMrs Panee LowDr David LuisDr Jean MalcolmPhilip & Catherine McClellandMrs Flora MacDonaldMrs Helen MeddingsMrs Toshiko MericP J MillerDavid & Andree MilmanKenneth N Mitchell

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Centre-front is the greatest seat in the house.

sound of the string section for a more unified approach.’

You might have noticed Dene playing within the ranks of the First Violin section in some concerts recently. ‘I’m happy to say that so far I haven’t been demoted! That was my choice. It’s been useful and instructive to remind myself what it’s like to sit in the back.’ And a delight-ful reminder of the honour and privilege of his usual chair. ‘Centre-front is the greatest seat in the house. I feel sorry that the rest of the orchestra and public can’t sit where I’m sitting, where you really get the full impact!’

So how does Dene unwind? With martial arts, no less. ‘I was a relative latecomer to Aikido, but it seemed to be tailor-made.’ The name ‘Aikido’ translates to ‘the way of the harmonious spirit’. ‘With my profession, I’m not out there trying to break bricks. Aikido is about harmonising with an attack, and then neutral-ising it. As a philosophy, it fits well with music.’ Aikido’s roots in jujitsu and Samurai sword technique also pay unexpected dividends. ‘There are so many similarities in the way you hold the bow – the grip is almost identical!’

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A simple warm-up interview question – ‘How has your day been?’ – draws an unexpected response from Dene Olding, Concertmaster of the Sydney Symphony. ‘I’m sure my tomb-stone will read, “Here lies a busy man”.’

‘Busy’ doesn’t begin to describe Dene’s schedule. He’s just come from the audition of a new member of the cello section, having led the orchestra in the previous week through Richard Strauss’s fabulous but fiendish suite from Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme, and is about to dash off for two weeks at the Australian Festival of Chamber

Music in Townsville, where he will perform in eight concerts with the Goldner String Quartet, a chamber group he co-founded. Phew!

Recently, the Sydney Sym-phony has been in search of a second concertmaster, someone with whom Dene will share the role. ‘It’s very important to have concertmasters with the same musical philosophy about what the orchestra should sound like.’ Any change of leader means a change of gear, ‘but in an ideal world, we should have people with a similar style of leading, and of a similar temperament. Then we can start to develop the

LEADING A BUSY LIFEOur Concertmaster Dene Olding has a non-stop schedule, with only the occasional pause for breath.

ORCHESTRA NEWS | AUGUST–SEPTEMBER 2012

This year has already seen many wonderful musical experiences as part of our 80th anniversary year, and there are many more to come, not least when our artistic leader Vladimir Ashkenazy returns in October for concerts in preparation for our tour of major venues in China. Then in November, he will be back for Tchaikovsky’s opera The Queen of Spades, which we’ll be presenting in concert. This is a personal highlight of our season for me, and something I urge you not to miss.

As I welcome you to this edition of Bravo!, we have just launched our 2013 season. Next year presents an opportunity to celebrate the wonderful musical partnership between the Sydney Symphony and Vladimir Ashkenazy. The programming includes many artists and friends he admires – Pinchas Zukerman, Murray Perahia performing in recital, and Lisa Gasteen, to name but a few. It promises to be an outstanding season for your orchestra and audiences alike and I very much look forward to sharing it with you.

RORY JEFFES

From the Managing Director

Nita Lawrie asked us a great question via Facebook: Why was the orchestra arranged quite differently on stage for the Tchaikovsky? (Absolutely fantastic concert btw.)

Ask a Musician in mind. One practical result is that it gives listeners a kind of stereo effect between the first and second violins, and in some pieces this brings out the question-and-answer gestures in the music, for example the first movement of Brahms’s Fourth Symphony. So it’s not unknown for conductors to request this kind of arrangement for Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky, to name a few.

By contrast, the Vaughan Wil-liams Fantasia that began this concert called for a special layout of the strings, dictated by the fact that the orchestra is functioning as three ensembles in one.

For those who weren’t there, in our performance of Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique Symphony, the first and second violin sections sat left and right of the podium, with the cellos and violas in the middle in front of the conductor. (The double basses had moved to the left, behind the cellos.) It’s often called an ‘antiphonal’ arrange-

ment. For some orchestras, it’s their basic configuration.

This layout is requested by our conductors from time to time, depending on the music we’re playing. It was a common arrange-ment for orchestras right into the late 19th century, so there’s a lot of music that would have been composed with this layout

Insider TipsJust in time for our 2013 season launch, ‘Box Office’ Steve shares some of his Top Tips for helping ensure a hassle-free subscription purchase.

requests, it’s important to let us know early and thus improve your chances of securing the seats you want.

give us a clearer idea of where you want to sit. Also, in case your preferred seat isn’t available, offering alternative options is helpful.

don’t have any particular seating preferences, try to avoid calling first thing on Monday morning, when we’re super busy in the box office.

renewal form means a shorter wait before you have your tickets in hand.

trained staff join the box office team, and as we all know, it can take a little while to get into the swing of things. Your patience is truly appreciated!

The US Consul General Niels Marquardt hosted a welcome for David Robertson, who will begin his tenure as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director in 2014. From left: Rory Jeffes, Orli Shaham, David Robertson, John Conde and Niels Marquardt.

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Proud sponsor of theSydney Symphonyin their 80th yearof timeless entertainment

Your Saythe Sydney Symphony’s performance [7 July] was quite special. The Adès Violin Concerto was refreshing and approachable, and Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony had all the excitement of a first performance. I have a very good feeling about the Sydney Symphony’s future under the direction of David Robertson. David Potter

Richard Gill taught me music at Marsden High School in 1961/2 and I loved it. He sat down at the beginning of one lesson and played the Moonlight Sonata without any music – wow. He had us close our eyes, listen to classical music and make up our own story according to the music we heard – great. He composed the school anthem. Thank you Richard Gill. Judy Crofton

Touring Focus – China‘The Phoenix China is emerging,’ says ABC Classic FM presenter Damien Beaumont. ‘Industrially and financially, of course, but also culturally, which is most exciting.’ In October, the Sydney Symphony will set course for China, for a six-concert tour conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy. Our programs will include Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, which was completed

after Stalin’s death in 1953, and Dvorák’s Cello Concerto, a showpiece for soloist Jian Wang.

Coinciding with the orchestra’s tour, Damien will be leading a 15-day Renaissance Tour, which will take in several performances at the Beijing Music Festival, visits to Shanghai and Hangzhou, and a trip to the Great Wall of China. He’ll be in the audience

when we perform in the ‘Bird’s Egg’ – the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. ‘Hearing our beloved Sydney Symphony in an ambassadorial role will be a real highlight.’

For more information about Music Lovers Renaissance Tours, visit bit.ly/RenaissanceToursChina2012

Bruckner’s Symphony No.8 was superbly performed by the SSO and Lothar Koenigs [21 June]. It was very evident that the orchestra and conductor at their first concert together had mutual respect and the result was beautiful, emotional, professional, and simply overwhelming. The brass and horns did an outstanding job with what must be one of the most taxing pieces of music for them, and the strings were relentless, sweeping, sweet, and everything that is beautiful. Congratulations to my favourite orchestra and Lothar Koenigs who must return on a regular basis. Richard Fay

I must confess to a certain bias in favour of Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia. Let’s put it this way…if it could cook, I would marry it. Even allowing for that, I thought

We like to hear from you. Write to yoursay@sydneysymphony.com or Bravo! Reply Paid 4338, Sydney NSW 2001.

Education Focus

Our Fellows recently surprised violinist Anthony Marwood on his birthday, which he had generously given over to leading a masterclass. ‘We played the three opening notes of Beethoven’s Septet,’ said Viola Fellow Neil Thompson, ‘and then launched into “Happy Birthday”. It definitely caught him by surprise!’

Putting laughter aside, the real work started. ‘Anthony immediately focussed on the dramatic aspect of Beethoven’s music.’ The musicians also worked on a Grand Septet by Berwald. ‘At one point Anthony was gesturing for us to bring out its theatrical strains, and it suddenly dawned on me that he hadn’t brought his instrument with him. And yet, he was leading the masterclass so effortlessly without it! It was a really inspiring and nourishing session.’ – with birthday cake at the end to reward hard work, naturally!

We gratefully acknowledge the supporters of the Fellowship program: Kim Williams AM & Catherine Dovey, Robert Albert AO & Elizabeth Albert, June & Alan Woods Family Bequest, Paul & Sandra Salteri, Mrs W Stening, Bruno & Rhonda Giuffre, Tempe Merewether OAM, Neil & Sandra Burns and premier partner Credit Suisse.

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A SEASON IS BORNOur 2013 season has finally launched – 28 conductors, 63 soloists and nearly 120 musical works coming together in 46 different programs…

Artistic FocusDancing Moon GoddessThis October, saxophonist Amy Dickson must become the ‘uni-versal Moon Goddess incarnate’, according to Ross Edwards, who has written his latest concerto for her. Full Moon Dances requires her to effect a series of onstage apotheoses, by adorning herself in a variety of heavenly costumes. Amy, who became close friends with the composer after she was named ABC/Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year in 2004, said it was ‘a dream come true’ when he offered to write the concerto for her.

Ross Edwards is well-known for his use of special lighting, choreography, costume and other seemingly extra-musical visual accompaniments – all part of his vision to restore the ancient, elemental associations of music with the mysticism, ritual and dance of a primal humanity. Amy worked directly with Ross and his family in the design of the costumes, which include a halo manufactured by Sydney milliner Suzy O’Rourke. She says that with Ross’s conception in mind, and arrayed in her celestial regalia, she finds it very easy to assume the goddess-like role he describes: ‘Serene and mysterious, she nonetheless has the power to unleash ecstasy and terror beyond the bounds of reason.’

Dancing with the SaxophoneVerdi, Edwards and Ravel’s BoleroFri 5 Oct | 8pm Sat 6 Oct | 8pm Mon 8 Oct | 7pm

Full Moon Dances was com-missioned by Andrew Kaldor and Renata Kaldor AO with the support of Symphony Services International.

The Score

On Wednesday 8 August we launched the 2013 season. And in homes across Sydney, excited concert-goers were tearing the wrapping from their season brochures to see what was in store.

The first responses poured in. Explosions of delight as music-lovers spotted favourites. ‘Murray Perahia – boom!’ said one. ‘Woah…Saint-Saëns Organ Symphony! Always good when the SOH organ gets a chance to assert itself,’ wrote another. ‘Tan Dun!! John Adams!! Flying Dutchman!! Verdi Requiem!! Britten’s War Requiem!! Woohoo!!’ More than a few are looking forward to the third instalment of The Lord of the Rings, one of several special events supported by premier partner Credit Suisse.

One fan spotted two of her favourite pieces – ‘Massively happy to be a subscriber!’ – only to follow with ‘Dang, neither of my favourites are in my series.’ Then another fan offered some advice: ‘Why not opt for a Con-noisseur’s Selection and choose your own concerts?’

A local journalist got so excited she slipped into all-caps. ‘ERIC OWENS! PINCHAS ZUKERMAN! JOHN ADAMS! MURRAY PERAHIA! THOMAS ADÈS! WU MAN! KRISTJAN JÄRVI!’ And once she’d calmed down… ‘OK, Schreker and Mozart with Geoffrey Lancaster. That does it for me. So much goodness.’ Yes, a little program buried in the Mozart in the City series, but

promising to be one of the jewels of the season with some scrump-tious music and a truly inspiring soloist.

This is why the season brochure rewards a thorough reading. The warhorses will leap out at you – Carmina Burana, Bruch and Mendelssohn violin concertos, Dvorák’s New World Symphony or Respighi’s Pines of Rome. But then there will be the treats, the rarities and the new creations to look forward to as well. Perhaps that piece you love despite its not being famous has been included in the wider ‘constellation’ of works, as our artistic planner Peter Czornyj calls it.

Threaded through the season are the connecting themes. Perhaps you’ve noticed a lot of Britten and Wagner as well as Verdi’s concert hall masterpiece. There’s a reason: 2013 is an anniversary year for all three. Next year is also the centenary of the notorious premiere of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, and we celebrate that with a spellbind-ing program of Stravinsky and Mendelssohn.

Above all, our 2013 program-ming acknowledges the remark-able musical relationship the orchestra enjoys with Principal Conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy. There are concerts featuring some of his favourite composers, and two high-energy programs with Pinchas Zukerman (pictured).

We’ve put our energy into creating a season that offers a wealth of choice and – we sincerely hope – will bring you a year of delight.

You can request a brochure via our website: www.sydneysymphony.com or by calling (02) 8215 4600.

Impatient music-lovers can view the brochure online at: bit.ly/2013OnlineBrochure

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE TRUSTMr Kim Williams AM [Chair]Ms Catherine Brenner, The Hon Helen Coonan, Mr Wesley Enoch,Ms Renata Kaldor AO, Mr Robert Leece AM RFD, Mr Peter Mason AM,Dr Thomas Parry AM, Mr Leo Schofi eld AM, Mr John Symond AM

EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENTActing Chief Executive Offi cer Jonathan BielskiDirector, Theatre and Events David ClaringboldDirector, Marketing, Communications and Director, Customer Services Victoria DoidgeBuilding Development and Maintenance Greg McTaggartDirector, Venue Partners and Safety Julia PucciChief Financial Offi cer Claire Spencer

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSEBennelong Point GPO Box 4274, Sydney NSW 2001Administration (02) 9250 7111 Box Offi ce (02) 9250 7777Facsimile (02) 9250 7666 Website sydneyoperahouse.com

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By arrangement with the Sydney Symphony, this publication is offered free of charge to its patrons subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s consent in writing. It is a further condition that this publication shall not be circulated in any form of binding or cover than that in which it was published, or distributed at any other event than specifi ed on the title page of this publication 16882 — 1/060912 — 27TH/E/G S71/73

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THANK YOU

We are extremely grateful to the many donors who responded to our recent end-of-financial-year appeal. This support will enable us to achieve our growing educational and orchestral goals and provide you in the audience and many music students throughout NSW with exciting and fulfilling musical experiences. These can range from supporting our more ambitious large-scale productions such as operas in concert to the annual development of student and teacher training resources. And of course, your support is welcome throughout the year. For more details, visit our website or feel free to contact us at philanthropy@sydneysymphony.com or (02) 8215 4625.

WELCOME TO A NEW FACE IN THE ORCHESTRA

We’re delighted to welcome Justin Williams to the position of Assistant Principal Viola. Justin was previously a member of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and is also an active chamber musician and a founding member of the Tinalley String Quartet.

BRASS EXHIBITION

Living brass legend, Australian trombonist Michael Mulcahy, will take time out from his regular ‘gig’ with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra to direct the Sydney Symphony Brass Ensemble for a performance at the Sydney Opera House on Friday 14 September. The Sydney performance will be preceded by a tour to Armidale, Port Macquarie and Grafton at the end of August.

Regional and metropolitan audiences will enjoy the talents of these fabulous musicians in a concert that promenades from the high

Renaissance to high Romanticism and on to music of our own time and place, including music by Elena Kats-Chernin. The program culminates in Elgar Howarth’s spectacular arrangement of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.

FREE LUNCH…

…time concerts in the city. In August and September you can enjoy two lunchtime performances by our musicians. Entry is by donation.

Wed 29 August, 1.15pm St James’ Church Sydney Symphony Fellows. The program will include Mozart’s Oboe Quartet and Franz Hasenöhrl’s witty chamber version of a Richard Strauss tone poem: Till Eulenspiegel einmal anders! – a frolic for five instruments.

Wed 19 September, 1.15pm St James’ Church Sophie Cole (violin), Rosemary Curtin (viola) and Leah Lynn (cello) The program will include Ravel’s Sonata for violin and cello.

CODA

BRAVO EDITOR Genevieve Lang sydneysymphony.com/bravoBRAVO EDITOR Genevieve Lang sydneysymphony.com/bravo‘SCORE’ CONTRIBUTOR Douglas Rutherford