Three winners of the ARIA Fine Arts Awards were announced at the Art Gallery of New South Wales this morning.
Congratulations to Sally Whitwell for Best Classical Album All Imperfect Things, The Idea of North for Best Jazz Album Smile and Joseph Tawadros for Best World Music Album Chameleons of the White Shadow.
Read our review of Smile.
In our recent Q and A with mezzo-soprano Catherine Carby, she talked about her upcoming roles as Romeo in I Capuleti e i Montecchi for the Chelsea Opera Group and as the Voice from Above in Richard Strauss’ Die Frau ohne Schatten for the Royal Opera, Covent Garden. Read the glowing reviews of her performances as…
Paul Mealor. On the day I was scheduled to speak to Welsh composer Paul Mealor, based in Aberdeen, Scotland, there was a storm so wild, that telecommunications were disrupted and the call had to be re-scheduled. The elements seemed to conspire to evoke Mealor’s inspirations and memories whilst defying his aspirations to “write music that…
Some weeks ago we posted the link to a feature in the New York Times bout the destruction of pianos that no-one wanted to keep or maintain. Now the Sydney Morning Herald reports on a rapidly diminishing skill base of piano tuners. http://www.smh.com.au/national/scaled-back-dying-skill-a-note-of-concern-for-pianists-20120824-24rxj.html
A brand new production of Don Giovanni hits the board tomorrow night in the Joan Sutherland Theatre of the Sydney Opera House. Opera Australia has recruited Glaswegian opera and theatre director Sir David McVicar to create this staging. Teddy Tahu Rhodes will again sing the role of ‘the Don’. Accustomed as we are to seeing him clad…
Sydney’s Ensemble Offspring celebrates its 25th anniversary with Songbirds, a new album of contemporary Australian music that celebrates birds – nature’s own composers. Released on the ABC Classic label, Ensemble Offspring’s new album, Songbirds, is a beguiling collection of chamber works for flute, clarinet and vibraphone inspired by butcherbirds, blackbirds, lorikeets and leafcutter ants, frogs…
Strike A Chord, Musica Viva Australia’s National Chamber Music Championship for high school students is going online and the entry fee has been waived! Secondary school-aged ensembles from around Australia are invited to apply online by 27 August 2020 for their chance to progress to the finals and share in prizes worth thousands of dollars….