Musica Viva Australia’s Northern Lights
June 23 @ 7:00 pm
Musica Viva Australia presents the Australian debut of Swedish-Norwegian violin virtuoso Johan Dalene alongside eloquent Australian pianist Jennifer Marten-Smith in a six-city national tour of Northern Lights this June. Northern Lights opens in Melbourne on Tuesday 10 June and concludes in Sydney on Monday 23 June.
Johan Dalene grabbed the world’s attention when he won the prestigious Carl Nielsen
International Competition in 2019. His mix of virtuosity and refreshingly honest musicality has won many accolades, including a Swedish Grammis Award, a Critics’ Circle Music Award, and the title of Gramophone’s 2022 Young Artist of the Year. In 2025, Dalene will play concertos by Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky, and Nielson with London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Tasmanian-born pianist Jennifer Marten-Smith joins Dalene for his Australian debut. An accomplished performer who debuted with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra at age 16, Marten-Smith’s extensive career includes working as a repetiteur with the State Opera of South Australia, Opera Australia, and the Staatsoper Hannover.
Together they will perform classic works from the violin and piano repertoire, including Ravel’s Tzigane, a spectacular showpiece powered by Romani fire, Grieg’s Sonata No.2 which dances to Norwegian folk tunes, and an atmospheric nocturne by Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara.
Also featured is the world premiere of Tilted Scales, a new commission from Australian composer Jack Frerer, whose Spiral Sequences dazzled audiences in the Esmé Quartet’s 2024 concerts.
The performers: Johan Dalene, violin/ Jennifer Marten-Smith, piano
The program: Beethoven Violin Sonata in G major, Op. 30 No. 3/ Jack Frerer Tilted Scales (2025) new commission/ Tchaikovsky Souvenir d’un lieu cher/Grieg Violin Sonata No. 2, Op. 13/
Boulanger D’un matin de printemps/ Rautavaara Notturno/ Ravel Tzigane
Dates and times:
Melbourne Recital Centre, Melbourne Tuesday 10 June 7pm, World premiere of Tilted Scales
Llewellyn Hall, ANU, Canberra, Thursday 12 June 7pm
Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle, Saturday 14 June 7:30pm
Adelaide Town Hall, Adelaide, Monday 16 June 7:30pm
Regal Theatre, Perth, Thursday 19 June 7:30pm
City Recital Hall, Sydney, Monday 23 June 7pm