The Royal Northern Sinfonia has commissioned a controversial new portrait of Mozart by American artist Tim O’Brien which portrays the composer as ‘ a “daring” and “edgy” musician in the mould of Johnny Rotten,’ dismissing Mozart’s “chocolate box” image.
Click here to read the feature from the BBC.
Check out these eight costume designs from Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour’s production of Verdi’s Aida. Sopranos Latonia Moore and Daria Masiero will share the role of Aida. Directed by Gale Edwards with costume and set design by Mark Thompson, Aida will run from 27 March to 26 April 2015. All images are by courtesy of Opera Australia. …
Cellist Julian Lloyd-Webber levels some serious allegations against music competitions writes Hannah Ellis-Petersen in The Guardian
Maurice Ravel’s Boléro features it prominently, as do Donizetti’s Una furtiva lagrima, the overture to The Marriage of Figaro, and more comical music like the grandfather’s theme in Peter and the Wolf, Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and R Strauss’ Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks. Stravinsky scored it in The Rite of Spring and the Firebird Suite. Now it seems the bassoon is going out of fashion and virtuoso bassoonist…
The Australian String Quartet (ASQ) will not continue in its current configuration beyond 2014 due to artistic differences. Along with performing an annual national concert series, the quartet is also Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Adelaide. After careful consideration, the Board of the ASQ has appointed violist Stephen King and cellist Sharon Draper to lead the quartet into the future. Chairman of the board Paul Clitheroe said “the ASQ’s most recent performances have been truly exceptional and despite…
Ensemble Offspring, leaders in innovative new music have utilised crucial 3 year funding from the Australia Council to launch its national academy programme which they have called Hatched. In 2014 one young composer and one young performer will receive expert tuition and practical hands-on curatorial expertise designing a program of innovative work that showcases themselves alongside Ensemble…
Opera Australia’s realist double-bill Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci opened in Sydney last week. Visually and musically sumptuous with dramatic performances, here are some images from Cavalleria Rusticana with images from Pagiliacci in the next post. Read our review from opening night. The double-bill runs till February 4 in Sydney and moves to Melbourne in May 2017. Scroll…