The Song Company: The Concord of Strangers
In their fifth program this year, The Song Company celebrates the first ever record of a European visiting the Australian continent, paying homage to the incredible historical moment and the legacy that it left.
In 1616, the same year that Shakespeare died, Dutch explorer Dirk Hartog in his ship Eendracht (the Concord) landed off the coast of Shark Bay and became the first European to leave a record of his visit to the Australian continent. Word of the voyage to other European explorers encouraged further navigation which ultimately led to “a kind of abomination- the penetration of a fragile continent” as described by Tim Flannery.
The Concord of Strangers reflects the discovery of the new and the introduction of the European culture to native Australia which happened on that symbolic day, seen in the contrast of Renaissance Dutch music with the sounds of Australia old and new.
The celebration of Australian history and culture and the incredible attention to historical detail through the enchanting melodies, sees The Song Company’s antepenultimate concert be one that is not to be missed.
The programme:
A sea of polyphony from the earlier generations of composers from the Low Countries
A soundscape of contemporary and Indigenous Australian work – from The Song Company’s Call for Audio
A selection of chansons, madrigals, and motets by Sweelinck from his Rimes francaises et italiennes (1612) and Cantiones
Sacrae (1619)
Click here to book.
As well as two Sydney performances there are performances in Newcastle, Canberra and Wollongong. Check website for details.
