Classical Music in Perth 

As a child visiting Paris, Christophe Rousset demanded to be taken to the gorgeous Baroque palace and gardens of Versailles, now a byword for lavish ornamentation and luxurious decorative arts. It was the beginning of a brilliant career, and the inspiration for what has become his life’s work in the music of this era, first as a prodigious harpsichordist and then, since 1991, as the leader of his own extraordinary ensemble: Les Talens Lyriques. To experience their performance is to understand why the French gave us so many words like ‘élan’ and ‘panache’ – words which equally describe the stunning virtuosity of Australian soprano Siobhan Stagg, their featured soloist on this tour.

WA Youth Orchestra

Saturday 26 September 2020, 7:30pm

Perth Concert Hall

Peter Moore OAM, Conductor & Alessandro Pittorino, Organ Soloist

Captivating characters and unforgettable musical scores…..Join WAYO at the Perth Concert Hall, performing themes from the best known and most epic film music ever written!

An enthralling cinematic program including  John Williams’, The Asteroid Field – Empire Strikes Back, Jurassic Park, and Saint-Saëns’ hugely popular ‘Organ’ Symphony, also recognised as the famous musical theme from the beloved movie Babe.

From film music favourites to richly romantic classics, WAYO will rise to exhilarating heights in the second half of the program, highlighting the Perth Concert Hall’s 3000-pipe organ in the glorious finale of Saint-Saëns’ Third Symphony featuring Organ Soloist, Alessandro Pittorino.

Hailed as “Australia’s Wunderkind Organist” by ABC TV, Perth born Alessandro Pittorino is a recent Juilliard School graduate and is considered one of the most exciting, innovative and invigorating organists of his generation. Pittorino will also perform Bach’s famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor.

The WA Youth Orchestra (WAYO) has a rich performance history, formed over a period of forty-five years of music making. The orchestra showcases the talents of Perth and Western Australia’s young orchestral musicians aged 12 -24 years old and has a deserved reputation as one of the finest youth orchestras in Australia. WAYO presents a large number of main stage concerts a year at Perth’s premier concert venues, and regularly performs to annual audiences of over 30,000 a year.

TICKET & BOOKING INFORMATION:

Tickets / $35 Adults / $25 Concession (All concession and senior card holders) / $20 School Student (18 yrs & under)

Bookings / PERTHCONCERTHALL.COM.AU / (08) 9231 9999 / In Person at Perth Concert Hall

More Info / WAYO.NET.AU

JS BACH                             Toccata and Fugue, BWV 565, D minor
JOHN WILLIAMS                The Asteroid Field – The Empire Strikes Back
JOHN WILLIAMS                 Jurassic Park
NATALIE WILLIAMS            Fourth Alarm
CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS     Symphony No.3, op.78, C minor (Organ Symphony)

A jam-packed program of stimulating performances and events in 2020 showcases the immense talent of UWA's young emerging artists and their mentors, along with celebrated alumni, and national and internationally recognised guest artists. From workshops and lectures to intimate chamber performances and large-scale collaborations, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

For all the Saints
 

CON-CANTORUM AND THE ST MARY’S CATHEDRAL CHOIR

Descending from the roofline of the majestic St Mary’s Cathedral are sixteen stained glass windows commemorating beloved and lesser known saints. In this program, Con-Cantorum joins with St Mary’s Cathedral Choir to present a program of joyous and reflective music – works that celebrate stained glass, light, the saints, and the mystery of the Mass. This eclectic program of traditional works, and twentieth-first century mini-gems by female composers, includes WA premieres of And the Lord said, Fiat Lux by Alice Chance and O splendidissima gemma (based upon St Hildegard von Bingen) by Stef Conner, Kaleidoscope by deVoight, and the premiere of a new commission for Con-Cantorum, With Visioned Eyes (for St Joan) by Lydia Gardiner.

Katja Webb offers visions, revelations, confessions and glimpses of the supernatural. Katja presents outstanding Australian music from her two CDs, including world and state premieres. West Australian composers James Penberthy and Geoffrey Allen are joined by Paul Paviour, Richard Peter Maddox, Dorian Le Gallienne and Margaret Sutherland. With poetry by Gwen Harwood, WB Yeats, Mary Gilmore, John Shaw Neilson and Shakespeare, this is a feast not to be missed.

Katja has performed in Australia and Germany since 2006 in all genres of vocal music from musicals through operetta to opera. She has been acclaimed by critics and public alike for her portrayals of Nannetta in Falstaff (Verdi); Eurydice in Orpheus in the Underworld (Offenbach); Proserpina in L’Orfeo (Monteverdi); Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus (J.Strauss jnr); Leïla in Les Pêcheurs de Perles (Bizet); title role in Rusalka (Dvorák) and as the Countess Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro (Mozart).

Principal piccolo of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra Michael Waye joins us for the Penberthy songs.

Presented by AWESOME Festival and Australian Baroque. 

Told in rich verse and accompanied by the live performance of classical music masterpieces, this epic tale charts the adventures of an unlikely pair of feathered friends from humble perch to worldly wonders and back again.

With enemies to thwart and unlikely friends to meet upon the way, the Pigeon and the Albatross together discover a world of beauty and diversity, all while learning that saving graces lie close to home.

Carmina burana has been repurposed, remixed and reworked by the best in the business for hundreds of films and TV commercials. Everyone knows it. However, there is nothing quite like the raw power of the original epic classic performed live. The wheel of fortune spins on the pleasures of lust and the perils of life in a collection of 24 medieval poems thrillingly sung by a 90-voice choir with WASO.

Featuring performances of Mendelsshon's The Hebrides, Mozart's Violin Concerto No.5 and Dvorák's Symphony No. 8.

WASO will introduce a white-hot rising star of the violin in Emmalena Huning to perform Mozart’s exquisite fifth violin concerto with WASO. Then, explore the rich emotional palette of a beautiful Bohemian soundscape with Dvorak’s joyfully melodic and beguiling eighth symphony.

Schubert’s first great song cycle presents the greatest of challenges to performers because of its simple perfection. Twenty songs chart the journey, physical and psychological, of a curious, dreamy young apprentice. The miraculous musical depictions of water make the mill-stream a central character in the drama of first love. Matthew Dixon portrays the young miller.

24 year-old Matthew is a graduate of WAAPA and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He was the recipient of the Silver Anniversary Prize for the Evelyn and Ralph Thompson Scholarship and also the winner of the Royal Overseas League Singing Competition and a semi-finalist in the 2019 IFAC Australian Singing Competition (winning the Tinkler Trust Award). In 2018/19 Matthew performed the roles of Don Giovanni, Belcore (L’Elisir d’Amore) and Billy Budd at GSMD, also debuting at London’s Wigmore Hall in a Schubertiade with Graham Johnson. He debuted the role of Motor Cop in Dead Man Walking for the UK premiere opposite Joyce Di Donato.

Straight from the score and onto the stage, the man known as Mozart appears amid a storm of powder, tumbling and twirling, as musical mayhem and movement fuse in this family show with a circus twist.

To those who know him, he is Wolfgang, the dart-playing ratbag. To those who are watching and listening, he is the wigged genius Mozart. Come and discover his irrepressible spirit and vibrant compositions through physical comedy and mischievous antics.

Designed to amaze people from the age of three and upwards, Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus reinvents the composer’s magical music in a skilful and illuminating show featuring Circa’s dexterous daredevil artists and a live accordionist. Watch as the notes are physically lifted off the page as performers bring the renowned compositions to life amidst a storm of powder, tumbles and crashes, all under the eccentric swirl of the conductor’s baton.

Conducted by Jessica Gethin, the ticket price includes complimentary coffee or tea prior to the concert. From 9.40am there will be a Wesfarmers Arts pre-concert talk held in the Auditorium.

The outstanding ability of our emerging artists is celebrated as three young performers compete in the finals of the prestigious VOSE Concerto Competition. Who will win this coveted prize? Have your say and vote for your favourite performance in the People’s Choice Award! The evening spectacularly culminates in a celebration of Beethoven’s 250th anniversary as the UWA Choral Society and the Aquinas College Scholar Choir combine with the UWA Symphony Orchestra and Symphonic Chorus to perform Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. 

Peter & the Wolf with the WA Youth Orchestra

Saturday 17 & Sunday 18 10am & 11:30am

*All family concert. Recommended children’s age, 4 years and up.

Perth College, Judith Cottier Theatre, Mt Lawley

WA Youth Orchestra
Peter Moore OAM, presenter

Returning by popular demand, WAYO brings Prokofiev’s timeless musical classic to life – a tale which not only entertains but also facilitates learning about music and the instruments of the orchestra.

Families will be spellbound by the story of a young boy’s adventures with his grandfather, a sly cat, a silly duck and of course – a wolf!

Proudly presented by St John of God Health Care, Community & Family Partner

TICKETS - $15 per person (unallocated seating). No booking or processing fee!

The musicians of Piñata Percussion are joined by the WA Young Percussion Group (WAYPG) and UWA Graduate Jet Kye Chong to unveil a kaleidoscopic collection of unique sounds, instruments and objects in a virtuosic performance showcasing the skills of these exceptional young artists.

Petrina Bishop is a powerhouse of exceptional musicianship, strength, and raw emotion!

Get ready for a rollercoaster of emotions as Petrina showcases her incredible versatility and range, accompanied by one of Australia’s most skilled pianists Mr David Wickham.

Petrina is a powerhouse vocalist that captures the raw vulnerability that Judy always gave. Come hear the songs and arrangements of Judy’s infamous performances at London’s Talk of The Town nightclub.

If you love and adore Judy Garland, this is the show for you!