Sibelius and Prokofiev: Love and Resistance

CONCERT PROGRAM

Sibelius and Prokofiev: Love and Resistance

27–28 October Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall

Artists Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chloé van Soeterstède conductor Dale Barltrop violin Rachael Tobin cello

Program PROKOFIEV Classical Symphony ELENA KATS-CHERNIN Sarenka Concerto for Soli Violin, Violoncello and Orchestra* – Interval – SIBELIUS Symphony No.1 Our musical Acknowledgment of Country, Long Time Living Here by Deborah Cheetham Fraillon AO, will be performed at these concerts.

World premiere, commissioned by the Weis Family in memory of Sara Weis

Concert Events 27 October at 6.45pm in the Stalls Foyer on Level 2 at Hamer Hall.

28 October at 1.15pm in the Stalls Foyer on Level 2 at Hamer Hall.

Want to learn more about the music being performed? Arrive early for an informative and entertaining pre-concert talk with Nicholas Bochner, Elena Kats-Chernin and Bob Weis.

Duration 1 hour and 50 minutes including interval These concerts may be recorded for future broadcast on MSO.LIVE.

In consideration of your fellow patrons, the MSO thanks you for silencing and dimming the light on your phone.

Acknowledging Country

About Long Time Living Here

In the first project of its kind in Australia, the MSO has developed a musical Acknowledgment of Country with music composed by Yorta Yorta composer Deborah Cheetham Fraillon AO, featuring Indigenous languages from across Victoria. Generously supported by Helen Macpherson Smith Trust and the Commonwealth Government through the Australian National Commission for UNESCO, the MSO is working in partnership with Short Black Opera and Indigenous language custodians who are generously sharing their cultural knowledge.

The Acknowledgement of Country allows us to pay our respects to the traditional owners of the land on which we perform in the language of that country and in the orchestral language of music.

Australian National Commission for UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

In all the world, only Australia can lay claim to the longest continuing cultures and we celebrate this more today than in any other time since our shared history began. We live each day drawing energy from a land which has been nurtured by the traditional owners for more than 2000 generations. When we acknowledge country we pay respect to the land and to the people in equal measure.

As a composer I have specialised in coupling the beauty and diversity of our Indigenous languages with the power and intensity of classical music.

In order to compose the music for this Acknowledgement of Country Project I have had the great privilege of working with no fewer than eleven ancient languages from the state of Victoria, including the language of my late Grandmother, Yorta Yorta woman Frances McGee. I pay my deepest respects to the elders and ancestors who are represented in these songs of acknowledgement and to the language custodians who have shared their knowledge and expertise in providing each text.

I am so proud of the MSO for initiating this landmark project and grateful that they afforded me the opportunity to make this contribution to the ongoing quest of understanding our belonging in this land.

— Deborah Cheetham Fraillon AO

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Established in 1906, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is Australia’s pre-eminent orchestra and a cornerstone of Victoria’s rich, cultural heritage.

Each year, the MSO engages with more than 5 million people, presenting in excess of 180 public events across live performances, TV, radio and online broadcasts, and via its online concert hall, MSO.LIVE, with audiences in 56 countries.

With a reputation for excellence, versatility and innovation, the MSO works with culturally diverse and First Nations leaders to build community and deliver music to people across Melbourne, the state of Victoria and around the world.

In 2023, the MSO’s Chief Conductor, Jaime Martín continues an exciting new phase in the Orchestra’s history. Maestro Martín joins an Artistic Family that includes Principal Guest Conductor, Xian Zhang, Principal Conductor in Residence, Benjamin Northey, Conductor Laureate, Sir Andrew Davis CBE, Cybec Assistant Conductor Fellow, Carlo Antonioli, MSO Chorus Director, Warren Trevelyan-Jones, Soloist in Residence, Siobhan Stagg, Composer in Residence, Mary Finsterer, Ensemble in Residence, Gondwana Voices, Cybec Young Composer in Residence, Melissa Douglas and Young Artist in Association, Christian Li. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra respectfully acknowledges the people of the Eastern Kulin Nations, on whose un-ceded lands we honour the continuation of the oldest music practice in the world.

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

Musicians Performing in this Concert FIRST VIOLINS

SECOND VIOLINS

CELLOS

Dale Barltrop

Robert Macindoe

David Berlin

Monica Curro

Rebecca Proietto Angela Sargeant Caleb Wong Jonathan Chim* Erna Lai* Anna Pokorny* Zoe Wallace*

Concertmaster David Li AM and Angela Li#

Sophie Rowell*

Guest Concertmaster

Peter Edwards

Assistant Principal Margaret Billson and the late Ted Billson#

Sarah Curro Peter Fellin Deborah Goodall Karla Hanna Anne-Marie Johnson David Horowicz#

Eleanor Mancini Anne Neil#

Mark Mogilevski Michelle Ruffolo Jacqueline Edwards* Susannah Ng* Emily Beauchamp^

Associate Principal

Assistant Principal Dr Mary-Jane Gething AO#

Freya Franzen Cong Gu

Newton Family in memory of Rae Rothfield#

Andrew Hall Isy Wasserman Philippa West

Andrew Dudgeon AM#

DOUBLE BASSES Jonathon Coco

Patrick Wong Madeleine Jevons* Jos Jonker* Michael Loftus-Hills* Oksana Thompson*

Principal

VIOLAS

Caitlin Bass*

Thomas Chawner*

Rohan Dasika Suzanne Lee Stephen Newton Sophie Galaise and Clarence Fraser# Siyuan Vivian Qu*

Guest Principal

Emma Sullivan*

Lauren Brigden Anthony Chataway

FLUTES

The late Dr Elizabeth E Lewis AM#

Gabrielle Halloran Jenny Khafagi Isabel Morse Molly Collier-O’Boyle* Ceridwen Davies* Sandra Ionescu* Heidi von Bernewitz*

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Principal

Correct as of 18 October 23 Learn more about our musicians on the MSO website.

Prudence Davis Principal Anonymous#

Sarah Beggs PICCOLO Andrew Macleod Principal

* Denotes Guest Musician # Position supported by

Callum Hogan*

Guest Principal

Ann Blackburn

The Rosemary Norman Foundation#

COR ANGLAIS Rachel Curkpatrick

Acting Principal

CLARINET Philip Arkinstall

Associate Principal

BASS CLARINET Jon Craven

Principal

BASSOONS

HORNS

TIMPANI

Nicolas Fleury

Matthew Thomas

Principal Margaret Jackson AC#

Andrew Young

Associate Principal

Saul Lewis

Principal Third The late Hon Michael Watt KC and Cecilie Hall#

Abbey Edlin

Nereda Hanlon and Michael Hanlon AM#

Rachel Shaw

Gary McPherson#

TRUMPETS Owen Morris

William Evans Callum G’Froerer*

Natasha Thomas

TROMBONES

Dr Martin Tymms and Patricia Nilsson#

PERCUSSION Shaun Trubiano Principal

Robert Cossom

Drs Rhyl Wade and Clem Gruen#

HARP Yinuo Mu Principal

KEYBOARD Jacob Abela*

Principal

Jack Schiller

Principal

Principal

SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

OBOES

Mark Davidson Principal

Richard Shirley Mike Szabo

Principal Bass Trombone

TUBA Timothy Buzbee

Principal

* Denotes Guest Musician ^ Denotes MSO Academy # Position supported by

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

Chloé van Soeterstède conductor Chloé van Soeterstède is attracting the attention of orchestras across the globe for her intuitive, sensitive, expressive music-making and her commanding and positive presence on the podium. She is praised repeatedly for her attention to detail, her energy and enthusiasm, and efficiency in rehearsal. She is forging some excellent relationships with orchestras across Europe, the UK and the US and in 2023 makes her Australian/ New Zealand debut.

23/24 season highlights include debuts with the Philharmonia and Hallé, in Europe with the Bilbao Symphony and Lausanne Chamber orchestras, in the US with Colorado Springs Symphony and at Lincoln Center, New York, with the Orchestra Now and further afield with the Auckland Philharmonia, Melbourne and Adelaide Symphony orchestras. She will also return to the Orlando Philharmonic, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Gävle Symphony and RTVE Symphony (Madrid) orchestras.

In recent years Van Soeterstède has conducted widely across the UK and Europe, and in the US the LA Philharmonic, with whom she was a Dudamel fellow in the 21/22 season. She studied the viola in Paris and at the Royal Academy of Music London and then conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music, and was appointed the Taki Alsop Fellow in 2019 by Marin Alsop.

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CONCERTMASTER position supported by David Li AM and Angela Li Brisbane-born violinist, Dale Barltrop, is Concertmaster of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and First Violinist of the Australian String Quartet. He previously served as Concertmaster of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra in Canada and Principal Second Violin of the St Paul Chamber Orchestra in the United States, having performed with all of these orchestras as soloist and director.

Barltrop has also appeared as Concertmaster of the Australian World Orchestra under Sir Simon Rattle, guest director of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, ACO2 and the Camerata of St John’s chamber orchestra in Brisbane. He has performed at numerous music festivals across North America, including Mainly Mozart, Festival Mozaic, Music in the Vineyards, Yellow Barn, Kneisel Hall, Tanglewood and the New York String Seminar.

SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

Dale Barltrop violin

Barltrop began his violin studies in Brisbane, made his solo debut with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra at the age of 15 and was Concertmaster of both the Queensland and Australian Youth Orchestras. He moved to the United States in 1998 to attend the University of Maryland and continued his studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music. His teachers have included William Preucil, Gerald Fischbach, the members of the Guarneri Quartet, Elizabeth Morgan and Marcia Cox. A passionate educator, Barltrop has served on the faculties of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra School of Music and the Vancouver Academy of Music. He has also taught at the University of British Columbia, National Orchestral Institute in Maryland, Australian National Academy of Music and Australian Youth Orchestra.

Barltrop performs on a violin crafted by JB Guadagnini, Turin, 1784. It is on loan from the Ukaria Cultural Centre and was purchased through the generosity of Allan J Myers AO, Maria J Myers AO and the Klein Family.

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

Rachael Tobin cello ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL CELLO position supported by Anonymous Rachael is the Associate Principal Cellist of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

She studied at the Royal Academy of Music, London, and completed a Masters’ degree at Mannes College of Music, New York. She has performed as a soloist at the Park Lane Group’s New Year Series (London) and concertos with The London Soloists’ Chamber Orchestra and the Mannes Symphony Orchestra.

Rachael has won the Macklin Bursary, the ABRSM international undergraduate scholarship, the Elder Scholarship, a Centenary Medal for service to The Arts, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Cello Fellowship. She was a member of the Estonian National Opera Orchestra and worked with Philharmonia (UK), the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra and the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.

She is also a member of the Melbourne Ensemble – a group made up of colleagues from the MSO who regularly perform chamber music together.

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YOUR MENTAL

WELLBEING

AND INNER

ARE CONNECTED Quality sleep and stress relief support them both

learn more

PROUDLY PARTNERING WITH

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

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Program Notes SERGEI PROKOFIEV

(1891–1953)

Symphony No.1 in D, Op.25, Classical I. Allegro II. Larghetto III. Gavotte (Non troppo allegro) IV. Finale (Molto vivace) In its early days the symphony was basically a collection of reasonably short contrasting movements; sometimes three, sometimes four. Musicologist Richard Taruskin has described the 18th century symphony as ‘aristocratic party music’; in other words, diversionary music that wasn’t designed to place huge demands upon the listener.

In Haydn’s and Mozart’s hands the symphony became longer and weightier but it remained essentially music for entertainment. But in the hands of Beethoven, beginning with his Symphony No.3, Eroica, in 1805, the symphony became much longer and much more intense. It became not so much a piece of music that was listened to as a piece of music that was experienced. That is to say, the symphony became invested with ideas (‘universal brotherhood’ in the case of Beethoven’s Ninth), stories (‘an episode in the life of an artist’ in Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique), places (Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony) and highly charged emotions (Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique Symphony). Mahler famously commented to fellow composer Sibelius that ‘a symphony must be like the world; it must embrace everything.’

But in his Symphony No.1, Classical, Prokofiev deliberately shuns the deep and meaningful baggage that the symphony accumulated in the 19th century and reverts to the simpler world of the 18th century symphony – specifically, the symphony of the ‘Classical period’. The Classical Symphony largely replicates the

dimensions of the 18th century orchestra and the general shape and durations of the 18th century symphony (the entire work lasts for approximately 15 minutes, which is less than the opening movement alone of Beethoven’s four-movement Eroica).

But this is not to suggest that Prokofiev’s Symphony No.1 is an exercise in stylistic fakery. Prokofiev’s aim was not so much to write faux Haydn as to write the kind of symphony that Haydn might have composed had he lived in the first quarter of the 20th century. The opening movement, Allegro, for example, adheres to the conventions of Classical sonata form but it is spiced up with sudden shifts in tonality and metre. This is unquestionably 20th century music.

The slow movement, Larghetto, is gently understated, and with its delicate violins and graceful lilt evokes the Russian ballet-music tradition (Prokofiev would go on to compose some of the most significant ballets of the 20th century, notably Romeo and Juliet). The brief third movement, Gavotte, offers dance music of a different kind while the spirited Finale brings a return to the breathlessness of the first movement and recalls the rollicking good humour of Haydn’s finales.

Prokofiev was in his mid-20s when he composed the Symphony No.1. It was premiered in Petrograd (i.e. St. Petersburg) in April 1918 under the baton of the composer. Prokofiev left Russia for the United States some months later (travelling via Tokyo, where he gave some concerts) and introduced the work to American audiences in December that year when he conducted it at Carnegie Hall. Astonishingly, respected critic Henry Krehbiel dismissed it as ‘puerile’. Presumably, for him, the symphony as a genre ought to plumb the depths and scale the heights. In the Classical Symphony Prokofiev simply wished to entertain. © Robert Gibson 2014

Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Elena KatsChernin AO came to Australia in 1975 and studied at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

Her music featured at the opening ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games and the 2003 Rugby World Cup and she received several awards, among them the Sounds Australian Award in 1996 for Cadences, Deviations and Scarlatti as well as Green Room and Helpmann Awards in 2004 for her score to Meryl Tankard’s Wild Swans (Australian Ballet). She has also been awarded the Sidney Myer Award and the Sydney Theatre Award.

Her Russian Rag was used as Max’s theme in the 2009 claymation Mary and Max by Oscar winning director Adam Elliot. It has also been the theme for “Late Night Live” on ABC Radio National for many years. Her piece Eliza Aria became a popular jingle for a UK bank from 2007 till 2013.

The staging by the Lyric Opera of her early opera Iphis received the 2023 Green Room award in 4 categories: for musical achievement, best production as well as best supporting role.

Elena was a recipient of the Australian Women on Music Award (AWMA) for Artistic Excellence 2022. After the premiere of the Sarenka Concerto by the MSO, she travels to Berlin to oversee the premiere of her new children’s opera Nils Holgersson at the Komische Oper and then restaging of her earlier children’s opera Jim Button at the Zurich Oper. Elena’s music is published by Boosey & Hawkes.

SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

ELENA KATS-CHERNIN

Tonight’s performance of Elena’s Sarenka Concerto for Soli Violin, Violoncello and Orchestra is a world premiere and commissioned for the MSO by the Weis Family in memory of Sara Weis.

SARA WEIS MEMORIAL Sarenka was the family and friend name for Sara Weis.

She passed in October 2016 and was passionate about learning, the arts and, of course, music. We wanted to commemorate her, and after discussion, we decided to partner with the MSO in the work you will hear.

It has been a long journey, interrupted by Covid, but now we can celebrate the memory of this remarkable woman.

Elena has worked hard on the composition and now the soloists, together with the orchestra and conductor will bring it to life.

Bob Weis

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

ELENA KATS-CHERNIN

(b. 1957)

Sarenka Concerto for Soli Violin, Violoncello and Orchestra World premiere, commissioned by the Weis Family in memory of Sara Weis.

Dale Barltrop violin Rachael Tobin cello A note from the composer: It has been an honour to write a work in memory of a brave strong woman Sara Weis (she was endearingly named Sarenka by her family), an underground anti-nazi fighter in the World War II, a wife, mother, grandmother, greatgrandmother and a great music lover and supporter.

It was a pleasure to write this tribute work for the much loved soloists Dale Baltrop and Rachael Tobin and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

Violin and Cello have always striked me as deeply emotional and stirring instruments, capable of touching the soul in profound ways. I tried to tease out their rich colours and textures, while looking to explore many facets of Sarenka’s life and character.

1. Childhood Bitter-sweet memory of Sara’s childhood in a Polish village, among the loving, highly educated and cultured doctor’s family, this idyllic time cut short by the cruel war. After a gentle orchestral introduction the two soloists enter first as part of orchestral texture developing into a succession of melodies that evoke a sense of expectation but also a loss of innocent joy. These melodies are often based on scales or on repeated insistent notes and are enhanced by the evolving harmonic shifts.

2. Danger

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Harsh sounds from the soloists start this movement. It is based on rhythmic, angular and edgy bass phrase consisting

of 9 bars. The movement ends on a sudden “dramatic” chord in the full orchestra.

3. Hope First we hear a brief interlude before the start of a set of variations on a hopeful theme, stated initially in Cello solo in A minor, accompanied by held notes in flute, clarinet and strings. The piece ends on an expectant chord without resolution.

4. Good Times After arriving as migrants in Melbourne with their family, Sara and Adam started a business of making pantyhose. It was going well and they often hosted parties with friends. There are a few hints of tango amidst machine-like material mainly in G minor.

5. Ripples This is a sparse waltz, starting delicately with flute, piano and harp.

Sara was an avid multilingual book reader, highly interested in people and knowledge. I wanted to have a lot of space in this movement, as if giving that knowledge a space to enter into. It’s also like an echo of what has gone before, hence the title.

6. Memory of the Future While Sara is no longer alive, she lives on in the memory of those who knew and loved her. I got a strong sense of how much of a magnetic presence she was to everyone from the way each member of the Weis family talked intensely about her.

The finale starts with a muted trumpet playing fragmented motives of the partisan song that meant a lot to Sara. Most of the material here is a reminiscence of the themes that have been heard in previous movements.

After a soloists’ cadenza, the concerto concludes with a gentle hopeful material.

Symphony No.1 in E minor, Op.39 I. Andante, ma non troppo – Allegro energico II. Andante (ma non troppo lento) III. Scherzo: Allegro IV. Finale (quasi una fantasia): Andante – Allegro molto In July 1900, Sibelius wrote to his wife, Aino, from Germany: ‘I can win a place, I believe, with my music. No, I don’t believe; I know I can.’

Sibelius had every right to feel optimistic. His First Symphony had premiered, to great acclaim, by the Orchestra of the Helsinki Philharmonic Society under the composer himself in 1899, and, in a revised version, was performed by Robert Kajanus and the orchestra on an extended European tour in mid-1900. European critics were, generally, no less effusive, with Hamburg critic Ferdinand Pfohl declaring, ‘a work full of unrestrained strength, full of passionate vivacity and astonishing audacity is – to state the matter plainly – a remarkable work, one that steps out on new paths, or rather rushes forward like an intoxicated god.’

Sibelius was by no means inexperienced at orchestral composition by this time. Born into the Swedish-speaking minority, in a country ruled in increasingly repressive fashion by Russia, Sibelius was largely unaware of the richness of ethnic Finnish culture until he became engaged to Aino Järnefelt in 1890. The Järnefelt family introduced Sibelius to the mythological and literary culture of the Finns, and the result was a series of works that celebrated Kalevala, the Finnish national epic. Sibelius produced a sprawling choral Kullervo Symphony, as well as the group of pieces based on four legends of the mythic hero, Lemminkäinen;

the 1890s also saw works of regional celebration like the Karelia Suite and the piece that, since 1900, has been known as Finlandia. In other words, Sibelius had more than mastered orchestral composition, and had developed a musical language in which he could express, and combine, states of mysticism and patriotism.

After Sibelius’ death, his secretary recalled the composer saying, ‘I was not thinking about Kalevala during the composition of the first symphony.’

Sibelius elsewhere insisted that symphonies had to be self-contained and supported by internal coherence alone, and, even though he toyed at first with a program of Romantic commonplaces, the First Symphony has the air of a work which seeks to do no more nor less than make perfect sense in its own terms. (We might note, though, that the 1900 tour was part of a charm offensive to gain recognition for Finnish self-determination in Europe and was thus interpreted as ‘nationalistic’.) As a student in Vienna in 1890, Sibelius had come under the spell of Anton Bruckner’s Third Symphony.

While his tastes eventually changed, certain aspects of Bruckner’s work such as his ability to create large-scale, inexorable structures, and the dynamic use of ostinatos, or repeated figures, remained central to Sibelius’ method.

The other figure with palpable influence on the First Symphony is Tchaikovsky: paradoxically, music associated with freedom from Russian rule owes a fully acknowledged debt to Russia’s greatest 19th century composer.

The symphony begins, uniquely, with a soft, chromatic solo clarinet melody answered, at first, only by the distant thunder of soft timpani. Out of this introspective Andante emerges the surging Allegro material that forms the body of the movement. Massive sonorities of strings and brass are offset

SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

JEAN SIBELIUS

(1873–1943)

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SIBELIUS AND PROKOFIEV: LOVE AND RESISTANCE | 27–28 October

by the delicate wind writing we hear in some of Tchaikovsky’s ballet scores.

After one such passage a texture of ostinato figures, gradually increasing in speed, launches the music into sections of ever more dramatic contrasts. After the movement’s provisional-sounding climax, the accelerating ostinato texture brings it to a close, which is articulated by two simple plucked string chords.

The slow movement continues the use of dramatic juxtaposition, using rondo form to contain some turbulent outbursts in a generally lyrical frame.

The Scherzo likewise pits the kind of emphatic rhythmic material we hear in late Bruckner with more ephemeral wind writing.

The Finale ‘quasi una fantasia’ bears the full weight of the work, beginning with the opening clarinet melody, fully scored and harmonised. The main material that follows consists of two themes, one marked Allegro molto which frequently leads into stormy weather, and a passionately lyrical Andante tune that reappears at the movement’s climax in glowing colours and almost static harmony. Significantly, though, the piece does not end triumphantly, but returns to an anguished minor-key mood and closes with those enigmatic pizzicato chords from the end of the first movement. © Gordon Kerry 2013

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As we look to the future, and all the amazing possibilities ahead, we look to the vital role you play in building the MSO. We ask you to consider becoming an MSO Guardian by leaving a gift in your Will. Even just leaving 1% to the Orchestra you love can make an incredible impact, allowing us to invest in learning and access programs, groundbreaking collaborations, revered classics and support the brilliance of our performers, and ensure that MSO is part of Melbourne for the decades to come.

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Supporters

Supporters MSO PATRON Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Margaret Gardner AC, Governor of Victoria

CHAIRMAN’S CIRCLE Mr Marc Besen AC and the late Mrs Eva Besen AO Gandel Foundation The Gross Foundation Di Jameson OAM and Frank Mercurio Harold Mitchell Foundation Lady Potter AC CMRI Cybec Foundation The Pratt Foundation The Ullmer Family Foundation Anonymous

ARTIST CHAIR BENEFACTORS Cybec Assistant Conductor Chair Carlo Antonioli Cybec Foundation Concertmaster Dale Barltrop David Li AM and Angela Li Assistant Concertmaster Tair Khisambeev Di Jameson OAM and Frank Mercurio Young Composer in Residence Melissa Douglas Cybec Foundation 2023 Composer in Residence Mary Finsterer Kim Williams AM

PROGRAM BENEFACTORS

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MSO Now & Forever Fund: International Engagement Gandel Foundation Cybec 21st Century Australian Composers Program Cybec Foundation Digital Transformation Perpetual Foundation – Alan (AGL) Shaw Endowment First Nations Emerging Artist Program The Ullmer Family Foundation East meets West The Li Family Trust, National Foundation for Australia-China Relations MSO Live Online Crown Resorts Foundation, Packer Family Foundation

MSO Education Anonymous MSO Academy Di Jameson OAM and Frank Mercurio, Mary Armour, Christopher Robinson in memory of Joan P Robinson MSO For Schools Crown Resorts Foundation, Packer Family Foundation, Department of Education, Victoria, through the Strategic Partnerships Program Melbourne Music Summit Department of Education, Victoria, through the Strategic Partnerships Program MSO Regional Touring Angior Foundation, William & Lindsay Brodie Foundation Creative Victoria, Freemasons Foundation Victoria, Gwen and Edna Jones Foundation, Robert Salzer Foundation, The Sir Andrew & Lady Fairley Foundation, Uebergang Foundation The Pizzicato Effect Hume City Council’s Community Grants program, The Marian and E.H. Flack Trust, Flora & Frank Leith Charitable Trust, Australian Decorative And Fine Arts Society, Anonymous Sidney Myer Free Concerts Sidney Myer MSO Trust Fund and the University of Melbourne

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Christopher Menz and Peter Rose Ian Merrylees Alan and Dorothy Pattison David and Nancy Price Ruth and Ralph Renard Peter and Carolyn Rendit James Ring Tom and Elizabeth Romanowski Christopher Menz and Peter Rose Jan Ryan Jeffrey Sher KC and Diana Sher OAM Barry Spanger Caroline Stuart Robert and Diana Wilson Shirley and Jeffrey Zajac Anonymous (4)

PLAYER PATRONS $1,000+ Dr Sally Adams Margaret Astbury Australian Decorative & Fine Arts Society Robbie Barker Michael Bowles and Alma Gill Joyce Bown Youth Music Foundation Miranda Brockman Drs John D L Brookes and Lucy V Hanlon Stuart Brown Jill and Christopher Buckley Dr Robin Burns and Dr Roger Douglas Ronald and Kate Burnstein Kaye Cleary Mrs Nola Daley Dr Panch Das and Laurel Young-Das Caroline Davies Natasha Davies for the Trikojus Education Fund Rick and Sue Deering Suzanne Dembo John and Anne Duncan Jane Edmanson OAM Diane Fisher Alex Forrest Frank Tisher OAM and Dr Miriam Tisher Applebay Pty Ltd

Ian McDonald Wayne McDonald and Kay Schroer Lois McKay Don and Anne Meadows Dr Eric Meadows Professor Geoffrey Metz Sylvia Miller Ian Morrey and Geoffrey Minter Anthony and Anna Morton Dr Judith S Nimmo Laurence O’Keefe and Christopher James Susan Pelka Ian Penboss Peter Priest John Prokupets Professor Charles Qin OAM and Kate Ritchie Eli Raskin Jan and Keith Richards Roger Parker and Ruth Parker Dr Peter Rogers and Cathy Rogers OAM Dr Ronald and Elizabeth Rosanove Marie Rowland Viorica Samson Martin and Susan Shirley P Shore John E Smith Dr Peter Strickland Dr Joel Symons and Liora Symons Russell Taylor and Tara Obeyesekere Geoffrey Thomlinson Andrew and Penny Torok Christina Turner Leon and Sandra Velik The late Reverend Noel Whale Edward & Paddy White Nic and Ann Willcock Lorraine Woolley Grant Fisher and Helen Bird Anonymous (16)

Supporters

David Frenkiel and Esther Frenkiel OAM Mary Gaidzkar Simon Gaites Anthony Garvey and Estelle O’Callaghan David I Gibbs AM and Susie O’Neill Sonia Gilderdale Dr Celia Godfrey Dr Marged Goode Tony Grusd Hilary Hall in memory of Wilma Collie David Hardy Tilda and the late Brian Haughney Cathy Henry Dr Jennifer Henry Anthony and Karen Ho Lorraine Hook Jenny and Peter Hordern Katherine Horwood Penelope Hughes Jordan Janssen Basil and Rita Jenkins Sue Johnston John Kaufman Angela Kayser Drs Bruce and Natalie Kellett Anne and Leonard Kennedy Akira Kikkawa Dr Judith Kinnear Dr Richard Knafelc and Mr Grevis Beard Tim Knaggs Dr Jerry Koliha and Marlene Krelle Kerry Landman Kathleen and Coran Lang Bryan Lawrence Lesley McMullin Foundation Dr Jenny Lewis Phil Lewis Dr Kin Liu Andrew Lockwood Elizabeth H Loftus Chris and Anna Long John MacLeod Eleanor & Phillip Mancini Marshall Segan in memory of Berek Segan OBE and Marysia Segan

OVERTURE PATRONS $500+ Margaret Abbey PSM Jane Allan and Mark Redmond Mario M Anders

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Supporters

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Jenny Anderson Dr Judith Armstrong and Robyn Dalziel Doris Au Lyn Bailey Robin Batterham Richard Bolitho Dr Robert Brook Elizabeth Brown Suzie Brown OAM and the late Harvey Brown John Brownbill Daniel Bushaway Jungpin Chen Linda Clifton Dr John Collins Dr Sheryl Coughlin and Paul Coughlin Judith Cowden in memory of violinist Margaret Cowden Gregory Crew Sue Cummings Merrowyn Deacon Suzanne Dembo Carol des Cognets Bruce Dudon Margaret Flatman Brian Florence Martin Foley Chris Freelance M C Friday David and Geraldine Glenny Hugo and Diane Goetze Louise Gourlay OAM Jan and the late Robert Green Christine Grenda Dawn Hales George Hampel AM KC and Felicity Hampel AM SC Dr Neville Hathaway Geoff Hayes William Holder Rod Home Gillian Horwood Noelle Howell and Judy Clezy Geoff and Denise Illing Rob Jackson

Wendy Johnson Irene Kearsey & Michael Ridley John Keys Lesley King Professor David Knowles and Dr Anne McLachlan Dr Kim Langfield-Smith Janet and Ross Lapworth Pauline and David Lawton Paschalina Leach Sharon Li Dr Susan Linton Kay Liu Joy Manners Morris and Helen Margolis Sandra Masel in memory of Leigh Masel Janice Mayfield Gail McKay Shirley A McKenzie Alan Meads Joan Mullumby Marian Neumann Ed Newbigin Valerie Newman Brendan O’Donnell Jillian Pappas Phil Parker The Hon Chris Pearce and Andrea Pearce Peter Berry and Amanda Quirk Kerryn Pratchett William Ramirez Geoffrey Ravenscroft Dr Christopher Rees Professor John Rickard Peter Riedel Michael Riordan and Geoffrey Bush Fred and Patricia Russell Carolyn Sanders Dr Marc Saunders Dr Nora Scheinkestel Julia Schlapp Madeline Soloveychik Dr Alex Starr Dylan Stewart Tom Sykes

MSO GUARDIANS Jenny Anderson David Angelovich G C Bawden and L de Kievit Lesley Bawden Joyce Bown Patricia A Breslin Mrs Jenny Bruckner and the late Mr John Bruckner Ken Bullen Peter A Caldwell Luci and Ron Chambers Beryl Dean Sandra Dent Alan Egan JP Gunta Eglite Marguerite Garnon-Williams Drs L C Gruen and R W Wade Louis J Hamon AOM Charles Hardman Carol Hay Jennifer Henry Graham Hogarth Rod Home Lyndon Horsburgh Tony Howe Lindsay and Michael Jacombs Laurence O’Keefe and Christopher James John Jones Sylvia Lavelle Pauline and David Lawton Cameron Mowat Ruth Muir David Orr Matthew O’Sullivan Rosia Pasteur

Penny Rawlins Joan P Robinson Anne Roussac-Hoyne and Neil Roussac Michael Ryan and Wendy Mead Andrew Serpell and Anne Kieni Serpell Jennifer Shepherd Suzette Sherazee Dr Gabriela and Dr George Stephenson Pamela Swansson Lillian Tarry Tam Vu and Dr Cherilyn Tillman Mr and Mrs R P Trebilcock Peter and Elisabeth Turner Michael Ulmer AO The Hon. Rosemary Varty Terry Wills Cooke OAM and the late Marian Wills Cooke Mark Young Anonymous (20) The MSO gratefully acknowledges the support of the following Estates: Norma Ruth Atwell Angela Beagley Christine Mary Bridgart The Cuming Bequest Margaret Davies Neilma Gantner The Hon Dr Alan Goldberg AO QC Enid Florence Hookey Gwen Hunt Family and Friends of James Jacoby Audrey Jenkins Joan Jones Pauline Marie Johnston C P Kemp Peter Forbes MacLaren Joan Winsome Maslen Lorraine Maxine Meldrum Prof Andrew McCredie Jean Moore Joan P Robinson Maxwell and Jill Schultz Miss Sheila Scotter AM MBE Marion A I H M Spence Molly Stephens

Supporters

Allison Taylor Reverend Angela Thomas Mely Tjandra Chris and Helen Trueman Amanda Watson Michael Whishaw Charles and Jill Wright Anonymous (13)

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Supporters

Gwennyth St John Halinka Tarczynska-Fiddian Jennifer May Teague Albert Henry Ullin Jean Tweedie Herta and Fred B Vogel Dorothy Wood

COMMISSIONING CIRCLE Cecilie Hall and the Late Hon Michael Watt KC Tim and Lyn Edward Weis Family

Abbey Edlin

David Horowicz Anne-Marie Johnson

Margaret Jackson AC Nicolas Fleury

Di Jameson OAM and Frank Mercurio

Elina Fashki, Benjamin Hanlon, Tair Khisambeev, Christopher Moore

The late Dr Elizabeth A Lewis AM Anthony Chataway

David Li AM and Angela Li Dale Barltrop

Rosemary and the late Douglas Meagher Craig Hill

FIRST NATIONS CIRCLE

Gary McPherson

John and Lorraine Bates Colin Golvan AM KC and Dr Deborah Golvan Sascha O. Becker Maestro Jaime Martín Elizabeth Proust AO and Brian Lawrence Guy Ross The Kate and Stephen Shelmerdine Family Foundation Michael Ullmer AO and Jenny Ullmer Jason Yeap OAM – Mering Management Corporation

Anne Neil

ADOPT A MUSICIAN Shane Buggle and Rosie Callanan Roger Young

Andrew Dudgeon AM

Rohan de Korte, Philippa West

Tim and Lyn Edward John Arcaro

Dr John and Diana Frew Rosie Turner

Sophie Galaise and Clarence Fraser Stephen Newton

Dr Mary-Jane Gething AO Monica Curro

The Gross Foundation Matthew Tomkins

Dr Clem Gruen and Dr Rhyl Wade Robert Cossom

Cecilie Hall and the late Hon Michael Watt KC

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Nereda Hanlon and Michael Hanlon AM

Saul Lewis

Rachel Shaw

Eleanor Mancini

Newton Family in memory of Rae Rothfield Cong Gu

The Rosemary Norman Foundation Ann Blackburn

Andrew and Judy Rogers Michelle Wood

Glenn Sedgwick

Tiffany Cheng, Shane Hooton

Dr Martin Tymms and Patricia Nilsson Natasha Thomas

Anonymous

Prudence Davis

HONORARY APPOINTMENTS Life Members Mr Marc Besen AC John Gandel AC and Pauline Gandel AC Sir Elton John CBE Harold Mitchell AC Lady Potter AC CMRI Jeanne Pratt AC Michael Ullmer AO and Jenny Ullmer Anonymous MSO Ambassador Geoffrey Rush AC

MSO BOARD Chairman David Li AM Co-Deputy Chairs Di Jameson OAM Helen Silver AO

Warren Trevelyan-Jones

Managing Director Sophie Galaise Board Directors Shane Buggle Andrew Dudgeon AM Martin Foley Lorraine Hook Margaret Jackson AC Gary McPherson Farrel Meltzer Edgar Myer Glenn Sedgwick Mary Waldron

Siobhan Stagg

Company Secretary Oliver Carton

MSO ARTISTIC FAMILY Jaime Martín

Chief Conductor

Xian Zhang

Principal Guest Conductor

Benjamin Northey

Principal Conductor in Residence

Carlo Antonioli

Cybec Assistant Conductor

Sir Andrew Davis CBE Conductor Laureate

Hiroyuki Iwaki †

Conductor Laureate (1974–2006) MSO Chorus Director Soloist in Residence

Supporters

The MSO honours the memory of Life Members Mrs Eva Besen AO John Brockman OAM The Honourable Alan Goldberg AO QC Roger Riordan AM Ila Vanrenen

Gondwana Voices

Ensemble in Residence

Christian Li

Young Artist in Association

Mary Finsterer

Composer in Residence

Melissa Douglas

Cybec Young Composer in Residence

Christopher Moore

Creative Producer, MSO Chamber

Deborah Cheetham Fraillon AO MSO First Nations Creative Chair

Dr Anita Collins

Creative Chair for Learning and Engagement

Artistic Ambassadors Tan Dun Lu Siqing

The MSO relies on your ongoing philanthropic support to sustain our artists, and support access, education, community engagement and more.

We invite our supporters to get close to the MSO through a range of special events.

The MSO welcomes your support at any level. Donations of $2 and over are tax deductible, and supporters are recognised as follows: $500+ (Overture) $1,000+ (Player) $2,500+ (Associate) $5,000+ (Principal) $10,000+ (Maestro) $20,000+ (Impresario) $50,000+ (Virtuoso) $100,000+ (Platinum)

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Thank you to our Partners PRINCIPAL PARTNER

PREMIER PARTNERS

GOVERNMENT PARTNERS

VENUE PARTNER

EDUCATION PARTNER

MAJOR PARTNERS

ORCHESTRAL TRAINING PARTNER

SUPPORTING PARTNERS

Quest Southbank

Ernst & Young

Bows for Strings

MEDIA AND BROADCAST PARTNERS

TRUSTS AND FOUNDATIONS

Freemasons Foundation Victoria

The Sir Andrew and Lady Fairley Foundation, The Angior Family Foundation, The William and Lindsay Brodie Foundation, Flora & Frank Leith Trust, The Gwen and Edna Jones Foundation, The Ray and Joyce Uebergang Foundation, Perpetual Foundation – Alan (AGL) Shaw Endowment, Sidney Myer MSO Trust Fund