Australian Bushfire Benefit London

Tjukupati James, Kunga Kutjara - Tjukupati, acrylic on canvas, 76 x 101 cm

Exhibiting Aboriginal Art in London since 1988 2a Conway Street, Fitzroy Square, London W1T 6BA T +44 (0) 20 7436 4899 info@rebeccahossack.com www.rebeccahossack.com @rebeccahossackartgallery

Australian Bushfire Benefit London Sunday 1st March 2020 Duke’s Hall, Royal Academy of Music

In the presence of

The High Commissioner of Australia HE The Hon. George Brandis QC

AUSTRALIA

BUSHFIRE APPEALS Charities Aid Foudation (UK) has made it possible to send your donations to 27 bushfire related organisations in Australia without incurring international payment fees. UK taxpayer donations are fully tax deductible and if eligible you can add GiftAid (25%) to the final sum sent to your preferred charity.

How to make your donation 

Go to https://www.cafonline.org/australian-bush-fire-emergency

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Click the Donate Now button and type “Australian Bush Fires” into the Find a Charity field.

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Choose from the 27 charities listed below

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Your donation can be made from your CAF Account, PayPal or Credit Card.

General Bush Fire Appeal

Australian Red Cross - Disaster Relief and Recovery project Foodbank Vic (Bushfires 2020 project) Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife FRRR - Foundation For Rural and Regional Renewal Gippsland Emergency Relief Fund Givit Landcare Australia Lifeline Australia Minderoo Foundation Salvation Army - Emergency Services Relief project

Firefighters Appeal

Country Fire Authority (Victoria) NSW Rural Fire Service Rural Fire Brigades Association Qld Inc South Australian State Emergency Service (SES)

Animal Appeal

Hunter Wildlife Rescue (Native Animal Trust Fund) Lucky Stars Sanctuary Inc Native ARC RSPCA Australia RSPCA NSW RSPCA QLD RSPCA VIC Wildcare Australia Inc Wildlife Rescue South Coast Wildlife Victoria WIRES WWF - World Wide Fund for Nature Australia (Save our Koalas)

MESSAGE FROM THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF AUSTRALIA Welcome to the Australian Bushfire Benefit London — a concert in honour of the brave men and women who fought the recent bushfires in Australia.

As you are well aware, the Christmas holiday period in Australia became a time of crisis, anxiety and sadness — lives lost, homes and property destroyed, bushland gone, stock and wildlife killed and injured, and entire communities evacuated.

But our very human response to this tragedy is a reminder of our ability to overcome adversity and our willingness to help one another.

The Australian Bushfire Benefit London is further evidence of that.

Your heartfelt actions — in organising, playing at or attending the benefit concert — are great examples of the generosity shown by the international community. The funds raised will help our nation recover and rebuild.

The concert is the result of the efforts of many people and organisations: •

Australian musicians Lotte Betts-Dean & Bridget O’Donnell (founders of the event)

•

Australian classical musicians based in London

•

The Royal Academy of Music

•

Special guest conductor, Simone Young AM, and special guest artists, Stuart Skelton (tenor) and Amy Dickson (saxophone)

•

The many sponsors and supporters who turned an idea into reality.

Thank you to all involved in the Australian Bushfire London and have a wonderful show!

Benefit

His Excellency General the Honourable David John Hurley, AC, DSC (Retd) Governor-General of Australia

MESSAGE FROM THE HIGH COMMISSIONER OF AUSTRALIA Thank you for attending the Australian Bushfire Benefit hosted by Australian artists and musicians to raise funds to support bushfire relief efforts.

Over the past several weeks, I have been overwhelmed by the outpourings of support for Australia from the people of

the United Kingdom. I offer my sincere thanks to everyone who has contacted me or the High Commission offering assistance, condolence and solidarity. Such support, so readily and generously offered, epitomises the uniquely close friendship between our two countries.

I am of course also grateful to the Australian expat community in London which has been so generous in these difficult times. There is perhaps no better example

than the over 100 Australian performers who have come together today to make this event possible.

I

thank

and

congratulate

you

all

on

your

efforts.

I particularly acknowledge Lotte Betts-Dean and Bridget O’Donnell,

who

are

the

driving

force

behind

this

performance. I also express my thanks to the Royal Academy of Music for use of this fabulous venue.

I hope you have an enjoyable afternoon.

His Excellency The Honorable George Brandis QC Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom

MESSAGE FROM EVENT SPONSOR Today’s event marks a special coming together of many Australians based in the United Kingdom to hold an event to support those who have been tragically affected by the fires back home. Founded by two wonderful musicians, Bridget and Lotte, it is truly incredible also to see the depth of

Australian musical talent here in London, of which almost one hundred artists and performers are involved.

We greatly appreciate the generous support of the Principal, staff, and the talented students of the Royal Academy of Music, the Governor-General of Australia, the Australian High Commission, the Offices of the State Agents General, State Trade Commissioners, and all of the other Australian groups and organisations in the UK who have come together to make

this event a success.

It is also important to acknowledge the other members of the organising team, Isla, James, Margaret and Ros, for their tireless efforts to curate a concert on this scale in a very short period of time.

We would also like to thank all of those who have come to support this important day. All the funds raised through ticket sales, donations and the auctions will go directly to charities helping the rebuilding efforts in Australia.

On a personal note as an Australian entrepreneur based in the UK, it is of particular delight that my company is both supporting this event, and also that our software is helping to co-ordinate some of the logistics for clean up operations back home. Out of the recent tragedy, I truly hope that we can learn from what has happened and continue to forge our way as the lucky country that we all know and love.

MESSAGE FROM CATE BLANCHETT

This year’s unprecedented bushfires were heartbreaking, bewildering and devastating. Not just for the countless families affected, but for Australia’s biodiversity.

In the face of this ongoing national disaster, the heroism, fortitude and

generosity of the volunteer firefighters and the Australian community at large has been astonishing.

But bravery alone won’t get our country through this; ongoing financial and in-kind support will be needed in the months and years to come, along with positive and practical solutions to battle Australia's challenged climate.

Cate Blanchett

MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDERS AND THE ABBL TEAM We all know that from little things, big things grow; and in this case, it was one little phone call that grew into a whole community coming together in song, to support the bushfire relief effort back home. Like so many other Australians living abroad, we felt completely helpless watching as our country was burning from so far away, so this concert is our way of making a difference. Today what you will hear is our art; our way to express our grief at what

has happened to our land, and our passion to help those back home, our love of Australia, its music, and its vibrant culture.

It’s hard to put into words what the experience of the past few months has been like, but the overwhelming feeling is one of strength and hope. It’s hearing the stories of neighbours coming together to help each other in a time of great need, the selflessness of volunteer firefighters working for days on end to save countless homes while their own were lost to the fires. It’s the accounts of wombats ushering other animals into the shelter of their burrows as the flames came over. It’s the knowledge that the Australian spirit is strong and

that on our watch, we won’t allow this to happen again.

We’ve not been turned down by anyone whose help we have asked for in organising this concert and for that, we are so grateful. To the performers,

composers, organisers,

volunteers and the sponsors, we thank you. To those who donated far and wide and those here who will dig deep today, we thank you.

Even now as the flames finally die down and sprouts of new life begin to bloom amidst the scorched land, we know that the recovery is long, and our support will be needed for those whose lives have forever been changed by the fires.

We are so glad you are here with us today.

Founders: Bridget & Lotte

ABBL Team:

Dr Margaret Mayston AM AMF | James Hancock TMT | Ros Higgins RFDS UK Lotte Betts-Dean | Bridget O’Donnell | Brett Dean | Isla Baring OAM TMT

CHARITY AUCTIONS To support our Bushfire fundraising we are hosting a Silent Auction (online) and a Live Auction at the post concert reception

Silent Auction Our silent auction closes at 8pm on Sunday the 1st March. To make a bid please go to

www.jumblebee.co.uk/australianbushfirebenefitlondon Please have a look at the lots on offer. We have several wonderful Australian paintings available including landscapes, contemporary art, paper works, prints, and a singing lesson from renowned Australian opera singer and Chairman of the Australian Music Foundation, Yvonne Kenny AM.

Live Auction at 8pm Lot 1. A head and shoulders portrait by Australian artist June Mendoza AO OBE

Lot 2. Indigenous painting donated

by Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery Gabriela Kemarre, Utopia, Northern Territory Food Gathering Dreaming synthetic polymer paint on linen 124.5 x 70.5 cm

Disbursement of funds* All ticket revenues, donations received before the event and proceeds from the two charity auctions will be divided

equally between the following four Australian bushfire charities: 1.

Lifeline Australia 2.

Salvation Army—Emergency Services Relief Project 3.

Australian Bushfire Appeal—WWF Australia 4.

Australian Bush Heritage

lifeline.org.au salvationarmy.org.au wwf.org.au bushheritage.org.au

All cash collected today at the event will be sent to:

•

The Firesticks Alliance Indigenous Corporation firesticks.org.au Firesticks provides Indigenous leadership, advocacy and action to protect Country through cultural fire and land management practices

•

Leah & David—Bushfire Emergency Appeal bit.ly/LeahandDavid Leah Milston and David Wallace lost their home, their belongings and their beautiful bookshop during the Mogo, NSW bush fires on New Year’s Eve. Leah wrote the poem, ‘7 Days’, which Samuel Sakker, a family friend, is reading today.

* All funds will be transferred to Australia at the best exchange rates and fee free by Event Partner—FairFX

Australian Bushfire Benefit London At Duke’s Hall, Royal Academy of Music EVENT SPONSORS Royal Academy of Music | Voyage Control Sunday 1st March 2020 In the presence of The High Commissioner of Australia His Excellency, The Hon. George Brandis QC SPECIAL GUEST ARTISTS Simone Young, conductor & piano Stuart Skelton, tenor

Amy Dickson, saxophone

CONDUCTORS Toby Thatcher

Hester Wright

READERS Natasha Baiguerra, Phoebe Panaretos

Samuel Sakker

with ABBL Orchestra

ABBL Choir

The Hill Quartet

SOLOISTS Miriam Allan, soprano

Kurt Kansley, tenor

Lotte Betts-Dean, mezzo-soprano

Renee Kennedy, french horn

Embla Bishop, soprano

Phoebe Panaretos, mezzo-soprano

Catherine Carby, mezzo-soprano

Una Reynolds, soprano

Samantha Clarke, soprano

Samuel Sakker, tenor

Corinne Cowling, soprano

Helen Sherman, mezzo-soprano

Helena Dix, soprano

Paul Tabone, tenor

Alex Given, baritone

Simon Thorpe, baritone

Joseph Havlat, piano

Chad Vindin, pianist

CONCERT PROGRAMME Kondalilla

Stephen Leek

ABBL Choir Hester Wright

Connor D'Netto

Hill Quartet Lotte Betts-Dean

Yānada

Ross Edwards

Amy Dickson

Bush Silence

William Garnet James

Helen Sherman Joseph Havlat

Paul Stanhope

Renee Kennedy

After All

Henry Lawson

Natasha Baiguerra

Pastorale

Peggy Glanville Hicks

Joseph Havlat

Disillusion Text by John Le Gay Brereton

Joseph Havlat (Premiere)

Miriam Allan Joseph Havlat

Australian Medley

Michael Harvey (Eureka)

Corinne Cowling

Brave New World

Edwards/Senczuk, (lyrics Eu) Una Reynolds Christina Macpherson (WM) Paul Tabone

Text by Stephen Leek

Dawn Wail For The Dead Text by Oodgeroo Noonuccal

Text by Richard Baylis

Interlude From Songs for the Shadowland

from ‘Eureka’/

Waltzing Matilda

arr. Kim Kirkman (WM) Chad Vindin Banjo Patterson, poet (WM)

Abschiedslieder Op 14.

Erich Korngold

Sterbelied Mond, so gehst du wieder auf INTERVAL

Stuart Skelton Simone Young

CONCERT PROGRAMME

Embers

Brett Dean

ABBL Strings Toby Thatcher

Tomorrow is hope

Blue Robinson

Phoebe Panaretos

The Lake

Ella Macens

ABBL Strings Toby Thatcher

Elegy

Frederick Septimus Kelly

ABBL Strings & Harp Annabelle Traves Toby Thatcher

7 Days

Leah Milston

Samuel Sakker

Earth Cry

Peter Sculthorpe

ABBL Orchestra Simone Young

Home Sweet Home

Text by John Howard Payne

Sir Henry Bishop arr. James Ledger

ABBL Choir Hester Wright Samantha Clarke

Requiem:

Giuseppe Verdi

ABBL Orchestra Simone Young Helena Dix Catherine Carby Samuel Sakker Simon Thorpe

I am Australian

The Seekers Bruce Woodley arr. Misha Mullov-Abbado

ABBL Orchestra ABBL Choir Simone Young Phoebe Panaretos Alex Given Kurt Kansley Embla Bishop Chad Vindin

Short Stories

In Memoriam Rupert Brooke

Quid sum miser Rex tremendae

Lyrics by Woodley & Newton

PROGRAMME NOTES Kondalilla

Stephen Leek

Canberra-based Stephen Leek (b. 1959) is one of Australia’s best-known composers of choral music. He writes: “Kondalilla is the name of a waterfall in a small remaining pocket of rainforest in South East Queensland, Australia. In the indigenous Dreamtime Stories of the area, Kondalilla is the spirit of the waterfall and Ouyen is the spirit of the still water.” The work uses extended choral techniques to create a series of evocative sound sculptures.

Dawn Wail For The Dead

Connor D’Netto

Connor D’Netto (b. 1994) is an awardee of both the AMF and Tait Memorial Trust. Dawn Wail For The Dead (2019) arose from a project by vocalist Katie Noonan that commissioned ten Australian composers to champion the work and life of Indigenous Australian political activist, artist and educator Oodgeroo Noonuccal (Kath Walker). It sets a text from her collection of poems The Dawn Is At Hand, and is used with the kind permission of Oodgeroo’s family and estate, the National Library of Australia, and the Quandamooka community.

Yānada

Ross Edwards

Ross Edwards (b. 1943) is one of Australia’s most distinctive and successful compositional voices. Best known, perhaps, for his Dawn Mantras, which was broadcast to an estimated audience of 3 billion on New Year's Day 2000, his music is typically concerned with reconnecting the listener with sonic ritual, play, and a sense of place. Yānada takes its title from a word meaning moon in an Aboriginal language of the Sydney area.

Bush Silence

William Garnet James

William Garnet James (1892–1977) was a Ballarat-born composer and pianist who became first Director of Music for the ABC. Best-known today for his settings of Australian Christmas carols, his Six Australian Bush Songs were composed and published in London in 1922 and at her instance two were dedicated to Dame Nellie Melba. Lotte Lehmann sang Bush Silence during her Australian tour in 1937–38.

Interlude

Paul Stanhope

Paul Stanhope (b. 1969) is a Sydney-based composer of international renown. He writes: “Dawn Interlude is a short French horn solo extracted from my song cycle Songs for the Shadowland. This piece is in some ways a commentary on Oodgeroo's poem Dawn Wail for the Dead but also, in its own way, a personal gesture of sorrow for past wrongs perpetrated against Indigenous Australians. The use of descending glissandi, stopped notes and a 'natural horn' harmonic emphasize the mournful nature of the piece.”

Pastorale

Peggy Glanville-Hicks

Melbourne-born composer and critic Peggy Glanville-Hicks (1912–1990) rose through persistence and raw talent to face down the prejudice that accompanied both her gender and nationality to become a leading figure in American musical life in the 1950s60s. Her Pastorale for piano was composed in Vienna in 1936 when she briefly had

PROGRAMME NOTES lessons with Egon Wellesz in the twelve-tone technique, and is less a sign of her musical conservatism as of her determination to find, and maintain, her own musical voice.

Disillusion

Joseph Havlat

“I came across this poem by chance in February and offered it up to be set to music for this concert. Written sometime before 1928 by Australian poet John Le Gay Brereton, I was struck upon reading by not just its continued relevance 90 years later, but also its ambiguity of tone. My setting takes the text not quite at face value but aims to add a slightly sardonic colour, while retaining its spiritual backbone.” Joseph Havlat Australia Medley

Waltzing Matilda Brave New World

Christina Macpherson Michael Maurice Harvey

The words of ‘Waltzing Matilda’ were written by Andrew Barton ‘Banjo’ Patterson (1864– 1941) when he was lodging at a family-owned sheep and cattle station near Winton in Central West Queensland and reputedly refer to an incident during the Great Shearers Strike of 1891. Patterson’s verses were then set to music by one of the farm’s owners, Christina Macpherson (1864–1936) who herself drew upon a pre-existing melody. The song became a de-facto national anthem in Australia after it was popularised by its use as an advertising jingle for Billy Tea in 1903. ‘Brave New World’ is the final song from the musical Eureka (2004) by Michael Maurice Harvey, with lyrics by Maggie May Gordon, Gale Edwards and John Senczuk. It chronicles the 1854 goldminers’ uprising in Ballarat that led to democratic reform in the colony of Victoria.

Abschiedslieder Op 14, Numbers 1 + 3 Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897–1957) was a child prodigy who, when later forced into exile by the rise of the Third Reich, also became one of the most successful and influential Hollywood film composers. His Abschiedslieder date from 1920 and set disparate texts that deal with love and loss. The first song is a setting of a German translation of Christina Rossetti’s famous ‘Requiem’, the third: Mond, so geh’st du wieder auf (‘Moon, thus you rise once more’) sets a poem by his contemporary Ernst Lothar.

Sh t

PROGRAMME NOTES The Lake

Ella Macens

Sydney based Ella Macens (b. 1991) is one of an emerging generation of composers who openly draws inspiration from across popular and classical realms, as well as her own Latvian heritage. She writes: “This piece was originally composed for Genevieve Lacey (recorder), Danny Yeadon (baroque cello) and Neal Peres Da Costa (chamber organ) under commission by Jason Catlett for Sydney Festival 2018. The work was later revised for string orchestra under commission by the Canberra Symphony Orchestra. The piece was born out of a personal longing for inner peace, strength and healing.”

Elegy

Frederick Septimus Kelly

Sydney born, Frederick Septimus Kelly (1881–1916) was at educated Sydney Grammar School, Eton College, Oxford University, and later the Hoch Conservatorium in Frankfurt.

A champion rower, as well as fine pianist and composer, he won a gold medal for England in the 1908 London Olympics. Twice wounded at Gallipoli, Kelly died in battle at Beaucourt -sur-l'Ancre, France. His Elegy for String Orchestra ‘In Memoriam Rupert Brooke’ was written to honour the death of his close friend, the English poet, a year earlier.

Earth Cry Earth Cry is a straightforward and melodious work. Its four parts are made up of a quick ritualistic music, framed by a slower music of a supplicatory nature, and an extended coda. It owes a debt to a setting of Aboriginal poetry, The Song of Tailitnama, that was completed in 1976. Earth Cry (1974) remains one of his best-known works,

Home Sweet Home

Sir Henry Bishop arr. James Ledger

"Home, Sweet Home" is a song adapted from the 1823 opera Clari, or The Maid of Milan by Englishman Sir Henry Bishop (1786–1855), which soon gained world-wide popularity. The song also became closely associated with Dame Nellie Melba, and Dame Joan Sutherland who frequently performed it as an encore.

Requiem:

Giuseppe Verdi

Having composed a movement some years earlier as part of a failed national project to honour Giacomo Rossini, Verdi’s complete setting of the Catholic funeral mass was prompted by the death of the Italian poet Alessandro Manzoni, whom the composer deeply admired. The acknowledged master of Italian Grand Opera, Verdi was able to draw upon his command of word setting, orchestral colour, and dramatic timing in setting liturgical text. These two verses from the ‘Dies Irae’ are, in any case, inherently operatic— being appeals to the almighty for mercy from a sinner facing death.

I am Australian

Woodley & Newton arr. M. Mullov-Abbado

“I Am Australian” (or “We Are Australian”) is a popular Australian song written in 1987 by Bruce Woodley of The Seekers and Dobe Newton of The Bushwackers. Its magisterial, idealistic, inclusive lyrics and memorably appealing and singable tune have made it another de-facto national anthem alongside Waltzing Matilda.

Programme notes complied by Peter Tregear (Chair, AMF Australia)

TOMORROW IS HOPE When the earth is scorched at your feet - and you run with your children, Praying the car will start, leaving your home and breaking your heart, When the re roars with a sound not heard since war, When you gather with others huddled on the nearest distant shore.

When the sky is not the sky, but the crimson roof of hell, With ash drifting thick on all you love, and all you’ve lost - and all you have to tell, When the animals that you’ve bred, that you raised, that you fed, Scream in terror at the ames, breeding darkness in your head.

And the horror in the bush, with the massive, savage loss, Of the smaller friends we knew, living quietly, living true.

Then you witness local heroes, driving trucks through burning hell, Holding hoses to the nightmare seeing tales too dark to tell, Finding those who never made it, nature’s furnace cutting short, Lonely ghts to ee the restorm, halting desperate battles fought.

And now, you stare at life within familiar walls, Of heights marked in pen on the kitchen door frame, And dates alongside those ascending names, And medallions on shelves, from children’s past won games, And wonder - what to take, and what remains.

And where to go and where to stay, And what to ask - and what to say, To those who plead with their eyes, and cry into their hands, And when you get there, and look at the faces of those who ed, With smoke-stained clothes and eyes rimmed red, You know you are not alone.

And when you are not alone, there is a tomorrow, With mateship, loyalty, courage, hope, Hope for yourself, hope for each other - hope for the future, Together, we will get through this, Together we will be stronger, Together we will overcome.

Blue Robinson. Copyright 2020.

TRANSLATIONS

Abschiedslieder Op 14, Numbers 1 + 3 Erich Korngold Sterbelied

Requiem

Christina Rossetti translated by Alfred Kerr

Translation © Richard Stokes, author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005)

Laß Liebster, wenn ich tot bin,

When I am dead, my dearest,

laß du von Klagen ab.

Do not lament.

Statt Rosen und Cypressen

Insted of roses and cypress,

wächst Gras auf meinem Grab.

Grass shall cover my grave.

Ich schlafe still im Zwielichtschein

I shall sleep quietly in the twilight,

in schwerer Dämmernis -

In the heavy dusk.

Und wenn du willst, gedenke mein

And if you will, remember,

und wenn du willst, vergiß.

And if you will, forget.

Ich fühle nicht den Regen,

I shall not feel the rain,

ich seh' nicht, ob es tagt,

I shall not see the dawn,

ich höre nicht die Nachtigall,

I shall not hear the nightingale

die in den Büschen klagt.

Lamenting in the trees.

Vom Schlaf erweckt mich keiner,

No one shall ever wake me,

die Erdenwelt verblich.

All the world has vanished.

Vielleicht gedenk ich deiner,

Perhaps I shall remember you,

vielleicht vergaß ich dich.

Perhaps I'll have forgotten you.

TRANSLATIONS Mond, so gehst du wieder auf

Moon, thus you rise once more

Ernst Lothar

Translation by Richard Stokes, author of The Book of Lieder (Faber, 2005)

Mond, so gehst du wieder auf

Moon, thus you rise once more

Über’m dunklen Tal der ungeweinten Tränen?

Over the dark valley of unwept tears!

Lehr, so lehr’s mich doch, mich nicht nach ihr zu sehnen,

To make my blood run pale,

Blaß zu machen Blutes Lauf, Dies Leid nicht zu erleiden, Aus zweier Menschen Scheiden.

Teach, teach me not to yearn for her, Not to suffer this sorrow, Caused when two souls part.

See, you shroud yourself in mist.

Sieh’, in Nebel hüllst du dich.

Yet you cannot darken the bright images

Doch verfinstern kannst du nicht den Glanz der Bilder,

That the night arouses in me with wilder and fiercer pain.

Die mir weher jede Nacht erweckt und wilder.

Ah! I feel in the depths of my being:

Ach! Im Tiefsten fühle ich: Das Herz, das sich mußt’ trennen,

The heart that has suffered separation Will burn eternally.

Wird ohne Ende brennen.

Requiem:

Giuseppe Verdi

Quid sum miser tunc dicturus?

What can a wretch like me say?

Quem patronum rogaturus,

Whom shall I ask to intercede for me,

cum vix justus sit securus?

when even the just ones are unsafe?

Solo Quartet and Chorus:

Solo Quartet and Chorus:

Rex tremendae majestatis,

King of dreadful majesty.

qui salvandos salvas gratis:

who freely saves the redeemed ones,

salva me, fons pietas.

save me, O font of pity.

BIOGRAPHIES Simone Young is considered one of the most important conductors of our time. After completing her musical studies in her native Sydney she received an award to work at the Cologne Opera where she was quickly appointed as Kapellmeister, and then engaged by Daniel Barenboim at Berlin’s Staatsoper Unter den Linden. This launched her international career, which has taken her to nearly all

the most important opera houses and symphony orchestras in the world. Ms. Young’s previous titled positions include: Principal Conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic (1998-2002); Artistic Director of Opera Australia (2001-2003); Principal Guest Conductor of the Gulbenkian Orchestra in Lisbon; Artistic Director of the Hamburg State Opera and Chief Music Director of the Hamburg Philharmonic (2005-2015). From 2020 Simone Young will be Chief Conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

www.simoneyoung.com

Stuart Skelton has appeared in many of the world’s most celebrated opera houses including the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, San Francisco Opera, English National Opera, Paris Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Hamburg State Opera, Berlin State Opera, Dresden Semperoper and the Vienna State Opera. His roles include the title roles in Lohengrin, Rienzi, Parsifal, Dmitrij, Otello and Peter Grimes as well as Florestan in Fidelio, Laca in Jenufa, Erik in Der fliegende Holländer, The Kaiser in Die Frau ohne Schatten, Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos, Max in Weber’s Der Freischütz, Canio in I

Pagliacci, Gherman in Queen of Spades, and Siegmund in Der Ring des Nibelungen. He returns to the Metropolitan Opera to sing Tristan in Tristan und Isolde in November. www.stuartskelton.com British-Australian Amy Dickson, twice nominated for a Grammy™ , has been acknowledged by BBC Music Magazine as one of the world’s six best classical saxophonists ever. Dickson has recorded eight solo albums for Sony Music. Recognised for her remarkable, distinctive tone and exceptional musicality, she made history by

becoming the first saxophonist to win a Classic BRIT Award, for Breakthrough Artist of the Year and in 2016 she was named the UK’s Young Australian of the Year. As well as receiving the James Fairfax Australian Young Artist of the Year award, she was the first ever saxophonist to win the Gold Medal at the Royal Overseas League Competition, the Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year award and The Prince’s Prize.

www.amydickson.com

BIOGRAPHIES Hester Wright is a passionate choral conductor, classical singer and educator.

Born in Armidale NSW, she worked with ensembles including Gondwana Choirs and the Brandenburg Choir before moving to the UK. Hester has an AMusA in Voice with Distinction and is currently studying choral conducting at the University of Birmingham with Simon Halsey CBE.

/hesterwrightmusic

The Half Oz - Half Brit, Hill Quartet are ASSET scheme scholars of the RAM and are rising stars in the String Quartet scene mentored by John Myerscough and Levon Chilingirian. They love performing cross-genre repertoire, out doing each other in Bake-Offs and occasionally enjoy a good glass of Barossa Valley Shiraz. www.hillquartet.com

Praised by The Guardian for her “irrepressible sense of drama and unmissable,

urgent musicality”, Lotte Betts-Dean is a sought after concert singer, and a Young Artist with Oxford Lieder, City Music Foundation, Musicians Company, Associate Artist with Southbank Sinfonia and Ensemble x.y. Lotte is a Royal Academy of Music graduate and a Tait Trust Awardee. www.lottebettsdean.com

Helen Sherman grew up on a lettuce farm in NSW. Recent highlights include Tamiri, Farnace, Poppea L’incoronazione di Poppea (Pinchgut Opera) Carmen (State Opera South Australia), Dorabella Cosi fan Tutte (Teatru Manoel) Octavian Der Rosenkavalier (Opera North). In March Helen makes her Royal Opera House debut as Flora in La Traviata.

www.helensherman.net

Chad Vindin is a Sydney Conservatorium graduate, and is the winner of the accompanist prize at the Royal Overseas League Competition, the Ludmilla Andrew Russian Song Accompanist Prize, Royal Academy of Music, and the Maureen Lehane Vocal Awards Accompanist’s Prize, Wigmore Hall. He is a staff pianist and vocal coach at both RCM and RAM.

www.chadvindin.com

Perth-born horn player, Renee Kennedy, studied in Perth and Brisbane and performed with the Queensland & West Australian Symphony Orchestras before moving to London to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She’s also performed with Glyndebourne on Tour, the London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Concert & London Symphony Orchestras.

bit.ly/Renee-Horn

BIOGRAPHIES Born and raised in Melbourne, Natasha Baiguerra graduated from the Howard Fine Acting Studio in 2017 and moved to London in 2018 to train with Frantic Assembly. As an actor with Aspergers Syndrome, she is proud to be a voice for the autism community, playing both autistic and non-autistic roles Alongside theatre, Natasha also performs as a folk singer and musician.

@tashiktt

Joseph Havlat was born in Hobart, Australia, and studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London under Prof. Joanna MacGregor 2012 - 18. He is currently a Young Artist at St. John’s Smith Square, and a Young Artist of the Oxford Lieder Festival. He performs with his clarinet trio, the Tritium trio, and also the LSO percussion ensemble. www.josephhavlat.com

Corinne Cowling is a Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts graduate (BMus, GradDip) from Perth, Western Australia. She completed an MPerf in

Vocal Performance at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. She currently understudies and performs the role of Christine in the West End original production of the Phantom of the Opera.

www.corinnecowling.com

Una Reynolds was in Phantom of the Opera on London’s West End and Germany as ensemble/understudy Carlotta. Opera credits include Adina L’elisir D’amore, Musetta La Boheme OperaUpClose, Elvira L’Italiana in Algeri PopUpOpera, and Gabrielle La Vie Parisienne at Iford. Chorus includes Opera Australia, La Monnaie, Grange Park Opera and Opera Holland Park. @una16

Ingham born Paul Tabone graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Music Theatre from CQUniversity’s Conservatorium of Music, and made his solo opera debut in Opera Queensland’s world premiere of The Dirty Apple. Paul performs the role of Ubaldo Piango for his 4th consecutive year, and the 33rd year of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of The Opera.

www.paultabone.com

Mother of three dual national children, soprano Miriam Allan spends much of her time ensuring they know that courgettes, aubergines and peppers all have PROPER names. She’s converted her British husband to Vegemite and makes a mean Lamington. She also sings a bit. www.miriamallan.com

BIOGRAPHIES Toby Thatcher is an Australian/British conductor. He is the co-founder, musical director, & conductor of Ensemble x.y, and Artistic Director of both Zeitgeist & the Nineteenth Circle. Between 2015-17 he was Assistant Conductor to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He is represented by Solea Artist Management. Toby is a RAM graduate.

www. thatchertoby.wixsite.com/musician

Phoebe Panaretos made international headlines after being handpicked by Baz Luhrmann to play the lead role of Fran in the world premiere musical adaptation of Strictly Ballroom The Musical directed by Luhrmann. She was nominated for both a Helpmann and Green Room Award for Best Female In A Musical for the role.

www.phoebepanaretos.com

Samantha Clarke is a recent graduate of the Guildhall School and was awarded the 2019 GSMD Gold Medal. Recent and future engagements include Musetta La bohème Opera North, The Governess The Turn of the Screw and Dede A quiet place Royal Opera House Linbury Studio, Fiordiligi Cosi fan tutte Opéra de Québec, and debuts at Scottish Opera & Grange Festival. @samlynclarkesoprano

Bridget O’Donnell enjoys a varied career as a recitalist, orchestral and chamber musician. She is the 1st violinist of the Hill Quartet, and is the London Symphony Orchestra scheme violinist 2020. She also regularly performs with the English Chamber Orchestra, and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. Bridget is

a postgraduate student at the Royal Academy of Music.

@bridgetodonnell

Helena Dix has made it her life mission to bring high notes and Australian humour to International stages. Whilst she is known for her singing in the Bel Canto repertoire, Helena loves tackling a variety of different styles including the Aussie favourite ‘The Locomotion’ at her local Karaoke bar. www.helenadix.com

Catherine Carby’s recent performances include Siegrune, Die Walküre, Minerva, Ulisse, ROH & Katharina Schratt, Mayerling, Royal Ballet. 2019-20 appearances include concerts for New Zealand Symphony, State Opera of South Australia, Emilia in Verdi’s Otello & Annina in La Traviata for the Royal Opera House and Malcolm, La Donna del Lago Buxton Festival.

www.catherinecarby.com

BIOGRAPHIES Samuel Sakker, is a former young artist and company principal of The Royal Opera House. He performs with opera houses & orchestras throughout the UK, Europe, & Australia. Upcoming performances include: Florestan Fidelio Lyric Opera of Ireland, Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis SSO, Des Grieux Manon Lescaut Grange Festival, and Laca Jenůfa Opéra de Montreal.

www.samuelsakker.com

Simon Thorpe has sung at the Sydney Opera House, The Royal Opera, London and in France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore and Spain. He also works at English National Opera, Welsh National Opera, Opera North, Scottish Opera and many other quality,

smaller opera companies. As a Heldenbaritone his operatic

repertoire includes Puccini, Verdi and Wagner.

www.simonthorpe.net

Alex Given trained at Patrick Studios Australia. West End credits: The Book of Mormon. Australian credits: A-rab in West Side Story, Oklahoma! and Boy from

Oz (State Theatre, Melbourne), Tom Springfield in Dusty (Festival Theatre, Adelaide), Chitty Chitty Bang-Bang (Aus Tour), South Pacific (Sydney Opera House) Baz Luhrmann’s Strictly Ballroom the Musical (Aus Tour).

alexgiven23

Kurt Kansley’s credits include Che in the Hal Prince directed Evita for Opera Australia (Green Room nomination), Coalhouse in Ragtime, Miss Saigon, The Lion King, The Nutcracker, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, RENT, Jesus Christ Superstar, Wirework and more. Kurt co-writes new musicals (Kansley & Lidert),

they have three new musicals in pre-production.

@KurtKansley

Embla Bishop graduated in 2016 from The Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts

with a Bachelor of Music Theatre. Embla’s first professional

appearance was in Chitty Chitty Bang-Bang (London Palladium). Other theatrical credits include Jesus Christ Superstar, Brigadoon, Oklahoma! (The Production Company) and A Little Cabaret (Little Triangle).

www.emblabishop.com

William Jack is a progressive cellist from Adelaide, SA. He has performed in prestigious venues worldwide including the Sydney Opera House and the Vienna Konzerthaus. William’s niche is his ability to bring jazz guitar skills to the cello. His performances have received high praise from notable artists including composer and cellist, Giovanni Sollima.

(to play at reception)

www.williamjackmusic.com

ABBL ORCHESTRA Conductors Simone Young NSW | Toby Thatcher NSW STRINGS

Jordan Bergmans FR/CAN

Clarinet

1st Violin

Cameron Howe USA

Mena Krstevska VIC

Naoko Keatley NSW

Hannah Gardner UK

Andy Harper VIC

Alice Evans WA

Alex Thomson WA

Annabelle Traves QLD

Cello

Charlie Westhoff NSW

Andrew Chamberlain QLD

Bassoon

Mitzi Gardner NSW

Andy Leask QLD

Alison Wormell NSW

Ellie Hill QLD

Jessica Abrahams NSW

James Fisher NSW

Liam Keneally ACT

Annabelle Oomens NSW

Rebecca Allan WA

Emmalena Huning WA

Clare Juan VIC

Eleanor Adeney QLD

Ben Michaels UK

BRASS

Yume Fujise UK

Saran Davies UK

French Horn

Juliette Roos UK

Jonah Spindel UK

Arianne Rooney WA

Konstancja Smolorz POL Caroline Heard UK

Renee Kennedy WA Double Bass

Julia MacDonell ACT

Adam Storey QLD

Lindsay Ryan VIC

2nd Violin

Bec Scully NSW

Fiona Chesterman NSW

Emily Green NSW

Kate Suthers UK

Trumpet Emily Ashby UK

Eliza Scott NSW

Harp

Holly Clark UK

Kate Agostino NSW

Lucie Condon-Young NSW/UK

James Nash UK

Inga Franks QLD

Guitar

Trb/ Tuba / Euph

James Chen NSW

Andrej Lebedev SA

Guy Berry (TenTrb) UK

Amy Huang NSW

April Ju NZ

Meggie Murphy (TTrb) UK

Charlie Brookes UK

WOODWIND

Jan Kruijsse (Bass Trb) UK

Alison Giles NZ

Flute

James Tavaras (Tuba) UK

Kath Roberts UK

Alyse Faith NSW

James Birch NSW

Toni Berg NSW

PERCUSSION Jani S R Silva UK

Viola

Oboe

Annie Beilby NSW

Sarah Young NSW

Julia Doukakis NSW

Laura Campbell (Cor) UK

Lucas Levin VIC Sergio Insuasti NSW

Ethan Skuodas UK Timpani Quentin Broyart UK

ABBL CHOIR CHORAL CONDUCTOR Hester Wright NSW SOPRANO Miriam Allan NSW Beth Eloise VIC/SA Victoria Hodgkinson NSW Tanya Hurst VIC Anna Margolis VIC Alexandra Oomens NSW MEZZO-SOPRANO Lynette Alcantara VIC Miriam Sharrad SA/NSW Sophie Goldrick NSW Caitlin Hulcup VIC/WA Vivien Conacher NSW

TENOR Damian Arnold ACT Roberto Barbaro VIC Alex Chorley NSW Roberto Abate WA Brenton Spiteri VIC BASS Jeremy Kleeman VIC John Lanigan-O’Keeffe SA Jake Bigwood WA Robin Easton UK

ABBL TEAM

Event Management

Bridget O’Donnell – violin Lotte Betts-Dean – mezzo-soprano Jessica Cottis – conductor Toby Thatcher – conductor James Swanston – Voyage Control Ros Higgins – RFDS, Friends in UK Dr Margaret Mayston AM – AMF Isla Baring OAM – Tait Memorial Trust James Hancock – Tait Memorial Trust

Reception Manager—Kiki Betts-Dean Event Assistant—Megan Steller Orchestra Manager—Murray Richmond Back/Front of House—Daniel Latham Back/Front of House– George Strivens Box Office Leader—Shakira Tsindos

Thanks to the team at Leopard Print for the programme printing www.leopardprintltd.co.uk Programme design by James Hancock

Volunteers Rosamund Hatfield, Alexandra Lidgerwood, Helen Hughson Adria Aus Özlem Celik Huge thanks to all concert & event volunteers

EVENT SPONSORS AND PARTNERS Event Sponsors Royal Academy of Music | Voyage Control Event Partners The Australian High Commission in the United Kingdom New South Wales Government Office, United Kingdom Trade and Investment Queensland, London Office Office of the Agent General, Government of South Australia Victorian Government Trade & Investment Office, United Kingdom Government of Western Australia European Office The Tait Memorial Trust Australian Music Foundation Australia House Ensemble Australian Women’s Club London Britain Australia Society Royal Flying Doctor Service – Friends in the UK London Australian Film Society Foundation for Australian & New Zealand Arts Australian – United Kingdom Chamber of Commerce Fair FX Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery With thanks Isla Baring OAM Heather Betts Flora Daneman Prof J. Freeman-Attwood CBE Nicholas Heesom Glenn Heinzel Amanda Holder Rebecca Hossack Katie Keith Barny Kyriacou Anne Longden June Mendoza AO OBE Leah Milston Greg Morris Brendan O’Donnell Dan Pearce Blue Robinson Ann Seddon Rosemary Shuttleworth Jane Sutherland Belinda Syme Dr Peter Tregear

Sarah Vey Michael Whalley OAM Special thanks Beerblefish Brewery Dinkum Dim Sims Fair FX Leopard Print Tankleys Brewery Music Australian Music Centre Boosey & Hawkes Dr. Jeanell Carrigan Connor D’Netto Brett Dean Faber Book of Lieder Faber Music Joseph Havlat James Ledger Ella Macens Misha Mullov-Abbado Wirripang

Acknowledgements Cate Blanchett Bryan Brown Toby Chadd (ABC) Corvus Creative Russell Crowe Brett Dean Jason Donovan Hannan Images In Tune (BBC Radio 3) Sascha Kelly (Classic FM) Jane Sutherland Catering Rachel Ward Australian Government Governor-General of Australia High Commissioner of Australia Agent-General Queensland Agent-General South Australia Agent-General Western Australia Agent-General Victoria Trade Commissioner NSW

REDEFINING FREIGHT LOGISTICS