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| Australian World Orchestra conducted by Andrew Briger AO performing Paul Dean's "Symphony (2021) in Llewellyn Hall, Canberra. |
Conducted by
Alexander Briger AO
Llewellyn
Hall, Canberra 2nd June 2021.
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens.
Formed in
2011 and now celebrating its 10th Anniversary, the Australian World
Orchestra has been described as being among the top ten orchestras on earth.
Made up of the cream of Australian orchestral instrumentalists drawn annually
from around the world, the AWO in its short history has already attracted
conductors of the ilk of Sir Simon Rattle, Zubin Mehta and Riccardo Muti.
This 10th
Anniversary concert was conducted by the co-founder and Artistic Director of
the AWO, Alexander Briger AO, and featured a smaller number of musicians than
in previous iterations as the result of Covid travel restrictions. However it still
featured Australian musicians from The London Symphony, USA National Symphony, Munich
Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic, Auckland Philharmonic, Malaysian Philharmonic,
and Leipzig’s Gewandhaus Orchestra as well as from every major Australian symphony
orchestra and conservatorium.
Briger has
created an orchestral Rolls Royce, obvious from the very first notes of
Beethoven’s “Coriolan – Overture, Op.62” which opened the program.
Three
unhurried strident open octaves, perfectly executed and demanding attention
heralded a scintillating performance, finely delineated, meticulously phrased
with every musician perfectly focussed and the conductor in full control of
every nuance. It provided an auspicious opening for a brilliant concert.
The
centrepiece of the 2021 program was the specially commissioned symphony from
Brisbane composer, Paul Dean, entitled simply “Symphony (2021). In his program
notes, Briger claims this symphony as the only full symphony to have been
commissioned by an Australian orchestra in recent times, and it’s a beauty.
Confident,
challenging, inspired by his love of nature and his concerns of the effects of
global warming, Dean has created a spine-tingling work which begins very
quietly, with clarinets and flutes positioned around the auditorium creating an
enchanting surround-sound evocation of bird calls and forest sounds. An
underlying rhythmic pulse gradually becomes more urgent eventually culminating
in a crescendo of discordant sound. Exciting and unnerving at the same time.
Again the
intense concentration and skill of each musician, confidently guided by Briger through
the intricacies and kaleidoscopic orchestral colourisations, was as fascinating
to watch as it was to listen to. The toll being obvious each time Briger paused
to wipe the perspiration from his brow between movements. Each movement culminated
in an almost frightening primeval screaming, as if expressing frustration at the
apparent impossibility of preventing the inevitable.
As the final
notes of “Symphony (2021)” faded away, the small but appreciative audience,
aware it had been privy to an extraordinary first performance of a new masterwork,
erupted into sustained applause as Briger beckoned the composer to the stage to
share the accolades with his orchestra.
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| Composer Paul Dean with conductor Alexander Briger AO following the world premiere of his work "Symphony (2021) given by the Australian World Orchestra in Llewellyn Hall Canberra. |
The
complexities and fireworks of “Symphony (2021)” behind them, Schumann’s mighty
“Symphony No 2 in C, Op.61” provided the perfect book-end for this memorable
concert.
It was
almost possible to detect an audible sigh from the orchestra as it returned to
familiar territory. Briger too looked much more relaxed, though no less in
control as he savoured the performance of his orchestral Rolls Royce. During
the lovely Adagio espressivo passage he occasionally took his hands off the
controls to allow the orchestra to cruise along with only the most minimal of
gestures to guide them while he savoured the hum of his impeccably tuned creation
before revving it up again for its commanding finale.
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| The Australian World Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Briger AO, performing Schumann's Symphony No. 2 in C, Op.61" in Llewellyn Hall, Canberra. |
It was a
shame that a Covid-19 outbreak robbed Melbourne audiences of experiencing what
must surely by one of the finest orchestral concerts of the year.
Photos by Peter Hislop.
This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW. www.artsreview.com.au
