Festivals

Some of Canberra’s most iconic architectural spaces and national institutions will provide the setting for an innovative and inspiring program of classical, jazz and contemporary music next month.

The Canberra International Music Festival gets underway with a Gala Concert on May 11 and culminates in a Finale concert at the National Museum of Australia on May 20.

Over 10 days and two event-packed weekends, the Festival will feature more than 30 ticketed and free events, including concerts, lectures and films.

The concerts will feature international and nationally acclaimed artists and choirs, with 17 of the events being world premieres.

Some of the highlights include:

• The music of Mozart, this year’s featured composer;
• A musical voyage from Europe to China, travelling down the Silk Road;
• Music from Peteris Vasks, composer in residence;
• The first Australian performance of Bach’s Mass in B Minor on period instruments;
• Free lectures and recitals at the ANU School of Music Fringe Festival.

Founded in 1994 and an annual event since 1997, the Festival originally focused on chamber music. It remains true to its core but its scope has since broadened to include classical, jazz, contemporary and world music.

Performances are largely acoustic and the emphasis is on intimate venues with exceptional acoustics. As anyone who has been to previous Festivals will attest, its  Amazing Space concerts are an unforgettable experience.

The music soars through Canberra’s remarkable architectural spaces and landscapes, and prominent architects provide a rare glimpse into the genesis and history of the city’s iconic buildings.

Among the cultural institutions hosting events are the National Gallery of Australia, the National Portrait Gallery, the National Museum of Australia, the High Court of Australia, the Museum of Australian Democracy and the Australian War Memorial.

The city’s beautiful Albert Hall is the home venue for this year’s festival, and St. Christopher’s Cathedral and the Turkish Embassy will also host events.

Among the artists performing are the Wallfisch Band, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, the New Zealand String Quartet, the Song Company, Osmosis and composer in residence, Peteris Vasks.

The composer in residence program provides an opportunity for audiences to engage with composers and appreciate the context in which music was written.

Composers in residence at past festivals have included Peter Sculthorpe, Ross Edwards, Elena Kats-Chernin and Graeme Koehne.

Sculthorpe’s work Shining Island had its premiere in Canberra in 2011 and has since been performed at the City of London Festival and by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

Sculthorpe is one of the Canberra International Music Festival’s most ardent supporters, saying that it makes an important contribution to Australian culture. “No other festival has a deeper meaning for me,” he says.

Larger works presented at the Festival are performed by the Festival Camerata, an orchestra comprised of visiting artists and students from the ANU School of Music Chamber Orchestra, and for the first time in 2012, students from the Australian National Academy of Music in Melbourne.

Local choirs, the Oriana Chorale, Canberra Choral Society, the Resonants, Llewellyn Choir, SCUNA and the ANU School of Music vocal students are regular performers at the Festival.

In 2011, a newly formed Combined Canberra Children’s choir performed to a sell-out crowd and this year the choir has been expanded to include around 250 children from regional NSW choirs.

Next year, it will have even broader representation, with children recruited nationally in celebration of the founding of Canberra as the nation’s capital.

Next year’s Centenary of Canberra celebrations are already making their mark on the Festival.

This year will see the second instalment of the Canberra triptych focusing on Canberra’s role as an international city and a centre of international diplomacy.

The Festival has a “Meeting Place” theme, drawing on the meaning of Canberra in the local Ngunnawal language, and exploring how geography and cultural identity plays a role in bringing nations and cultures together.

The four concerts in this year’s Amazing Spaces program will explore the idea of Canberra as a planned city. One of the concerts will be in the Brazilian Embassy to reflect Canberra’s connection to other planned cities.

The courtyards of some of Canberra’s historic buildings will be venues for other events, with a courtyard concert at Old Parliament House and a walking tour to listen to music in the courtyards of University House, the National Film and Sound Archive and New Acton.

This is a glorious time of year to be out and about enjoying inspired music in beautiful local settings. To enhance your experience, why not add a visit to some of the region’s wineries and restaurants? Or perhaps take in an exhibition at one of the national institutions?

Fact file:

Tickets are available from Canberra Ticketing on +61 2 6275 2700 or at                www.canberraticketing.com.au

Tickets can also be bought at the information desk in the Canberra Centre or in person at the Canberra Theatre Centre. Individual concerts are priced from $35 to $65.

A weekend pass (8 concerts) costs $290.

Gold Passes ($590) provides entry, priority seating for all 27 festival concerts and an invitation to a special Gold Pass event. These can be bought from the Festival office: +61 2 6230 5880 or www.cimf.org.au

Photos courtesy of Canberra International Music Festival.

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