This was truly a wonderful event. Certainly this reviewer has never seen (or heard) anything like it!
The program was in two halves. There were two conductors, and an amalgam of two orchestras; the Australian Orchestra and the Guizhou Chinese Orchestra.
Tamara-Anna Cislowska highlighted the first half with her playing the Yellow River Concerto. She did a superb job. The concerto demands a strong stridency, reflecting the will of the Chinese to defeat the Japanese invaders in the Chinese War of Resistance. While at the same time incorporating some of the West’s classical piano idiom it is a piece of music that clearly captures the ear of the Chinese peasant class. Their fears and hopes, the sublime feeling of peace, the bliss and serenity of the countryside. It brought to mind in parts Beethoven’s Pastorale Symphony and the idyllic drive with horse and carriage through rustic fields and lanes .Contrast Yellow River Concerto which grasps the rural landscape and the aspirations of its peasants to its heart. Brought to life by a bold Australian conductor Luke Spicer and a bold Australian pianist.
The second half was traditional Chinese with the orchestral amalgam conducted by Long Guohong. Outstanding was Hundred Birds paying homage to the Phoenix ,with the Suona, a tiny golden mini horn, being played Zhang Qianyuan . The Phoenix was at once sophisticated and raw, and a super virtuoso soloist leant the performance a sense of both the magic and the mystic. The following piece , Moonlight over the Spring River, conjured the haunting presence of moonlight on shimmering water. A number of other performances followed ,with soloists in plumed costumery playing instruments the likes of which one would never have imagined could exist.
In a finale the Chinese -Australian orchestra treated us to Waltzing Matilda. Not a Chinese version, a universal one. Tender and romantic and longing. Eminently listensable. Eminently unforgettable.
Chinese and Australian conductors shared this concert platform in friendship, courtesy and respect. It showed that colour, culture and country are no boundaries to friendship and warmth.We may never again see the likes of Folk Reimagined East In Symphony again. But if it comes to our shores again..don’t miss it!
This concert took place at the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House on Monday 7th July 2025.
