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Ku-ring-gai Philharmonic Orchestra (KPO) celebrated their 50th Anniversary last weekend. For an Arts Organisation, surviving 50 years is no small feat. Alongside their regular performances at The Concourse, Chatswood throughout the year they have a full schedule of sideline activities including chamber concerts, composer workshops and the very popular NSW Secondary Schools Concerto Competition. Sydney has a small handful of community orchestras (not enough of them really) blending up-and-coming young musicians with retired professionals. They provide valuable experience to step up the career ladder from amateur to professional. It’s a superb opportunity for skilled players to get on stage and wow the audience in full scale orchestral works.
This orchestra is one that many don’t actually want to leave with more than 30 players currently in the “25 year club”. You can feel the camaraderie amongst the members and can literally feel their joy in the performance.
The matinee began with a warm welcome from Acting President Wendy Vardouniotis who gave some background to their activities and history. It might have been useful to announce the concert was being recorded for Australian Digital Concert Hall to encourage more audience participation. Following the welcome was a touching speech from a representative of Sisters of Charity Foundation. They were partnering with the orchestra in a fundraiser for their excellent Tertiary Scholarship Program which supports young adults out of foster care or disadvantaged situations helping to cover living expenses whilst they study full time. More details below.
The concert began with the thrill of the “Festive Overture” by Shostakovich. Artistic Director Paul Terracini virtually cracked the whip and the musicians threw themselves into a fast paced gallop beautifully rehearsed. Terracini’s direction was clear cut and concise. With fierce focus it was a startling, bright and exciting opening, drawing great applause from the audience.
Following was another surprising piece by relatively new Sydney composer Naomi Dodd who graduated from the Sydney Con in 2019. Commissioned for the KPO last year, “Deep Calls To Deep” offered a vivid series of watery images from wind in the sails skirting over rolling high seas, a dark, thundering, violent storm and dropping deep into the ocean to float alongside a huge whale.
To make the fabulous whale noises, in her own words, “the player balances an upside down cymbal on the skin of the timpani then bows the cymbal (with a violin bow) while slowly moving the timpani’s foot pedal. The bowed cymbal resonates throughout the timpani drum while the moving pedal warps the pitch to create the whale sound.”
Fading to silence at the end left the audience wanting more! We could easily have listened to a piece twice as long. The composer was present to receive the gratitude of the audience. Very impressive. We can look forward to hearing more of Dodd’s work as she develops and would love to encourage professional ensembles to consider offering her commissions.
Back to Shostakovich minus the brass and wind sections was the “Chamber Symphony of Strings”. It’s a morbid piece dedicated to the victims of fascism and war and doesn’t hold back in painting a harsh picture of terror, oppression and the nightmare of running for your life. Shostakovich himself was close to suicidal at the time of composing the original work in the form of a string quartet. His own life was heavily oppressed and threatened during the Soviet regime so personal experience would have loaded the work with all the emotion required. He survived = and went on to see the work rearranged for a larger string orchestra in its current form. Even the 3/4 waltz of the third movement would be fitting for a Tim Burton film.
To complete the program, super star Australian pianist Roger Woodward stepped in to perform with the orchestra. It’s such a great honour to have this extraordinary artist working with them. Woodward has had a long international career as concert pianist performing across America, Europe, UK and Asia. With a discography of almost 50 albums he is regularly broadcast on ABC and the MBS community radio stations around the country.
His chosen work was Prokofiev’s “Piano Concerto no 3 in C Major Opus 26” a technical nightmare enough to whiten the hair of many a pianist. Lucky for Woodward, this is not a problem presently and he easily flowed through the virtuosic gymnastics of the piece literally twisting from top to bottom of keyboard over and over throughout the roughly 30 minute concerto.
It’s a dark piece emotionally, which, coupled with the Shostakovich Chamber Symphony, made for a rather heavy program, overall, but Woodward’s extraordinary performance thrilled the audience, generating four curtain calls.
The concert, performed on 11 December 2022 at the Concourse, Chatswood, was a spectacular finish to the year and a celebration of 50 years of playing. Fantastic work, KPO! Here’s to another 50 years ahead.
Program
Festive Overture Op 96 – Shostakovich
Deep Calls to Deep – Dodd
Chamber Symphony for Strings Op 110A – Shostakovich
Piano Concerto no 3 in C Major Opus 26 – Prokofiev
PLEASE NOTE: This concert will be broadcast on Australian Digital Concert Hall tonight, Tuesday 13 December 2022, at 7pm EST and will be available for viewing 72 hours afterwards. https://australiandigitalconcerthall.com/#/item/100882
Links
Buy Albums of pianist Roger Woodward: http://www.rogerwoodward.com/index.php/discography/
Check the KPO website for release of the 2023 season: https://www.kpo.org.au/current/
More at The Concourse Chatswood: https://www.theconcourse.com.au/
Read more about composer Naomi Dodd: https://www.naomidoddcomposer.com/about
Donate to the Sisters of Charity Foundation: https://sistersofcharityfoundation.org.au
Photos by Stephen Reinhardt
