AUSTRALIA 2012
Concerts in CANBERRA, ADELAIDE, BRISBANE, PERTH, MELBOURNE and SYDNEY
Five states, six cities, a twenty-two hour flight, and eleven performances of Beethoven’s famous Ninth Symphony followed by eleven standing ovations. This was all part of our three-week tour of Australia with the Australian Chamber Orchestra lead by violinist Richard Tognetti.
As well as performances in Canberra, Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth, we were lucky enough to give two of the first performances at the newly refurbished Hamer Hall in Melbourne, with its breath-taking architecture and impressive audience capacity of up to 2500. However, the musical (and architectural) highlight of the tour was without doubt the two performances given in the Sydney Opera House. The opportunity to perform in this iconic venue was but a far-off dream for all members of the choir until this tour – the reaction of excited gasps and the clicking of cameras upon entry to the concert hall said it all!
Whilst down under we were also able to soak up the Australian Culture, with memorable trips to Taronga Zoo and Manly Island in Sydney, and many encounters with the continent’s exotic wildlife throughout the three weeks.
This was both a musical and cultural experience that the choir will treasure for a long time.
