In their 2019 return to the Independent Theatre, Acacia Quartet offered of program of tonal variety in the concert Testament. Balancing classic string composers against untested contemporary pieces made for an afternoon of pleasant playing and peppery moments.
Tag / the Independent Theatre
From Here or Somewhere Else | Blue and Sentimental & the String Contingent
In a charming genre mash-up double bill at the Independent, the String Contingent performed their last concert for the promotional tour of their new album with opening duo Blue and Sentimental. Written during a tour of northern Australia, From Here or Somewhere Else is an album celebrating the unique physical and social landscape of Australia.
Tomás Luis de Victoria Requiem Mass, 1605 | Bel a consort
For their inaugural performance, the newly formed Bel a consort presented a program centred on “Requiem Mass, 1605 from composer Tomás Luis de Victoria as well as contemporaries Alonso Lobo and Jacob Clemens non Papa. The three pieces formed a harmonious concert of Renaissance sacred music.
Tango de Saxos | Nexas Quartet
Image by Jacquie Manning
Saxophone quartet Nexas Quartet bring some of the best of South American tango music to the stage in this lively summer concert. Spanning decades from 1940s classics to brand new work, the quartet and their special guests delighted the audience from start to finish.
Alchemy | Andrew Blanch & Ariel Nurhadi
Image by Luke Tierney
Sydney-based guitar duo Andrew Blanch and Arial Nurhadi bring their newest program Alchemy to the stage for 2019. The included pieces span the globe, coming from composers from France, Spain, Brazil, USA, Argentina, and Australia. The duo demonstrate a wide range of playing styles and tones for the classical guitar in this program, named after one of the first pieces the pair learned together from the Australian composer Phillip Houghton.
Classics | Streeton Trio with Trish O’Brien
Streeton Trio regulars Emma Jardine and Benjamin Kopp were joined by cellist Trish O’Brien to play two classic pieces acknowledged as two of the best chamber music pieces ever composed. While both composed for piano, violin, and cello, the pieces varied greatly in style and formed a charming pair for a concert.
Threshold of Night | Bel a Cappella
Sydney-based choir Bel a Cappella brings their third concert of 2018 to North Sydney’s Independent Theatre in a celebration of night and all the art inspired by it. Known for their eclectic mix of genres and time periods, the concert line-up brought a collection of contemporary Australian works in contact with more classical pieces.
Schumann Quintet & Korngold Suite | Seraphim Trio with Andrew Haveron & Jacqui Cronin
Seraphim Trio with two special guests bring some little-played 19th century pieces to the stage for a concert about collaboration and celebration. This Sydney concert featured three pieces, a short Schubert and then the title pieces from Korngold and Schumann.
Snow in Summer | Evergreen Ensemble
Closing their tour to launch their newest album titled Snow in Summer, Evergreen Ensemble played a concert of the same name at the Independent Theatre on a muggy Sunday afternoon. Playing a mix of Scottish and Scandinavian styles and songs with some Italian influence thrown in, the program meandered through melancholic Highland ballads and joyous dance numbers.
Imaginations | Matt Withers & Acacia Quartet
The Acacia Quartet comes together with Matt Withers on classical guitar to share a program of emerging and established Australian composers including some brand new pieces from prize-winners from the 2018 Australian Music Composition Competition. Fusing a classical guitar with their inventive and unorthodox tone and technique brings another dimension to this string quartet. Sharing a thematic link of landscape inspiration, Imaginations also plays with the relationship between music and painting as artistic representations of space both real and imaginary.
Night Writes 