Having already performed this program five times in Sydney last week, the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra launched its 2026 Melbourne season in style with “Choral Splendour” with what was a mainly Bach / Handel affair full of baroque hits, but with the added treat of the ABO’s fine choir in tow for about half the program. 

The natural warmth of the t...

No wonder Carlton’s Church of all Nations was full; Lyric Opera had assembled an irresistible program together with some of Melbourne’s finest artists. It must be a long time since Canticles by British composer Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) were given a public performance in Melbourne – a timely reminder that this year marks the 50th anniversary of Britten’s death. On...

In a packed Hanson Dyer Hall there couldn’t have been a warmer, more enthusiastic welcome than that given to David Griffiths, as he introduced Ensemble Liaison’s first concert for the 2026 season, the 21st season in fact, for this popular and highly acclaimed chamber music ensemble.

In his role as M.C., Griffiths shared beautifully spoken insights and knowledge of ...

The St Matthew Passion was not only Bach’s most ambitious composition; it has also been the most ambitious undertaking by the Melbourne Bach Choir (MBC). Program notes by MBC’s Artistic Director and Conductor, Rick Prakhoff, suggest that it required a major act of faith for MBC to reprise a performance of the St Matthew Passion in 2010, f...

In a small chapel in Abbotsford, the Melbourne-based Affinity Quartet partnered with students from the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) to create a moving performance of Haydn’s Seven Last Words for string quartet.

Christ’s seven last words, as narrated in the Gospels, reveal Christ’s state of mind as he prepares for his death on the cross. He se...