Bird song, Aboriginal chants, and a deserted island: the CSO’s 2017 programme has it all.

Together with the musicians and management of the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, I take great pleasure in inviting you to be a part of what promises to be a thrilling 2017 concert season. Please join us for an unforgettable pilgrimage, as we survey stupendous natural and emotional landscapes and celebrate the inspirational spirit and profundity of the symphonic canon.

The 2017 ActewAGL Llewellyn Series, our four flagship concerts, unveils a boundless spectacle of sonic images, colours and orchestral textures – from the taut, elegantly dramatic compression of a Haydn overture, to the hauntingly evocative Concerto for Birds and Orchestra by Finnish composer, Rautavaara.  Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony reveals a pageant of enchantment, joy and wonder at the beauties of the German countryside and Sibelius portrays the optimism and natural beauty of his homeland in a composition that summons visions of a stunning Nordic landscape. Peter Sculthorpe’s Jabiru Dreaming conjures up the timeless exoticism of the Kakadu region, incorporating native insect and bird sounds, aboriginal chant and the distinctive rhythmic patterns of the didjeridu. Human stories are also wondrously depicted through the miracle of the orchestra, from the...