Australia’s national vocal ensemble The Song Company has announced a new season for 2022 called Higher Ground, following a successful (but reduced) string of performances in 2021. The new season features music by a vast variety of composers from Josquin des Prez to Brahms, Philip Glass and Australian composers Alice Chance, Elizabeth Sheppard and Sonya Holowell.

Song Company’s Arms of Love. Photo © Christopher Hayles

“Seeking refuge by moving ever higher is an instinct deep within the human psyche; we can discover shelter and meaning in the exquisite and intricate works of the polyphonic masters of the Renaissance, and as loved and imitated by later generations of composers such Buxtehude and Brahms,” said The Song Company’s media release.

The season opens with a MainStage performance of Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem), one of the most beloved works in the choral repertoire, performed here in a version for two pianos and voices. The single performance on 19 February forms part of the Salon series of concerts, bringing larger works into a more...