Australian Chamber Orchestra Presents "Revolution"

The ACO kicks off the 2007 concert season with Beethoven's massive Violin Concerto - played by one of Australia's most eminent musicians Richard Tognetti - and the even more colossal Third Symphony, the 'Eroica'. ACO performances of Beethoven are always landmarks on the artistic calendar and not to be missed, as audiences who experienced Beethoven's Symphony No 5 in 2006 can confirm.

One of the most written about and analysed works in music history, Beethoven's 'Heroic' third symphony carries a mass of mythology and is one of the works that launched the Romantic period. Napoleon inspired the original 'Heroic' nickname, but after he crowned himself emperor Beethoven had second thoughts. The ground-breaking Symphony is the meeting point of much that is fascinating about these two wonderful, egotistical revolutionaries. It is a colossal Symphony that demands, rather than requests, attention.

Beethoven's Violin Concerto was also revolutionary. Concertos were mostly written so that soloists could dazzle with technique. There's no lack of virtuosity in this piece, but what makes it overwhelmingly audacious is its size. The first movements of the Concerto and the 'Eroica' are each longer than many previous symphonies. A concert of stamina, not just artistry!

One of Britain's most successful living composers Mark-Anthony Turnage's distinctive Lullaby for Hans, which celebrates the 80th birthday of composer Hans Werner Henze, has its Australian premiere during this tour. Turnage's work is strongly individual and decisively personal: a hallmark of a Romantic, though this is often hidden behind his eclectic post-modern style. He skilfully blends classical and jazz idioms, modernism and tradition, and is currently Mead Composer in Residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. -- www.aco.com.au