Seeing Music, Hearing Art

Described by The New York Times as “a brilliant musician and a master programmer”, Robertson has established himself as an artful communicator with the ability to make music accessible to new audiences with an attention-grabbing combination of passion and intellect whilst maintaining the highest artistic standards.

Robertson will begin his Sydney Symphony performances with Stravinsky’s breakthrough work, The Firebird, a spectacular fairytale about a prince rescuing his princess from an evil monster with the help of a spectacular mythical bird. Despite its popularity, the work is rarely heard in its entirety, making these performances all the more special for Sydney audiences. The concerts will also feature Grammy Award-winning guest pianist, Yefim Bronfman, performing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1.

In recognition of the centenary of the birth of one of twentieth century’s greatest composers, Olivier Messiaen, Robertson will direct the Orchestra in a one-off illustrated musical lecture called The Colour of Time. The concert, on Friday 22 August, will feature works by Messiaen and Debussy accompanied by classic artworks projected onto a large screen, demonstrating the link between art and music, and inviting audiences to mingle aural and visual senses. The performance will also be narrated by David Robertson.

Of Messiaen, Robertson said: “I had the honour of working with Messiaen on a number of his works such as Poemes pour Mi, L’Ascension and Turangalila and I visited him in Paris several times in my 20s and 30s where he was only too willing to give his time to work on scores with me.

“Messiaen ‘heard’ colours and ‘painted’ his music accordingly. One day when while I was standing with the great composer looking at a projection of the stained glass of La Saint-Chapelle in Paris I asked him what he saw to which he replied, “A symphony of colour.”

David Robertson presented his Debussy, Messiaen and Monet inspired program to great acclaim last year with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and now brings the experience to Australia for the first time.

As a recognised music authority, inspiring communicator and respected educator, Robertson is a fitting figure to present the Sydney Symphony’s 2008 Stuart Challender Lecture on Thursday 7 August at Customs House in Sydney. For this year’s lecture, David will use his own personal perspectives and the selected audio samples to address the question, ‘Is classical music relevant’?

The Stuart Challender lecture is presented annually by the Stuart Challender Fund, established by the Orchestra’s late Chief Conductor and Artistic Director, Stuart Challender, as a way to provide training opportunities for Australian conductors. Robertson joins an illustrious line-up of past presenters including Leonard Slatkin, Michael Steinberg, Simone Young and the controversial music journalist Norman Lebrecht.

An inspiration on and off the podium, Robertson has revived the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra during his past four years as Music Director, engaging the community outside the concert hall with groundbreaking outreach programs that have seen the orchestra contribute to arts education in local schools. -- www.sydneysymphony.com