History was made at Snow Concert Hall with the return of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra to Canberra after an absence of 13 years.
Celebrating the occasion with a scintillating program of symphonic dance music appropriately titled Music That Moves You by composers as varied as Kodaly, Debussy, Stravinsky and Western Sydney’s own Holly Harrison, the orchestra received an enthusiastic reception from an appreciative capacity audience.
Conductor Benjamin Northey introduced the orchestra with Zolton Kodaly’s lovely Dances of Galanata, which Kodaly composed in 1933 for the 80th anniversary of the Budapest Philharmonic Society.
An enthusiastic collector of eastern European folk music, Kodaly drew heavily on the melodies of the Romani people for the five movements of this composition, particularly the verbunkos popular among Romani musicians at the time.
This captivating composition, with its catchy melodies and tempi changes highlighting the wind section, proved the perfect entrée to a memorable concert.
Written in 1904 as an advertisement for a new chromatic harp, Claude Debussy’s lush Dances for Harp and String Orchestra followed. Scored for solo harp and strings and written in two sections, Dance sacred and Dance profane, this work showcased the artistry of French harpist, Louisic Dulbecco.
Currently Principal Harp with the SSO, Dulbecco’s spell-binding interpretation, attentively and sympathetically supported by the orchestra’s string section, was greeted with prolonged cheers and applause so thunderous that it became obvious that only an encore would satisfy. Dulbecco’s response was a virtuoso rendition of Debussy’s Arabesque No 1.
The most unexpected offering of the program, and for many, the highlight, was Holly Harrison’s 2021 composition, Hi-Vis. Inspired by sleep deprivation caused by night roadworks, this work had the orchestra approximating traffic noises, flickering lights, reversing vehicles, continuous drilling even electronic dance music… so successfully that one was immediately reminded of George Gershwin’s similar idea with his ballet music for An American in Paris.
Great fun for both the audience and the orchestra, and a real find for an adventuress choreographer looking for inspiration.
Providing the perfect finale for this thrilling concert was The Firebird Suite composed by Igor Stravinsky in 1919, revisiting music he originally composed in 1910 for a ballet of the same name performed by Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes.
Unleashing the full resources of the orchestra, this composition is laden with bombast, drama and romance, over seven movements which climax with a sustained melody passed from solo horn through the full orchestra, proudly announcing the destruction of the evil demon and the reawakening of knights previously turned to stone.
Again, thunderous applause, extracting a promise from the genial conductor that the orchestra would be eager to return to Canberra again soon. Yes! We heard you, Ben.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra Music That Moves You
Snow Concert Hall, 40 Monaro Crescent, Red Hill (ACT)
Performance: Friday 25 September 2026
Information: www.sydneysymphony.com
Images: Sydney Symphony Orchestra – photo by Peter Hislop | Louisic Dulbecco with Sydney Symphony Ochestra – photo by Peter Hislop | Benjamin Northey conducting the Sydney Symphony Orchestra – photo by Peter Hislop
Review: Bill Stephens OAM