Following a three-day Festival Prelude event last month which they deemed to be “highly successful”, the Australian Festival of Chamber Music (AFCM) has announced a compact program of in-person/online concerts and masterclasses which will be held as part of the month-long North Australian Festival of Arts (NAFA).
In addition to the online component, a free, in-person concert will take place at the Queens Gardens, adhering to all COVID-Safe requirements.
Regarding the latter announcement, the Australian Festival of Chamber Music had this to say:
While the concerts have limited seating to be COVID-Safe, no one has to miss out! In a first for Townsville, the evening recitals will be streamed worldwide through the renowned Melbourne Digital Concert Hall; whilst the Queens Gardens Concert will be free to view on social media. Patrons can put down a rug and have a picnic and a glass of wine in their back yard or lounge room and enjoy exclusive performances from the world’s finest musicians in their own homes.
A full outline of events being presented by AFCM as part of NAFA can be found below. Should you wish to attend one of these events, visit their show pages HERE.:
AFCM Presents: An Evening with Daniel de Borah
Friday 16 October
Townsville Civic Theatre, C2.
7:00pm for 7:30pm performance
Presented by the Australian Festival of Chamber Music in association with NAFA
This performance is proudly supported by James Cook University
One-hour piano recital live streamed on Melbourne Digital Concert Hall
Adults $55, AFCM Friends $49.50, Digital ticket $24
Daniel de Borah is recognised as one of Australia’s foremost musicians, consistently praised for the grace, finesse and imaginative intelligence of his performances. His wide-ranging performance schedule finds him equally at home as concerto soloist, recitalist and chamber musician. Since his prize-winning appearances at the 2004 Sydney International Piano Competition, Daniel has given recitals on four continents and toured extensively throughout the United Kingdom and Australia. As a concerto soloist he has appeared with the English Chamber Orchestra, London Mozart Players, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Auckland Symphony Orchestras. He now lives in Brisbane where he serves as Head of Chamber Music at the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University.
Repertoire includes:
- JS Bach, arr. Siloti – Organ Prelude in G minor
- JS Bach, arr. Siloti – Organ Prelude in E minor
- JS Bach, arr. Siloti – Prelude in B minor
- Schumann, arr. Liszt – Widmung
- Schumann, arr. Liszt – Frühlingsnacht
- Schumann – Kreisleriana, Op.16
AFCM Presents: Public Masterclass with Daniel de Borah
Saturday 17 October
Townsville Civic Theatre, C2
10:30am – 12.00pm
Presented by the Australian Festival of Chamber Music in association with NAFA
Ever wondered how music students learn, and how music teachers teach? Watch a lesson unfold as Daniel de Borah takes four leading piano students through a 90-minute masterclass. An internationally renowned soloist and Head of Chamber Music at the Queensland Conservatorium, Daniel will lead a group of lucky student through a work.
*FREE event. However, registration is required due to the limited audience seating available to ensure a COVID-Safe environment.
AFCM Presents: An Evening with the Orava Quartet
Saturday 17 October
Townsville Civic Theatre, C2
7:00pm for 7:30pm performance
Presented by the Australian Festival of Chamber Music in association with NAFA
This concert is proudly supported by James Cook University
One-hour recital live streamed on Melbourne Digital Concert Hall
Adults $55, AFCM Friends $49.50, Digital ticket $24
A wonderful evening of music with the exceptionally talented Orava Quartet, hailed by Limelight as “the most exciting young quartet on the block” and predicted by The Australian to become “one of Australia’s proudest cultural exports.” Known for their genuinely thrilling performances, the Quartet – brothers Daniel and Karol Kowalik (first violin and cello), violinist David Dalseno and violist Thomas Chawner – bring their unique sound and breathtaking intensity to the classics of the string quartet canon, and more. Selected by Deutsche Grammophon for its historic, first Australian recording release in 2018, received with widespread critical acclaim, Orava Quartet has performed throughout North America, the UAE, and Asia, as well as playing for Queen Sofia of Spain and Pope Benedict XVI.
Program includes: Haydn String quartet in B-flat major, Op.76 no.4 Hob.III:78 ‘Sunrise’ AND Schulhoff String Quartet no.1 (1924)
AFCM Presents: Virtual Queens Gardens Concert
Saturday 24 October, 5pm
Queens Gardens
Proudly supported by wilson/ryan/grose
Co-presented by AFCM and Townsville City Council
The annual Queens Gardens Concert, co-presented by the Australian Festival of Chamber Music and Townsville City Council, will look a little different this year. There will still be plenty of music performed by local groups the 1RAR Band and Amadeus Choir, along with AFCM artists performing from their home cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Prague, but the performances will be beamed out on the Council’s Super Screen in Queens Gardens. Hosts Glenn ‘Minty’ Mintern and Judy Higgins-Olsen will be onsite to present this magnificent line up of music. Pack a picnic and bring the whole family down to the park for a wonderfully entertaining afternoon.
*FREE event however registration is required due to the limited audience seating available to ensure a COVID-Safe environment.
