Under the baton of their new Chief Conductor, the MSO presents a robust program of some of Classical Music’s most iconic pieces, with threads of hope running through the program. Opening with Fanfare for a City by Tasmanian composer Maria Grenfell, Martín injects the orchestra with energy. Full of bright brass chords, playful xylophone passages and sweeping chorale sections, Grenfell plays with contrasting textures, building scurrying strings that suddenly drop to delicate and meandering woodwind melodies. Written in celebration of the Federation of Australia, this piece is full of life and optimism. Following Grenfell’s invigorating start to the concert, the MSO performs Hungarian composer, Béla Bartók’s last orchestral work, Concerto for Orchestra. Commissioned to write Concerto for Orchestra while in hospital for cancer treatment, Bartók draws on a range of inspiration, from folksong to music of the Baroque era. Written in only two months, Bartók describes the “general mood of the work represents, apart from the jesting second movement, a gradual transition from the sternness of the first movement and the lugubrioius death-song of the third, to the life-assertion of the last one…” Listen out for moments of humour as Bartók incorporates musical jokes into this five-movement work, as well as the soloistic lines that run through various lines of the orchestra, reflecting its title, “Concerto”. Paired with the Bartók is Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7. Full of hope, optimism and life, this Symphony was written at a time when the onset of Beethoven’s deafness was taking effect. Described by Beethoven as his “most excellent symphony,” this work has faced a range of reviews, such as Carl Maria von Weber for whom this piece seemed evident of Beethoven losing his mind, and Friedrich Wieck, who thought that this music must have been written by someone intoxicated. It is full of a new energy, however, doesn’t lose any of Beethoven’s signature characteristics, filled with bright, powerful chords, captivating melodies and, at times, a sense of melancholy. FEATURING: JAIME MARTÍN conductor MARIA GRENFELL composer PROGRAM: DEBORAH CHEETHAM Long time living here (Acknowledgement of Country) MARIA GRENFELL Fanfare for a City BARTÓK Concerto for Orchestra BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92