Here in Australia, we innately understand that not everyone can attend concerts at their orchestra’s city venue. In a country of well over seven million square kilometres, we rely on broadcasts and recordings in order to share much of our music-making. The six symphony orchestras reach out to as many remote and regional communities as they possibly can through both regional touring and technology.
In this edition, Gordon Williams talks to some of the recipients of these tours – audience members from Armidale, in the New England region of NSW. Their perspective as avid consumers of classical music will make those of us who are more regularly able to enjoy our favourite performing arts presentations sit up and take notice.
Since the last edition of The Podium, Symphony Services International has hosted our fifth Orchestral Summit. Our featured guest speaker was the President of the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Deborah Rutter. In addition to her inspiring presentations at the Summit, Deborah travelled around the country and spent a full day with each of the symphony orchestras - a wonderful learning opportunity for a broad range of administrators and musicians. The Summit also featured Peter Grimshaw, from BTM Innovations and nkoda, and a stimulating panel discussion between several donors and philanthropists. Delegates included representatives from our Member and Associate orchestras, as well as a range of companies from the Victorian small-to-medium sector. We are grateful for the support of our presenting partners, the Melbourne Recital Centre, ABC Southbank, and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
Later in the newsletter you can read about our Associate Orchestra, the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra. We complete the issue with our usual ‘speed read’ from around the world.
Happy reading!
Kate Lidbetter
Chief Executive Officer