The month of July kicks off with WA composers in the spotlight. Lachlan Skipworth’s piano trio is being performed at a Grove Classics‘ concert on 1st July alongside Dvorak’s Piano Quintet featuring pianist James Guan. World premieres by composers Olivia Davies, Rachel Bruerville and Carmel Chan Schoenbom will feature on the 2nd as The Summers Night Project begins its national tour in Perth as part of Tura New Music’s exciting new mentoring program that aims to grow the diversity of composers in programs Australia-wide.
Dive into the Perth jazz scene with the new Kings Street Corner Pocket Jazz Festival which runs 5-7th July featuring more than 120 performers and 40 shows. The new initiative from the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra will feature the WAYJO big bands plus Alana Macpherson, Priscilla Gardiner, Perth Cabaret Collective, Jamie Oehlers Quartet and WAAPA Jazz plus more.
Meanwhile the WA Youth Orchestra are producing a Mahler extravaganza on the 7th. Mahler’s epic second symphony will be performed by a 250-strong collaboration which includes the Orchestra of the Music Makers (Singapore), singers Taryn Fiebig and Fiona Campbell, Perth Symphonic Chorus and The Winthrop Singers conducted by Tze Law Chan.
In other orchestral news the young Spanish cellist Pablo Ferrández will make his debut with the WA Symphony Orchestra on the 12/13/14th performing Dvořák’s Cello Concerto. Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony is also on the program and missing from the promotional material (!) is the work that makes this program most exciting: the Australian premiere of Masquerade, a work by Anna Clyne. If you haven’t heard of this stunning English/American composer arrive at 6:45pm and my pre-concert talk will fill you in!
WASO will also be performing in WA Opera’s production of Carmen opening on the 21st. This revival of Lindy Hume’s production has a starry cast including cast Serbian mezzo Milijana Nikolic as Carmen, Paul O’Neill as Don Jose, James Clayton as Escamillo and Emma Pearson as Micaela.
WASO will finish the month with Last Night at the Proms on the 27/29 hosted by Guy Noble so button your braces, polish your tiaras and unfurl your British flags!
The Fremantle Chamber Orchestra will perform Mozart, Haydn and Lekeu on the 14/15th with German pianist Heidemarie Wiesner joining them for Haydn’s Piano Concerto in D major.
Lovers of the piano can choose from Piers Lane in recital at the Music on the Terrace series on the 8th or Joyce Yang on tour with Musica Viva on the 19th plus the Keys in the City which from the 16-20th will offer unique performance tours of WA’s rare keyboard collection.
The experimental music scene will feature local performer Chris Cobilis plus Zurich-based musician Jason Kahn performing acoustically with voice and guitar in the resonant surrounds of St Pauls Church on the 9th. On the 22nd the Tangents will tour their new album New Bodies to Perth with a concert that rummages through electronics, rock, dub, noise, and free improv jazz.
In the world of THEATRE there are shows still running from June: Last Great Hunt’s The Improvement Club continues until the 7th and Black Swan State Theatre’s The Events closes on the 8th.
In DANCE Co3’s annual Project NEXT is on the 6/7th celebrating a new generation of contemporary dancers and creative thinkers with three new works crafted by the Co:Youth Ensemble.
And don’t forget the new Disney production of Aladdin the Musical opens at Crown on the 22nd. Let me know if I’ve missed anything. For more information on arts events for children head to the Kids Arts page.
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