Samantha Mailer » Reviews

Mozart and Salieri concert review

Samantha Joseph — Sun, 03 Aug 2014 03:25:11 +0000

Hi Music Lovers!

Great review from The Sydney Arts Guide on our recent concert of ‘Mozart and Salieri’ in June!

With Sydney Independent Opera, we performed the wonderfully dark opera ‘Mozart and Salieri’, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s one-act realist opera, based on one of the popular rumours surrounding Mozart’s death. Namely that he was poisoned by his envious contemporary Salieri! Performed 7 and 8 June 2014 at the Strathfield Russian Club. The Sydney Arts Guide gave us a great review which you can read here: http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/mozart-salieri/.

For more about Mozart and Salieri, visit http://sydneyindependentopera.com.au.

Sydney Contemporary Orchestra

samjoseph88 — Fri, 28 Feb 2014 21:01:18 +0000

In September last year I had a great time performing as part of the inaugural concert with the Sydney Contemporary Orchestra.

Founded and conducted by Dr Brian Chatpo Koo, the SCO is dedicated to promoting and performing new music of all kinds from contemporary composers to enrich the musical culture of our time.

Based in Sydney Australia, the orchestra hosts regular concerts of avant-garde orchestral compositions, “Music Contemporary”, providing opportunities for composers to present their new works, and to encourage composers to pursue creative endeavours in orchestral music.

Here is a link to some of the new works premiered at the concert last year:

http://www.sydneycontemporaryorchestra.sys.org.au/index.php/about-sco

SCO’s first concert for 2014 will be a concert titled “Ode to the Winds” -

Thursday, 17 April, 2014, 8:00pm
TLC Theatre, Baulkham Hills High School.

Gala Concert – Viva Verdi!

samjoseph88 — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:08:29 +0000

Sydney Independent Opera launched it’s 2013 season with the Gala Concert – “Viva Verdi”! Celebrating the beginning of a new year of opera in Sydney with a glorious tribute to Giuseppe Verdi, SIO marked the bicentenary of his birth in 1813. Verdi once wrote: “When I am alone with my notes, my heart pounds and the tears stream from my eyes, and my emotion and joys are too much to bear.”

The Sydney Independent Opera Orchestra, conducted by founder Steven Stanke, provided the musical backdrop for singers Regina Daniel, Maia Andrews, Geoff Knight and Randall Stewart. Presenting the concert on Friday night, the audience were thrilled and delighted in a concert of favourite arias and ensembles such as selections from The Italian Girl in Algiers and La Forza del Destino, Can You Hear The People Sing? from Les Miserables, ‘Soave sia il vento’ from Cosi fan tutte, and many more!

The evening was a huge success, and we all had a wonderful time singing and playing the songs we love!

See below links for reviews from the evening:

What’s on Sydney – Viva Verdi review

Weekend Notes – Viva Verdi review

Sydney Arts Guide – Viva Verdi review

***The next show from the SIO company is Don Giovanni in November 2013 (http://www.sydneyindependentopera.com.au/sydney_independent_opera_003.htm).

Australian Flute Festival 2011

samjoseph88 — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 02:39:27 +0000

Well I just finished up a very exciting weekend at the Australian Flute Festival in Canberra! So many master classes to attend and concerts to see it was a feat to fit them all in… Highlights include seeing Aldo Baerten, Molly Barth and Denis Bouriakov perform in concert. Molly is really into 20^th Century extended techniques, and her concert gave inspiration for new composers to keep an ear out for (Salvatore Sciarrino, Frederic Rzewski and John Fonville to name a few). Aldo is not only a dynamic performer but an equally articulate teacher, and Denis of course was incredible in concert with his speedy fingers.

My favourite masterclass was ‘Inside a Flute Section’, run by members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Janet Webb, Rosamund Plummer and Lisa Osmialowski and their insights were very interesting on the different roles and challenges flautists face when playing in an orchestra.

Here is a sneaky photo from the final concert with all the artists performing new work ‘Angry Tunes’ by Michael Rosiak. It was a fun piece based on the iPhone app Angry Birds! (You can see Peter Sheridan up the back playing his contra bass flute!).