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BMF BESPOKE
FIESTA SUNDAY
SOUTHERN CROSS SOLOISTS
La Medusa Ballroom at the
PALAZZO VERSACE
Main Beach | Gold Coast QLD
SUNDAY AUGUST 15
UPDATE: THIS EVENT IS POSTPONED
Set amongst the luxurious surrounds and spectacular architecture of the opulent Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast, enjoy a thrilling music-filled day on Sunday August 15 from 11am. In the stunning La Medusa Ballroom at the heart of spectacular Palazzo estate, BMF BESPOKE features many of the artists you were looking forward to hear at the Bangalow Music Festival, including Jayson Gillham, the Orava Quartet, Susan Collins and Southern Cross Soloists Tania Frazer & Jonathan Henderson.
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WELCOME
FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Dear Friends,
Life seems to forever take unexpected twists and turns and certainly we didn’t expect that we would have to cancel the Bangalow Music Festival again this year. But unfortunately, Australia and the world are still grappling with Covid 19. However, often struggles seem to plant the seeds of opportunity and we are incredibly grateful to the Palazzo Versace for hosting our inaugural mini festival: BMF Bespoke, in their gorgeous La Medusa Ballroom at the Gold Coast.
BMF Bespoke presents Fiesta Sunday, a two concert mini festival featuring many of the headline artists from the original 2021 Bangalow Music Festival program. We welcome international piano sensation, Jayson Gillham as well as the newly appointed Bangalow Music Festival Quartet in Residence, the Orava Quartet, alongside Jonathan Henderson (flute), Susan Collins (violin) and myself, for a day of sumptuous chamber music in the stunning Italian- inspired surrounds of the Palazzo Versace.
We hope you can join us, either in person or via the Melbourne Digital Concert Hall, who will be live streaming the entire day for our audiences around Australia who cannot be with us in person. A huge thanks to the Palazzo Versace and Melbourne Digital Concert Hall for their support as well as the amazing management team of Southern Cross Soloists, who have worked tirelessly to reimagine the festival experience for our audiences and friends.
We look forward to seeing you on Sunday August 15th for a day of beautiful chamber music.
Tania Frazer
Artistic Director
PROGRAM
CONCERT 1
POSTCARDS FROM EUROPE
11AM Sunday August 15th
La Medusa Ballroom PALAZZO VERSACE
BMF Bespoke opens with a joyous and spirited work by the great Italian film composer Nino Rota, in his trio for flute, violin and piano - perfect for the sumptuous Italian setting of the Palazzo Versace. This is followed by Arnold Bax’s evocative quintet for oboe and string quartet that conjures up lush green images of Ireland juxtaposed with the intense backdrop of the Irish War of Independence. Shostakovich’s shortest but possibly most beautiful string quartet follows with his intensely powerful Quartet no 7, followed by a lighthearted treasure in De Falla’s vigorous farruca from his comical ballet, the Three-Cornered Hat. In the second half, international piano soloist Jayson Gillham joins the BMF Quartet in Residence, the Orava Quartet for Brahms’s majestic masterpiece of chamber music: his acclaimed Piano Quintet in F minor.
Nino Rota Trio for Flute, Violin and Piano
Bax Quintet for Oboe and Strings
Shostakovich String Quartet no. 7
De Falla Danza del Molinari from The Three-Cornered Hat
–interval –
Brahms Piano Quintet in F minor Op.34
Jayson Gillham piano
Orava Quartet
Susan Collins violin
Jonathan Henderson flute
Tania Frazer oboe
Duration: 90 minutes plus interval
Tickets $80-$120
CONCERT 2
'AMORE'
2:45PM Sunday August 15th
La Medusa Ballroom PALAZZO VERSACE
Join us for a perfect, leisurely Sunday afternoon with a program that evokes the spirit of the human soul, from the delicate and tender to the spirited and dramatic. The Orava Quartet open the concert with Porpora’s stunning Farinelli aria performed on the oboe with Tania Frazer, followed by Borodin’s sublime Quartet no. 2 , written as a love letter to his wife. Guest violin soloist Susan Collins joins SXS flute soloist Jonathan Henderson to perform Telemann’s virtuosic concerto for flute and violin, followed by Marcello’s heavenly Oboe Concerto in C minor. To close the day’s fiesta, we are treated to the intensely dramatic and turbulent CPE Bach Keyboard Concerto, performed by Jayson Gillham.
Porpora Alto Giove from Polifemo
Borodin String Quartet no. 2
–interval –
Telemann Concerto E Min Flute, Violin TWV 52e3
Marcello Oboe Concerto C minor S.Z799
CPE Bach Keyboard Concerto in D minor Fq 23
Jayson Gillham piano
Orava Quartet
Susan Collins violin
Jonathan Henderson flute
Tania Frazer oboe
SXS Next Gen Young Artists
Duration: 90 minutes plus interval
Tickets $80-$120
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FEATURED ARTISTS
Australian-British pianist Jayson Gillham is recognised as one of the finest pianists of his generation. He performs with the world’s leading orchestras with recent highlights including engagements with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony, Sydney Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, Adelaide Symphony, West Australian Symphony, Auckland Philharmonic, Christchurch Symphony, London Philharmonic Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra amongst many others. In recital, Jayson Gillham appears at some of the world’s most prestigious venues including the Wigmore Hall, Barbican Hall, Birmingham Town Hall, Louvre Auditorium, and across Australia. Jayson has recorded three albums with ABC Classics including a solo program and concertos by Beethoven, Medtner and Rachmaninoff with Sydney and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras, as well as a complete Beethoven Concerti cycle with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra recorded live by ABC Classics.
The Orava Quartet, founded in 2007 by brothers Daniel Kowalik (violin) and Karol Kowalik (cello), Thomas Chawner (viola), and joined in 2011 by David Dalseno (violin), is one of the most exciting string quartets of its generation. The Quartet has performed in Canada, the United States, United Arab Emirates, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Philippines, as well as for Queen Sofia of Spain and Pope Benedict XVI. As graduate Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Colorado (USA), they worked closely with the world-renowned Takács Quartet and toured the US extensively. The winners of two awards at the 2013 Asia Pacific Chamber Music Competition in Melbourne, the Orava’s are Quartet-in-Residence with the Camerata - Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra, and have performed at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Huntington Estate Music Festival; the BBC Proms Melbourne, Queensland Music Festival, Melbourne Festival, Sydney Opera House VIVID Festival and the Musica Viva Festival amongst many more. They released their debut album for Universal Music in 2018, for worldwide release on a major classical label in February, alongside performances for New Zealand Festival, Sydney Opera House’s Utzon Music Series, Melbourne Recital Centre, Canberra International Music Festival, Darwin Entertainment Centre and more. The quartet regularly collaborate with musicians such as harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani, trumpet soloist Paul Merkelo, the Goldner Quartet, pianists Piers Lane, Tamara-Anna Cislowska, Olga Kern; singers Katie Noonan, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, and guitarists Slava Grigoryan and Karin Schaupp.
Born in Australia, Tania Frazer completed both her undergraduate and postgraduate degrees with David Theodore at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London on full scholarship. Following graduation, she was a member of the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra working closely with Lorin Maazel, Rostropovich, Solti and others. As a chamber musician Tania Frazer has collaborated with artists such as Richard Tognetti, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Dawn Upshaw, Ilya Konovalov, and Avi Avital to name a few. A dedicated teacher, Tania is the Oboe Lecturer at the University of Queensland in Brisbane and is also the Director of the Southern Cross Soloists Winter Music School. At the age of 23, Tania was invited by Zubin Mehta to perform with the famous Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under his direction. Tania has since appeared as Principal Oboe with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra on many occasions under Zubin Mehta, Valery Gergiev and others. Tania has performed as Principal Oboe with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the New Zealand Symphony, the Jerusalem Symphony, Stavanger Symphony in Norway, the Montreal Chamber Orchestra and was Principal Cor Anglais of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra for a season. From 1997-2001, Tania held the position of Principal Oboe with the prestigious Israel Opera in Tel Aviv. From 2004-2008, Tania was Principal Oboe with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and performed as a soloist on the Australian Chamber Orchestra's 2006 tour of Europe alongside American soprano Dawn Upshaw at some of Europe’s most prestigious festivals and concert halls. A recipient of numerous prizes and awards, Tania won first prize at the Coleman International Competition in Los Angeles, the Queen Elizabeth Silver Jubilee Award in London, the Australian Foundation in London Award, the Philharmonia Orchestra’s Martin Award (UK) and is featured in the Who’s Who of Australian Women in recognition of her contribution to the arts.
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Jonathan Henderson trained with Europe’s leading flute professors and has carved out a multifaceted musical career spanning from Australia to the Nordic countries. Whilst still a student at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg, Jonathan was appointed Principal Flute of the Estonian National Opera Orchestra at age twenty-four. He has appeared as a guest principal flute with the Turku Philharmonic and Tampere Philharmonic Orchestras (Finland), and has performed with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Nordic Symphony Orchestra and MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra. Orchestral engagements and recitals have seen him perform at the Lucerne Festival, Tallinn Chamber Music Festival, Audi Sommerkonzerte and BBC Proms. As concerto soloist, Jonathan gave the world premiere of a new flute concerto composed for him by Australian Composer Lisa Cheney, commissioned by the Brisbane Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also appeared as soloist with the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra and Estonian National Opera Orchestra. In Australia, Jonathan has performed as guest artist at the Craven Creek and Brisbane Music Festivals. Jonathan completed his early musical training at the Queensland Conservatorium (Australia), followed by further performance studies at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg (Germany) and the Haute École de Musique Genève (Switzerland). His principal teachers include Gerhard Mallon and Sally Walker (Australia), Felix Renggli (Germany) and Jacques Zoon (Switzerland). After appearing regularly as associate artist with the Southern Cross Soloists since 2018, he proudly joins the ensemble as a core member in 2020.
At age 14, Susan Collins performed Sarasate’s Zigeunerweissen with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Patrick Thomas at the Sydney Opera House. Since that time, she has performed as soloist and recitalist throughout Australia, the USA and Europe. Susan has recorded many times for ABC FM, and 2MBS FM radio stations in live performance broadcasts as well as studio recorded recitals, and has appeared numerous times in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s Sunday Live series, performing as recitalist as well as in duo and trio combinations with Duncan Gifford and Sue-Ellen Paulsen as a founding member of Kingfisher Trio. From 1992 until 2001, Susan held the position of Deputy Concertmaster of the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra. While holding this position Susan acted regularly as Concertmaster for the AOBO, and also accepted engagements as Guest Concertmaster with many orchestras around Australia. In 2003 Susan was awarded the Australian Centenary Medal, and in 2009 was awarded an Australian College of Educators “Teacher Recognition Award” following successful nomination by her students at the University of Newcastle where she held a lecturer position from 2007 until 2011. Susan is now Head of Strings at UTAS Conservatorium of Music, and lives in Hobart.
Under the guidance of the Southern Cross Soloists, the Next Gen Artists are a collective of young musicians on the cusp of their professional careers in Australia. With few formal pathways to take music graduates to their professional careers, the SXS aim to share our collective expertise with these young artists across the year, providing performance opportunities, helping to raise their local profile and gain vital skills needed as a portfolio musician. Next Gen provides a bridge between tertiary study and a professional music career, offering quality opportunities to work alongside leading professional musicians and arts workers. Our Next Gen artists are affiliate musicians of the Southern Cross Soloists, who proudly offer a variety of performing and learning opportunities, allowing our artists to gain invaluable professional experience, networking, exposure and skill development. Next Gen artists get to spend a year observing the inner workings of the Southern Cross Soloists, watching our rehearsals, coming to concerts, playing alongside us and meeting their future audiences. Teamed with our collective of soloists, Next Gen artists are offered chamber music coaching sessions, aiding their preparation for the year’s performances, as well as arranging private lessons from visiting artists. Next Gen artists share the stage with the Southern Cross Soloists and visiting international guest artists at the annual Bangalow Music Festival.