The Ady Ensemble is pleased to announce its next concert, Viennese Revolutions, which will be part of the 2015 4MBS Festival of Classics.

Since the theme of the next 4MBS Festival of Classics focuses on the city of Vienna, an important centre for music over the centuries, we’ve planned our programme to reflect both the music & the musicians that have had ties to the city.

Johannes Brahms was considered by some as a conservative composer, by others as a progressive, & by even others as a conservative progressive. Brahms will be featured in our programme with his glittering Second Sextet in G major. We’ll be performing this via Kurt Atterberg’s arrangement of the work for string orchestra, which Atterberg completed back in 1939. Although born & raised in Hamburg, Brahms settled in Vienna, grew a beard, & became an influential figure in the city’s musical life.

Although not a resident of Vienna, CPE Bach’s influence on the (First) Viennese School- a group of composers from the Classical Period which included Haydn, Mozart & Beethoven- was very strong, & his style of composition greatly admired & imitated by them. The Ady Ensemble’s Principal Cello, Ngaio Toombes, will be taking us through Bach’s Cello Concerto in A major. Speaking of beards, Ngaio will also be performing Conchita Wurst’s, “Rise like a Phoenix,” in a new version by the Ady Ensembe’s Le Grande Fromage. As the representative for Austria, Conchita was the 2014 winner of the Eurovision Song Contest, which as a result will see Vienna host the competition in 2015.

Continuing with our Dawn of the Symphony project, Ady will be performing another early symphony- this time by the Milan-based composer Antonio Brioschi. Brioschi was active between the years 1725 & 1750, & was an important figure in the development of the early symphony. Since the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, Milan had become part of the Habsburg Empire, which was governed by the Habsburg Royal Family in Vienna. The ties between Milan & Vienna would continue well into the Nineteenth Century, especially in the world of opera. The earliest symphonies, starting with Andrea Zani‘s symphonies in 1729 came from Milan. Brioschi’s Symphony in Eb was written before 1734, & so is important to the early development of the symphony, which would eventually see the form taken up in other parts of Europe. Brioschi’s compositions are full of innovation and charm, and we know that you will enjoy hearing this symphony.

Continuing with their Emerging Classics project, the Ady Ensemble will be premiering a new work by young Tasmanian composer, Angus Davison: Refractions. The ensemble is very proud of its commitment to support new composers & their works, & we’re very much looking forward to performing Angus’ work for the first time.

So get your diaries out & mark in the 9^th of May for our next concert. See you then!