The Beethoven 9th Symphony - a First for Townsville and for One Night Only
On August, 16th the Townsville community will be able to enjoy a full choral performance of the Beethoven 9th Symphony. The Barrier Reef Orchestra will join with the Spirit of the Voice Choirs to present the spectacular 9th Symphony by Beethoven in the full choral version, which includes the well-known “Ode to Joy”. The performance will be under the baton of the well-known British conductor, David Lawrence.
The performance will take place at the Townsville Civic Theatre at 7pm.
Tickets are: Adults $35.00; BRO members $25.00; School Students $20 and Concession and RACQ members $28.00.
The orchestra and the choirs are grateful for the sponsorship by both the RACQ and RADF (the Regional Arts Development Fund).
The Barrier Reef Orchestra is Townsville’s own community orchestra with volunteer organizers and musicians. It employs a part-time manager. It is one of only two community orchestras in northern Australia (the other being in Darwin). The orchestra usually stages three full concerts each year. For this concert the orchestra will number about 60.
The Spirit of the Voice is a community choir which has come together for choral festivals over a number of years under the auspices of the Kodaly Music Education Institute of Australia, Townsville chapter. These festivals are choral developmental workshops and celebrations which culminate in a performance. This year their performance allows them to sing one of the greatest choral works ever written.
Beethoven is widely considered to be the greatest composer ever and the 9th Symphony is his masterwork. It is especially notable for its inclusion of a choir. The Spirit of the Voice will feature approx 80 singers and a Children’s Choir of approx 35 voices from 9 years up.
Our conductor, David Lawrence is from London and will spend nearly half of his Australian visit in North Queensland. His is especially noted for his extensive work in choral music. He currently holds the Guinness world record for conducting the UK’s largest choir of 6,846 singers.
For the symphony RADF has funded four visiting soloists. These are:-
Soprano - Rebecca Cassidy (Townsville/Brisbane)
Rebecca is a Townsville born soprano currently studying a Bachelor of Advanced Performance and Honours at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music. She has been the recipient of many awards and bursaries and last year reached the finals of the Dame Joan Sutherland National Aria Competition. Rebecca has performed the roles of Rusalka, Nedda from “I Pagliacci”, Donna Anna from “Don Giovanni” and Merab from Handel’s “Saul” and the role of Naomie in Massenet’s “Cedrillon”. Rebecca is studying under Margaret Schindler and Lisa Gasteen OA and hopes to pursue her dream of travelling overseas to further her operatic career.
Contralto – Jade Moffatt (Brisbane)
Jade is currently in her final year of her Bachelor of Music degree in Advanced performance at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music. She studies under Janet Delpratt. She has been involved in productions of Pagliacci, Rusalka, Madame Butterfly, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Orfeo and Euridice, Orpheus in the Underworld. She has also been a mezzo soprano solist in several oratorios.
In 2009 Jade was selected as one of the youngest ever solists in the Australian Singing competition where she was awarded the David Harper Award, the Opera Australia Prize and a $15,000 scholarship to study in Israel this year. She has also travelled to Tokyo to perform in Verdi’s Nabucco and has further roles to perform this year.
Tenor – Kim Kirkman (Mackay)
Kim originally trained as a violist but focused on voice in Brisbane in the 1990s gaining a post-graduate Diploma in Voice from the Queensland Conservatorium. He has sung with the Victorian State Opera, Opera Queensland and for EssGee Entertainment.
Kim later became co-owner, music director and singer with The Ten Tenors for six years, taking them from a corporate show to international fame. Since leaving the Tenors Kim has worked in London as a professional chorister, soloist and conductor.
Having studied with Garrick Jones, Kim is a regular performer in Queensland having sung the tenor solo in Messiah in Cairns, Townsville, Mackay and Brisbane among many other roles especially in music theatre.
He currently teaches voice and music technology at CQ University, Mackay and lives on a hill with his partner and daughter.
Baritone – David Wakeham (Brisbane/UK)
David has performed throughout Europe to critical acclaim, most noteably at La Scala in Milan and at Berlin, Leipzig and Zurich. More recently he has been based in Australia performing with Opera Australia and also State Opera Companies, including Opera Queensland.
