Symphonie Fantastique
MASTERS SERIES
Fri 9 & Sat 10 August 2024, 7.30pm
Perth Concert Hall
West Australian Symphony Orchestra respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and Elders of Country throughout Western Australia, and the Whadjuk Noongar people on whose lands we work and share music.
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Symphonie Fantastique
Felix MENDELSSOHN The Hebrides (10 mins)
Holly HARRISON Superhighway - for Saxophone and Orchestra (World Premiere) (20 mins)
Heavy Haulage
Whales & Snails
Techno Wizard
Interval (25 mins)
Hector BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique (49 mins)
Daydreams (Largo) – Passions (Allegro agitato e appassionato assai)
A Ball (Valse: Allegro non troppo)
In the Fields (Adagio)
March to the Scaffold (Allegretto non troppo)
Sabbath Night Dream (Larghetto – Allegro)
Umberto Clerici conductor
Matthew Styles saxophone
Wesfarmers Arts Pre-concert Talk
Find out more about the music in the concert with this week’s speaker, Rosalind Appleby. The Pre-concert Talk will take place at 6.45pm at the Terrace Level Corner Stage.
Wesfarmers Arts Meet the Artist (Saturday Only)
Join composer Holly Harrison and soloist Matthew Styles for a postconcert interview immediately following the performance in the Terrace level foyer. Uncover more about the music and hear insights into the performance experience.
Listen to WASO
This performance is recorded for broadcast Sunday 18 August, 1pm (AWST) on ABC Classic. Date subject to change. For further details visit abc.net.au/classic
WASO On Stage
About the Artists
About the Artists
About the Music
About the Music
Interview with Holly Harrison
Capturing Spontaneity in Notated Form
![WASO Image](https://waso-program.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/genericImages/47446252_2196139530417690_4901127077140365312_o.jpg)
Holly Harrison has cemented herself as one of Australia’s most innovative contemporary composers, always exploring new ideas and never afraid to push boundaries when adding to the orchestral music canon.
Harrison's latest work Superhighway, a concerto for saxophone and orchestra, will have its World Premiere at Symphonie Fantastique this August featuring Perth saxophonist Matthew Styles.
Ahead of the premiere, we chatted to Holly about how she captures ideas and translates them into music, and what audiences can expect from her latest piece.
Your new work Superhighway explores several ideas. Tell us about your inspirations and how you’ve combined these ideas together in the concerto.
For me, I either have a title right at the start of the composing processing or not until the very end. A few days into working on the piece, I was driving on the M4 motorway in Sydney and the title Superhighway sprung to mind. It fitted well with the musical ideas I was already exploring, of letting the saxophone fly at full pelt from the get-go, but also led me to consider the other types of superhighways that exist and how this could provide inspiration for the following movements. I liked the idea of the musical line itself being its own highway.
Not long after, I was watching a whale documentary and there was much discussion about migration highways – it was fortuitous timing, and I started to wonder if these awe-inspiring journeys could form the basis of movement two. I knew this would also allow for some good contrast in a slower, more lyrical movement. And finally, movement 3 is inspired by the original information superhighway, the internet. I wanted to write a movement that was a bit darker, especially given the number of questions we now have surrounding data breaches, hacking, and the possibilities of artificial intelligence.
Your compositions blend genres in such a seamless and innovative way. What is your process when composing a new work?
The process is different for each piece, of course, but I tend to start primarily with rhythm. I feel this helps me get to the essence of the piece’s energy or momentum, starting with small bite-size rhythms and then expanding them out into an entire structure. I capture a lot of my own improvisations, either on drum kit, flute or trumpet, and sometimes singing or vocalising, and try and transcribe them into something workable and malleable. In the last eighteen months I’ve been experimenting with a LaunchPad device too, which I use in the software Ableton Live as a type of MIDI controller. This kind of lets me play the saxophone (or any other instrument) with my hands, like a drum kit, which I find enormously useful in imagining new combinations of sounds.
How has your experience as a percussionist impacted your work as a composer?
A large part of my musical background is as a drummer. My favourite aspect of drumming is improvising and jamming with other instrumentalists. I love the feeling of being on the edge of the music and not quite knowing what will happen next, but knowing that you can adapt to whatever is thrown your way. I feel drummers, especially in improvising bands, are in a unique position to have a birds-eye view of the music and instinctively know how to move it somewhere else. I see a great parallel here with composing. Part of what I’m trying to capture when I’m writing is this sense of spontaneity that I so enjoy from playing. It may sound strange, but I’d describe it as a feeling of always trying to surprise yourself. I’m interested in capturing spontaneity in notated form.
What’s a piece of advice you’ve received in your career that you think aspiring composers should know?
Be crazy bold! I remember reading an article from the Australian Music Centre many years ago that was a collection of advice for young composers from well-known Australian composers. That particular nugget was from Matthew Hindson. It really struck a chord with me, and I interpret it as always being bold enough to have something to say and finding your voice.
Secondly, write as much music as you can stomach!
Matthew Styles is favourite in the local jazz scene and has performed all over the world. What are you most looking forward to about his performance of Superhighway?
How could I possibly pick one thing! I’m so excited to hear it live and in the flesh, and I know that Matt will give a stellar performance. I’m really looking forward to collaborating in-person and tweaking things here and there. It’s a dream team with Umberto Clerici at the helm too.
What part of the concerto are you most excited for the audience to hear?
Matt Styles absolutely nailing the saxophone part!
About the Music
Meet the Musician
![WASO Image](https://waso-program.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/genericImages/Percussion_Brian.jpg)
Brian Maloney - Principal Percussion
Tell us about your journey to WASO and your first performance with the Orchestra.
While I was doing my postgrad at the New England Conservatory in Boston, I saw an advertisement for the Principal Percussion position with WASO. I figured I’d try my luck - not knowing anything about WASO or even where Perth was on the map! Needless to say, I was amazed when I arrived a few months later. I found the Orchestra incredibly welcoming and I immediately realised the high calibre of the musical talent on stage amongst my colleagues.
My first performance with WASO was Winton Marsalis’s Swing Symphony accompanied by him and the musicians of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra at the Perth Concert Hall. In a way it was the perfect transition to my time here in Perth because I got to work alongside both American and Australian colleagues in the same performance.
What are your favourite percussion instruments to play?
As cliché as it sounds, I really enjoy the variety that comes with being a percussionist, especially as a Principal whose duty it is to play as many of the various percussion instruments as required. One week I might be playing vibraphone in a contemporary work, the next week it could be cymbals in a Mahler Symphony, and after that it might be snare drum in a Star Wars film. I enjoy them all equally, although I do have to say cymbals hold a special place in my musical heart. The adrenaline rush that you get from playing a climactic cymbal crash at a pivotal moment in a musical work is almost indescribable.
You’re a prominent figure in both secondary and tertiary music education. What’s the best piece of advice you received as a student?
"Hard work will always win out over talent". It’s very easy to get discouraged when you’re young and inexperienced, especially when you’re surrounded by players who are seemingly better than you and are full of “natural talent”. But the irony is, that’s precisely how you get better. The only way to improve is to gain inspiration and knowledge from those more experienced than you and to work as hard - if not harder - than they do. With time and a strong sense of discipline anything is possible, particularly when it comes to music.
You’ve worked extensively in the USA, especially in Boston. How does the classical music scene in Perth differ to others you’ve experienced?
Because Perth is so geographically isolated, it actually works to our benefit here at WASO. I can think of very few other orchestras globally that have the luxury of being able to play the sheer variety of musical styles and genres that we play. Most orchestras tend to get pigeonholed into specific repertoire, whether it be ballet, opera, film music, symphonic music, pops gigs, etc. We’re tasked with playing all of it, all the time. It provides a real relief musically from week to week and also challenges us in a way that most other orchestras don’t experience.
You’re an avid outdoor enthusiast. What are your must-visit Perth spots to explore?
I’ve hiked all over WA, ranging from moderate walks to quite intense multi-day treks, but I’m always astounded at the quality of trails that are right in our own backyard. My go-to trails locally are Serpentine Falls and Lesmurdie Falls. Both are easy day trips out of Perth and offer a beautiful array of wildlife, especially during springtime. That being said, if its stunning scenery you’re after, the Bald Head Trail and Bluff Knoll, both just outside of Albany, offer world-class hikes that continue to leave me breathless every time I visit.
About WASO
Your Concert Experience
WASO in the Community
Philanthropy
Our Supporters
2024 Trusts and Foundations
Lead Partner of Crescendo
Crescendo / Hospital Orchestra Problem
First Nations Creative Collaborations / Composition Project
Associate Conductor Program
About the Speaker
WASO Recommends
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If you enjoyed tonight's concert, we think you'll love:
Mahler 8
A work of imaginative genius, Mahler’s monumental Symphony is a joyous celebration of the creative spirit and an uplifting, exultant testament to eternal love and our shared humanity.
Performed for the first time in Western Australia, this astonishing sonic spectacle is a once-in-a-generation concert experience.
Calling for huge orchestral forces, massed choirs, and a host of exceptional soloists, the sheer magnitude of this unparalleled music will leave an indelible mark on your soul.
Don’t miss these awe-inspiring performances of a legendary masterpiece.
Asher Fisch appears courtesy of Wesfarmers Arts.
This concert is presented by West Australian Symphony Orchestra in association with Australian National Academy of Music, Aquinas College Schola Cantorum, WA Opera Chorus, UWA Symphonic Chorus and Voyces.
Mahler 8 is supported by Alan Whitham.
Fri 13 & Sat 14 September 2024, 7.30pm
Perth Concert Hall
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