Lime Cordiale with WASO
SPECIAL EVENT
Friday 14 & Saturday 15 November 2025, 7.30pm | Riverside Theatre, Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre
Vanessa Scammell, conductor | Alex Turley, arranger
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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About the Artists
Lime Cordiale
Lime Cordiale is an Australian band formed by brothers Oli and Louis Leimbach. Starting in 2009 as a duo in their teenage years, they soon grew Lime Cordiale into the five-piece formation which fans know the band for today. A 2012 debut EP gathered positive reviews and was quickly followed by Falling Up The Stairs (2014) and Road to Paradise (2017).
They gained the support of promoter and manager Michael Chugg and his partner at Chugg Music, Andrew Stone, which has helped propel the band forward into greater success.
They have been nominated for 12 ARIA Awards, winning two of them for Breakthrough Act (2020) and Best Live Act (2021). They have released three studio albums, two of which reached the #1 position on the ARIA album charts – 14 Steps to a Better You (2020) and Enough of the Sweet Talk (2024).
In addition to their extensive recorded catalogue, the band have toured relentlessly, delivering over 100 live performances domestically and internationally in 2019, and over 300 performances from late 2021 to 2024 across Australia and New Zealand, North America and Canada, England, Scotland, Ireland, and mainland Europe. In late 2024 Oliver and Louis released a catalogue-style book titled Hard to Define, which chronicles the extensive designs of Louis which have become the internationally recognised visual signature of the band.
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About the Artists
Vanessa Scammell
Conductor
Vanessa Scammell enjoys a diverse portfolio of work as a conductor of ballet, musical theatre, concert repertoire and opera.
Vanessa Scammell’s most recent engagements include 5 performances of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban with the Sydney Symphony, a double bill (The Dream/Marguerite and Armand) for The Australian Ballet, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 for the Melbourne Symphony and a concert version of Singin’ in the Rain.
In 2021/2022, she conducted the Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland and West Australian Symphony Orchestras in programmes such as Vera Blue, The Bamboos, Birds of Tokyo, An Evening with Anthony Warlow, Love Actually, To Barbra With Love and Opera in the Outback (for Opera Queensland). In 2024, she conducts all the major symphony orchestras in a variety of works.
Vanessa’s postgraduate study included a Masters in Conducting; she has been the recipient of the Brian Stacey Award and the Robert and Elizabeth Albert Conducting Fellowship for The Australian Ballet.
Conducting credits include; The Dream, Body Torque, Nutcracker, and An American in Paris for The Australian Ballet; The Merry Widow, My Fair Lady, South Pacific and La Traviata for Opera Australia; and musical theatre engagements including Funny Girl (Sydney Symphony Orchestra), Hello Dolly, The Light in the Piazza, The Producers, Damn Yankees, West Side Story, Chicago, The Phantom of the Opera, Titanic, CATS and Fiddler on the Roof.
Vanessa has regularly conducted the Sydney, Queensland, Melbourne, Christchurch, West Australian and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras. Her concert credits include: From Broadway to La Scala; Peter and Jack starring Barry Humphries, Idina Menzel LIVE – Barefoot at the Symphony; Eskimo Joe and Lea Salonga in Concert. She has also conducted staged concert versions of Sweeney Todd and Jekyll & Hyde (both starring Anthony Warlow).
She was Musical Director for The Divorce (an opera commissioned for television by Opera Australia, Princess Pictures and the ABC) and was the Helpmann Award’s Music Director for 13 years.
In 2018, Vanessa conducted The Merry Widow for Opera Australia, West Australian Opera and Opera Queensland. She also led a symphonic tour of Planet Earth for the BBC; in 2019, she conducted the national tour of Blue Planet 2 for the same organisation.
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Making the Music
About WASO
Engage | Excite | Experience | Educate
From the centre of Perth to the furthest corners of the state, we have provided the soundtrack to life in WA since 1928.
As the State Orchestra, Perth’s first and finest, WASO is the largest employer of performing artists in Western Australia and reaches two million people with musical experiences each year on stage, in our community, and online.
From concert stages to classrooms, hospitals to aged care, we bring joy, inspire learning, and nurture participation in our community, because everybody deserves the opportunity to experience live music. Every year, through community and leading industry partnerships, we engage a new generation of young and emerging artists to help secure a bright future for music in Australia.
We celebrate our rich classical music heritage with great artists from all over the world and commission and perform new repertoire to renew and expand it. The Orchestra collaborates widely with major arts companies and independent artists, performing opera to ballet, movies to musicals, jazz to rock.
Asher Fisch is Principal Conductor and Artistic Adviser of our Orchestra. We champion the diversity of music in all its forms, with a team of talented and passionate people who create unforgettable experiences for all West Australians to enjoy.
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Meet the Musician
Melanie Pearn
Violin
How and where did your musical journey begin?
My love for the violin began as a 3-year-old when a professional violinist performed at our local church in the Barossa Valley, SA. This prompted many conversations about my wish to play the violin, but I initially had to be satisfied with learning to read music on the recorder. I eventually won the battle and started violin lessons at the age of 5. Since there were limited options for playing in a string ensemble – the Barossa leaned towards brass bands – I joined the local high school orchestra when I was in Year 2.
How long have you been performing with WASO and what have been your highlights?
I joined WASO toward the end of 2008. There have been so many exciting programs and well-respected conductors and soloists, it is difficult to pick anything specific. On the home front, playing at half time at the 2021 AFL Grand Final (with Birds of Tokyo) was probably the one performance that made my family the most jealous.
Do you have any special preparation on the day of the concert?
I would love to say that I have a specific routine on concert days, however running a busy household of six this is not possible, but I always aim to be at a performance with plenty of time for a cup of tea. On Friday evenings during the winter months, I can be spotted arriving at work in my wet weather football club gear straight from my daughter’s match, making a quick change into my concert blacks.
What is your secret non-music related talent?
I have always liked baking and cooking and spend the majority of my spare time in the kitchen. Since having my four children, this has extended into being challenged (by them) to make and decorate fancy birthday cakes for each of them. Each year they get more ambitious in their choices and relish in making some of their cake designs seemingly impossible, however, after a lot of stress and internet searches, the final product always looks as realistic as I hoped.
If you had to choose another instrument to play in the orchestra, what would it be?
I’ve never really thought about what else I would play in the orchestra, too busy trying to get it right on the violin! A safe option would be the viola given it is so similar to the 2nd violin since we’re accustomed to playing the inside lines. I would be terrible at an instrument with lots of rests (brass or percussion) since I probably would lose count or get distracted waiting to play.
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WASO Recommends
If you enjoyed tonight's concert, we think you'll love:
Gladiator in Concert
Relive the legendary five-time Academy Award®-winning film on the big screen, while a live symphony orchestra performs Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard's iconic score with a vocal soloist and chorus.
Maximus, formerly one of the Roman army’s most trusted generals, is sold by slave traders to battle in the Colosseum. He is determined to take revenge on Commodus, win back his dignity, avenge his family, and gain freedom for his people.
Fri 5 & Sat 6 December 2025, 7.30pm
Riverside Theatre
Presented by West Australian Symphony Orchestra. Brought to you by CineConcerts.
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