In 2025 I’ll be continuing my now 10-year association with The Song Company appearing in two major tours across the year. Journeying to Finisterre is programmed and directed by Amy Moore, and will feature many early Spanish works alongside contemporary Australian works by Anne Cawrse, Joe Twist, and more.

From the Song Company website

7-16 March
Newcastle, Wollongong, Canberra, Sydney, Blackheath*

*Other dates to be added…

Journeying to Finisterre is an evocative exploration of pilgrimage, not just across landscapes but deep within the self. Curated by Co-Artistic Director and Soprano Amy Moore, this program delves into the 12th Century Codex Calixtinus and 14th Century Libre Vermell de Montserrat—devotional manuscripts that guided pilgrims both physically and spiritually.

We trace the Camino paths to Santiago de Compostela with Spanish and Portuguese Renaissance polyphony, including Tomás Luis de Victoria’s Versa est in Luctum which echoes through time in Joseph Twist’s setting of the same text. Paul Stanhope’s Explorer’s Journal draws us deep into the natural world, and Anne Cawrse’s Pilgrim Psalms offer a contemporary reflection on spiritual journeys, the quest for inner connection and the timeless search for meaning.

At the time of writing (17 October, 2023), Christmas has come 416 Days early for this Bass-Baritone, and I am honoured and humbled to announce that I will be part of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra's 2024 Season singing Handel's 'Messiah' alongside some extraordinary colleagues.

It's shaping up to be a very big and busy year! Full details can be found here.

From the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra website

Embrace the cherished Christmas tradition of Handel’s Messiah. From deeply tender arias to show-stopping choruses, this music enchants audiences worldwide. The orchestra, chorus and vocal soloists intertwine, breathing life into a narrative of prophecy, suffering, and redemption. Messiah carries a glorious message of belief, one which continues to resonate through time.

Featuring

• Samantha Clarke, Soprano

• Fiona Campbell, Mezzo

• Andrew Goodwin, Tenor

• Andrew O’Connor, Bass

• Adelaide Chamber Singers, Choir

• Ivars Taurins, Conductor

It is a great delight to be programming Hark! 2024 which rounds out the 40th Anniversary Year of The Song Company. Earlier this year I became an uncle for the first time, and I found myself reflecting on the 'sacred' and gentle way in which humans hold themselves around new life – and indeed around the end of life also. We speak gently, think deeply, and often find moments of great togetherness.

The Christmas Season, regardless of your particular religious stripe, is a time of year that invites reflections on family, friendship, and (for some) faith – and at its centre draws focus to the story of a child being born in a stable to Jewish parents in what was then Roman-controlled Palestine. Hark 2024! will reflect and celebrate the Christmas story and the little everyday miracle of new life with music and poetry old and new; both sacred and secular.

The Song Company tours Newcastle, Sydney, Wollongong, and the Blue Mountains with this program from 28 November - 1 December.

All details can be found here.

I am over the moon to announce that I will be debuting with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra for not one but two projects in their 2024 Season.

In August I will give the WORLD PREMIERE of Katy Abbott's new commission for the MSO 'Hidden Thoughts: Stories of Awe' – a 40-minute work for Orchestra, Soprano, Baritone and Narrator helmed by Maestro Benjamin Northey. You too can contribute to the work with your stories of awe via the MSO website below. To be part of such an important premiere in Hamer Hall really is a huge honour.

From the MSO Website

Friday 09 August 2024 - 7:30pm at Hamer Hall

Saturday 10 August 2024 - 7:30pm at Hamer Hall

Featuring

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
Benjamin Northey conductor
Sunny Kim vocalist
Andrew O'Connor bass-baritone
Pamela Rabe narrator

Program

Katy Abbott* Hidden Thoughts III: Stories of Awe**
Max Richter The Four Seasons Recomposed

*MSO Composer in Residence
**World premiere of an MSO Commission

About this performance

This dynamic program opens with the third piece in Katy Abbott's award-winning Hidden Thoughts series. Based on the stories of anonymous participants, this piece sets individual stories and the collective voice to music, capturing and delivering the very human experience of awe. The stories tell of unexpected encounters, of finding the extraordinary in the ordinary, of being moved by music, art, nature, kindness and courage. Collective effervescence, spiritual awakenings, the delicacy and complexity of nature and the infinitesimal self within it.

If you’d like to contribute a story to Hidden Thoughts III, please complete a short anonymous survey at: bit.ly/stories-of-awe

Ground-breaking composer Max Richter’s minimalist-inspired music is equally at home in the concert hall as it is on screen, having featured in Arrival, and episodes of Black Mirrorand The Last of Us, among many others. His innovative fresh take on Vivaldi’s Four Seasonstopped the classical charts in 22 countries in 2012, and continues to awe devotees of the original and new fans alike.

Duration: approx. 2 hours including interval

From the Song Company Website:

Celebrating the wealth of Australian music commissioned and performed by The Song Company over its illustrious 40-year history.

14-30 June
Newcastle, Wollongong, Canberra (more to come…)

Drawing inspiration from the iconic masterpiece by Peter Sculthorpe, The Stars Turn captures the essence of The Song Company's vibrant history, showcasing our rich tapestry of collaborations with some of the brightest stars of Australian music. From the mesmerising Elena Kats-Chernin to the intricate textures of Nigel Butterly and Katy Abbott, this program is a snapshot of The Song Company's musical milestones.

The Stars Turn also casts its gaze toward the future, with the next generation of composers whose talents light up the musical sky. Experience the innovative soundscapes of Alice Chance, Sonya Holowell and Chris Williams, and the debut of a mesmerising new work by Angus Davison.

Don't miss this extraordinary celebration of Australian musical creativity, past, present and future. Secure your tickets now and be part of this luminous constellation of sound.

I will be (re)joining The Song Company for three major projects in its 40th Anniversary Season in 2024 - and the first of these is Superbloom with guest director Jane Sheldon.

Touring from 1-10 March in Newcastle, Wollongong, Canberra, Sydney, and to the Orange Chamber Music Festival.

From The Song Company Website:

"Superbloom" is the phenomenon in which the desert landscape receives an unusual season of rain such that the next spring brings forth carpets of rare displays of flowers. Immerse yourself in this magical and musical "Superbloom" - a program of rare works for unaccompanied voices that draws parallels between the stark beauty of the arid desert and the lush abundance brought by the wet season.

Acclaimed Australian-American soprano and composer Jane Sheldon makes her Guest Directorial debut with The Song Company. Her artistry has created a musical journey that connects historical compositional giants such as Hildegard von Bingen and Carlo Gesualdo with contemporary composers Rebecca Saunders, Chaya Czernowin and James Weeks. Plus, be among the first to experience a brand-new work composed by the talented Jane Sheldon herself.

The Song Company has been captivating audiences with adventurous programming for 40 years. Join Australia's world-class vocal ensemble for this unforgettable experience that celebrates both the resilience of the desert and the creativity of the human spirit.

Superbloom Tour Dates & Ticket Links

Newcastle
Fri 1 March, 6pm
Newcastle Conservatorium of Music, Newcastle

Wollongong
Sat 2 March, 3pm
St Francis Xavier Cathedral, Wollongong

Canberra
Sun 3 March, 3pm
Wesley Music Centre, Ainslie

Sydney
Thu 7 March, 7pm
Utzon Room, Sydney Opera House 
 
Orange
Sat 9 March, 11am
Orange Chamber Music Festival 
Holy Trinity Church, Orange

Chatswood
Sun 10 March, 3pm
Our Lady of Dolours Catholic Church, Chatswood

The Song Company Christmas

Start the festive season with well-loved carols and heart-melting harmonies. 
A Christmas concert for the whole family to enjoy together in Sydney and Wollongong.

The Song Company Christmas Carol program Hark! will be presented three times in Sydney and for the first in Wollongong.

TICKETS AND DETAILS

See The Song Company Christmas Carols:

Wed 29 Nov, 6:00PM Our Lady of Dolours, Chatswood

Thu 30 Nov, 6:00PM St Francis of Assisi, Paddington

Fri 1 Dec, 6:00PM The Garrison Church, Millers Point

Sat 2 Dec, 2:00PM St Francis Xavier Cathedral, Wollongong

Hark! will also be broadcast live via the Australian Digital Concert Hall on Friday, 1 December at 6pm and will be available on demand after that initial livestream.

In November I will join Bach Akademie Australia for their final program in 2023 (the only one I was available for!) which includes performances in Glenbrook, Chatswood, and the ‘flagship’ performance at City Recital Hall, Angel Place. Featuring some of the music I recently sang in the United States with the American Bach Soloists, it will be a fitting end to a big year of Bach for me personally.

Saturday 18 November, 7:30pm, Glenbrook

Sunday 19 November, 2:30pm, Chatswood

Thursday 23 November, 7:00pm, City Recital Hall

From the Bach Akademie Australia Website - where further details can be found

2023 brings us an opportunity to celebrate one of the greatest events in musical history, J.S. Bach’s appointment as Thomaskantor in Leipzig. As a result, a new era in music history began. For the next 27 years, the requirements of his appointment combined with his deep faith and desire to encourage faith in all others, inspired Bach to produce music of such staggering beauty, complexity and profundity that changed the course of music forever. These works, particularly the cantatas, are still performed and idolised around the world today, demonstrated by the more than 300 Bach choirs and societies that exist worldwide. To celebrate this momentous event, we have chosen 3 of his most celebrated Leipzig cantatas and his jubilant motet ‘Singet dem Herrn’. How can the works of Bach ever be adequately summed up? We will leave it to our international patron Sir John Eliot Gardiner ’But it is Bach, making music in the Castle of Heaven, who gives us the voice of God – in human form. He is the one who blazes a trail, showing us how to overcome our imperfections through the perfections of his music: to make divine things human and human things divine.’

PROGRAM

J.S. Bach Chorale Prelude ‘In Dulci
Jublio’ BWV 729

J.S. Bach Cantata ‘Unser mund sei voll
Lachens’ BWV 110

J.S. Bach Motet ‘Singet dem Herrn’
BWV 225
— Interval —
J.S. Bach Cantata ‘Jesu, der du meine
Seele’ BWV 78

J.S. Bach Cantata ‘Wachet auf’
BWV 140

The Australian Vocal Ensemble (AVE) concludes its Regional NSW tour - facilitated in part by Music Viva and the former RISE Fund - with performances in Bathurst, Orange, Kangaroo Valley, and Goulburn. Orange also includes an education and choral workshop which is open to singers in the community - so I advise contacting the Orange Regional Conservatorium for more specific on-the-ground details in preparation for that.

Importantly, our performance in Kangaroo Valley is facilitated by Arts in The Valley - and long-time supporters of the arts, Nick and Caroline Minogue. We are very grateful, as I am in particular, to be heading to the exceptional beauty of The Valley for this tour performance.

All tour details can be found at the Australian Vocal Ensemble (AVE) website.

Welcome to Baroquefest! Australia's boutique baroque music festival in the heart of central western New South Wales. 

We are proud to present Baroquefest 2023, celebrating the music of JS Bach with Bach Akademie Australia. Violinist and Director Madeleine Easton will lead you on a journey through the music of JS Bach from his first composition to his last; your Baroquefest will be rich in musical colour as you enjoy historic Canowindra, fine wine and cuisine!

“With thoughtful, well-researched performances and an elegantly constructed program, Easton and Bach Akademie Australia offered an opportunity to really dig down deep into Bach’s words and music – a profound and rewarding experience.” — Limelight Magazine

Bach Akademie Australia is dedicated to performing the works of J.S. Bach. It was established in late 2016 by Australian violinist Madeleine Easton who has recently returned after 19 years of living and working in Europe. Its aim is to enrich and enhance the musical life of Australia. The ensemble's focus on mastery of performance, authenticity and originality of interpretation brings the music of J.S. Bach to life. Bach Akademie Australia is also focused on forging close links with academic institutions around the country in order to establish educational and learning opportunities for young musicians.

I am delighted to be making the trip out to Baradine and Dubbo again this year (having missed the August camps being in the United States) for the always engaging, connecting, and grounding Moorambilla Voices Residency Camps and Gala Concerts.

In addition to the usual concerts there are also many open-air activities and cultural events as part of a mini festival just across the road from the theatre.

Taken from the Moorambilla Voices Website

Experience the fantastic choirs of Moorambilla Voices as they celebrate regional Australia and the youth that inhabits it in the iconic Moorambilla Gala Concert Series! Each year Dubbo Regional Theatre & Convention Centre will host four concerts. Each 80-minute concert will leave you mesmerised and uplifted. Feel firsthand the power of the Japanese Taiko Drums, listen to the beauty of the angelic voices of our regional choirs and MAXed OUT company as they join with senior choreographers, photographers, Taiko percussionists, a Chamber Orchestra and Visual Artists. Led by Founder and Artistic Director Michelle Leonard OAM, join them as they celebrate the inspiring beauty and capacity of the region.

(SOLD OUT) MOORAMBILLA VOICES RIVERSONG 2023: MARKS ON COUNTRY

DUBBO: 23 & 24 September 2023 at the Dubbo Regional Theatre & Convention Centre

Experience the Moorambilla Magic in this joyful celebration of Country, connection, contemporary art and choral music, choreography and installation visual art.
Celebrate the energy, tenacity and enormous capacity of our region’s children. 
Feel the power and energy of our magnificent rivers interpreted through Japanese Taiko Drums, dance, and the voices of our four regional youth choirs, all woven together with a word-class Chamber Orchestra.

The program was informed by the annual 2023 Artistic and Cultural Immersion Program, inspired by the stories, relationships and Country of the Gamilaroi,Yuwaalaraay and Yuwalayaay language groups of the Gomeroi Nation starting from the head of the Castlereagh River at the magnificent Warrumbungles connecting through to the wonders of the Narran Lakes.
  
Performed by four youth ensembles that represent 21 LGAs of North West NSW.

Following the concerts join us across the road at Victoria Park for spectacular FREE light and fire sculptures. 

MOORAMBILLA VOICES RIVERSONG 2023: FIRE! SAND! LIGHT!

In addition to our two sold-out performances of ‘Marks on Country’ at the Dubbo Regional Theatre, we are proud to share our FREE community ‘FIRE! SAND! LIGHT!’ festival which will take place over the weekend – Friday 22-24 September in Victoria Park – opposite the theatre. 

Facilitated via RISE and Musica Viva Australia - AVE will be touring Regional NSW in March 2023. Performances will feature our Tumbling Like Stars program, and in addition a range of workshop and educational activities are available by arrangement.

More details to come as Musica Viva Australia arranges final details.

I am thrilled to be joining Voces8 and The VOCES8 Foundation Choir for this LIVE From London project next week – featuring the music of Christopher Tin, Caroline Shaw, Eric Whitacre, and a new adaptation of 'The Lark Ascending' to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of Ralph Vaughan Williams. It will be available for broadcast from 15 October.

It was a moment of extraordinary serendipity that the project fitted so neatly alongside personal travel plans in Europe (UK, Ireland, Spain, Andorra) to coincide with my Brother's wedding. This will also mark the first time the O'Connor family will be under the same roof in almost three years!

I'm hugely looking forward to working with both new and familiar faces in London – and for a few weeks break after an immensely busy year – with more to come upon my return!

#freelancelife

Presented in association with Musica Viva Australia (NSW Touring) Vocal Detour are looking forward to taking For The Beauty of The Earth to Bellingen and Coffs Harbour as part of the Muse Festival.

https://www.bellingenmuse.com.au/event/vocal-detour/

CONCERT DETAILS HERE

In a time where our travel options are somewhat restricted, many of us have turned to reconnecting with nature and a more ‘close to home’ getaway. In this performance, Vocal Detour will take you on a journey to different countries and different times, in a celebration of plants and animals, the various seasons, and the natural beauty that surrounds us.

From 16th Century Paris to spring in Italy, European winters to Australian summers, music by Renaissance masters Lassus and Schütz are complimented by Australian works from Kevin Barker, Martin Wesley – Smith, Gordon Hamilton and Brooke Shelley.

A program as varied in style as in genre, the sumptuous harmonies and complexity of 5 part madrigals are juxtaposed with smooth jazz harmonies and will leave you uplifted and connected with nature.

Biography
Anna Fraser, Soprano, Hannah Fraser, Mezzo-soprano, Andrei Laptev, Tenor, Mark Donnelly, Baritone, Andrew O’Connor, Bass-baritone

Vocal Detour is a newly formed Australian vocal ensemble dedicated to engaging and educating its audience in the world of a cappella music. Its members are amongst the most accomplished ensemble singers in Australia and are well versed in a wide variety of styles and genres. In addition to concert, festival, and recording projects, Vocal Detour is also highly committed to nurturing and enriching the choral landscape at both a school and community level via its highly adaptable Education Program.

MOORAMBILLA RIVERSONG22:

Moorambilla Voices 17th Annual Gala Concert 6:30 pm Friday 16th and Saturday 17th of September under the stars at the magnificent Lazy River Estate, Dubbo. 

Experience firsthand the joy, power and connection to Country made famous in the Netflix documentary WIDE OPEN SKY by the children’s choir Moorambilla Voices.

Hear the children collectively lift your heart and spirit in song as they sing about our shared connection to Country and our magnificent river systems. Feel first-hand the power of the Japanese Taiko Drums as they thunder into the night sky, witness spectacular fire sculptures, glorious large lantern sculptures and children dancing with joy on a truly magnificent stage with stunning screens supported by a world-class chamber orchestra and guest artists.

This year’s program will feature music that draws its inspiration from the community of Collarenebri and their unique connection to the river. Feel at peace and calm as we connect you to this glorious place in an immersive concert designed to uplift and inspire as the Wambuul River meanders slowly by.

Featuring Moorambillas’ Four fabulous Regional Choirs with over 300 singers on stage showcasing the energy and capacity of this third of NSW. Prepare yourself to be inspired by the passion, talent and creativity our region's children and youth have to offer.

RIVERSONG 2022 will feature regional Artists Frank Wright (Walgett), Ceramicist Melissa Kelly (Gilgandra), and author Cathie Colless (Come-by-Chance), as well as music created by extraordinary composers Elena Kats-Chernin, Alice Chance, Josie Gibson, Andrew Howes and Kevin Barker, supported by Wiradjuri choreographers Amy Flannery and Ella Havelka, with Jye Uren, surrounded by Photographic works from Noni Carroll and extraordinary animation all under the artistic direction of Michelle Leonard OAM with a world-class chamber orchestra! This concert of new Australian work shaped by the wonderful members of the Collerenibri community is not to be missed. Feel the power of riversong as we sing under the stars with fire sculptures, lanterns and laughter.

This is MOORAMBILLA RIVERSONG@LAZY RIVER 2022 - bring the family!

Visit our WEBSITE 

One of my favourite educational activities of my artistic year is the camps and gala performances of the Moorambilla Voices ensembles in Regional NSW. The multi-arts program is an extraordinary opportunity for children that otherwise have relatively limited access to arts education and performance due to geography and school funding. I’m delighted to be working on the first residency camp in August and again for performances in September.

You can learn more about the program here.

VESPERS BY MONTEVERDI REGIONAL TOUR 

Taken from the Pinchgut Opera website

We are thrilled to perform our acclaimed concert, Monteverdi’s Vespers, when we embark upon our first regional tour in 2022, thanks to support from Create NSW.

Monteverdi’s Vespers blends the grand traditions of Venetian sacred music with the new world of the Baroque: opulent choruses, dramatic solo arias and duets, and some of the most ambitious instrumental music the world had ever heard.

First performed in Sydney and Melbourne in 2021, we are proud to take this extraordinary work to Armidale and Newcastle.

ARMIDALE

FRI 29 JULY 7:00PM | SAT 30 JULY 2:30PM 
ARMIDALE TEACHERS' COLLEGE

The first stop on Pinchgut Opera's much-anticipated regional tour of the spectacular masterpiece of sonic grandeur, Monteverdi's Vespers. 

Pinchgut Opera presents Monteverdi's Vespers in partnership with Create NSW and the New England Conservatorium of Music. 

EVENT PAGE

BOOK TICKETS

NEWCASTLE

MON 1 AUG, 7PM
CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL

Pinchgut Opera is pleased to be making its debut at the Newcastle Music Festival in 2022 with Monteverdi's Vespers. 

Tickets to our performance at Christ Church Cathedral will go on sale shortly. 

Pinchgut Opera presents the program in partnership with Create NSW and Newcastle Music Festival. 

EVENT PAGE

BOOK TICKETS

I am excited to return to the rugged beauty of Tasmania for a project at the Festival of Voices (Hobart) which features the music of Franco-Flemish Composer Pierre de Manchicourt. A small group of vocalists will perform these works (which were recorded in January 2021) for what in many cases will be the first time they have been heard live since the composer wrote them in the 16th century.

New works by Australians Brooke Shelley and David Drury will also be given their Tasmanian Premiere.

6 & 8 July at 7:30pm and 6:00pm

St David’s Cathedral, Hobart

Click here for tickets and information

PINCHGUT OPERA

CITY RECITAL HALL, SYDNEY

SAT 2 APR 2PM | SUN 3 APR 5PM

MELBOURNE RECITAL CENTRE

TUE 5 APR 7PM

THE SPIRITUAL FOREST BY CLAUDIO MONTEVERDI

A concert featuring some of the most sublime sacred music ever written.

The Spiritual Forest is drawn from Monteverdi’s Selva morale e spirituale (1641), his great anthology of liturgical works composed during his career in Venice. It was to be the last collection of Monteverdi’s music published in his lifetime, and represents the final flowering of his great genius.

These uniquely inspired works confirmed Monteverdi as the leading composer of his generation, exemplifying his consummate compositional prowess and his ability to put into music the deepest of human emotions.

Australia’s premier Baroque chorus of professional singers, Cantillation, will be joined by a band of 14 specialist orchestral players to deliver a transcendent sonic experience.

For more details please visit the Pinchgut Opera website.

Currently slated for performances in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Melbourne and Canberra (with additional dates for Sydney delayed due to Covid-19) the Australian Vocal Ensemble will tour their Tumbling Like Stars program, featuring the music of many Australian composers alongside beautiful works from the Renaissance and Baroque eras.

For more details and future dates please visit the Australian Vocal Ensemble website.

AUSTRALIAN BRANDENBURG ORCHESTRA & CHOIR

NOEL NOEL

11 - 18 DECEMBER

City Recital Hall, Sydney

Melbourne Recital Centre, Melbourne

https://www.brandenburg.com.au/concerts/2021/noël-noël/