CHINA (1-2 May). INDONESIA (3-12 July). SINGAPORE (18-23 August)
Performances. Workshops. Diplomacy.

Photo: National Centre for Performing Arts Media Conference: L to R: Tang Ning, Head of Program Operations, NCPA Orchestra; Chen Xi, violinist; Sophie Galaise, Managing Director, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra; Lu Siqing, Artistic Director, May Music Festival; Wang Luli, Deputy Director, NCPA Performance Department; Huang Mengla, violinist.

The first Australian orchestra to tour internationally (1965), the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra has been a leading cultural ambassador in supporting and promoting Australia’s arts and culture on the international stage including recent and upcoming activity with regional neighbours China, Indonesia, and Singapore.

China
The MSO is currently in Beijing, China to participate in the opening concert of the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) May Festival as an outcome of its collaboration agreement with the NCPA Orchestra.

The concert features six MSO musicians performing side-by-side with selected members of the NCPA Orchestra under the artistic leadership of world-renowned violinist Lu Siqing, the Artistic Director of the May Festival.

MSO musicians will also perform with composer and world-leading contemporary guzheng artist Mindy Meng Wang during the visit.

His Excellency, Mr Scott Dewar, Australian Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China said it’s wonderful to have musicians from the MSO back at the National Centre for Performing Arts in Beijing.

“These performances bring exceptional music to the stage here in China and demonstrate the power of music to enhance people to people links between Australia and China”, said Mr Dewar.

Lu Siqing has a long-standing relationship with the MSO, having been MSO Soloist in Residence and appointed Artistic Ambassador in 2019. His debut recording with the MSO and Benjamin Northey, Lu Siqing – The Beauty of the Violin: Mendelssohn | Bruch | Tan Dun, was released in February 2018 by ABC and launched at MSO’s Chinese New Year Concert that year. Lu Siqing joined the late Sir Andrew Davis and the MSO on a 2018 tour of China, performing to 10,000 people and rapturous standing ovations across the country. Lu will reunite with the MSO in Melbourne in September.

Singapore
Unveiling its 2024/2025 season on 29 April, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) announced the highly anticipated collaboration with MSO in SSO Gala: Carmina Burana, held at the Esplanade Concert Hall in Singapore on 22 and 23 August.

The Singapore and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras and choruses will join forces to present Carl Orff’s choral-orchestral spectacular Carmina Burana. Led by Chief Conductor Jaime Martín, the MSO and the MSO Chorus will be joined by 2023 Artist in Residence Siobhan Stagg (soprano), Andrew Goodwin (tenor), and Christopher Tonkin (baritone). The program also includes Fanfare for a City by Australian composer Maria Grenfell, Stravinsky’s The Firebird Suite (1919) and, in homage to Jaime’s Spanish roots, De Falla’s Three Dances from The Three-Cornered Hat.

Announced in a joint statement by the Prime Ministers of Australia and Singapore, the MSO agreement with the Singapore Symphony Group, first signed in 2018, has been extended to 2025. The SSO and the MSO will continue to promote people to people exchange, develop co-commissions, digital collaborations and touring opportunities.

Mr Kenneth Kwok, Chief Executive Officer of the Singapore Symphony Group, looks forward to welcoming the MSO to the city-state in August, sharing: “Following the cross-border digital productions with MSO in 2020 and 2021, we are thrilled to finally showcase the best of both orchestras live on stage together in this musical collaboration.”

Indonesia
In July, the MSO will travel to Jakarta to celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations between Australia and Indonesia with performances, workshops and training for young people. In Jakarta, the MSO Team will lead an Arts Management Workshop for key cultural institutions invited by the Australian Embassy. Members of the MSO will also join forces with Indonesian musicians for a performance of Australian and Indonesian repertoire.

In his first MSO Tour to Indonesia, Maestro Jaime Martín will travel to Yogyakarta to conduct a side-by-side performance at UNESCO’s Prambanan Temple, with musicians of the MSO, the Yogyakarta Royal Orchestra and Youth Music Camp students.

In addition to the Prambanan performance and the annual Youth Music Camp, a three-day Arts Management Workshop in Yogyakarta will be attended by a diverse range of representatives from the local performing arts and arts management sector from government, universities, cultural institutions, and communities. A goal of this year’s workshops is for participants to devise a creative initiative for the Yogyakarta Special Region, working within an indicative budget, with one project to be selected and delivered by the Government of Yogyakarta Special Region in 2025.

A four-year extension of the current agreement with the Government of Yogyakarta Special Region (2025 to 2028) and a new agreement with the Yogyakarta Royal Orchestra (2025 to 2028) will be signed before the Concert.

“Through the universal language of music, the MSO is building cultural understanding and connections across our region, fostering a positive image of Australia as a nation deeply rooted in artistic expression,” says MSO Managing Director, Sophie Galaise, speaking from Beijing.

MSO Chairman David Li added: “The MSO’s international strategy incorporates flexibility and diversity into its performances and collaborations. As Australia’s pre-eminent Orchestra, we actively shape narratives that reflect the modern and inclusive nature of our community, resonating with audiences globally.”