The music we’ll explore conveys the darkest shades of grief and nostalgia, but moves towards hope, joy and renewal.
We’ll hear Richard Strauss’s Metamorphosen , written at the end of the Second World War for 23 solo strings. The piece feels like a single, flowing breath, at once tender, haunting, and heartbreakingly human. Its plangent emotion vibrates in the intimate proximity of the Meat Market.
We’ll also explore These Worlds in Us by American composer Missy Mazzoli, a modern reflection on love and memory written in response to conversations with her father, who was a soldier in the Vietnam war. Her sound world glows with slow-building intensity and quiet beauty.
Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony begins with solemn passages evoking the history-haunted ruins of Holyrood Chapel, then bursts with freshness and movement, inspired by the exhilaration of windswept landscapes.
Together, these works create a journey that feels personal, uplifting and deeply human.
Program
- Felix Mendelssohn Selections from Symphony No. 3, Op. 56, “Scottish”
- Missy Mazzoli These Worlds in Us for Chamber Orchestra
- Richard Strauss Metamorphosen for 23 solo strings
About the Artist
Eivind Aadland, Conductor
We are delighted to welcome Eivind Aadland to conduct this program. Born in Bergen, Norway, Aadland began his career as concertmaster of the Bergen Philharmonic before studying conducting with Jorna Panula and receiving early support from Maris Jansons. He later served as Chief Conductor and Artistic Leader of the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, where he led acclaimed Beethoven and Mahler cycles. Since 2020 he has been Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra. Aadland is a passionate advocate of Norwegian music, and his extensive discography highlights composers from his homeland while his career continues to span Europe, Australia and beyond.
Stéphanie Kabanyana Kanyandekwe
Stéphanie Kabanyana Kanyandekwe is a Rwandan-British composer, arts and culture strategist and broadcaster working between Narrm/Melbourne and Rwanda. Her research-based practice explores how culture is constructed and archived through experiential narratives, shaped by her tertiary training in composition and performance practice. Multiple forms of synaesthesia—sound/colour/texture, auditory-tactile, and spatial sequence—add a neurodiverse dimension to her polycultured identity. Stéphanie’s ongoing research on the global history of art music, which began in 1999, underpins her work in graphic scores, artworks, and a musical conversation series where audiences become active participants in a multisensory live space. This scholarly curiosity also drives Passenger , her weekly show on ABC Classic and the Listen app, inviting national and international listeners on an audio voyage matching storytelling with art music from around the world—particularly highlighting non-Western expressions of people and place.
