22 SEPTEMBER
Iwaki Auditorium, Southbank
Journey to the inner world of the MSO
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ARTISTS
Yinuo Mu curator/harp
Anne-Marie Johnson violin
Kirstin Kenny violin
Christopher Moore viola
Rachael Tobin cello
Stephen Newton narrator
PROGRAM
BAX Quintet for Harp & Strings [15']
DEBUSSY Les cloches for harp and cello [20']
DEBUSSY En Bateau for harp and cello [2']
DVOŘÁK Terzetto in C for two violins and viola [4']
CAPLET Conte Fantastique for Harp & Strings [17']
This concert may be recorded for future broadcast on MSO.LIVE
Duration: 70 minutes with no interval . Timings listed are approximate.
In consideration of your fellow patrons, the MSO thanks you for silencing and dimming the light on your phone.
WELCOME
Welcome to today’s Chamber Series concert, “Music for Harp and Strings”. I am delighted to take you on a musical journey where the magical timbres of the harp intertwine with the rich, sonorous textures of the strings.
Our program features a beautiful quintet by Sir Arnold Bax, an English composer renowned for his emotionally expressive and evocative soundscapes. A true romanticist with a deep fascination for Celtic culture, Bax had a special affinity for the harp, which was featured in several of his chamber music works.
One of the most beloved composers of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Antonín Dvořák had prolific output across all major genres. The Terzetto in C for 2 violins and viola stands as one of the best-known works for this ensemble, though it is rarely performed today.
No exploration of harp music would be complete without the influence of French composers. I’ve included two short transcriptions of Claude Debussy’s works, each capturing the dreamy essence of the Impressionist master. A close friend and collaborator of Debussy, André Caplet orchestrated some of his most famous piano works. Today you will hear Caplet’s dramatic and atmospheric “Conte Fantastique”, inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s haunting tale The Mask of the Red Death, with narration by the versatile Stephen Newton from the MSO double bass section.
It has been a true pleasure exploring these brilliant works with my MSO colleagues. I hope you will enjoy our musical storytelling and thank you for your unwavering support of live music.
—Yinuo Mu, Principal Harp
YINUO MU CURATOR/HARP
Yinuo Mu has been a member of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra since 2013. A dynamic, intuitive performer, she has won numerous music awards and solo competitions including Grand Prize at the American String Teachers Association National Solo Competition and American Harp Society’s Ann Adams Award. Yinuo has appeared as a soloist on a number of occasions, most recently performing Tan Dun’s harp concerto Nu Shu with the MSO in 2015.
Prior to joining the MSO, Yinuo served as principal harpist of the Florida Grand Opera. She has also worked as guest harpist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Symphony Orchestra, and the NCPA orchestra in Beijing. In Australia, she has played as guest principal harpist with Sydney Symphony Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria and Tasmania Symphony Orchestra.
Yinuo holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Oberlin Conservatory of Music (USA), a Master of Music Degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music (USA), and a Graduate Performance Diploma from the Boston University School of Fine Arts.
ANNE-MARIE JOHNSON VIOLIN
Anne-Marie Johnson joined the First Violin section of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 2018. She won First Prize in the 2014 Dorcas McClean Scholarship Competition and the 2013 ANAM concerto competition. She has been selected to participate in several international competitions including the 2017 Bartok World Violin Competition and Festival, the 2015 Seoul International Violin Competition and the 2015 Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition. She has appeared as soloist with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, Corpus Medicorum and the ANAM orchestra.
Anne-Marie was a founding member of the Australian Octet and has performed chamber music in the Musica Viva, Vasse Felix, Port Fairy Spring Music and Melbourne Festivals. She completed a master’s degree in Geneva, Switzerland under Prof. Mihaela Martin and studied at the Australian National Academy of Music with William Hennessy. She also holds a Bachelor of Music from the Sydney Conservatorium.
KIRSTIN KENNY VIOLIN
Kirstin Kenny has been a member of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s First Violin section since 1993. Kirstin grew up in Adelaide and started playing the violin during Primary School. She later studied at the Elder Conservatorium of Music with Ronald Woodcock, gaining a Bachelor of Music in Performance, with Honours.
Whilst studying she performed regularly as a casual with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Adelaide Chamber Orchestra and West Australian Symphony Orchestra. Since moving to Melbourne she has also performed with the Melbourne Academy, Australia Pro Arte, Australian Chamber soloists and is currently a regular performer in MSO’s chamber series.
CHRISTOPHER MOORE VIOLA
Principal Viola of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Christopher Moore spent nine years travelling the globe as Principal Viola of Australian Chamber Orchestra. As romantic as that sounds, he missed his old chums Mahler, Schoenberg and Adès, and so returned to these and other old friends at the MSO.
Not surprisingly, Christopher’s wife and two daughters are pleased that Papa has hung up his rock star garb and come home to roost like their pet chickens. If you’re lucky, he may hand you a bona fide free-range egg; if you’re unlucky, you’ll be stuck hearing about how much he loves brewing beer and riding his bike into town from the suburbs, in an attempt to prevent his waistline expanding to the size of his chickens’ coop.
Christopher Moore plays a viola attributed to Giovanni Paolo Maggini dating from circa 1600–10 AD, loaned anonymously to the MSO. Position supported by David Horowicz.
RACHAEL TOBIN CELLO STEPHEN NEWTON NARRATOR
Rachael is the Associate Principal Cellist of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. She studied at the Royal Academy of Music, London, and completed a Masters’ degree at Mannes College of Music, New York. She has performed as a soloist at the Park Lane Group’s New Year Series (London) and concertos with The London Soloists’ Chamber Orchestra and the Mannes Symphony Orchestra.
Rachael has won the Macklin Bursary, the ABRSM international undergraduate scholarship, the Elder Scholarship, a Centenary Medal for service to The Arts, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Cello Fellowship. She was a member of the Estonian National Opera Orchestra and worked with Philharmonia (UK), the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra and the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.
She is also a member of the Melbourne Ensemble—a group made up of colleagues from the MSO who regularly perform chamber music together.
Position supported by Di Jameson OAM and Frank Mercurio
Stephen Newton was born in Sydney in 1982. He began learning the double bass in 1994 from David Potts. In 1999, he commenced studies with Maxime Bibeau and the following year enrolled at the University of New South Wales, where he was the inaugural recipient of the Sony Foundation Scholarship.
In 2004, Stephen completed his Bachelor of Music with honours and was awarded a scholarship to study at the Australian National Academy of Music in Melbourne. In 2006, he returned to Sydney to study with Alex Henery at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where he completed a Postgraduate Diploma in music performance. In August that year, he successfully auditioned for his position with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In 2010, he went to study in Austria with Tim Dunin at the University of Music, Graz. This trip was funded by the MSO Friends and a grant from the Ian Potter Foundation.
Stephen is a founding member of the Melbourne Ensemble.
A star-studded lineup of soloists joins the MSO and MSO Chorus for a rousing performance of Beethoven’s revolutionary Ninth Symphony, culminating in the epic finale, Ode to Joy.
28–30 NOVEMBER
Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall
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