Dark myths and twisted fantasies

Opening with a world premiere from UK composer Anna Clyne performed by guest soloist Nico Fleury (Principal Horn, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra), Sirens drifts into the shadowed edges of imagination, where fantasy and nature take unexpected and alluring mythical forms.

Bringing together an eclectic super-group of some of Australia’s most brilliant instrumentalists — from bassoon to banjo — John Adams’s Gnarly Buttons turns music into commedia dell’arte theatre in a clarinet-led hoedown that sways between light humour and melodramatic heartbreak.

Embracing this strange musical palette, Australian composer Matthew Hindson reimagines Claude Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune (Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun) unfolding like a lucid dream that lives between the real and the imagined.

The composer behind the beloved Studio Ghibli films, Joe Hisaishi’s Two Dances for Large Ensemble brims with infectious rhythm and childlike innocence. In its Australian premiere, this uplifting piece carries listeners into a realm of wonder, beauty and boundless imagination