Celebrating the AWO’s 15th anniversary, Chief Conductor Alexander Briger conducts Stravinsky’s Petrushka and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10, written in 1953 in the wake of Stalin’s death and widely regarded as one of the composer’s most powerful symphonic statements. The program also includes the world premiere of Jonathan Mills’ Songs for the Stranger, starring tenor Michael Petruccelli.

Limelight Editor’s Choice

Following the resounding success of our 2025 season of Mahler’s 4th and 5th Symphonies, AWO’s co-founder, Alexander Briger, returns with Australia’s finest for an unforgettable birthday celebration and 2026 program.

The AWO celebrates its 15th Anniversary with two 20th-century masterpieces and the world premiere of Songs for the Stranger — a song cycle commission by the Australian World Orchestra, inspired by the Opera Eucalyptus composed by Jonathan Mills, featuring award winning Australian tenor Michael Petruccelli.

Stravinsky’s Petrushka bursts with colour and vitality, its tragic puppet hero glowing through dazzling orchestration. Mills’s Songs for the Stranger fuses modern textures with emotional immediacy, evoking the Australian soundscape. Finally, Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony — written in Stalin’s shadow — surges from darkness to blazing triumph.