The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Metropolis Festival was established in 1996 as a showcase for contemporary symphonic music from Australia and around the world. It’s taken “various formats and guises” over its almost 30-year history, says co-curator Liza Lim. This year, it features an all-Australian, two-concert program under the umbrella title Composing Australia.

“Metropolis’s role has typically been to show what’s current, with a focus on Australian music. What are the stories the composers are telling? It’s a tiny slice, but we’re also looking at who the composers are – where they’ve come from, where they are now and where they’re going. There’s a sense of journey, of the migratory world of story, in the festival,” says Lim.

Liza Lim. Photo © Astrid Ackermann

Lim was invited to co-curate Metropolis with MSO’s Principal Conductor Benjamin Northey as part of her 2025 Composer in Residence role. The festival takes place at the Melbourne Recital Centre...