“I have been on a trip, and I have no memory of where I have been. But I think the trip was comfortable. I don’t think I went far, but it feels like I went a long way. I have a feeling it was in a desert.”

I never quite worked out whether Richard Tognetti was speaking metaphorically, misquoting A Midsummer Night’s Dream or had accidentally taken the brown acid, but in 2022 all roads lead to Walsh Bay for the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s Artistic Director.

Next year the ACO will move into its new home at Pier 2/3 in the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct, a long-awaited development and a serious upgrade on the orchestra’s former subterranean quarters deep beneath east Circular Quay. The new digs contain three spaces: The Neilson, an intimate performance space that fits about 300 people; The Belgiorno Room, an event space with views of Sydney Harbour; and a Rehearsal Room. There are also state-of-the-art recording and broadcast facilities – not to mention gorgeous views of the harbour – which together presents the organisation with freedom and...