Festival Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre
August 10, 2018

When celebrating the guitar, the sounds of Spain are never far away. At the Adelaide Guitar Festival Symphony Gala, they were featured in two works by the undoubted giants of Spanish composition: Manuel de Falla and Joaquín Rodrigo.

Falla’s work was strongly influenced by the sounds of Spain’s national instrument, though the guitar itself was rarely featured in his music. It was entirely absent from his ballet The Three-Cornered Hat, which nevertheless abounds in the modal scales and flamenco rhythms of the Andalusian folk scene, where the guitar reigns supreme. The first suite from Falla’s ballet made for a light-hearted and rousing concert opener, expertly delivered by Benjamin Northey and the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra.

Northey embraced the role of MC with enthusiasm and charm, introducing each work with a few well-chosen words, and usually getting some chummy laughs from the audience. As stagehands rearranged the scene behind him, Northey spoke with Australian composer Catherine Milliken about the piece which was about to receive its premiere performance: DACCORD, for guitar, soprano and orchestra, the first product of Milliken’s three-year residency with the ASO, which began in January. Negotiation, Milliken explained, is a key element of...