Conducting his first concert as Chief Conductor of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and the first Maestro concert of 2023, Umberto Clerici’s repertoire choices were important to set the tone for the year.

He states: “My theme for 2023 is humanity, for after the past few challenging years, I felt we needed music that celebrates sociality, friendship and community.”

A huge theme, but Clerici cleverly balanced a melange of Australian and First Nations works in the first half of the concert – with their unity of connection to country – alongside one of the greatest classical symphonies in the western canon in the second half.

With its emphasis on the equality of man and its glorious Ode to Joy finale, Beethoven’s mighty Symphony No 9 is the perfect choice to convey the feelings of brotherhood and humanity. There was additional resonance in that this was also the farewell performance of the QSO’s long-serving violinist Warwick Adeney after 22 years as Concertmaster. With the merger of the Philharmonic and ABC orchestras in 2001, Adeney’s first performance in his newly appointed role was Symphony No 9, so it was a fitting choice for his farewell.