Elena Kats-Chernin explains how her first violin concerto, written for soloist Emily Sun, draws on ideas she had just explored in a score for a German silent film set in the circus world.

What do our orchestras and choirs have on offer in the year ahead?

The lineup salts Sydney with 748 performances, featuring homegrown and international talent, with a cascade of world premieres and the Australian premiere of the opera Sun & Sea, staged on an artificial beach.

With the MSO under Maestro Benjamin Northey, violinist Emily Sun gave a performance of Korngold's Violin Concerto that warrants recording, as does the orchestra's rendition of Hyde's Village Fair.

Highlights include Stephen Hough and the ASO performing all of Rachmaninov's works for piano and orchestra, world premieres by Elena Kats-Chernin, Anne Cawrse and Grayson Rotumah, and the arrival of new Concertmaster Kate Suthers.

Asher Fisch's tenth season features Wagner, Bruckner and Mahler, and much, much more.

Conducted by Benjamin Northey, this evocative program of film soundtracks by Westlake, Korngold and Strauss proves beyond a doubt the need for music in one's life.

Chief Conductor Jaime Martín discusses the season which includes 17 new works, including three by Composer in Residence Mary Finsterer, while soprano Siobhan Stagg is Artist in Residence.

Rewarding excellence across a range of musical genres and categories, the awards return with an in-person ceremony next month.

The final concert in this festival of women composers featured undiscovered gems deserving of a wider audience.

A thought-provoking concert showcasing composer Cathy Milliken’s major new work and violinist Emily Sun’s virtuosity.

History, continuity, thrilling music and the indomitable spirit of live music filled this concert as the orchestra moves to a new era.