AUTHOR: Suzanne Yanko

The Romance of Selby

A Selby & Friends concert is always as welcome an event in Melbourne as it is in their  home – for most, that’s Sydney, with some “friends” coming from much further afield.  I was recently able to chat with Kathryn Selby about  her forthcoming Melbourne tour, A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Romantic – 19:30, Jun.…Read More

Alexander Briger: Australian World Orchestra

The Australian World Orchestra is soon to make its annual visit to Melbourne and Sydney, with a punishing schedule, if you count international travel as a necessary part of the equation for many players. Alexander Briger AO, Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the AWO, explained the workings of this unique orchestra to Classic Melbourne…Read More

Opera Australia: La Traviata

From curtain up to Act Three’s closing death scene Opera Australia’s production of La Traviata had what it took to satisfy aficionados of this most loved of Verdi’s operas and to win over new ones – or so it seemed from where we were sitting. Although I am not generally in favour of reviewers using…Read More

Vien, women and song

We’ve done the research, and can confidently report that the place for celebrating the New Year for 2018 is … Sydney! We’re not just talking about the world-famous fireworks in their matchless harbour setting, we’re talking about a night for opera-lovers, with a Gala and a show that starts its run tonight so you can…Read More

Peninsula Summer Music Festival

It is a well-known fact that, every January, Melbourne ‘s many classical music venues lose their bustling air as musicians and larger companies apparently follow their audiences to the beach for the rest of the summer. Some take their instruments with them, as the increasingly popular Peninsula Summer Music Festival attests. Ten years ago the…Read More

Music for a traditional Melbourne Christmas

Every year it’s the same delicious dilemma: which of the offerings on  a groaning musical Christmas table tempts us most?  The sensory pleasure of traditional concerts at this time makes the food and drink image very apt, although you can sample a lot of it without feeling too full! This year  we have the usual…Read More

Hoang Pham with Zelman Symphony

The pianist Hoang Pham has long been a friend to Classic Melbourne  since performing at our launch four  years ago and we keep a particular interest in his career.  Following successful collaboration with Zelman Symphony, Hoang is planning another concert, but is more involved in the whole  event than soloists  usually are. We think he has…Read More

An Australian Christmas

Whatever your faith, or views about Christmas, these last weeks before the main event make it a great time to be a music-lover in Melbourne. Not only do the big companies pull out all the stops with full-on productions of ballet, pantomime and even opera, symphony orchestras look through their scores for music with popular…Read More

A Fine Romance: The Magic of Fred Astaire -Review

Everyone who is interested in dance, or even theatre, knows the name of Fred Astaire. As we are told in this comprehensive portrait of possibly the world’s greatest dancer, Fred left many films and television shows as well as appearing in books and other memorabilia.  So what is the value in seeing two young Australians…Read More

My Fair Lady

We didn’t manage to get a program on a busy opening night, but all the information was consistent: this was to be a recreation of the 1956 Broadway production of My Fair Lady, courtesy of the producers and Opera Australia. The choice of the original Eliza, Julie Andrews, as director only served to underline the…Read More