ON TOUR: REVIEWS - GRAZ

Kronenzeitung (newspaper), Austria, 16/04/08:

"The Australian Chamber Orchestra appeared for the first time with the Steiermark Music Society. Under Concertmaster Richard Tognetti, the young chamber orchestra tore through Handel's Concerto grosso op. 6/10, Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 and the Suite from Rameau's tragédie lyrique, Dardanus. Enormous flexibility, tonal transparency and bold delineation of dynamic contrasts were applied to the Baroque works, which fascinatingly emerged as indirect predecessors of contemporary forms of dance music. The ensemble, which performs standing up, displayed its versatility in Ravel's String Quartet in F major – expansively arranged by Tognetti. He struck the yearning tone perfectly; the work practically seemed to have been waiting for the expressive, yet fragile sonority. For the encore, English tenor Mark Padmore, who will appear in tour concerts with the orchestra, was called to the stage. His refined, introspective "Mondnacht" from Schumann's Liederkreis proved to be a ravishingly beautiful conclusion to a magnificent concert."

Kleine Zeitung (newspaper), Austria, 16/04/08:

"The Australian Chamber Orchestra launches its 2008 European Tour in Graz's Stephaniensaal.

An almost athletic spirit inspires the Australian Chamber Orchestra. During its Graz Music Society debut it traversed Johann Sebastian Bach's Third Brandenburg Concerto with such energetic, forward-charging drive that it left even the stormy tempos of a Giardino Armonico clearly behind. The brisk tempos did not detract from the clarity of the performance whatsoever. The voices of the soloist-level strings, whose virtuosity never revealed limits, meshed as precisely as cogwheels.

As its Artistic Director, Concertmaster Richard Tognetti has been tuning the ensemble, which performs standing up, to technical brilliance and tremendous stylistic flexibility since 1989. The Baroque repertoire – which at this concert included works by Handel (Concerto grosso op. 6/10) and Rameau (Dardanus Suite) – is played without vibrato, which is applied very well, however, with Joseph Haydn (in the rarely heard 64th Symphony) and Maurice Ravel (whose String Quartet Tognetti has skilfully arranged for the ensemble).

Tognetti (42) avoids all lukewarm mediocrity. He intensifies dynamic contrasts, calls for incisive articulation and leads his troupe to elegant brilliance as well as heart-warming intensity.

Surprising encore: British tenor Mark Padmore, who will appear as a soloist during the tour, sang Schumann's 'Mondnacht', in an arrangement by Tognetti, with impeccable phrasing."