British violinist Matthew Truscott will lead ACO Collective in Ecstatic Dances, a recital of dance music for string orchestra, at the Pilbeam Theatre in September.
ACO Collective is the Australian Chamber Orchestra's critically acclaimed 17-piece string ensemble that brings together musicians of the ACO with Australia's most talented young professional string players to create a high-energy string orchestra.
From the baroque elegance of Purcell's England to the dynamism of Australian composer Holly Harrison's Black Ice, commissioned especially for ACO Collective, the repertoire was especially chosen to showcase the vitality and virtuosity of the ensemble.
Matthew Truscott, a frequent performer on the world's most celebrated concert hall stages, is concertmaster and leader of two of Europe's most renowned orchestras, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. In demand as a guest leader, his engagements have included projects with the ACO Collective, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Iceland Symphony Orchestra, English National Opera, Dutch National Opera and The English Concert.
The repertoire will include:
ROSS EDWARDS Chorale and Ecstatic Dance
HENRY PURCELL Suite from The Fairy Queen
IGOR STRAVINSKY (arr. strings) Three Pieces from Petrushka: Russian Dance, Petrushka's Room, Shrovetide Fair
HOLLY HARRISON Black Ice [ACO Commission]
BÉLA BARTÓK Divertimento for String Orchestra