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The Melbourne Conservatorium of Music: Pictures at an Exhibition
Three vibrant, and evocatively descriptive works will be performed as part of The University of Melbourne Symphony Orchestra concert this August.
The first half invites you to journey across the sea through the eyes of two great composers. In Peter Grimes, Benjamin Britten conjures dark and brooding seascapes — from the pale hush of Dawn and the bustling life of a Sunday Morning market, to the shimmering calm of Moonlight and the fury of the Storm.
While Britten uses the sea as a backdrop to his opera’s characters, Claude Debussy treats the sea as the central protagonist in La Mer. You’ll hear whispers and roars, a conversation with the sea and the wind, the rise and fall of waves and the weight and wonder of water. Both works shimmer with musical onomatopoeia — painting the sea in sound.
The second half offers a different kind of description — this time, a promenade through an art gallery. Originally written for piano, Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition was later orchestrated by Ravel into one of the most beloved treasures of the concert hall.
Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall