Llewellyn Series Miracles in the Age of Reason

Benjamin Bayl – Conductor Emma Sholl – Flute Canberra Symphony Orchestra RAMEAU Suite from Platée CPE BACH Flute Concerto in D minor, Wq. 22 RICHARD MEALE Cantilena Pacifica MOZART Symphony No. 39 in E-flat major, K. 543 The philosophical and artistic forces at work in Europe in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were – in France, at least – outright revolutionary. Enlightenment thinkers like Voltaire, Rousseau and Diderot championed reason as the source of truth, flying in the face of centuries-old traditions. This upheaval resonates in Rameau’s Platée, a comic masterpiece that turned operatic conventions upside down. Rameau’s ability to draw exhilarating colours from the orchestra was astounding, his harmonic ideas well ahead of their time. Reason shines in the works of CPE Bach, whose intellectual rigour lent rationality to even the boldest musical experiments. This virtuosic flute concerto exemplifies his melodic gift and evocative use of harmonic colour. Mozart was influenced by the intellectual discourse, religious inquiry and political debate swirling in Vienna by the late eighteenth century. In 1788, Mozart directed his energies to the completion of three remarkable symphonies. Number 39 is exuberant and unbounded, full of Mozartian flourishes. Penned in the late 1970s, Richard Meale’s Cantilena Pacifica was written as a eulogy for a dear friend. Transparent, lyrical and achingly beautiful, it is a work of deeply lucid emotional truth. Entry Cost Adult $54 Concession $48 Student $15 - $30 Under 30s $15 Student rush