Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

Event Details

Commissioned in 2019, Gordon Kerry’s Clarinet Quintet was to receive its world premiere in June 2020. This performance, exclusive to Sydney Opera House's digital season, represents the digital world premiere of the work.

Composer's note

One can only hope that to compose a clarinet quintet isn’t tempting fate, given that the greatest of them – Mozart’s and Brahms’s – are late, if not last works. Brahms had essentially decided to stop composing and set his affairs in order at around my current age, and only an unexpected experience of hearing Richard Mühlfeld’s clarinet-playing spurred him to write those late masterpieces for the instrument.

It is always a pleasure to write for specific performers, and I hope this work adequately celebrates David Rowden’s lyricism and technical agility, as well as the talents of those fine musicians who have a formed the Omega Ensemble. In addition, I am grateful for the support of Kim Williams – himself both clarinettist and composer, and an exemplary patron of the arts.

Program

Gordon Kerry Clarinet Quintet (World Premiere)Commissioned for Omega Ensemble by Kim Williams AM

Artists
David Rowden Clarinet
Anna Da Silva Chen Violin
Tim Yu Violin
Neil Thompson Viola
Paul Stender Cello

About Omega Ensemble

Omega Ensemble is a champion of commissioning, presenting the world premieres of over 50 new musical works and the Australian premieres of many more.

The Ensemble has worked with notable Australian composers including Elena Kats-Chernin, Andrew Ford, Matthew Hindson, Paul Stanhope, Gerard Brophy, and Sally Whitwell, as well as recent commissions with international composers Nico Muhly (US) and Airat Ichamouatov (RU).

Further information for this event is available online at the event's website

Featured Australian Works

Clarinet Quintet : clarinet with string quartet (2019) by Gordon Kerry — World premiere — performed by Omega Ensemble

Featured artists

• Performer Omega Ensemble