the first piece on the programme of the first Morning Symphony concert of the year under the baton of Principal Conductor Asher Fisch, was the beautiful but little-known suite Rossiniana by Respighi arranged from several earlier piano works by the Rossini. “The suite progresses through a variety of moods, from the almost exaggeratedly tragic to the riotously unbuttoned, and Respighi's gifts as an orchestrator are on display throughout, especially in the brief "Intermezzo," which sparkles like a little jewel. The closing "Tarantella" is interrupted by music suggesting that someone actually died from the tarantula's bite, but once the presumed religious procession passes, the dancing starts up again, and Rossiniana ends in the highest of spirits.” (Raymond Tuttle, Classical Net). Though not in season, selections from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet with favourites including the Waltz of the Flowers, dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, and the dancing fairies themselves – tuneful, childlike joys, the overture delicately dancing, whilst in the march the orchestra displayed dynamic contrast and control under the maestro’s baton. A joyous and lyrical hour of music creating a lightness of spirit, which left us wanting more! We headed to our usual ‘watering hole’ Secret Garden in South Perth for lunch.
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