Audiences can help Helena Rathbone celebrate a milestone anniversary as the principal violin of 25 years with the Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) when she plays in Bundaberg.
Her extraordinary work will be on display at the Moncrieff Entertainment Centre on Wednesday, 23 October at 7.30pm.
Don't miss her exciting ensemble that combines some of Australia’s most talented emerging string players with the professional musicians of the ACO collective.
Titled ‘Serenades for Strings’, the regional tour sees Helena direct ACO Collective through Australian composer Paul Stanhope’s Dancing on Clouds, written for the recently recorded Hush album of music for children’s hospitals.
Then it’s straight into Beethoven’s First Romance for violin and orchestra, featuring Helena as soloist, followed by Mendelssohn’s youthful and energetic Sinfonia No.7.
Helena is a great admirer of fellow Brit, Edward Elgar. His Serenade for strings is a tranquil piece, a far cry from his later, larger works.
This will be followed by a dramatic shift in mood with Beethoven’s great String Quartet in F minor, arranged for string orchestra.
Known as the “Serioso”, it has a tempestuous quality that brings the program to a gripping end.
Helena performs with Australian Chamber Orchestra
In addition, ACO Collective will offer a series of string workshops and education concerts for local school students as part of the tour.
In her role as principal violin of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Helena performs regularly with the orchestra as a soloist and guest leader.
Helena is the orchestra representative and mentor for the ACO Emerging Artist program, and from 2006 to 2015 was director and leader of the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s regional touring and education ensemble ACO Collective.
Helena plays a 1759 Guadagnini violin on loan from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
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