Queensland Wind Orchestra

On 10 December, David Law will be joined by Rachel Howley on the podium with the Queensland Wind Orchestra as they perform a concert full of brand new works - many of which will be world premieres. Join us as we showcase:

- Andrew Ball: Scrap Metal Satellite
- Olivia Bryant: In the Middle of Nowhere
- Samuel Dickenson: Ender Symphony (V. Ender)
- Eleanor Brimblecombe: Resumed into the Earth
- Ayatey Shabazz: A Cor' Amoris (A Heart of Love)
- Dale Schlaphoff: And So, I Wove You a Lattice to Dance Upon
- Catherine Likhuta: Sure-Fire featuring Peter Luff on French Horn

Sunday 10 December, 2:30pm
The Old Museum Concert Hall

Tickets running out, grab yours at https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-future.html

Eleanor Brimblecombe's latest work, 'Resumed into the Earth' (2023) is also seeing a premiere at The Future with the Queensland Wind Orchestra, conducted by David Law and Rachel Howley.

Eleanor describes this work as: 'On a cool night, the insects are full of life. They find you here, in the darkest sleep. They mourn you, carry your heavy body, and begin to return your energy to its origin. An onlooker to your own decomposition, your essence moves with the strange dirge performed by tiny creatures. Perhaps you were a part of a community, a family, or maybe you were a lone wanderer, but it doesn’t matter now. You have landed here, and you will be honoured, then resumed into the earth.'

Hear it for yourself this Sunday 10 December, 2:30pm at The Old Museum Concert Hall. Tickets are selling fast, head to https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-future.html to get yours before they're all gone!

Andrew Ball's 'Scrap Metal Satellite' (2023) was also commissioned by David Law for the Queensland Wind Orchestra's concert 'The Future'.

Andrew writes 'Scrap Metal Satellite is inspired by recently evolving technological developments involved in researching deep space. The work evokes a retro-futuristic aesthetic, juxtaposing human feel with off-kilter clockwork precision. It follows a narrative arc, imagining the orchestra as a colossal, clunky space craft. First, we hear the orchestral 'machine' shuddering, creaking and whirring to life with intricately layered, glitchy percussion, and throbbing low woodwinds. Melodic mechanisms weave and fluctuate through poly-rhythmic grooves as the contraption haphazardly comes to life. The second half of the work builds to a visceral sequence of a determined acceleration, launch, freefall, airborne disintegration, and finally, the yearning stasis of orbit'.

Hear 'Scrap Metal Satellite' for the first time on Sunday 10 December, 2:30pm at The Old Museum Concert Hall. Tickets selling fast, get yours at https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-future.html

Dale Schlaphoff's 'and so, i wove you a lattice to dance on' (2023) is a work commissioned by David Law and the Queensland Wind Orchestra, specifically for our upcoming concert 'The Future'. Dale describes the work as:

'Fundamentally, the piece is a study and reflection on the house and techno music that I have been exposed to online, in clubs, and through friends. The piece breaks down the gestures, rhythms, harmonies, and cadence of the genre and distills them into a form suitable for the wind orchestra medium. These elements have been interpreted and reorganised into a work drawing on EDM (electronic dance music) idiosyncrasies.'

'I hope that the piece transcends its base materials and extends itself into a work paying homage to the inventive minds of those transfixed by the worlds of drum machines and DJ decks.'

Hear 'and so, i wove you a lattice to dance on' in person on 10 December 2023, 2:30pm, at The Old Museum Concert Hall. Tickets selling fast via https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-future.html.

We're really excited to announce that Catherine Likhuta, composer's brand new work 'Sure-fire' will feature special guest Peter Luff on French Horn.

Formerly Associate Principal Horn with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Peter has performed with professional orchestras and ensembles across Australia and internationally, including the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Australian World Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic, and the Queensland Festival Philharmonic. Peter currently performs, records, and broadcasts with Queensland's premier chamber ensemble Ensemble Q, and is an Associate Professor in Horn and Head of Brass at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University.

Watch Peter Luff and the Queensland Wind Orchestra perform Catherine Likhuta's 'Sure-fire' in 'The Future', conducted by David Law and Rachel Howley, on Sunday, 10 December, 2023 at The Old Museum Concert Hall. Tickets selling fast, don't miss out - get yours at qwo.org.au.

What a great night of exploring and recording new, wonderful music for band!

Part 1 of recording is underway for 2023! The Queensland Wind Orchestra is smashing it with David Law & Dr Rachel Howley on the podium.

And it’s all being expertly captured by Jason from Distinct Audio & Production

Tonight’s program:

A Kitten’s Adventure - Fran Griffin (2022 Winner - Developing Band Section)
Dragon Slayer - Beth Roche (2022 Finalist - Advancing Band Section)
It Lurks in the Shadows - Emma Olsen (2023 Winner - Developing Band Section)
Willow - Isabella Tate (2023 Finalist - Advancing Band Section)
In the Middle of Nowhere - Olivia Bryant (2022 Finalist - Advancing Band Section)

Next recording will be with our High School Band composers after their mentoring workshop with Dr Ralph Hultgren

A sold out concert, The Present Part 2, conducted by David Law, saw the Queensland Wind Orchestra perform some of our audience's favourite works, including John Mackey's The Frozen Cathedral, Viet Cuong's Moth, and Eric Whitacre's Ghost Train.

On 10 December, David Law will return to the podium with the Queensland Wind Orchestra as they perform a concert of brand new world premieres for band. Be among the first in the world to hear:

• A new work from Andrew Ball
• A new horn concerto from Catherine Likhuta, featuring a very special guest on French Horn
• A new work from Dale Schlaphoff
• A new work from Eleanor Brimblecombe
• A new work from Samuel Dickenson
• A new work from the Australian Women's Wind Band Composition Award
and more...

Tickets on sale now, including Inspire! giving children in grades 5-12 an inside look at the music that they'll hear during the concert.

PS: if you're a season pass holder, your seats are already booked. There's nothing else you need to do, we'll see you there!

The Future
Conducted by David Law
2:30pm Sunday 10 December
The Old Museum Concert Hall

Tickets to The Present: Part 2, conducted by David Law, are selling fast. Grab yours now so that you don't miss out on the amazing works this Sunday, including an audience favourite: Viet Cuong's spectacular 'Moth'.

The Queensland Wind Orchestra performed the Australian premiere of this work in 2015, after conductor David Law heard the Brooklyn Wind Symphony's extraordinary performance of the work on December 21, 2013 at the Midwest Clinic in Chicago.

We love this piece. It's distinctive, playful, and gives a feel of a moth dancing in the light.

To hear it in person, you need to join us this Sunday at The Old Museum Concert Hall, 2:30pm. Tickets are selling fast - grab yours now via qwo.org.au so that you don't miss out.

If you've been to an ANZAC Day service at Greenbank RSL, you would have heard us perform this very moving work by Robert Sheldon. 'With Every Sunrise' is a lyrical work that's poignant, uplifting, and wistful. Dedicated to the memory of Kris Robert Sebens, Robert Sheldon's With Every Sunrise is a very moving work that was premiered in June 2015 at the Sydney Opera House with Sheldon conducting.

Hear it in The Old Museum Concert Hall with the Queensland Wind Orchestra, conducted by David Law on Sunday 3 September, 2:30pm. Tickets online now at qwo.org.au.

Did you know that children can get a sneak peak of our concerts and sit in with the musicians during sound check? It's part of our Inspire for Kids program, and is most suited for children in grades 5-12 (though we're happy to welcome any child who's just started on their instrument or deciding on what to play as well).

Attending a live concert helps show kids learning an instrument discover what their instrument can really sound like if they stick with the lifelong journey that is playing an instrument!

By taking part in Inspire, participants will meet with the conductor, sit in with the players of QWO during sound check, see the scores, and hear the music from the perspective of the players (and of course parents / guardians are welcome to sit in the concert hall).

To get started, buy a children or concession ticket (depending on age), and then register for inspire by click on on Inspire! on qwo.org.au. All the details are at https://qwo.org.au/inspire/

One of our audience's most loved works: John Mackey's The Frozen Cathedral, is coming back on 3 September, conducted by David Law.

Standing at over 20,000ft above sea level and a towering mass over the Alaskan wilderness, 'Denali' is the tallest mountain on land in the world measured from base to peak: 2,000ft taller than Mount Everest. It's the inspiration behind this equally magnificent work, born from a collaboration between John Mackey and John Locke, Director of Bands at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Locke asked Mackey if he would dedicate the piece to the memory of his late son, J.P., who had a fascination with Alaska and the scenery of Denali National Park.

Mackey writes "How does one write a concert closer, making it joyous and exciting and celebratory, while also acknowledging, at least to myself, that this piece is rooted in unimaginable loss. The death of a child? [...] My wife, who titles all of my pieces, said I should focus on what it is that draws people to these places. People go to the mountains–these monumental, remote, ethereal and awesome parts of the world–as a king of pilgrimage. It's a search for the sublime, for transcendence. A great mountain is like a church. Call it the Frozen Cathedral, she said. I clearly married up."

Hear this monumental work on Sunday 3 September, 2:30pm at The Old Museum, performed by the Queensland Wind Orchestra, and conducted by David Law. Tickets on sale now at qwo.org.au.

It's been just over nine years since we've performed Eric Whitacre's Ghost Train in full... so it's time to bring it back to the stage! On Saturday 3 September, David Law conducts the Queensland Wind Orchestra through this fascinating work. In Eric Whitacre's words:

At the Station is just that: the train comes to a roaring halt and the passengers depart. In this movement I see countless images: friends and family reunited, the soaring architecture of the station itself, and the genuine sincerity and innocence of the era. After a reflective pastiche the locomotive builds up steam and slowly departs, grand and graceful. The Motive Revolution is twofold in its implication. The name refers to the period between 1850 and 1870 when steam engines revolutionised transportation, and also describes the cyclical treatment of musical motive throughout the movement. The train blazes across the country side, moonlight glistening off it's dark steel, and ends with a final, heroic tribute to these machines and the people who worked them.

Don't miss Ghost Train, performed by the Queensland Wind Orchestra, conducted by David Law. Tickets on sale at qwo.org.au.

📸 Brian Suman on Unsplash.

Heading into Brisbane CBD tomorrow (Saturday 15 April)? We'll be performing a free concert in Brisbane City Hall as part of the Bands in Parks program from 12pm-1pm, celebrating 10 years since City Hall was reopened.

Conducted by David Law, we'll play Holst's First Suite, Percy Grainger's Irish Tune from County Derry as well as music from The Wizard of Oz, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, James Bond, and How to Train Your Dragon.

Get the details here:

City Hall Restoration 10 Year Anniversary - Queensland Wind Orchestra: Movies and Masterpieces Bands in Parks: Movies and Masterpieces Celebrate 10 years since City Hall was reopened with some magnificent music from the Queensland Wind Orchestra conducted by David Law. This championship band will play a selection of well-known classics including music from the Holst Military Suite, Percy Grai...

Thank you to the stellar crowd who joined us on Sunday at 'The Past', conducted by David Law!

Tickets are now available for our next concert, 'The Present I' conducted by Prof. Rob McWilliams, where you'll hear some favourite works from our more recent performance history, including Morten Lauridsen's sublime 'O Magnum Mysterium', Cindy McTee's quirky 'Circuits', Ryan George's adventurous 'Firefly', Frank Ticheli's stunning 'Angels in the Architecture', and more.

• Ryan GEORGE – Firefly
• Naomi CRELLIN arr. Fairlie – A Country Mile
• Adam GORB – Yiddish Dances
• Cindy McTEE – Circuits
• Morten LAURIDSEN arr. Reynolds – O Magnum Mysterium
• Frank TICHELI – Angels in the Architecture
• Dana WILSON – Shortcut Home

The Present I
Conducted by Prof. Rob McWilliams
Sunday 4 June, 2:30pm
The Old Museum Concert Hall

Get your tickets online from https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-present-part-1.html early to reserve your favourite seats!

PSSST!!

We're performing a FREE concert at Brisbane City Hall on Saturday 15 April, 12pm-1pm, as part of the Brisbane City Council's City Hall Restoration 10 Year Anniversary. Get the details here: https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/whats-on-and-events/event/city-hall-restoration-10-year-anniversary-queensland-wind-orchestra-movies-and-masterpieces-166003553

Have you purchased your tickets to the Queensland Wind Orchestra's first concert for 2023, our 20th year? Get in now so that you can enjoy the orchestra from your favourite seats!

** Important: tickets are cheaper online! ** The Old Museum rounds ticket prices up to the nearest $5 at the door, so book now to get your favourite seats, and save a few $. Or, grab a season pass and save even more over the full year.

There's so many great reasons to join us on Sunday afternoon:

• Jodie BLACKSHAW: Twist
• Ralph HULTGREN: Masada
• Percy GRAINGER: Country Gardens
• Ralph HULTGREN: My Sister’s Tears
• Claude T. SMITH: Festival Variations
• Gustav HOLST: First Suite in Eb for Military Band
• Percy GRAINGER: Irish Tune from County Derry
• Malcolm ARNOLD arr. PAYNTER: Four Scottish Dances
• Felix MENDELSSOHN: Overture for Harmoniemusik, Op. 24
• Robert T. SMITH: The Ascension (from "The Divine Comedy”)

Grab your tickets here: https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-past.html

Season passes available here: https://oldmuseum.sales.ticketsearch.com/sales/salesubscription/106481

Are you, or do you have a student between year 5-12 who might want to come to sound check? Check out our Inspire! program – more details here https://qwo.org.au/inspire/

PS, the Tour de Brisbane is on Sunday 2 April, resulting in some temporary road closures throughout the day. We have been told that Gregory Tce will be open from 1pm, however we advise giving yourself extra time to find parking.

•• TICKETS NOW ON SALE ••

The Queensland Wind Orchestra begins their 20th year with a retrospective look at favourites from The Past, including:

· Jodie BLACKSHAW: Twist
· Ralph HULTGREN: Masada
· Percy GRAINGER: Country Gardens
· Ralph HULTGREN: My Sister’s Tears
· Claude T. SMITH: Festival Variations
· Gustav HOLST: First Suite in Eb for Military Band
· Malcolm ARNOLD arr. PAYNTER: Four Scottish Dances
· Felix MENDELSSOHN: Overture for Harmoniemusik, Op. 24
· Robert T. SMITH: The Ascension (from the “Divine Comedy”)
· Percy GRAINGER: “Shepherd’s Hey” English Morris Dance for Military Band

Conducted by David Law, this concert will be a unique opportunity to hear the Queensland Wind Orchestra showcase a broad spectrum of spectacular wind band works, from Gustav Holst’s ground-breaking 'First Suite in Eb for Military Band' to Jodie Blackshaw’s captivating 'Twist'. Don’t miss out on this fantastic opportunity to hear these works in the Old Museum Concert Hall.

Conducted by David Law
Sunday 2 April, 2:30pm
The Old Museum Concert Hall, Bowen Hills

Tickets available at https://qwo.org.au/blog/concerts/2023-season/the-past.html including Season Passes, giving the holder access to the entire 2023 season for the price of three concerts!

Additionally, INSPIRE! places are available. For further details, head to qwo.org.au/inspire

Today we celebrate International Women's Day.

It's no secret that wind band repertoire has traditionally been a male dominated field. That's why we're proud to support the Australian Women's Wind Band Composition Award, performing the winner's works in our final concert of each year. The award enables discovery of great female composers, and in a small way helps bridge the equity gap of discovery in the broader field of wind band composers.

We know there are BRILLIANT female composers. We've had the privilege of performing works by Catherine Likhuta, Nicole Piunno, Olivia Kieffer, Jennifer Jolley, Cindy McTee, Jodie Blackshaw, Cait Nishimura, Eleanor Brimblecombe, Frankie Dyson Reilly, Shelley Hanson, Li Shuying, Yukiko Nishimura, Nancy Galbraith, and more, including Julie Giroux's spectacular 'Bookmarks from Japan' to a national audience through the Australian National Band Championships in 2019.

But, there's a long way to go.

So as we celebrate International Women's Day, at QWO, we'll continue our work in seeking opportunities for equitable representation in wind band music, ultimately providing everyone with a broader range of outstanding music.

QWO is turning 20! This year, we have four spectacular concerts at The Old Museum bringing back past favourites throughout the year, including Holst, Jodie Blackshaw, Viet Cuong, Ralph Hultgren, John Mackey, and MUCH more, as well as some very special new works.

BOOK THESE DATES IN YOUR CALENDAR NOW!

• The Past: Sunday 2 April, 2:30pm (The Old Museum)
• The Present I: Sunday 4 June, 2:30pm (The Old Museum)
• The Present II: Sunday 3 September, 2:30pm (The Old Museum)
• The Future: Sunday 10 December, 2:30pm (The Old Museum)

We'll also be performing a series of free Bands in Parks concerts throughout the year, starting on Saturday 18 March at Yeronga Memorial Park, 5:30pm.

Tickets and season passes available soon – put the dates in the calendar now so you know you'll be ready to join the Queensland Wind Orchestra in celebrating 20 years of exceptional music making.

Want to join the Queensland Wind Orchestra?

Auditions are being held on 29 January, 2023, 10am-12pm, at The Old Museum.

We're looking for

• Tuba
• Oboe
• Tenor Sax

All other instruments are encouraged to audition for reserve.

For all the details and what you need to do, head to https://qwo.org.au/auditions/

Why join?

In 2022, QWO had an amazing year:

🎺 Four exceptional concerts at The Old Museum, performing works from amazing composers including Stephen Sondheim, Ravel (arr. John Rotar), Katahj Copley, Cait Nishimura, John Rotar, Kenneth Hesketh, Alexander Roode, Shelley Hanson, Toshio Mashima, Ola Gjello, Leonard Bernstein, Eric Whitacre, George Gershwin, Robert Thurston, Franz Biebel, Catherine Likhuta (including her incredible Scraps from a Madman's Diary: Oratorio for Wind Symphony and Mixed Choir), Samuel Dickenson, Angus Davison, and Rob McWilliams

🎷 Two works from the winners of the Australian Women's Wind Band Composition Award: Shelby Devenish and Nielle Williams

🏞 Free concerts as part of the Brisbane City Council's Bands in Parks series

🥁 Collaborations with The Australian Voices, and Pub Choir (including 'Auld Lang Syne' that was televised on ABC Australia on New Year's Eve, and their amazing and sold-out fundraiser at Brisbane City Hall)

🎺 Proud to be part of ANZAC Day dawn and morning services

2023 is our 20th birthday – imagine the year you'll have on the stage with us!

We joined our amazing friends at Pub Choir a few weeks ago for a very special performance that will be broadcast nationally via ABC Australia's New Year's Eve special. Make sure you tune in to watch it! While you're waiting, take a sneak peak at some photos from the event (thanks Jcbmrrsn Freelance)!