Musica Viva Australia
Encyclopedia
Musica Viva Australia is the oldest independent performing arts organisation in Australia
and the world's largest entrepreneur
of chamber music
. It was formed in 1945 in Sydney
by violist Richard Goldner
. The Artistic Director is composer Carl Vine
.
Musica Viva presented more than 2,500 concerts in 2010, in Australia.
- a Romania
n-born violist
who had trained in Vienna
. Goldner arrived in Australia as a refugee
in 1939 but maintained his strong connections with many of the most respected musicians in Europe.
Once asked what he expected when he arrived in Australia, his answer was simple. First he expected to save his life. Second, he soon realised that music was not a way of life in Australia in the way it was in Europe. Men generally did not attend concerts as it was considered 'sissy
' - a perception that lasted until the GIs came from America
.
Goldner persevered and soon after formed the Monomeeth String Quartet, which took its name from an Indigenous Australian word for peace and harmony.
Inspired by his life in Vienna and the enormous respect for his teacher Simon Pullman
, he was determined to create a 'Pullman-like' ensemble in Sydney. Reading in 1944 of his great mentor's death in the Treblinka extermination camp
in August 1942, Goldner's plans accelerated and he recruited 17 musicians and divided them into four string quartets (and piano). The quartets were trained individually before uniting as one group - Richard Goldner's Sydney Musica Viva.
The first concert of Sydney Musica Viva was presented at Verbrugghen
Hall, Sydney Conservatorium of Music
on 8 December 1945. Let down by Sydney's unreliable war-time power supply, the concert took place in darkness save the headlights of several cars parked in the doorway of the auditorium and some hurricane lamps in the foyers.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and the world's largest entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
of chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
. It was formed in 1945 in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
by violist Richard Goldner
Richard Goldner
Richard Goldner was a Romanian-born, Viennese-trained Australian violist, pedagogue and inventor. He founded Musica Viva Australia in 1945, which became the world's largest entrepreneurial chamber music organisation. The Goldner String Quartet was named in his memory.-Biography:Richard Goldner...
. The Artistic Director is composer Carl Vine
Carl Vine
Carl Vine is an Australian composer of contemporary classical music.-Career:Vine was born in Perth, Western Australia. When he was ten years old, he took up the piano. An adolescent encounter with Karlheinz Stockhausen inspired a period as a teenage modernist, a direction which he abandoned in 1985...
.
Musica Viva presented more than 2,500 concerts in 2010, in Australia.
History
Musica Viva's heritage is grounded in the vision of one man - Richard GoldnerRichard Goldner
Richard Goldner was a Romanian-born, Viennese-trained Australian violist, pedagogue and inventor. He founded Musica Viva Australia in 1945, which became the world's largest entrepreneurial chamber music organisation. The Goldner String Quartet was named in his memory.-Biography:Richard Goldner...
- a Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n-born violist
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
who had trained in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Goldner arrived in Australia as a refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...
in 1939 but maintained his strong connections with many of the most respected musicians in Europe.
Once asked what he expected when he arrived in Australia, his answer was simple. First he expected to save his life. Second, he soon realised that music was not a way of life in Australia in the way it was in Europe. Men generally did not attend concerts as it was considered 'sissy
Sissy
Sissy is a pejorative term for a boy or man who violates or does not meet the traditional male gender role. Generally, sissy implies a lack of the courage and stoicism which are thought important to the male role...
' - a perception that lasted until the GIs came from America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Goldner persevered and soon after formed the Monomeeth String Quartet, which took its name from an Indigenous Australian word for peace and harmony.
Inspired by his life in Vienna and the enormous respect for his teacher Simon Pullman
Simon Pullman
Simon Pullman was a violinist, conductor, music teacher and founder and Director of the Pullman Ensemble and Orchestra, and a seminal figure in the evolution of chamber music performance....
, he was determined to create a 'Pullman-like' ensemble in Sydney. Reading in 1944 of his great mentor's death in the Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka was a Nazi extermination camp in occupied Poland during World War II near the village of Treblinka in the modern-day Masovian Voivodeship of Poland. The camp, which was constructed as part of Operation Reinhard, operated between and ,. During this time, approximately 850,000 men, women...
in August 1942, Goldner's plans accelerated and he recruited 17 musicians and divided them into four string quartets (and piano). The quartets were trained individually before uniting as one group - Richard Goldner's Sydney Musica Viva.
The first concert of Sydney Musica Viva was presented at Verbrugghen
Henri Verbrugghen
Henri Verbrugghen was a Belgian musician, who directed orchestras in England, Scotland, Australia and the United States....
Hall, Sydney Conservatorium of Music
Sydney Conservatorium of Music
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music is one of the oldest and most prestigious music schools in Australia...
on 8 December 1945. Let down by Sydney's unreliable war-time power supply, the concert took place in darkness save the headlights of several cars parked in the doorway of the auditorium and some hurricane lamps in the foyers.
Concerts and programs
- International Concert Series: - presenting "the world's finest chamber musicians" to audiences around Australia.
- Concerts are staged in: AdelaideAdelaideAdelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
; BrisbaneBrisbaneBrisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
; CanberraCanberraCanberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
; MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
; SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
; NewcastleNewcastle, New South WalesThe Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
; PerthPerth, Western AustraliaPerth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
and HobartHobartHobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
. - In 2011, the series featured: Andreas SchollAndreas SchollAndreas Scholl is a German countertenor, a male classical singer in the alto vocal range. He is noted as a specialist in Baroque music.-Childhood:...
, Eggner TrioEggner TrioEggner Trio is a Piano Trio from Vienna.The trio was founded in 1997 as Eggner Rachmaninov Trio Vienna founded by the three brothers Christopher , George and Florian Eggner , who had previously also been performing as a soloist...
, Brentano String Quartet, Concerto CopenhagenConcerto CopenhagenConcerto Copenhagen, also known as CoCo, is a Danish period instrument orchestra, established in 1991 and directed since 1999 by harpsichordist Lars Ulrik Mortensen....
with Genevieve Lacey, Goldner String QuartetGoldner String QuartetThe Goldner String Quartet is an Australian string quartet formed in 1995 in honour of Richard Goldner, the founder of Musica Viva Australia.The Quartet consists of Dene Olding and Dimity Hall , Irina Morozova and Julian Smiles...
with Ian MunroIan MunroIan Munro may refer to:* Ian Munro * Ian Munro , Australian pianist and composer* Ian Munro, Canadian politician...
, Stephen HoughStephen HoughStephen Andrew Gill Hough is a British-born classical pianist, composer and writer. He became an Australian citizen in 2005 and thus has dual nationality .-Biography:...
, Sabine MeyerSabine MeyerSabine Meyer is a German classical clarinetist.-Biography:Meyer began playing the clarinet at an early age. Her first teacher was her father, also a clarinetist...
with Modigliani String Quartet and Ian MunroIan MunroIan Munro may refer to:* Ian Munro * Ian Munro , Australian pianist and composer* Ian Munro, Canadian politician...
as the 2011 Featured Composer.
- Concerts are staged in: Adelaide
- Coffee Concerts - an intimate, morning concert series in SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
featuring Australian soloists and ensemble artists.- The 2011 SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
season features Synergy Percussion, Geoffrey Collins with Alice Giles, Australian Brass Quintet, Emma-Jane Murphy with Bernadette Harvey. - The 2011 MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
season features Howard Panny with Timothy Young, Tinalley String Quartet, Saguaro Trio, Melbourne Symphony Percussion & Friends and Australian Brass Quintet.
- The 2011 Sydney
- Musica Viva In Schools - a music education program, annually reaching 400,000 school students through the presentation of 2,300 concerts, workshops, artists-in-residence and masterclasses around Australia. "The program is based on three key elements for success in music education: motivated students, well-resourced teachers and the experience of live music".
- CountryWide - a regional touring program of public concerts, family concerts, workshops and residencies reaching more than 18,000 rural Australians each year.
- Export - presenting Australian musicians to international audiences; in association with the Department of Foreign Affairs and TradeDepartment of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is a department of the government of Australia charged with advancing the interests of Australia and its citizens internationally...
.
- Café Carnivale - a Sydney music series of more than 75 concerts annually, presenting a diverse program of world musicWorld musicWorld music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
in "relaxed and intimate venues".