Music
Exciting young violinist to appear in concerts at Bywong
Lathika Vithanage is establishing herslf as a leading baroque violinist in Australia by playing with such ensembles as Salut! Baroque, Orchestra of the Antipodies and Ludvicos Band. A graduate of the Sydney Conservatoire, she is soon to spend two years in Italy undertaking postgraduate study with Stephano Montanari in Milan. One of her last concerts before going to Italy will be with Bush Baroque in Bywong on Saturday and Sunday June 19/20. One of the works she wil perform is a viruosic sonata by Fontana, an early baroque Italian composer.
In a concert called "Triple Treat" she is one of the treats, the others being the a capella female vocal group, Polifemy, and another exciting young talent in Emma Jenvy, soprano. Polifemy will be singing scared music by Palestrina, Monteverdi, Byrd and Vinci, while Emma will be singing cantatas by Handel and Telemann.
Richard and Joan Milner both play the viola da gamba, an instrument rarely heard today but popular in England and Europe between about 1450 and 1700. Derived from the Spanish guitar, it is a bowed instrument with 6 strings and frets. The bass and tenor instruments will be heard when they join with Lathika in trios by Giovanni Coprario (as he liked to be called however his real name was John Cooper!) and Emma in sacred pieces by Byrd.
These concerts are held in the Milners house and all proceeds go to Hartley LifeCare Inc who assist disabled people in the Canberra region. It is essential that you ring (62369212) or email (violsaustralia@gmail.com) to book and details of the venue will be sent out to you. Drinks (Lamberts Vineyards donates the wine) and nibbles are served after the concert on the deck overlooking a large dam. The concerts will start at 1.30 on both days and go for about an hour and half.
Bush Baroque at Bywong
‘Earth, Sea and Sky', another successful musical presentation by the versatile amateur music group Bush Baroque, took place in Bywong with two performances over the weekend of 31 October - 1 November 2009.
The event was organised and presented by the core members of Bush Baroque, Richard and Joan Milner and Sylvia Shanahan, joined this time by the young counter-tenor David Yardley. As with previous concerts, one reason for the appeal to audiences is that it took place in the Milners' large two-level, high-ceilinged lounge room in Birriwa Road. With its lovely acoustic qualities, the room is ideal as a venue for music from around the 16th to 18th centuries, much of it designed to be performed by skilled amateurs as well as professionals in similar intimate and relaxed circumstances.
The latest presentation covered music from the late Renaissance with composers like England's William Byrd and John Dowland, to the peak of the Baroque age with extracts from cantatas by J.S. Bach. Bush Baroque specialises in what has become known as ‘historically informed performance' using copies of instruments of the relevant period with a deep understanding of musical style and ornamentation of those times.
Richard and Sylvia play a range of recorders, and Richard also plays the tenor viol. Joan is a versatile keyboard player and chorister. In this concert she played chamber organ, harpsichord and bass viol. All the instruments were faithful reproductions of ancient originals, giving authentic sounds of those times. David Yardley, who is developing a remarkable technique as a counter-tenor, blended with the instrumentalists in sympathetic interpretations of music originally created for this unusual voice.
Bush Baroque aims to present two concerts a year and sometimes manages three. So far, they have raised about $14,000 for Hartley Life Care through donations from their audiences. Hartley Life Care, assisted by the Acquired Brain Injury Foundation, runs an independent living facility called Araluen House for four young people. All the money raised goes to what the Milners call "this wonderful initiative".
Concerts take place in the afternoon, followed by snacks and tea, coffee or a glass of wine on the Milners' spacious deck overlooking their property. Originally held on a Sunday, they soon found they had to perform on the Saturday as well to cater for demand.
"The music room can hold 50 people comfortably," says Richard, "and we aim to perform for up to 100 people over a weekend".
He said the concerts were attracting more and more local people as well as Canberra early music lovers.
"People like the intimate atmosphere and the bush setting - and the opportunity to chat and get to know each other after the concerts."
Because of Bush Baroque's amateur nature, invitations to concerts go to people on the mailing list.
Richard said Bush Baroque has been invited to take part in the Weerawa Festival next March, performing at the French restaurant in Bungendore with a special program of early French music.
He praised the local residents who gave their time to help with organising concerts and the generous sponsorship by Lambert Vineyards of Wamboin with a gift of wine served after the latest concert.
Music is happening all around us. Wamboin is an environment full of song and rhythm.