Australian World Orchestra (AWO) is a symphony orchestra based in Australia.

History

The Australian World Orchestra was established in 2011 by Australian conductor Alexander Briger AO and his sister, film maker Gabrielle Thompson AM. The inaugural patron of the orchestra was Sir

Charles Mackerras Mackerras in 2005 Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras (; 1925 2010) was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associated with the Engli ...

, Briger and Thompson's uncle. The first concert in 2011, which was conducted by Briger, performed sold out in concerts in Sydney and

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. The AWO also sold out in 2013 and 2015. Maestro

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father was the fou ...

conducted the orchestra in 2013, and returned to conduct again in 2015 when the AWO performed in three cities in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, with soprano

Greta Bradman Greta Bradman (born 1979 or 1982) is an Australian operatic soprano. Career Richard Bonynge selected Bradman to sing the title role in a concert performance of Handel's '' Rodelinda'' in 2014. Bradman was the subject of two episodes of the ...

as guest soloist. Mehta is to return in 2022 to conduct the AWO in a performance of Strauss' works in Sydney and Melbourne. In 2015 the AWO brought Sir Simon Rattle to Australia to conduct the orchestra in concerts in Sydney and Melbourne with special guest mezzo-soprano

Magdalena Kožená Magdalena Kožená (also Lady Rattle; ; born 26 May 1973) is a Czech mezzo-soprano. Early life Kožená was born in Brno in Czechoslovakia. Both her parents had come originally from Bohemia, to the west. She was born one of the two daughters o ...

. Rattle has described the AWO as an "international treasure". In 2016 Briger premiered the AWO's 5th anniversary commission by Australian composer

Elena Kats-Chernin Elena Davidovna Kats-Chernin (born 4 November 1957) is a Soviet-born Australian pianist and composer, best known for her ballet ''Wild Swans''. Early life and career Elena Kats-Chernin was born in Tashkent (now the capital of independent Uzbek ...

''The Witching Hour,'' A Concerto for Eight Double Basses at the Sydney Opera House and the

Esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

. In 2017

Simone Young Simone Margaret Young AM (born 2 March 1961) is an Australian conductor. She is currently chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Biography and career Young was born in Sydney, of Irish ancestry on her father's side and Croatian ...

AM conducted the AWO in a side-by-side performance of

Messiaen Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithologist who was one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex; harmonicall ...

's ''

Turangalîla-Symphonie The ''Turangalîla-Symphonie'' is the only symphony by Olivier Messiaen (1908–1992). It was written for an orchestra of large forces from 1946 to 1948 on a commission by Serge Koussevitzky in his wife's memory for the Boston Symphony Orchestr ...

'' with the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) at Arts Centre Melbourne and the AWO Chamber 8 completed their first Australian tour performing at Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC),

City Recital Hall City Recital Hall in Sydney, Australia, is a purpose-built concert venue with the capacity for an audience of 1,238 people seated over three tiers of sloped seating. It is situated in the city centre in Angel Place, just off Martin Place. City ...

Sydney,

Melbourne Recital Centre Melbourne Recital Centre is a venue for live music in Melbourne and welcomes over 200,000 visitors each year. The organisation programs and presents more than 500 concerts and events a year across diverse range of musical genres including classi ...

and, Perth Concert Hall. In 2018 Maestro

Riccardo Muti Riccardo Muti, (; born 28 July 1941) is an Italian conductor. He currently holds two music directorships, at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and at the Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini. Muti has previously held posts at the Maggio Musicale ...

conducted the AWO for performances at the Sydney Opera House and

Arts Centre Melbourne Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central ...

, and invited the orchestra to tour his home country of Italy. Later in 2018 the AWO toured India, performing in

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

as the opening act of the Australian Government's 6 month festival of Australian Culture "OzFest" and additional concerts in

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

(Kerala) and

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

under the baton of Briger and with guest soloists French mezzo-soprano Caroline Meng and the Australian born and educated Daniel Dodds, Artistic Director of the

Lucerne Festival Strings The Lucerne Festival Strings is one of Switzerland's most frequently touring chamber orchestras, which for decades was closely associated with the Lucerne School of Music, being for many years an "ensemble in residence". The orchestra was founded ...

. In 2019 Alexander Briger conducted the AWO for performances at

and for the orchestra's first performance in Canberra at

Llewellyn Hall The ANU School of Music is a school in the Research School of Humanities and the Arts, which forms part of the College of Arts and Social Sciences of the Australian National University. It consists of four buildings, including the main School of ...

. The AWO Chamber Six performed at

, Sydney. The AWO commissioned Australian composer and clarinetist, Paul Dean, to compose his Symphony no.1 ''Black Summer'' to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2021. Briger premiered the piece in 2021 in concerts at the Llewellyn Hall in Canberra, and City Recital Hall, Sydney. The performances garnered exceptional reviews, and the Australian Arts Review expressed that "Briger has created an orchestral Rolls Royce . . ." The AWO will be travelling to the United Kingdom (UK) in August 2022, to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival on 19 August and the

BBC Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

on 23 August. The AWO will be there as part of Edinburgh's 75th anniversary celebrations, and the UKAU cultural exchange. Maestro Zubin Mehta will be conducting these concerts, accompanied by Australian soprano,

Siobhan Stagg Siobhan Stagg (born 16 September 1987) is an Australian operatic lyric-coloratura soprano. Biography Stagg was born in Mildura to school teacher parents, and has two brothers. She completed her tertiary education at the University of Melbourne ...

. The AWO will return to Australia in late August for its concerts in Melbourne and Sydney on Wednesday 31 August and Friday 2 September, conducted once again by Mehta.

Discography

Albums

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, ''Stravinsky Rite of Spring / Mahler Symphony No. 1'' (with (

) ,

Best Classical Album The Grammy Award for Best Classical Album was awarded from 1962 to 2011. The award had several minor name changes: *From 1962 to 1963, 1965 to 1972 and 1974 to 1976 the award was known as Album of the Year – Classical *In 1964 and 1977 it wa ...

, , ARIA Award previous winners. , -

Helpmann Award

* 2016 - Australian World Orchestra (Conductor Sir Simon Rattle) (won)

References

{{authority control Australian orchestras Performing groups established in 2011 2011 establishments in Australia