It is the end of the year and cultural programs are ending. But for culture-starved boffins, it’s been a long time between live performances and so we are out making the most of them. The Queensland Symphony Orchestra ended on a majestic note last week when its final Maestro concert sold out. So be prepared as next year’s program is also selling fast.

The final performance for 2020 was moving. It’s as if all the love our benighted souls needed emanating from the stage. The two pieces were Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 5 in E flat, Op. 73 – better known as Emperor – and Respighi’s Pines of Rome.

Daniel de Borah was the pianist for Emperor, and it was a masterful performance. After a hot day, it’s tempting to sit back, close your eyes and absorb the music but de Borah’s hands were hypnotic. If you’ve ever watched Hawaiian wahine hula dancers’ hands, then you understand; de Borah performed with a similar sinuosity. Lucky for Brisbane he now presides at the Queensland Conservatorium so we (hopefully) will hear more from him in 2021.

Pines of Rome is one of those pieces that seems too familiar – it’s as if every film composer of the 1950s drew inspiration from Respighi’s musical poem. “Pines of the Appian Way” ended the Maestro 2020 season with those stirring and triumphant trumpets. Johannes Fritzsch thank you.

Segue to the 2021 Maestro season. What a line up: ten concerts are offered day and night so there’s literally something for everyone. For example, February is Music of Love and Intrigue (Ravel and Rimsy-Korsakov); Piers Lane performs Listz’s first concerto (ending with Stravinsky’s The Firebird) in March; Mozart and Brahms will Soothe Your Soul in May; and end the year with Strauss’ Four Last Songs performed by Emma Pearson. Season packages are available.

Aside from the popular Maestro series, there is Music on Sundays. Guy Noble presents six concerts such as Shakespearean Classics (Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Prokofiev, Schubert etc), Around the World (Dvorak, Hisaishi and Ravel) and Inspirational Folk Melodies (Brahms, Copland and Debussy). 11am Sundays.

My personal way to enjoy QSO is the Friday night concerts. After a week there are fewer pleasures greater than a glass of something, a comfortable concert seat and music to soothe. The five concerts start at 7:30 pm so by 10pm you can be home in bed.

Each year QSO has special events. Four are offered in 2021: Beethoven to Bolero, Birds of Tokyo (sorry already sold out), Cinematic Heroes and Heroines (April), and Musical Theatre Gala in May celebrates the music of the stage.

Explore the QSO website – there is plenty of inspiration for an imaginative Christmas gift. As they tell us, Orchestra is for Everyone.

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