MASTER AND COMMANDER

COMPOSER/VIOLINIST RICHARD TOGNETTI LEADS AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA ON U.S. TOUR

WHAT:                        Tacoma Philharmonic presents

                                     THE AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

                                     Richard Tognetti, Artistic Director and Lead Violin

                                     Piotr Anderszewski, Piano

WHEN:                       Sunday, April 18, 2004 at 7:00 P.M.   

                                    Pantages Theater, 901 Broadway, Tacoma

                                                Pre-concert lecture by University of Puget Sound’s Geoffrey Block at 6:00 p.m.

TICKETS:                  SINGLE TICKETS     $25-$55

                                    SENIOR/MILITARY/STUDENTS:  $10 OFF DISCOUNT

                        STUDENT/SENIOR RUSH TICKETS – DAY OF SHOW: 50% Discount

CONTACT:               Call (253) 272-0809 or (253) 591-5894

Tickets available in person at Pantages Theater Ticket Office, or purchase online through www.broadwaycenter.org

PROGRAM:              CORELLI                    Concerto Grosso in D Major, Op. 6 No. 4

                                    BACH                         Piano Concerto in D Minor, BWV 1052

                                    HAYDN                      Piano Concerto in D Major, Hob. XVIII: 11

                                    SCHUBERT                “Death and the Maiden”

TACOMA, WA– In April 2004 the Australian Chamber Orchestra embarks on a 13-city USA Tour which culminates on May 2 with a performance at Carnegie Hall.  The ACO is led by Academy Award nominee Richard Tognetti, co-composer and violinist on the Master and Commander soundtrack and Artistic Director of the Orchestra, and will feature internationally-renowned pianist Piotr Anderszewski as soloist.  The ACO will perform one concert in Washington State during its current U.S. tour, to be held on Sunday, April 18 at 7:00 p.m. at the historic Pantages Theater in Tacoma.  The event is presented by Tacoma Philharmonic.

 Founded in 1975, the Australian Chamber Orchestra has built an international reputation for its artistic excellence and adventurous programming. Unmatched in its provocative expansion of the chamber orchestra repertoire, the ACO’s stylistic versatility allows it to perform on modern or period instruments, as a small chamber group, as a small symphony orchestra and as an electro-acoustic ensemble.

 The ACO’s national concert season – over 80 performances every year in Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Newcastle, Perth, Sydney, and Wollongong, as well as regular regional tours – gives it the largest subscription audience base for a chamber orchestra in the world. Regular international tours to Asia, Europe and the USA have drawn outstanding reviews for its performances at many of the world’s prestigious concert halls, including Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, London’s Wigmore Hall, New York’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, Vienna’s Musikverein and Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center.  On its European Tour in May 1999, The Times of London declared: “This must be the best chamber orchestra on Earth.” 

 Artistic Director and Lead Violin Richard Tognetti, who was made a National Living Treasure in 1999, performs on a 1759 JB Guadagnini violin, using a combination of raw gut and steel strings. The violin was purchased by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia for its Fine Art collection and has been lent to Mr. Tognetti on a semi-permanent basis.  With rock-musician Iva Davies he co-wrote and performed on electric violin The Ghost of Time for an international millennium broadcast with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra on December 31, 1999 at the Sydney Opera House.

 Mr. Tognetti co-composed the score to Peter Weir’s new film Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, and is featured on the Academy Award-nominated soundtrack as soloist.  He also was the personal violin tutor to the film’s star, Russell Crowe, during the filming of the picture.

 Piotr Anderszewski is among the most compelling of the current generation of pianists.  Since launching his international career at London's Wigmore Hall in 1991 with a recital featuring Beethoven's Diabelli Variations, Mr. Anderszewski has continued to capture the attention of critics and audiences worldwide with his distinctive interpretations and commanding technique, and is no stranger to international accolades.  He plays Bach with “crystalline precision” and “a high level of intellectual command” and “communicative strength” writes The Chicago Tribune and The Boston Globe states that he is “a poet of the keyboard, an interpretative genius” and a “mesmerizing creative talent”.

 Ticket Information

Tickets may be purchased by telephone through the Tacoma Philharmonic by calling (253) 272-0809 or the Pantages Theater Ticket Office by calling (253) 591-5894.  Tickets are available in person at the Pantages Theater Ticket Office, which is open Monday through Friday from 11:30am-5:30pm and two hours prior to each scheduled concert.  Tickets may be purchased online by visiting the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts’ website, www.broadwaycenter.org