She Speaks
Concert 2
Saturday 20 June, Elder Hall
Generously supported by Mary Lou Simpson OAM and the ASO’s Miriam Hyde Circle
Duration Approx. 2 hrs 15 mins including interval
Grażyna Bacewicz Overture [6′]
Australian Premiere
Grace-Evangeline Mason Upon Weightless Wings [12′]
I. In Sheep’s Clothing
II. and, between light and darkness
III. To Breathe Now
World Premiere
Anne Cawrse The King Walks in the Orangerie [35′]
INTERVAL
Anna Clyne Within Her Arms [12′]
Australian Premiere
Thea Musgrave Night Windows [15′]
I. Loneliness
II. Anger
III. Nostalgia
IV. Despair
V. Frenzy
Australian Premiere
Imogen Holst Persephone [12′]
Program Note
This concert presents the music of women, much of which Australia is yet to experience. One piece was composed almost a century ago, and finally receives its premiere in this country. Another is brand new; you are the first to listen. Through this series, we hear voices that history neglected, and voices of our time that broke through. We begin with Grażyna Bacewicz.
An overture is an introduction to music yet to come, and Bacewicz’s work in this form sets the tone for She Speaks: her energising Overture rings of victory over hardship. Writing music as a woman during the wartime shows a strength and resilience we can hear in her very notes: timpani beats the rhythm of V for victory in Morse code. This Overture was composed in 1943 as Germany occupied her homeland of Poland, and was premiered afterward in 1945.
Grace-Evangeline Mason’s 2018 Upon Weightless Wings receives its Australian premiere in this concert. The British composer was inspired by non-musical sources: her first movement In Sheep’s Clothing features haunting strings and tubular bells in its representation of a pine sculpture by Martin Puryear. and, between light and darkness depicts Manuel Huertas Torrejon’s painting of two birds. To Breathe Now was influenced by the mirrors and rainbows of Kimsooja’s palace-based installation.
Anne Cawrse is an Australian composer whose work The King Walks in the Orangerie tonight receives its World Premiere. Like Mason, Cawrse was inspired by art beyond music: a poem of the same name by Kathryn Purnell. Through the voices of tenor and strings, Cawrse’s song cycle tells the tales of Louis XIV, and is set in Versailles. She offers artistic insights into the world of a former king, encouraging us to think about our world today.
Within Her Arms opens with yearning strings that touch on grief at the loss of a parent. London-born composer Anna Clyne dedicated this music to her mother, and the score includes meticulous and heartfelt guidance to the performers. ‘Musicians should play with a warm tone,’ Clyne instructs. She tells the players to inhale or exhale in a ‘wispy breath’; to play ‘with softness and elasticity’. This music premiered in Los Angeles, 2009.
Scottish-American composer Thea Musgrave explored a different emotion in each movement of her 2008 Night Windows. In Loneliness, we hear in the oboe’s solitary call. Then Anger takes over as the soloist plays in a ‘furioso’ style. Nostalgia is a dreamlike movement before Despair and Frenzy conclude its Australian premiere performance. These emotions evoke Edward Hopper’s painting of the same name and sentiment.
As an important advocate and composer of British music in the 20th Century, Imogen Holst brought new significance to her famous family name. It is extraordinary that she wrote her enchanting and cinematic Persephone while still a student at the Royal College of Music in London. It dates back to 1929, yet Australia has neglected to perform it until today.
© Stephanie Eslake
Artists
Sara Duhig | Conductor
Sara Duhig is a highly regarded conductor and musician based in Perth. Her extensive background as a professional violinist and educator has naturally led to a flourishing conducting career.
In 2022, Sara made her conducting debut with the Perth Symphony Orchestra, performing Iain Farrington’s arrangement of Mahler’s Symphony No. 4. She has since conducted the orchestra on multiple occasions including a sold-out show ‘INXS reimagined’ at the Crown Theatre. Sara has recently delved into the art of conducting to screen, embarking on a national tour of ‘Avatar: the Last Airbender in Concert’, and ‘Top Gun: Maverick in Concert’.
Sara is dedicated to advancing her conducting skills and in 2024 received a WASO Conducting Fellowship. She is a participant of the 2025/2026 Australian Conducting Academy, working with all state orchestras of Australia under the direction of Benjamin Northey. She recently completed conducting studies at the University of Adelaide where she was mentored by Luke Dollman.
In 2026, Sara will debut with both the Adelaide and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras, further advancing her growing presence in Australia’s classical music scene.
Kate Suthers | Violin/Director
Based in the UK until her appointment as Concertmaster of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra in 2022, Sydney-born violinist Kate Suthers’ versatile career spans string quartet to symphony orchestra, and ranges across music of all ages and styles. Kate has always played music by living composers, and has worked with Thomas Adès, Jonny Greenwood, Sir James MacMillan, Anna Meredith and Jörg Widmann. She has collaborated across art forms in opera, theatre, film, and dance, and enjoys working with artists of different traditions.
Before holding positions in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Kate studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London with renowned violinist and teacher György Pauk. In 2022, Kate was made an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music.
Kate’s upcoming engagements include performances with Scottish Ensemble, leading the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, chamber music in both hemispheres, and further performances as soloist and play/director with the ASO.
In May 2026, she took up the role of Artistic Director at the Coriole Music Festival in McLaren Vale.
Kate Suthers plays a Carlo Carletti violin from Pieve di Cento, Bologna, c.1920. Her musical heroes are Caroline Shaw, Bach, and the Danish String Quartet.
Kyle Stegall | Tenor
American-born tenor Kyle Stegall is a noted interpreter of baroque and classical repertoire on both opera and concert stages. He has appeared as the Evangelist in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, St Matthew Passion, and St John Passion, and in works such as Bach’s Mass in B Minor and Magnificat, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Requiem and Great Mass in C Minor, Haydn’s Creation, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Monteverdi’s Vespers, and Beethoven’s Mass in C major. Further repertoire includes Verdi’s Requiem, Stravinsky’s Pulcinella, Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music and Dvořák’s Stabat Mater.
A champion of lesser-known operatic repertoire, Kyle has sung the title role in Charpentier’s Actéon, Hippolyte in Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie, Vistola in Caccini’s Alcina, Tommaso in Schwendinger’s Artemisia, and Glauco in Ziani’s La Circe. He has also performed Tamino (Die Zauberflöte), Edgardo (Lucia di Lammermoor), and Little Bat in Floyd’s Susannah. He made his Australian mainstage debut as Belmonte (Abduction from the Seraglio) with Victorian Opera, his State Opera South Australia debut as Roméo (Roméo et Juliette) and, most recently, his Pinchgut Opera debut as Adam in Scarlatti’s Il primo omicidio.
Kyle’s discography includes Circé (Boston Early Music Festival), Messiah (American Bach Soloists), and the solo albums Visions and Myrtle and Rose.
Joshua Oates | Oboe
Joshua Oates has been the Principal Oboe of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra since 2020 and is a sought after musician across the country. Joshua studied with some of today’s leading oboists, undertaking a masters in Germany with internationally acclaimed oboist Philippe Tondre. Prior to this, he was a Sydney Symphony Orchestra fellow under the mentorship of Diana Doherty, Shefali Pryor and Alexandre Oguey. During his time in Germany, Joshua played in theatre orchestras in Aachen, Düsseldorf and Saarbrücken, as well as guest principal with Cappella Aquileia Heidenheim, and has also played as guest principal in most of Australia’s professional orchestras.
Joshua holds first class honours from the Elder Conservatorium of Music Adelaide where he studied with Celia Craig. He is a keen recitalist and chamber musician, and had his premiere as solo artist at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music in 2023. Joshua cares passionately about how artists work with and represent the community and is privileged to do so through performing, teaching/mentoring Australia’s next generation of oboists, as well as engaging in numerous community events. As a concerto artist, he enjoys presenting many genres, including the Australian premieres of the Ruth Gipps Oboe Concerto and Thea Musgrave’s Night Windows, both with the ASO.
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
VIOLINS
Kate Suthers** (Concertmaster)
Holly Piccoli* (Acting Associate Concertmaster)
Alison Rayner* (Acting Principal 1st Violin)
Alison Heike** (Principal 2nd Violin)
Emma Perkins~ (Acting Associate Principal 2nd Violin)
Janet Anderson
Runa Baagøe
Erna Berberyan
Minas Berberyan
Gillian Braithwaite
Julia Brittain
Nadia Buck
Chia-Nan Hung
Lucy Macourt
Michael Milton
Julie Newman
Liam Oborne
Alexander Permezel
VIOLAS
Christopher Moore** (Guest Section Principal)
Linda Garrett~ (Acting Associate Principal)
Teagan Freer
Rosi McGowran
Georgie Price
Michael Robertson
CELLOS
Martin Smith** (Guest Section Principal)
Gemma Philips~ (Acting Associate Principal)
Sherrilyn Handley
David Sharp
Cameron Waters
DOUBLE BASSES
David Schilling**
Harley Gray~ (Acting Associate Principal)
Holly Little
Gustavo Quintino
FLUTES
Julia Grenfell** (Acting Section Principal)
Maria Hincapie Duque
PICCOLO
Lisa Gill* (Acting Principal)
OBOES
Renae Stavely** (Acting Section Principal)
Jade Elsdon
COR ANGLAIS
Peter Duggan*
CLARINETS
Dean Newcomb**
Darren Skelton
BASS CLARINET
Mitchell Berick*
BASSOONS
Mark Gaydon**
Leah Stephenson
CONTRA BASSOON
Angus McBride* (Guest Principal)
HORNS
Sarah Barrett** (Acting Section Principal)
Emma Gregan
Philip Paine*
Timothy Skelly
TRUMPETS
David Khafagi**
Martin Phillipson~
Gregory Frick
TROMBONES
Colin Prichard**
John Gluyas
BASS TROMBONE
Amanda Tillett*
TUBA
Stan McDonald*
TIMPANI
Andrew Penrose*
PERCUSSION
Steven Peterka**
Sami Butler~
HARP
Jessica Fotinos*
KEYBOARD
Simón Pazos Quintana* (Guest Principal)
** denotes Section Principal
~ denotes Associate Principal
* denotes Principal Player
Presented in collaboration with Elder Conservatorium of Music and Performing Arts .