Music / Cocteau’s Circle, Australian Chamber Orchestra. At Llewellyn Hall, November 22. Reviewed by THAYER PREECE. 

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and they finished off the year by throwing a party.

The concert’s celebratory atmosphere began even before the house lights went down, as the musicians wandered and danced on to the stage one by one to join in a jazz-inspired jam session. 

After witnessing many of the ACO’s Canberra performances across the last several years, it has become apparent that the ACO’s most entertaining performances tend to be those that depart from the traditional and expected. Cocteau’s Circle certainly maintained that trend, as right from the start, the audience could tell they were in for something a little different. 

Cocteau’s Circle is a nod to 1920s Paris and the luminaries who inhabited its artistic scene. Those noted figures included the eponymous Jean Cocteau, and also composers such as Erik Satie, Francis Poulenc, and Darius Milhaud, all of whom were represented in the program for this concert.

The program didn’t limit itself to French composers exclusively, and contemporaries such as American George Gershwin, and Russian Igor Stravinsky also made appearances in the extensive list of scores performed by the ensemble. 

To guide the audience through the concert, the role of maître d’ was performed by the sparkling (both literally and figuratively) performer Le Gateau Chocolat, who helped transport the audience from the stately confines of Llewellyn Hall to the intimate corners of Parisian Bistro Le Boeuf Sur le Toit where the aforementioned composers rubbed shoulders with other historical greats such as Ernest Hemingway and Josephine Baker. 

Also performing alongside the ACO’s instrumentalists was Canberra-raised soprano Chloe Lankshear, whose clear and charming voice contrasted beautifully with the deep bass of host Gateau, who also doubled as vocal soloist.

Other artists who contributed to the striking look and feel of the performance included staging director Yaron Lifschitz, and costume designer Libby McDonnell, who outfitted every performer in a smart suit, except Le Gauteau, of course, whose sequins and glitter stood out even more against that monochromatic backdrop. 

Most of the music in the evening’s program was created in the early 20th century, however, the extensive list of works was woven together by one of Australia’s most recognisable living composers, Elena Kats-Chernin. Kats-Chernin’s interstitial music bound the diverse works together in a way that was respectful to the music of the period, while also linking it to the current day. The effect was so seamless that one barely noticed the effective scene-setting score behind Le Gateau’s narrations. 

The quality of the ACO musicians’ performance almost goes without saying. The ensemble is composed of many of the most well-trained and experienced musicians in Australia, playing instruments made by the likes of Stradivarius or Amati. Because these musicians perform together regularly, their sense of ensemble is impeccable, whether they are performing challenging rhythmic passages or sweeping lyrical melodies.

What do you get when you combine Australia’s top classical musicians with two compelling vocalists and staging that evokes one of the most strikingly creative times and places in modern history? 

An incredible evening of music and artistic performance that was clearly enjoyed by its enthusiastic audience. As the ensemble basked in thunderous applause, music director Richard Tognetti shouted his support for the embattled ANU School of Music, in whose hall the concert took place.