Pekka Kuusisto: Legends & Luminaries

The  Australian Chamber Orchestra is one of the most acclaimed chamber orchestras in the world. Led by their pioneering Artistic Director Richard Tognetti, the Orchestra is defined by its exceptional virtuosity and an irrepressible sense of adventure and curiosity.

Singular artist Pekka Kuusisto makes his long-awaited return to direct the Australian Chamber Orchestra in music that transcends age and time.
Pekka Kuusisto returns to the ACO after nearly a decade to direct music from four prodigious talents. Kuusisto is an artist unbound by convention, who embodies an artistic freedom that is unexpected and thrilling. As a renowned virtuoso and boundary- crossing composer, he pushes the limits of performance into exciting new realms, championing contemporary music with an openness and warmth that captivates audiences.

Mozart is the original prodigy. His effervescent opera The Magic Flute is filled with sparkling lyricism and the Australian Chamber Orchestra will play some of its most loved tunes. Nico Muhly's Shrink, written especially for Kuusisto's extraordinary talents, is a big, glittering violin concerto that plays with smaller and smaller intervals as it bristles with intensity.

Felix Mendelssohn's precocious talents were evident as a child and began to outstrip even Mozart as a teen. His Quintet in B-flat major harnesses a fierce energy and lively power – a perfect match for the effusive style of the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Kuusisto.