REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
Messiah, December 2011
'This was the first time I sang with this wonderful choir and I enjoyed every bit of it. On Saturday, when we had a standing ovation I mentioned to my neighbours and my daughter, that I wished we had sung the Hallelujah Chorus as an encore, and my neighbours who had sung many times before said that would never happen. And lo - the miracle of the encore!!! What a wonderful way to go out.'
Wilma Viswanathan, chorister for Messiah, December 2011
American Journeys, November 2011
'there was hidden a flowering ecstasy as the choir's voice materialised, a glowing anomaly of an outlier . . . I saw the Sydney Philharmonia Choristers exhibit the full power of choral music, demonstrating the beauty in everything, the divine from the dust.'
ArtsHub 11.11.2011
Bach B Minor Mass, October 2011
Article - 'Harmonies are made of this as baroque masterpiece thrills and soars
‘Hugely rewarding passages, notably the great final chorus, Dona nobis pacem where, joined by the four soloists, the contrapuntal fabric glowed and soared.’
Sydney Morning Herald, 17.10.2011
Bach St John Passion, April 2011
'The Philharmonia gave its evolving lines solidity, like a great calling together . . . overall the counterpoint was firm and the forward tread magnificently inevitable.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 25.04.2011
Harmonium, March 2011 – SSO performance
'The Philharmonia Choirs captured the extremity of range and colour and achieved a thriling sound in the outer movements'
Sydney Morning Herald 1.04.2011
Monteverdi's Vespers, November 2010
Article - Performance from the aisles seduces the audience
'THE Sydney Philharmonia Chamber Singers brought the splendours of the Venetian polychoral tradition to Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610, scattering singers and players to every corner of the City Recital Hall in a brilliant creation of sensuous colour.
This was a glorious evening of thrilling and seductive sound with a well-blended choir, soloists of finesse and a rare collection of experts playing replicas of 17th-century instruments . . . the Sydney Philharmonia Chamber Singers negotiated with spirited vigour while preserving a rich balance in the harmonic and chant-based numbers.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 28.11.2011
Berlioz – Te Deum, October 2010
Article – Each minute a delight in anniversary concert – 4/5 stars
‘Berlioz’s Te Deum – the large shapes and colouristic details emerged magnificently’
‘Peter Sculthorpe’s To Music - The choir turned the curious text, turning the intimate lines of the opening of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night into a song of praise, full of swelling harmonies and phrases.’
Sydney Morning Herald, 26.10.2010
Purcell’s King Arthur, September 2010
Article – A Hoot from history that engages all comers – 4.5/5 stars
‘Sydney Philharmonia Choirs have unearthed a real beauty . . . the genius of Sydney Philharmonia Choirs' staging is the way director Karen Vickery and artistic director Brett Weymark channel the satirical spirit of Dryden and make everyone in City Recital Hall, artists and audience inclusive, complicit in the fun . . . the music is spectacular, with lusty singing and tight discipline in the choir and a consistently classy sound from the orchestra . . . All that remains to be said is congratulations to all, and when can we see it again?’
Sydney Morning Herald, 28.09.2010
Mahler 8, February 2010 – SSO performance
Article – Massed forces shine in message of love
‘a wonderfully cohesive sound from the Sydney Philharmonia’
Sydney Morning Herald, 20.02.2010
War and Peace, November 2009
Article – Voices raised in warnings of warfare from three composers in three ages
‘Andrew Schultz’s new work, Beach Burial . . . The Philharmonia, under Brett Weymark, sang it with sympathetic intensity.’
‘Haydn’s Mass in Time of War: In the great chorus "Beat! Beat! Drums!" Weymark and the Philharmonia delivered Walt Whitman's ironic text with cataclysmic ferocity and an apt sense of contrast and excess.’
Sydney Morning Herald, 04.11.2009
PRESS REVIEWS & TESTIMONIALS
Bach B Minor Mass, October 2011
'Harmonies are made of this as baroque masterpiece thrills and soars . . . hugely rewarding passages, notably the great final chorus, Dona nobis pacem where, joined by the four soloists, the contrapuntal fabric glowed and soared.
Sydney Morning Herald, 17.10.2011
Brighton to Bondi, September 2011
'VOX – 'the seamless blend of voices and clear, heartfelt lyrics provided one of the most moving moments of the evening.'
'Weymark's own composition, Brighton to Bondi, was an effective, well-crafted piece of choral writing which cleverly used three choirs, an organ and the physical space of the hall'
Sydney Morning Herald,
Article 'Choral arrangements bloom' 19.09.2011
Brahms Requiem, August 2011
'Beautiful . . .' 'the choir's performance was consistently impressive' 'Brett Weymark was a rock throughout, coaxing the sound, shaping the phrases and pulling a fine performance from a choir'
Sydney Morning Herald -
Article 'Inspired performance of beauty and wonder' 22.08.2011
Eric Whitacre Works, August 2011
'a crunching rainbow of harmony . . . a nimble display of rhythmic whimsy . . . beautifully balanced choral sound was sweet'
Sydney Morning Herald -
Article 'Inspired performance of beauty and wonder' 22.08.2011
Audience Praise for Fauré Requiem, July 2011
'We so loved Friday night's Fauré'sRequiem. The small orchestra and chamber choir playing in the City Recital Hall allowed us to feel the piece much more intimately. The principal soloists, particularly Morgan Pearse and, of course, Sara MacLiver, were just wonderful. The soaring of the music in the Sanctus and the beautiful violin playing by Alice Evans moved us both to tears. We rejoiced in the music.'
Bill and Eva Johnstone
The Planets (with Sydney Symphony), July 2011
'the Ladies of the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs created an other-worldly aura of ravishing enchantment.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 11.07.2011
It's All About Rhythm, May 2011
Article - Big, bold and beautiful voices . . .
'Sydney Philharmonia Choirs entered into the party spirit with enthusiasm, but also with the focused edge of a well-drilled army of choristers. It was a consistently exhilarating sound. The musical director Brett Weymark was an impressive general, whipping the troops up into a tightly-controlled frenzy. Of the individual sections, tenors and basses were particularly impressive . . . Another highlight was Si puer cum puellula, deftly sung by the choir's own boy band, the male choristers from Vox, in fine strutting form.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 19.05.2011
'Brett Weymark's helmanship was precise and idiomatic. The huge choral forces and instrumentalists of the Sydney Youth Orchestra and Philharmonia's own responded meticulously.'
North Shore Times 20.05.2011
"Performing Carmina Burana has certainly add an exciting new dimension to my routine. Thanks for giving me 'voice' (literally) to express myself and performing it in the Sydney Opera House makes it even more special."
Devlyn H Song,Chorister – Festival Chorus
Bach St John Passion, April 2011
'The Philharmonia gave its evolving lines solidity, like a great calling together . . . overall the counterpoint was firm and the forward tread magnificently inevitable.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 25.04.2011
'The really sweet Easter treat for lovers of classical music was the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs' performance of Johann Sebastian Bach's mighty St John Passion. Under the energetic baton of conductor Brett Weymark soloists, Symphony Chorus, Chamber Singers and orchestra blended seamlessly for a truly uplifting experience. Tenor Paul McMahon was outstanding as the Evangelist but this was a brilliant advertisement for the talents of the entire company.'
The Daily Telegraph 26.04.2011
'Nothing can beat a live performance of a wonderful work. You really did Father Bach proud tonight. My only regret was not being up there in the choir stalls singing with you! Special thanks to Brett. What a gift you are to Sydney and I was sorry you didn't indulge yourself just a little tonight and receive your own deserving ovation after such a marathon effort. Please don't leave ever us!!'
Barb and Vern Wilkinson, Concert attendees
Harmonium, March 2011
'The Philharmonia Choirs captured the extremity of range and colour and achieved a thriling sound in the outer movements'
Sydney Morning Herald 1.04.2011
'The Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, under chorusmaster Brett Weymark, were superlative in this performance'
The Blacktown Advocate 30.03.2011
Midsummer Shakespeare, Symphony in the Domain, January 2011
'Perfection: the Sydney Symphony, the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs and John Bell. It couldn't get any better. A night to remember.'
Margaret-Anne Hayes, Turramurra – printed in the Sydney Morning Herald 24.01.2011
'What I did enjoy, was the combination and the deft control of Weymark. I had only a sideways view of the orchestra, and no view at all of the choir, but I did not need to see - not with ears to hear! And they soared! Often without words, but with glorious scat - are you allowed to call it that? I loved the combination more than anything else. Terrific night. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Will go again next year. Now to check the Shakespeare and the Philharmonia websites.'
Julie – blogged review on http://sydney-eye.blogspot.com
Handel – Messiah, December 2010
'The Philharmonia's core choristers negotiated the tough fugues and tricky melisma of favourites like ''All we like sheep'' with aplomb, while the massed choir, brilliantly drilled and singing from memory, swelled the chorales with a precise but thrilling roar . . . Of the four soloists, the most impressive was Andrew Collis, whose even bass tones shook the nations with focus and immediacy.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 14.12.2010
Monteverdi's Vespers, November 2010
Article - Performance from the aisles seduces the audience
'THE Sydney Philharmonia Chamber Singers brought the splendours of the Venetian polychoral tradition to Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610, scattering singers and players to every corner of the City Recital Hall in a brilliant creation of sensuous colour.
This was a glorious evening of thrilling and seductive sound with a well-blended choir, soloists of finesse and a rare collection of experts playing replicas of 17th-century instruments . . . the Sydney Philharmonia Chamber Singers negotiated with spirited vigour while preserving a rich balance in the harmonic and chant-based numbers.'
Sydney Morning Herald, 28.11.2011
"The concert was just outstanding, when the choristers processed down the aisles singing the first movement it was deeply moving. It had all these magical moments right through the whole concert. Brett Weymark has this way of embracing not just his orchestra and choristers, but also of his audience with this incredible warmth that is genuinely from the heart. We need this type of conductor to get concert attendees and for classical music to survive for the next generation coming through."
Emesini Hazelden, concert attendee, Manly Vale NSW
'What a fabulous performance last night of Monteverdi's Vespers. It truly was an awesome sound and the choreography of the many artists in the balconies/auditorium was really fabulous. The sound emanating from the back and top of the Recital hall was great. So thank you to ALL for the performance last night.'
Linda Kepitis, concert attendee, Neutral Bay NSW