Gathering together the best Australian instrumental players from around the globe, the Australian World Orchestra is now such a fixture in the musical life of our country that it is somewhat startling to be reminded that it was formed only nine years ago. During that time, the quality of its performances has impressed not only the Australian public but overseas audiences and a number of legendary conductors.

Alexander Briger and the Australian World Orchestra in 2016. Photograph © Anna Kucera)

For this year’s concerts the orchestra was conducted by its founder, Alexander Briger, in a program featuring works by Westlake, Janáček and Sibelius. Westlake’s Flying Dream (drawing on material from his score for the film, Paper Planes) was an appropriately upbeat curtain-raiser. Responding enthusiastically to the music’s various textures, the players delivered a polished account, giving plenty of impetus to the generic film-score rhythms and shaping its lyrical elements with elegance.

Briger has long had a love of the music of Janáček, something he had in common with his uncle, the late Sir Charles Mackerras. How fitting, then, that Briger should share his expertise in a welcome opportunity to hear the rarely performed symphonic...