The Australian Chamber Orchestra crowned its European tour with a concert for Prince Charles.

Richard Tognetti and the Australian Chamber Orchestra have ended their 2011 European concert series on a high with a performance in the presence of Prince Charles at St James’s Palace in London.

The 150 invited guests gathered at the state apartments for a program of British music by Elgar and Walton, a nod to HRH’s favourite composer Hubert Parry (minuet from the English Suite), popular evergreens (Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings and Vivaldi’s Summer concerto) and an Australian work (Sculthorpe’s Lament). The encore was Piazzolla’s Oblivion in Tognetti’s own arrangement.

Prince Charles praised the string players as “a wonderful example of Australian musical talent”. After the performance, said violist Stephen King, the Prince chatted about music and surfing with members of the orchestra. It was a fitting end to King’s eight-and-a-half years with the ACO, his final performance with the ensemble before moving into his new role with the Australian String Quartet.

The event also marked the 20th anniversary of the group’s annual tours to England and followed a tour featuring clarinetist Martin Fröst in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and...