Debussy La Mer
Nielsen Symphony No 5
AYO/Thomas Dausgaard
Sydney Opera House, July 22

It is always a privilege and a pleasure to attend a concert by the Australian Youth Orchestra. The cream of Australia’s emerging orchestral talent is a joy to behold and this concert was a corker. They were directed by the splendid Danish conductor, Thomas Dausgaard, who was last here in 2008. We were offered two works, Debussy’s La Mer and Carl Nielsen’s Fifth Symphony. As this was one of the popular Tea and Symphony concerts with a shorter program than is usual, the Carl Vine Violin Concerto, which had featured at earlier performances, was not played.

Debussy’s remarkable evocation of the sea never dates; it is never anything other than a miraculous orchestral creation. On this occasion Dausgaard encouraged his players to treat the music with airy lightness, a style which infuses the best French music of the period. The orchestral detail was as clear as a bell, the sparkle and splashes of water and light effectively observed.

It is probably an unfair comparison, but the upper strings and horns were in fine form compared to their counterparts in our permanent orchestras! The AYO...