If it’s not Baroque, don’t fix it
Presented by: Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
Reviewed: 21 March, 2025
Australian conductor and award winning creative director Erin Helyard leads the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra for one of its grandest and most ornate performances of the season, at St Peter’s Cathedral in North Adelaide, Sacred & Profane Faith. Helyard is joined by internationally acclaimed baritone Morgan Pearse and several talented members of the ASO performing solos.
The acoustics and details of the Cathedral are perfect for this program, featuring devotion pieces from Johann Sebastian Bach and revelries from Georg Philipp Telemann. If it were not for the low profile speakers, artificial lighting, and sparse pedestal fans generating a mild breeze in the stifling cathedral, we could imagine ourselves back in the Baroque era.
Telemann’s Overture Suite in D opens the performance, with a lively and royal start before continuing for several dances. Helyard very impressively conducts while also performing the harpsichord. It is easy to be swept away with the venue and music, and imagine rich and detailed gowns sweeping across a dancefloor.
For Bach’s beloved Cantata No. 82, Helyard conducts while facing the audience and two soloists standing beside him (Pearse singing baritone and ASO member Joshua Oates on oboe). The first movement is a devout and beautiful duet between wind and vocals, each unique sound complimenting the other. Pearse’s rich and emotive voice rings through the Cathedral.
Next from Bach is the short organ piece Kyrie, God the Father Evermore performed by Helyard, followed by the quieter, lamentful and sorrowful Why Are You Then, O God.
Finally Telemann’s Overture Attached to a Tragic-Comic Suite, ends the performance with a bang, ensuring the audience is well awake for our drives home. An underrated gem, and beautiful example of lively orchestral Baroque.
Indulge in the opulence of a bygone era with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s Sacred & Profane Faith, showcasing many young talents from both Australia and abroad.
Reviewed by Nicola Woolford
Venue: St Peter’s Cathedral
Season: 21st – 22 March, 2025
Duration: 90 minutes
Tickets: $30.00 – $70.00
Bookings: https://www.aso.com.au/events/faith/
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