Orange Chamber Music Festival | 2025
March 6 to 9, 2025, Orange NSW
The Orange Chamber Music Festival continues to cement its reputation as one of Australia’s most vibrant regional music festivals, offering a compelling mix of internationally renowned and local talent. This year’s programming stood out for its commitment to Australian classical music and its thematic nods to International Women’s Day. With beautifully spaced concerts that allowed audiences to fully experience both the festival and the charm of Orange itself, the weekend showcased the region’s cultural and culinary delights alongside absolutely top world-class performances.
With colourful tree-lined streets, charming historic buildings and tastefully designed modern public spaces, early autumn is the perfect time to visit this thriving regional NSW city. Excellent local restaurants, farm fresh produce and cellar doors add to the festival’s appeal. This year’s free community concerts made perfect use of Orange’s cultural precinct, drawing in both travelling festival-goers and locals to enjoy exceptional musicianship in stunning surroundings.
While I didn’t get to the Thursday opening concerts I heard from other audience members that the performances were fantastic… here’s a snapshot of the concerts I was lucky enough to catch.
FRIDAY
Brass and the City – Lyrebird Brass
A brass quintet might not be the first ensemble that springs to mind when thinking about chamber music, but Lyrebird Brass made a compelling case for the genre’s expressive and dynamic possibilities. With a program that spanned centuries and styles, the ensemble delivered a striking and sophisticated performance that pushed the boundaries of brass chamber music. The concert’s diversity was particularly striking, juxtaposing Victor Ewald’s Quintet No. 1 – long considered one of the first original works composed for brass quintet – with contemporary Australian compositions such as Cathy Likhuta’s audience firendly Apex Predators and Alice Humphries’ Uncertain Meditations. The latter, described by horn player Carla Blackwood as “the brass equivalent of forest bathing,” enveloped the audience in shimmering, atmospheric textures, offering a moment of meditative calm.
The most touching moment, however, came with Michael Tilson Thomas’s Street Song. As sunlight streamed through the stained-glass windows of the Orange Uniting Church, casting a rainbow of colours across the small stage, the musicians delivered a performance that felt both poignant and celebratory. The piece carried an added resonance following the recent announcement of Tilson Thomas’s retirement due to illness. A student of Leonard Bernstein, his legacy in music is profound, and this tribute – performed by an ensemble of exemplary musicians (all lecturers from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music) was a moving and fitting acknowledgment of his impact on the brass repertoire.
Café Parisienne – Alexandra Osborne, Elina Faskhi & Andrea Lam
A concert of elegance and grace – including, I must say, the audience who were dressed up for the evening which added to the experience. Café Parisienne transported audiences to a Parisian salon, with a beautifully curated program of Fauré, Debussy and Schoenfield. The trio’s performance was refined and expressive, culminating in Café Music, a thrilling blend of jazz, classical, and popular styles that had the audience gasping in delight before delivering a standing ovation.
Throughout the concert, the ensemble displayed remarkable synergy, moving seamlessly from the refined lyricism of Fauré’s Piano Trio – with its intricate interplay of themes – to the youthful charm of Debussy’s G minor Piano Trio, composed when he was just 18. Their interpretation of Café Music was a highlight, capturing the playful spirit of Schoenfield’s eclectic work, which borrows from ragtime, blues and Broadway. The audience was transfixed by the trio’s effortless technical command and dynamic phrasing, making this concert a true standout of the festival.
SATURDAY
Cultured: Free Community Concerts
The festival’s Cultured program offered vibrant and accessible performances throughout Saturday, making full use of Orange’s public cultural spaces. These free community events are a unique and welcome aspect of the OCMF and, judging by the strong attendance, it’s clear the city takes its culture seriously.
- Elemental Resonance by harpist Paul Nicolaou explored the natural elements through sound and colour, creating a sensory-rich experience.
- Australiana, performed by the 70 member strong Cultured Youth Orchestra and Wula Gurray Children’s Choir, showcased young musicians from the Central West performing contemporary Australian compositions. Under the direction of Joanna Drimatis, the young performers delivered an exhilarating program that balanced complexity with enthusiasm. The participants receive specialised string, woodwind, brass and percussion tutorials and coaching from leading Australian orchestral artists and ensembles during the festival week, such as the ACO Collective, Lyrebird Brass, the Australian Music Centre and others. It was wonderful to see the mentorship provided to these emerging classical musicians.
- ACO Collective Quartet performed alongside artist Ann Thomson’s exhibition at the Orange Regional Gallery, enveloping the audience in a dialogue between music and art. Ross Edwards’ solo viola work Enyato, requested specifically by the artist, set the tone for a program of striking contrasts, culminating in an encore of fast, duelling fiddles in a joyous country-dance flourish.
Watercolours – Vermillion Trio
Local musicians flautist David Shaw, cellist Stephanie Li, and pianist Luke Moxey presented a stunningly evocative concert that explored music’s deep connection to visual art. Sally Greenaway’s The Strawberry Thief opened the program with playful storytelling, while Elena Kats-Chernin’s Colours of the Sea transported listeners through shifting sonic palettes. Nikolai Kapustin’s Trio for Flute, Cello, and Piano was a highlight, with jazz-inflected rhythms and exhilarating interplay that had the audience breaking into spontaneous applause. This was a concert of colour and imagery showcasing local musicianship.
Opus:Her – Festival Gala
The centrepiece of the festival, Opus:Her was a powerful and deeply original tribute to women composers, performers and leaders. Curated by the Festival Director, this major gala event told a profound story of female creativity across the centuries, seamlessly blending music, archival footage, and spoken word.
Virtuoso pianist Sonya Lifschitz and composer Robert Davidson presented So Much Myself: Piano Portraits, a work that transforms historical speech into music, drawing melodic contours from the voices of the featured women. The result was astonishing – rhythmic, evocative and deeply moving, as if history itself were singing. The concert wove together themes of resilience, intellect and artistic brilliance with Lifschitz’s playing providing both the anchor and the emotional pulse of the work.
Interspersed throughout this innovative centrepiece, stunning performances by violinist Alexandra Osborne, cellist Elina Faskhi, and pianist Andrea Lam, whose interpretations of works by Clara Schumann, Ethel Smyth, Florence Price and Nadia Boulanger highlighted the extraordinary contributions of women in classical music. Each composition felt like a statement – of artistic ambition, of defiance against historical limitations, and of sheer beauty.
The performers were exceptional, their technical mastery matched by an emotional intensity that resonated through the concert hall. The evening was a testament to the power of storytelling through music, reinforcing how contemporary interpretations of classical voices can amplify the voices of women who shaped history. The audience was captured from beginning to end.
SUNDAY
Conversations – A Reflective Close
One of the most unique and insightful aspects of the festival was the closing conversation featuring the Festival Director Carmen Nieves and this year’s featured artists, moderated by Sonya Lifschitz. Held in a tucked-away theatre at the Orange Regional Gallery, the discussion touched on the joys and challenges of musical collaboration, the organic evolution of performance, and the impact of regional touring. The intimacy of this festival, they all agreed, fostered a deep connection between performers and the audience, creating something truly magical and unrepeatable.
A Festival to Remember
Orange Chamber Music Festival 2025 was more than just a series of concerts – it was an immersive cultural experience that blended music, history, visual arts and regional charm. Each venue, from the Orange Civic Theatre to the intimate conservatorium spaces, felt perfectly suited to its program. And beyond the performances, the weekend offered the best of Orange: incredible food, award-winning wines, and a relaxed but vibrant atmosphere.
This festival has truly established itself as a standout event in the Australian chamber music calendar. With a thoughtfully curated program, outstanding musicianship and a deep commitment to both emerging and established artists, it’s no wonder audiences are already looking forward to next year. Bravo to all involved!
P.S. SAVE THE DATE: March 12-19, 2026
