Canberra International Music Festival overview by Jennifer Gall & Leonard Weiss

Jennifer Gall:

These are my thoughts at the end of the 2017 International Music Festival. The strengths of the programming were the wealth of works by Shostakovich; the appearance of the Turner Trebles and Vocal Fry performing the works by Chris Sainsbury, Brenda Gifford and William Barton; the collaboration with the NMA to present Harvest of Endurance – a Scroll and a Concert; the performance in Game On! by the Canberra Youth Orchestra; performances of Andrew Ford's Waiting for the Barbarians and The Unquiet Grave and Topology's The Art of Speech. My favourite concerts were The Velvet Revolution with its rather surprising blend of compositions across time; Why Do the Nations – once again, because the unlikely combination of contemporary and early works revealed unexpected treasures in each item; and the Australian Miniatures for Carillon concert, which featured 10 new, strikingly distinctive works performed by Lyn Fuller and Thomas Lau. The physical experience of carillon music is a transformative encounter wherever the listener is positioned – either in the bell tower observing the levers and taut wires in action or outside on the magical carillon island, where the wind and weather is an integral part of concerts. Canberra is indeed fortunate to have two internationally regarded carillonists. Fuller and Lau transported the audience to an extraordinary dimension encompassing the intimate space around the instrument and reaching into the distance across the lake, seemingly to the Brindabellas, as the bells rang out.

Areas of the festival that I think could be built on are:

First, the inclusion of more Indigenous musicians and composers with collaborations between choirs from Indigenous communities and from our own Canberra choral communities – particularly children's choirs.

Second, we have a fine tradition of ANU School of Music composition graduates resident in all corners of the globe, dating back to the school's establishment. Concerts focusing on their works would celebrate the role of Canberra as a city with a continuing tradition of producing and nurturing world-class composers.

Leonard Weiss:

The best of Canberra was on display in the 23rd Canberra International Music Festival, with concerts stretching from the festival home of the Fitters' Workshop to prominent concert venues at the ANU School of Music and major national landmarks such as the National Museum. With many international artists – supported by their respective embassies – and an equal share of top Canberra-based musicians, composers and young artists, this year's festival was truly a testament to everything Canberra can offer.

World premieres framed the festival, with artistic director Roland Peelman weaving a mix of Indigenous and Asiatic influences throughout the program. It was terrific to see local premieres on a more intimate scale as well, including Within Without – Sunset Light Show composed by Benjamin Drury and expressively performed by Rohan Dasika on double bass, highlighting some lesser-known abilities of the instrument.

This year's festival also offered multiple concerts aimed at new audiences. In a very practical decision, events such as Blinky Bill, performed superbly by Mr Tim and Ensemble Offspring at the National Library, were highly successful in drawing in a young audience. Programming of that concert was particularly memorable – some would say extraordinary – as the repertoire was entirely by Australian composers, cleverly integrated with tales of one of our quintessential Australian characters.

In 11 days of music stretching across as many venues, the production team helmed by Rachel Gould should be highly commended for a faultless festival experience. This year's event was a reminder of our good fortune to have so many exceptional artists on our doorstep, with musicians such as Louise Page and David Pereira more than holding their own when programmed alongside acclaimed visitors including the Simon Bolivar String Quartet (Venezuela) and Australia's excellent James Morrison Quartet. It is likewise a reminder of the brilliance of the national capital, where embassies support the travel of such high-calibre musicians to show the musical talent from their respective countries.

Peelman and the festival performers can be applauded once again for clever programming decisions, smooth performances and a highly captivating series of concerts.