Asher Fisch Conducts Rite of Spring

The Governor attended the West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO) 2022 Opening Night performance of Asher Fisch Conducts Rite of Spring. Included in the program was Franz Shubert’s Symphony No. 8 in B Minor, Jacquest Ibert’s Flute Concerto and Igor Stravinsky’s Le Sacre de printemps (The Rite of Spring).

Considered to be of the first examples of Modernism in music, the performance of Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 – a tune even non-classical music lovers will remember from Disney’s 1940 film ‘Fantasia’ – was held at the beautiful Perth Concert Hall. 

Following this performance, WASO Principal Flautist, Mr Andrew Nicholson, brought his distinctive style to Jacques Ibert’s Flute Concerto. First published in 1934, this piece is known to be of extreme technical difficulty to play, leading to it being a favourite to test a flautists skill.

Of the show, the Governor had this to say,

“The WASO audience loves Asher Fisch and the orchestra responds to him so well. The wonderful attributes of this conductor were on display at the Concert Hall over the weekend. The Rite of Spring is not played often, so for many it was a first live hearing and it was done brilliantly. A fabulous technical, as well as musical, exercise. The two earlier pieces, Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 and Jacques Ibert’s Flute Concerto were in many ways a polar opposite as a music experience. Extraordinarily beautiful. It was wonderful in particular, hearing Andrew Nicholson’s artistry in the Flute Concerto. A superb performance.”

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