WASO takes momentum to its new stage

West Australian Symphony Orchestra will relocate to Winthrop Hall in Crawley from September next year as redevelopment work starts at the Perth Concert Hall.

The heritage-listed building is expected to close for about two years for the long-awaited $150.3 million upgrade.

The Richard Goyder-chaired orchestra confirmed it would continue to deliver its full program following the relocation to the University of Western Australia’s Winthrop Hall.

WASO executive manager of artistic planning Evan Kennea said the organisation’s capacity to meet expectations would not falter.

“We’ll still play classics and film music, commission new works and carry out contemporary collaborations with Western Australian and international bands and artists,” he said.

“We’ll also continue to play in the pit with the ballet and the opera and Perth Festival, as well as all the community work that we’re doing.

“WA is a long way from everywhere else, so if we’re to have a state symphony orchestra let’s have a fantastic one that really inspires people and gives them an amazing experience when they come see our performances, no matter what setting that may be in.”

WASO has introduced a collection of performances called Spring Fest scheduled for October and November of 2024 at Winthrop Hall.

Executive manager of marketing Brad Martin said there had been strong booking activity since the August launch of the new program, including Spring Fest and the other events.

“We can see there’s a decent cohort of subscribers who are happy to come along on the journey with us,” he said.

Mr Kennea said moving to a different venue would open new opportunities for the orchestra and audiences.

“We have to rethink things and experiment with it, and of course we want our audience, patrons and sponsors to be part of that,” he said.

“We’ll deliver on their expectations but it does give us a fresh chance to try something different and new too.

“Just because we would’ve left our beloved hall, the quality of the music making doesn’t step down whatsoever.”

WASO string quartet playing a school performance in March. Photo: WASO

WASO has broken its record for most attendances for the January to August period this year, at 130,000.

The previous record was 111,000 in 2019. The orchestra’s community engagement and education program has also grown significantly in recent years, reflecting WASO’s increased efforts to deliver music to communities around the state. 

Made up of small ensembles, the program was launched 10 years ago to provide meaningful music-based experiences, drive learning outcomes and improve wellbeing.

Mr Martin said engagement had increased by about 5,000 attendees in the past year alone.

“The small ensemble program has expanded over the last couple of years and we’re reaching out to people that we would never have been able to engage in the hall or for a variety of other reasons,” he said.

“This initiative is our way of diversifying our audience and taking music out to the broader community.”

Mr Kennea said this was important because not everyone had the capacity to attend performances at the Perth Concert Hall, yet everyone deserved access to music and its benefits.

“We know the power of music when you can reach kids in schools,” he said.

“We know what happens when you take a quartet to an aged care facility.

“For many people it sparks memories. They can hear a piece of music and they’re instantly transported back in time, or they engage with the music and musicians in a way they don’t engage with anything else in their day-to-day life.

“Those sparks of joy and interest and creativity are so powerful.”

One of WASO’s flagship educational initiatives was Crescendo, which provides free music lessons to students from pre-primary to year six at two schools in Kwinana.

Mr Martin said the program had improved student behaviour and changed the way they approached their school work.

“These are low socio-economic schools, and both of those principals have reported an increase in Naplan scores and increased levels of engagement from students, and parents too,” he said.

“Those are schools that are less likely to have parents who can afford to have WASO perform at their children’s school or go and see a performance at the concert hall. 

“We’re now taking small ensembles to more schools, more aged care centres and we now also have our hospital orchestra program, which involves musicians going into Perth Children’s Hospital, taking music into the wards and performing concerts for the children there.”

WASO takes small ensembles to regional areas in WA, expanding the program’s outreach and impact.

“Everywhere we go in regional WA is kind of the same as what we do in Perth, which is to perform with a massive band on the main stage while also taking small ensembles into schools and aged care homes on the same tour,” Mr Martin said.

He said the 2024 season would bring a diverse range of symphonies and new events, including one of WASO’s biggest.

“One of the most exciting projects we have is [Gustav] Mahler’s symphony No. 8, also nicknamed the symphony of a thousand,” Mr Martin said.

“This production is massive; it’s one of the biggest things that WASO has ever done in the concert hall in terms of artistic force with the number of musicians on stage.

“It’s never been done before in WA and its one of those projects that are the peak of an orchestral production in terms of scale.”