I look forward to sharing the stage with Assistant Conductor Aija Draguns for this program with The Beecroft Orchestra…

Brandman, Lobbia, Sibelius

Sunday September 22, 2024, 2.30pm
Cheltenham Girls High School new Performance Hall
The Promenade, Cheltenham 2119

Conductor-Joanna Drimatis
Assistant Conductor: Aija Draguns

Double Bass Soloist:Elsen Price

Program

Margaret Brandman: Fiesta de la Luz

Simone Lobbia: Soundscapes of Poetry-Double Bass concerto

Sibelius: Intermezzo from the Karelia Suite-First movement only

Sibelius Symphony No 5

New Opera Company Debuts – Inspiring Timely, Timeless Women’s Story

An exciting new opera company debuts in Sydney this June with one of the world’s great, tragically romantic works: the inspiring, moving and spectacular Dialogues des Carmélites (Dialogue of the Carmélites) by Francis Poulenc.

Gente, gente! (“People, people!” or perhaps “Hey, everyone!” – a quote from Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro) is a grassroots, not-for-profit opera company with a focus on less commonly performed works that can make a powerful, relevant impact in our world.
AND with a commitment to increased involvement of women in every aspect of production.
It both showcases and gives industry experience to exciting emerging artists, most of whom are breaking into our national and state opera companies.

Dialogues of the Carmélites is a three-act neo-romantic opera inspired by the true story of the Martyrs of Compiegne
– an order of nuns executed for refusing to renounce their vocation during the final, savage days of the French Revolution.
Their story has inspired works of art, plays, poetry, music… and this 1957 opera, hauntingly beautiful and
– with its themes of courage under fire, dying for your beliefs and women facing down discrimination and violence – both timely and timeless.

Directed by Bec Moret with musical director/conductor Joanna Drimatis – for four performances in the atmospheric ambience of the Pitt Street Uniting Church – this debut production showcases a cast of outstanding young professional singers and a large ensemble backed by a 16-piece orchestra.

It will be performed in the original French with English subtitles. 

I look forward to conducting the Musicus Medicus (NSW Doctors Orchestra) Charity Concert is 26th May, 2024 at The Concourse, Chatswood at 2.30pm.

"The Space Between the Stars""

Proceeds donated to Daniel Ferguson LGMD Foundation Ltd and Sydney Eisteddfod

Tickets-https://www.theconcourse.com.au/.../musicus-medicus-nsw.../

Beecroft Orchestra presents a Spanish inspired program, featuring guitarist Andrew Blanch performing Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez, and selections from Carmen (Bizet), Capriccio Español (Rimsky-Korsakov), España (Chabrier), along with Miriam Hyde's Happy Occasion Overture.

Developed and presented by Orange Chamber Music Festival Incorporated, Cultured is a community event that combines music, visual arts, heritage and literature- by staging musical interactive activities in the Cultural Precinct, at the heart of Byng St.

Cultured invites the local community and visitors to experience classical music, whilst interacting with the displays of the Orange Regional Gallery, the Orange Regional Museum, the Orange City Library and the open spaces of the Civic Square.

Activities include: interactive performance in association with the Orange Regional Museum’s exhibition Orange 412, a free talk, performance and talk by musician and illustrator Lisa Stewart, live performance in response to selected original artworks of the permanent collection of the ORG, and a finale performance by a youth orchestra, made of young musicians of the Central West- joining to perform orchestral classics at the open spaces of the southcourt.

Cultured will be held on Saturday 9th March in and around the spaces of the Orange City Library, Orange Regional Museum, Orange Regional Gallery and Southcourt, coinciding with the 4th iteration of the Orange Chamber Music Festival- March 7-10, 2024.

All activities are free, inclusive, and interactive.

This activity is generously supported by:
Orange Credit Union | Orange Regional Arts Foundation | Create NSW | Orange City Council | Kinross Wolaroi School

More details to be announced soon.

Symphony in a Day

Auditorium, University of Western Sydney, Parramatta

Conductor – Dr Joanna Drimatis

Berlioz – Symphony Fantastique

Coming up with The Beecroft Orchestra…

Recorders and More

Cheltenham Girls High School new Performance Hall: The Promenade

Conductor – Joanna Drimatis

Soloist – Alicia Crossley on Recorder

Telemann – Selections from Suite in A minor for Recorder, Strings and Basso Continuo 

Beethoven – Symphony No 7

Brahms – Hungarian Dance No 1-Guest Conductor Ben Perche

Telemann – Selections from Suite in A minor for Recorder, Strings and Basso Continuo

Lyle Chan – Bilitis/Movement 2 

Christopher Gordon – Selections from “Ladies in Black Suite”

Thank you AUSTA WA for the invitation to adjudicate and lovely comments. I look forward to seeing you all soon.

Introducing another one of our fabulous AUSTA WA String Fesitval adjudicators...

Dr Joanna Drimatis!

Dr Joanna Drimatis is a highly-respected champion of Australian music and contemporary classical music – contributing comprehensively through her output as a conductor, performer, musical director, researcher and educator.

After initial studies in Music Education and Violin Performance, Joanna completed a Masters degree from the University of Texas at Austin (Violin / Orchestral Conducting). In 2009, Joanna graduated with a PhD in Musicology from the Elder Conservatorium of Music. Her thesis research focused on Symphony No. 1 by Australian composer Robert Hughes and was awarded the University of Adelaide’s inaugural Doctoral Research Medal. Her research has continued, focusing on the music of Australian composers Robert Hughes and Raymond Hanson, and has been given national attention through radio broadcasts on ABC Classic and in Peter McCallum’s book, “The Centenary of the Con”.

As Music Director of the Christchurch Youth Orchestra and Conductor for the Adelaide Youth Orchestra association, Joanna initiated numerous collaborations, commissions and premieres, with select performances broadcast on NZ Concert FM and ABC Classic. As a violinist/violist Joanna has played professionally as an orchestral musician both in Australia and overseas which include the Strawberry Creek Festival (USA), International Institute of Music (Germany) and she has been a selected participant in the conducting program at Aspen Music Festival (USA). Joanna has worked as a sessional academic at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and conducted orchestras such as the Australian Doctors’ Orchestra, NSW Doctors’ Orchestra, Sydney Youth Orchestra, Mosman Symphony, Woollahra Philharmonic and the Orange Chamber Music Festival Ensemble.

In 2008 Joanna’s orchestra, the Adelaide Youth Sinfonia, was the feature of an ABC Classic FM documentary, ‘From Pen to Performance’, documenting the rehearsal preparation and performance of an Australia Council-funded new work by Australian composer, John Polglase. Joanna has also been guest conductor in New Zealand for the Christchurch Symphony, Nelson Symphony, University of Canterbury Chamber Orchestra and St Matthews Chamber Orchestra and in Australia for the Elder Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra, Burnside Symphony Orchestra and SBS Youth Orchestra. In 2022, Joanna has enjoyed conducting productions of The Marriage of Figaro, the Australian premiere of ‘Emilie’ by Kaija Sariaaho and the world premiere of ‘Threading the Light’ by Felicity Wilcox for young Sydney-based opera company The Cooperative.

Joanna has also given presentations on string and orchestral pedagogy with emphasis on the use of Australian repertoire for training orchestras. This work culminated in an invitation for her to present a workshop on this topic at the 2019 Mid-West Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, USA. After holding the position as Head of Strings at MLC School Sydney from 2016-2022, Joanna is now the newly appointed Music Education Specialist for the Australian Music Centre as well as Music Director / Chief Conductor of the Beecroft Orchestra. In 2020 Joanna was awarded an APRA/AMCOS Art Music Luminary award for her advocacy, programming and performance of Australian music.

You can register for the AUSTA String Festival here: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing?eid=1014580

The Concourse, Chatswood 

Sunday, 2nd April, 2023

"Celebration"

Conductor: Dr Joanna Drimatis

Program

Mozart: Clarinet Concerto  (Soloist: Oliver Shermacher)

Gershwin: An American in Paris

Dr David Banney: Celebration (premiere)

Marquez: Danzon No 2

Jessica Wells:  Uplift

Verbrugghen Hall at the Conservatorium of Music, Sydney

Guest conductor Joanna Drimatis

Soloist Alice Giles playing Boieldieu’s harp concerto

The program will also include :

Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique Symphony

“Roar” by Australian composer Maria Grenfell