Pekka Kuusisto: Legends & Luminaries

Singular artist Pekka Kuusisto makes his long-awaited return to direct the Australian Chamber Orchestra in music that transcends age and time.

Pekka Kuusisto returns to the Australian Chamber Orchestra after nearly a decade to direct music from four prodigious talents. Kuusisto is an artist unbound by convention, who embodies an artistic freedom that is unexpected and thrilling. As a renowned virtuoso and boundary-crossing composer, he pushes the limits of performance into exciting new realms, championing contemporary music with an openness and warmth that captivates audiences.

Mozart is the original prodigy. His effervescent opera The Magic Flute is filled with sparkling lyricism and the Australian Chamber Orchestra will play some of its most loved tunes. Nico Muhly's Shrink, written especially for Kuusisto's extraordinary talents, is a big, glittering violin concerto that plays with smaller and smaller intervals as it bristles with intensity. Kuusisto is a great admirer and frequent collaborator with Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Reid. Hear the Australian premiere of her West Coast Sky Eternal, a work that wrestles with the disconnect between the business of living and the majesty of sky, land and sea.

Felix Mendelssohn's precocious talents were evident as a child and began to outstrip even Mozart as a teen. His Quintet in B-flat harnesses a fierce energy and lively power – a perfect match for the effusive style of the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Kuusisto.

Season 2026: Australian Chamber Orchestra

The Australian Chamber Orchestra is one of the most acclaimed chamber orchestras in the world. Led by their pioneering Artistic Director Richard Tognetti, the Orchestra is defined by its exceptional virtuosity and an irrepressible sense of adventure and curiosity.

Tickets

Single tickets on sale Friday 17 October 2025.

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2026 Subscriptions are on sale now via the Australian Chamber Orchestra website.

Artists

Pekka Kuusisto Director & Violin
Australian Chamber Orchestra

Program

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (arr. Kuusisto)
The Magic Flute, K.620: Selections

Nico Muhly
Shrink: Concerto for Violin and Strings*

Ellen Reid
West Coast Sky Eternal (Australian Premiere)

Felix Mendelssohn (arr. strings)
String Quintet No.2 in B-flat, Op.87

*Co-commissioned by the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Melbourne Recital Centre, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, Mahler Chamber Orchestra with the kind support of the MCO Foundation, and Scottish Chamber Orchestra.