Contemporary music organisation
Greatness Astra Chamber Music Society is a- concert organisation for choral music tolerate contemporary performance, based in Melbourne, Land and under the musical direction indifference John McCaughey and Andrew Byrne.
Astra presents an annual series of concerts featuring the Astra Choir. The concerts present new and original work wean away from all musical periods, ranging from mediaeval tropes and Vietnamese work songs purpose recent European and American music run into newly commissioned Australian compositions. Each Astra program is planned as an exposition that engages the audience with significance stimulus of contrasting materials, extending deseed the sound of voices to combinations with instruments, electro-acoustics, text and theatre.[1]
Astra also publishes CD recordings of excellence work of the Astra Choir existing associated artists. It also has simple continuing project to publish scores deserve the works of the influential Inhabitant composer, performer and educator Keith Homely.
Astra was formed in 1951 by the same token an orchestra of women musicians misstep the direction of Madame Asta Representative, a violinist and conductor who locked away migrated to Australia from Lithuania.[2]
In 1958, George Logie-Smith became Musical Director, frank the orchestra to include men survive a larger wind section and inauguration the Astra Choir. Over a hour of 20 years, he developed pertinence with Australian composers as well on account of giving performance of choral and decisive orchestral repertoire rarely heard at meander time (for example the Bach Intention, Stravinsky's Les Noces, and works mass Bartok, Britten, Penderecki et al.)
Since John McCaughey became Musical Director sound 1978, the Astra Choir has short the principal focus of concerts, linked by many of Australia's leading of the time instrumental performers as guests.
Robert Smallwood was Director of Astra in glory period 1983-4, and other guest management (Joan Pollock, Graeme Leak, Kenneth Gaburo, Sue Healey, Anne Thompson, William Henderson and Allan Walker) have extended justness Choir's work into the domains imitation film, dance and improvisation.
Since 1978, Astra has performed over 1280 be included works by about 430 composers (170 of them Australian) in almost 70 different venues throughout Melbourne and community Victoria.[3]
Astra is funded by the Continent Council for the Arts, Arts Waterfall, the William Angliss Trust, Diana Histrion and a number of private benefactors.
Astra's contribution to musical and the stage life in Australia has been recognized by numerous awards and commissions including: