NextSunday 30 August, 3:00pm
Williams - Star Wars Suite
Hisaishi - Spirited Away Suite
Soule - Song of the Dragon Born (from Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)
Nishiki Tsukasa Saitoh - The Elden Ring
Khatchachurian - Adagio from Spartacus
Terracini - Benjamin
Shore - Fellowship of the Ring Suite
Conductor: Paul Terracini
A highly anticipated “Spirited Away” concert by Ku-ring-gai Philharmonic Orchestra. ‘Spirited Away’, the animated film from 2001 was directed by Hayao Miyazaki and produced by Studio Ghibli and the music scored by Joe Hisaishi. The movie was a landmark in animated cinema with a story about a 10-yr old girl, Chihiro, who stumbles into a mystical spirit and worlds.
Epic soundscapes and atmospheric and emotional composition by Nishiki Tsukasa Saitoh: in the 2022 action video game The Elden Ring (main Theme), Saitoh weaves and blends orchestral grandeur with haunting melodies.
Star Wars Suite by John Williams: what can we say? Some of us all remember the opening credits “In a Galaxy far, far away” from the 1977 original movie filmed by George Lucas which went onto to become a series of 9 movies.
Aram Khachaturian ‘Adagio from Spartacus‘ was originally scored for a ballet Spartacus and was later adapted for the TV series 'The Onedin Line'. The music evokes classic sailing vessels and the grandeur and emotional depth of maritime adventure and personal drama.
Jeremy Soule’s 'Song of the Dragon Born', the iconic theme released in 2011 from the game Elder Srcolls V: Skyrim blends classical and Nordic influences.
KPO's Artistic Director Paul Terracini wrote the score for 'Benjamin' in 1997 as part of the film “Hymns of the Forefathers”, which then became a TV series.
Howard Shore’s Fellowship of the Ring sets the tone of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Hard to believe it was written in 2001, the music reflects the epic nature of the wordsmithing and the world created by Tolkein and the magical landscapes of New Zealand as featured in these much loved movies.
Paul Terracini
Dr Paul Terracini was born in Sydney and has enjoyed a career in Australia and internationally as an instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and conductor. He has held permanent positions as Principal Trumpet in the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra; Lecturer in Trumpet, Brass Ensemble and Big Band at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music; and Solo Trumpet in the Danish Chamber Players, Denmark.
As an instrumentalist, he performed as soloist in Australia, Europe, USA, and Asia. Within Australia, his solo performances included concertos with the Melbourne, Queensland, West Australian, and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras.
Paul Terracini has appeared as an opera conductor at the German Rossini Festival in Bad Wilbad, for the Danish Bel Canto Society in Copenhagen, and the Storstroms Symphony Orchestra, also in Denmark. Since assuming the role of artistic director of the Penrith Symphony Orchestra in 2010, he has, apart from programming and conducting the symphonic repertoire, pioneered the performance of chamber opera in western Sydney. For many years he has been invited as a guest conductor/composer to music schools and universities in Europe, USA, China, and Australia. He appears regularly as conductor for the Conservatorium High School, in Sydney. As a choral conductor, he has recorded for ABC Classics with Ars Nova Copenhagen, and the Sydney based choir, Cantillation.
As a composer and arranger, his music has been heard throughout the world in a variety of genres, performed by, amongst others, the Prague Symphony Orchestra, the Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Brass, the Danish Chamber Players, the Australian Brass Quintet, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Brass, and at festivals and conferences on every continent. His music for the two part ABC television series, Hymns of the Forefathers, in which he developed many of the traditional English hymns into symphonic poems, received international acclaim and was released on CD and DVD by ABC Classics. His title music for the television series, Classical Destinations, which was produced for three seasons, was featured on the ‘Number 1 Classical Album of the Year,’ released by Decca.
His CD, Paul Terracini: Music for Brass, was released on the Tall Poppies label in May 2015. On this recording, he conducted his own music with Sydney Brass, featuring members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.
Paul Terracini also holds a PhD from the University of Sydney, having earlier completed a Bachelor of Theology and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours). His book, John Stoward Moyes and the Social Gospel, was published in 2015.