Have you ever wanted to spend a day in the life of a Sydney Symphony musician?
In 1964 the ABC did exactly that, producing this documentary film about life in our Orchestra under then-Chief Conductor Dean Dixon.
Using Hungarian composer Béla Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra as the focal point, the film begins in Dixon’s dressing room as he finishes getting dressed, then follows him to the podium for the beginning of the concert at Sydney Town Hall. The concert begins, but shortly after we cut from the performance to footage from rehearsal, scenes of musicians rehearsing individually and in small groups, and even abstract footage of a car driving through a forest, a fisherman on the shoreline, waves crashing on rocks and more.
The documentary was produced by the Commonwealth Film Unit (later Film Australia) and was first broadcast on ABC TV on 12 July 1965 as part of a series called Australia Today. The film won the 1966 Australian Film Institute (AFI) Golden Reel Award for Best Documentary.
And you can hear us perform this thrilling orchestral showpiece on 25—28 March, as part of our Anna Lapwood performs Max Richter concerts.
With thanks to the National Film and Sound Archives.
Title: Concerto for Orchestra
Year: 1965
Director: Robert Parker
Producer: Stanley Hawes
Associate Producer: Malcolm Otton
Production Company: Australian Commonwealth Film Unit