Who Are We?

Angela Lindsay, Maria Lindsay: We are Sydney-based musicians and have travelled the world doing what we love - entertaining with music. We have had the fortune to play with the greatest orchestras in the country, such as Sydney Symphony and the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Over the last ten years or so, we have both pursued careers away from the orchestral work and the mainstream hub of Sydney. This is a challenging but rewarding path to have chosen, allowing us to develop a clear and realistic perspective of the musical scene in Sydney and Australia.

The Dream
Quite separately from each other, we have both been nurturing a longing to found a chamber orchestra for several years. Growing up at Lurline Bay in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, the naming of Lurline Chamber Orchestra takes us back to our roots: as students we were fortunate to be part of a generation of strong string players who were given the rare opportunity to be mentored for many years by Sydney's chamber orchestral pioneers: Robert Pikler, Lois Simpson, John Painter, Alice Waten, Winifred Durie. The Sydney Youth Chamber Orchestra gave us the foundations of a great love for the genre which has proved enduring. Chamber Orchestras then formed a large part of each of our early professional careers.
We're hoping to make high quality chamber orchestral music more accessible, geographically and artistically, to Sydney communities.

The Program
Current audiences are eager to hear new and otherwise unfamiliar music as well as the great standard repertoire. We aim to be strong advocates of New Music, commissioning works on a regular basis - Australian and international. The established chamber orchestral repertoire written over the last three centuries has inspired a lasting passion for the genre in us since our student days. We feel thrilled to be able to continue that great tradition for our audiences.

The Future
As we have mentioned, our formative years were greatly enhanced by the opportunity to play in a youth chamber orchestra. As successful performers and teachers, we feel that this kind of education must be passed on to the next generation.  will be a training ground for budding string players in primary school, and  will accommodate those in secondary school. Both orchestras will offer a platform to rehearse, perform, gain experience and cover repertoire, under the guidance of the members of the Lurline Chamber Orchestra, many of whom are prominent teachers and tutors. This will be undertaken in a manner that will be appropriate for carrying them into the musical profession.
We will also introduce the Lurline Chamber Orchestra Recital Series. This will offer our players further opportunities to perform as the soloists they were trained to be. Usually, accompanied by a pianist. The Recital Series will also fill a need in the broader community to have different and exciting programs to be heard in this genre - the solo recital.
We also propose to offer internships, both artistic and in arts management, as a means of training and experience for students in their forthcoming profession.