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A Musical Odyssey: Highlights from WASO's 2025 Season
The West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO) is set to charm audiences in 2025 with a spectacular array of performances that traverse musical genres and styles. From the orchestral grandeur of Brahms and Schumann to the operatic drama of Puccini's Madama Butterfly and the cinematic allure of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in concert, WASO promises an unforgettable experience. Join us as we delve into the details of these events and explore the contributions of renowned artists like Edward Gardner, Simone Lamsma, and Vasily Petrenko, who bring these musical masterpieces to life.
Jun 30, 2025
Share1. Edward Gardner Conducts Brahms
WASO is thrilled to welcome Edward Gardner, Principal Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, for his long-awaited WASO debut. Brahms may have taken nearly 20 years to complete his First Symphony, but he produced a masterpiece that grips your attention from its ominous opening to its overwhelming, exultant conclusion. Acclaimed soprano Samantha Clarke joins Gardner in Britten’s sensuous and evocative song cycle, Les Illuminations.
11 - 12 Jul, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · The University of Western Australia
2. Star Wars: The Last Jedi in Concert
Experience the action-packed film, The Last Jedi, from the legendary Star Wars saga on a giant screen with John Williams’ epic score performed live on stage by WASO.
18 - 19 Jul, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre
3. Madama Butterfly
One of the world’s best-loved, most-performed operas returns to His Majesty’s Theatre for the first time in a decade.
Puccini’s beautiful and powerful opera shatters the hearts of its audience with its devastating story of betrayal set against the backdrop of 1904 Nagasaki, Japan.
The American, Lieutenant Pinkerton, marries young geisha Cio-Cio-San, and she believes his love is true. After Pinkerton returns to the United States, she bears a son and waits faithfully for his return. What follows remains one of opera’s most tragic stories.
Jul 26 - Aug 9, 2025
West Australian Opera
Perth, WA · His Majesty's Theatre
4. Chamber Series: Rapture
Charm and innovation collide in Brahms’ String Sextet No.2. The grand orchestral experience is distilled to a single ground-breaking movement in Schoenberg’s boundary-pushing First Chamber Symphony. A suite of dramatic and vivid string quartets showcases the creative talents of Australian composer Elena Kats-Chernin.
Aug 3, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · Government House, Western Australia
5. Ruthless Romance - Matinee
The dark ambition and ruthless fury of Shakespeare’s iconic tyrant is brought thrillingly to life in Strauss’ early tone poem, Macbeth, performed by WASO for the very first time. Asher Fisch then leads the Orchestra in Schumann’s Symphony No.4, a work of passionate urgency and grand emotions.
Aug 14, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · State Theatre Centre of WA
6. Bruch’s Violin Concerto
Dutch violinist Simone Lamsma is known worldwide for her polished, expressive and intense playing, and she returns to WASO with Bruch’s ever-popular First Violin Concerto. The dark ambition and ruthless fury of Shakespeare’s iconic tyrant is brought thrillingly to life in Strauss’ early tone poem, Macbeth, performed by WASO for the very first time. Asher Fisch then leads the Orchestra in Schumann’s Symphony No.4, a work of passionate urgency and grand emotions.
15 - 16 Aug, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · The University of Western Australia
7. Passion and Power: Bruch’s Violin Concerto
Dutch violinist Simone Lamsma is known worldwide for her polished, expressive and intense playing, and she returns to WASO with Bruch’s ever-popular First Violin Concerto. The dark ambition and ruthless fury of Shakespeare’s iconic tyrant is brought thrillingly to life in Strauss’ early tone poem, Macbeth, performed by WASO for the very first time. Asher Fisch then leads the Orchestra in Schumann’s Symphony No.4, a work of passionate urgency and grand emotions.
22 - 24 Aug, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Bunbury, WA · Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre (BREC) + 1 other locations
8. La Mer
The mesmeric lure of the ocean inspires this powerful program. Wagner’s Flying Dutchman depicts a legendary ghostly ship, doomed to sail forever. Paul Stanhope’s Mahāsāgar draws inspiration from the beauty, danger and sense of place defined by the vast Indian Ocean. Ravel’s Une barque sur l’ocean evokes a lonely ship at sea, and the aqueous textures of Debussy’s impressionistic masterpiece La Mer portray the ocean’s ever-changing surface and eternal depths.
29 - 30 Aug, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · The University of Western Australia
9. Chamber Series: Serenade
Our final Chamber Series concert opens with Aaron Wyatt’s Cirrus, a moving exploration of the relationship between modernity and the natural world and the beauty of ordinary things. Meyer’s unique composition style makes his String Quintet a must-hear. The program concludes with Beethoven’s acclaimed Septet in E flat, a work so charming that many regard it as the finest septet ever composed.
Sep 14, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · Government House, Western Australia
10. Prelude to Peace - Matinee
Few WASO debuts are met with the ecstatic acclaim that greeted Vasily Petrenko’s in 2022. He returns in 2025 with Walton’s grand Spitfire Prelude and Fugue and Vaughan Williams’ profoundly moving Fifth Symphony.
Sep 25, 2025
West Australian Symphony Orchestra
Perth, WA · State Theatre Centre of WA
Conclusion
WASO's 2025 season promises an extraordinary journey through the world of music, offering something for every taste. Whether you're drawn to the timeless allure of classical symphonies, the drama of opera, or the immersive experience of film in concert, each performance is designed to captivate and inspire. With a lineup featuring some of the most talented conductors and musicians, audiences can look forward to a season that celebrates the richness and diversity of the musical arts. Don't miss the chance to be part of this exceptional cultural experience.
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