On the 21 November 1975, a group of pioneering musicians walked out onto the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall stage and the Australian Chamber Orchestra was born. Founded by the legendary Australian cellist John Painter, these musicians were driven by a shared mission to take control of their musical destinies: to become the country’s first truly national orchestra with an uncompromising commitment to elite performance, to represent Australia on the world stage, and provide opportunities to the country’s brightest young string players.

Celebrating the Australian Chamber Orchestra

Sydney Opera House

Step into the intimate, dreamy light of Le Boeuf sur le toit, the legendary cabaret bar of 1920s Paris. The liquor is strong and spirits are high. War is over and art is flourishing. Here, Europe’s most fashionable mingle with the city’s greatest minds: Coco Chanel, Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein… And you’re invited to join their circle.

EPSG:4326

Cocteau’s Circle

Adelaide Town Hall

Melbourne Recital Centre

Queensland Performing Arts Centre

The Australian National University

Arts Centre Melbourne

City Recital Hall

After more than a decade of producing films, the ACO premiered Mountain in 2017 as one of its boldest explorations of music and nature. Only three centuries ago, the idea scarcely existed that wild landscapes might hold any sort of attraction. Mountains were places of peril, not beauty. An upper world to be shunned, not sought out. Now they hold us spellbound, drawing us into their dominion, often at the cost of our lives.

Mountain

A chameleon of the new generation: he’s met with acclaim in the great recital halls of the world and forges new horizons by ranging fearlessly beyond classical music. You can’t help but get carried away with his magic.

For his Australian debut, Shibe celebrates his Scottish heritage in a thrilling ride through the Highlands and beyond, with Shibe on classical guitar and Richard Tognetti directing the strings of the ACO. Then tradition is thrown to the wind as Shibe takes up his electric guitar and the ACO steps into a technicolour world of musical invention.

Scotland Unbound

Perth Concert Hall

Experience the timeless masterpiece of Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" like never before with the Australian Chamber Orchestra at NEC's Jordan Hall on Friday, October 18th at 8:00 PM. Under the artistic direction of celebrated violinist Richard Tognetti, this unique performance promises to breathe new life into Vivaldi’s iconic work. The Australian Chamber Orchestra, known for their innovative and imaginative collaborations, will be joined by the exceptional talents of brothers Joseph Tawadros, a virtuoso of the oud (Middle Eastern lute), and James Tawadros, a master of the riq (tambourine-like instrument). This collaboration offers a stunning recasting of "The Four Seasons," blending the rich musical traditions of Venice and the Middle East for an unforgettable auditory journey. Don't miss this opportunity to experience one of the most rhapsodic, lyrical, and explosive interpretations of Vivaldi's work.

Australian Chamber Orchestra The Four Seasons

New England Conservatory of Music

When Rachmaninoff first performed his Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, it had the audience in raptures. The extraordinary pianist had written a showstopper, and audiences have loved its lush, romantic melodies for nearly 100 years. Now, the ever-adventurous pianist Dejan Lazić returns to the ACO to play it, in a new arrangement for piano and strings.

Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody

ACO On The Pier

Schubert composed like an oil painter, drawing from a rich palette of melodic and harmonic colours. With a divine lyricism at its heart, his music is imbued with an intimacy and intensity that taps into the full range of human emotion.

Schubert’s Fantasy & Octet

From the cold, clear quiet of a wintery morning, comes the music of an ancient landscape: the snow-strewn mountains and shores along the Baltic and Nordic seas. Richard Tognetti directs this extraordinary collaboration between the international vocal phenomenon Trio Mediæval, jazz trumpeter Arve Henriksen and the ACO.

From Winter’s Stillness

The late symphonies of Mozart are a touchstone for extraordinary musicians and experiencing the ACO perform them is an unforgettable experience. Richard Tognetti played the last three symphonies in his first year as Artistic Director of the ACO, and he returns to them often because they are works that only grow with each interpretation.

Mozart’s Last Symphonies

To see Richard Tognetti and the ACO perform Beethoven is to experience a ‘magnificent unanimity’* of vision, drama and expressive force. In this majestic and uplifting finale to our 2026 National Concert Season, Richard and an expanded ACO perform an all-Beethoven program that takes audiences on a journey through creation and wonder, beginning with the dramatic Coriolan Overture before culminating in the master craftsman’s Pastoral Symphony.

Beethoven’s Pastoral

A performance of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio is a transformative experience. Sublime choral and orchestral magic culminate in a feast for the senses. Bach wrote his Christmas cantatas to be performed on six different days. Here, you will immerse yourself in his masterpiece over one night.

Richard Tognetti

Events

Upcoming events

5 - 18 Feb, 2026

Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody · Australian Chamber Orchestra

14 - 30 May, 2026

Schubert’s Fantasy & Octet · Australian Chamber Orchestra

Jul 25 - Aug 9, 2026

From Winter’s Stillness · Australian Chamber Orchestra

19 - 25 Sep, 2026

Mozart’s Last Symphonies · Australian Chamber Orchestra

12 - 25 Nov, 2026

Beethoven’s Pastoral · Australian Chamber Orchestra

Past events

Nov 21, 2025

Celebrating the Australian Chamber Orchestra · Australian Chamber Orchestra

8 - 22 Nov, 2025

Cocteau’s Circle · Australian Chamber Orchestra

Future and recently performed repertoire

Violin in Coriolan Overture by Beethoven

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Symphony No. 39 by Mozart

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Symphony No. 40 by Mozart

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Triple Concerto by Beethoven

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Octet by Schubert

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in String Quartet in E-flat Major by Mendelssohn-Hensel

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Fantasy for violin and piano by Schubert

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Divertimento for String Orchestra by Bartók

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Christmas Oratorio by Bach

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Symphony No. 6 by Beethoven

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Symphony No. 41 by Mozart

Australian Chamber Orchestra

Violin in Violin Sonata in A major by Beethoven

Australian Chamber Orchestra

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