REVELATIONS
Performing Debussy Noctures & Busoni Piano Concerto with Orchestra Wellington
2026 SOUNZ Commission for Orchestra and Sistema Youth Orchestra
WORLD PREMIERE
Nocturnes
Claude Debussy (1862–1918)
Piano Concerto in C major, Op. 39
Ferruccio Busoni (1866–1924)
We’re thrilled to be collaborating once again with Orchestra Wellington as part of their 2026 season, in this concert that spotlight different voices of Orpheus Choir Wellington in strikingly contrasting works.
Our altos and sopranos feature in Claude Debussy’s Nocturnes — a work born from an artistic dialogue across disciplines. Debussy was inspired by the “Nocturne” paintings of American artist James McNeill Whistler, who described his works as “an arrangement of line, form, and colour first.” It’s a description that feels equally at home in Debussy’s shimmering score. Delicate and atmospheric, the music allows the women’s voices to rise wordlessly from moonlit orchestral waves, creating something truly magical.
In a dramatic shift of scale and sound, Orpheus’ lower voices then join the orchestra for Ferruccio Busoni’s monumental Piano Concerto. Described by Gramophone Magazine as “a thundering vehicle for virtuosity,” this extraordinary work places the choir within a vast symphonic landscape. We’re delighted to be part of this performance alongside the phenomenal pianist Jian Liu, in a collaboration that highlights the power, depth, and versatility of our basses and tenors.
These concerts celebrate not only the long-standing partnership between Orpheus Choir Wellington and Orchestra Wellington, but also the thrill of bringing ambitious, rarely heard repertoire to life together.