Kinross Arts Centre will be closed on Thursday 22 September for the
National Day of Mourning for HRH Queen Elizabeth II
but will be open on Friday 23 September for the Grand Final public holiday.
We are a people who follow Jesus. His words and actions inform our living.
TUC is searching for a Minister of the Word. Click here for more information and
please share with any minister who may be interested.
Previous Concerts at TUC
Music and concerts are an integral part of the life of Toorak Uniting Church. In addition to staging a concert series each year, Toorak Uniting is also home to many community groups who use this beautiful, acoustically divine space for performances.
Christmas Eve Concert
8:00pm Saturday 24 December 2022
Get into the spirit of Christmas with music for reflection including Australian Christmas Carols complemented by readings specially chosen for Christmas Eve and some carols for all to sing.
Prelude music will start at 7.50pm with a wonderful trio of Flute (Issie Brown), Viola (Lucas Levin) and Cello (Joshua Dema). We hope you can join us
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Christmas Eve Concert
8:00pm, Tuesday, 24 December 2019
Get into the spirit of Christmas - join us for our annual Christmas Eve Concert. This year we're performing "A Christmas Garland on Greensleeves" by Richard Shepherd and Antonio Vivaldi's "Gloria" with choir and instrumental ensemble.
Soloists: Catriona DeVere – soprano, Ursula Paez – mezzo-soprano, Stephen Carolane – tenor,
Anne Gilby – Oboe and Laura Haertag – Trumpet.
Emdojoré String Quartet Presents
Hayden | Mendelssohn
6:00pm, Saturday, 16 November 2019
Melbourne Baroque Orchestra Presents
Double Reeds
3:00pm, Sunday, 27 October 2019
Soloists Kirsten Barry, oboe, and Simon Rickard, bassoon join the Melbourne Baroque Orchestra in the sublime Albinoni Oboe Concerto and Vivaldi’s Double Concerto for Bassoon and Oboe
King of Instruments – Lady White Memorial Organ Recital
2:00pm, Sunday, 20 October 2019
Tickets $30/$25 Concession
John O'Donnell performs on the King of instruments. Since performing the
complete organ works of Bach in 1974 John has enjoyed an international
reputation as an organist and harpsichordist. In 1985 he became the first person
ever to perform Bach's total keyboard output (29 recitals!)
Highlights include:
The monumental Variations on “Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen” by Franz Liszt
The latest rediscovered Johann Sebastian Bach, Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns
hält (BWV 1128)
Sacred to Sublime is part of TUC's King of instruments concert series, which celebrates 40 years of the Collins Organ at Toorak Uniting Church. To find out more about this wonderful instrument, please click here
Around the World with Kronos
2:00pm, Saturday, 12 October 2019
Tickets $79/$69 Concession
To complement the live screening of A Thousand Thoughts, Kronos Quartet will play an electric family-friendly show.
The lively and beguiling program includes traditional and contemporary works from every corner of the globe, each arranged to cast new light on these sometimes familiar, always riveting compositions.
No matter what music they're playing, you know this world-renowned ensemble will deliver something to enlighten and entertain.
Melbourne Baroque Orchestra Presents
Wallfisch and Vivaldi
3:00pm, Sunday, 15 September 2019
Special guest violin soloist Elizabeth Wallfisch returns to her home town to enchant us with works from Vivaldi’s L’Estro Armonico
Sacred to Sublime — a concert by Toorak Uniting Church’s Soloists
2:00pm, Sunday, 18 August 2019
Entry By Donation
Catriona DeVere – soprano
Ursula Paez – mezzo-soprano
Stephen Carolane – tenor
Andrew Long – baritone
Justin Jacobs – piano
Highlights include:
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“Bella figlia dell’amore” from Rigoletto
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“Cast thy burden upon the Lord” from Elijah
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“Soave sia il vento”, “Ah guarda, sorella” from Così fan tutte
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"Mir ist so wunderbar" from Fidelio
The TUC Soloists lead the Choir on Sunday mornings and each have performed with major opera companies.
In recent years they have sung Vivald’s Gloria, Saint-Saëns’ Christmas Oratorio, Faure’s Requiem, and Mozart’s Missa Brevis in D minor.
Sacred to Sublime is part of TUC's King of instruments concert series, which celebrates 40 years of the Collins Organ at Toorak Uniting Church. To find out more about this wonderful instrument, please click here
Silky Voice from the New World
2:00pm, Sunday, 5 May 2019
Tickets: Entry by donation. Book at the link below or just turn up on the day
Stephen Ng – tenor, USA
Pam Christie – Piano
Highlights include:
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Gounod’s breathtaking “O divine Redeemer”,
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The enchanting “L’invitation au voyage” by Duparc,
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“Sure on this Shining Night” by Samiel Barber,
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Old American Songs by Aaron Copland
“powerfully expressive voice” – Washington Post,
“glorious in this feat of vocal gymnastics and interpretation” – The Gazette, Cedar Rapids,
“... with a soaring voice in the extreme registers that could be simply described as amazing” – New York
Concert Review
Pamela Christie studied piano at Melbourne University and the Moscow Conservatory and has worked for many years as a repetiteur and coach in and around Melbourne. She is a repetiteur for the Opera Australia Schools Company, BK Opera and GBD Productions. Recent engagements include L’Elisir d’Amore; Rigoletto; La Voix Humaine; The Magic Flute; La Traviata; Madame Butterfly; Werther; Cenerentola; Barber of Seville; Don
Giovanni; Le Nozze di Figaro; Cosi fan Tutte and Carmen.
Australian New Goldberg Orchestra Presents
An Evening with Elgar
6:30pm, Saturday, 27 April 2019
For more information, refer to www.ango.org.au
Dancing Feet – Organ Duo
2:00pm, Sunday, 31 March 2019
Free Concert
Anna Duan – TUC Organ Scholar,
Jennifer Chou – TUC Director of Music
Tristan Sumarna – Guest Cellist
Anna Duan is a Year 11 student who currently is the organ scholar at Toorak Uniting Church.
She has obtained the A.Mus in piano and is currently preparing for the L.Mus piano exam.
Since starting to learn to play the organ at the age of 13, Anna has participated in the Young
Organists Concert at the Melbourne Town Hall and at the NextGen Organ concert at St Patrick's
Cathedral Melbourne. In 2018, she got second prize at the Ringwood Eisteddfod Open Section
for Organ, and interstate, Anna competed in the Sydney Organ Competition and won second
prize in the Junior Section for 15 years old and under.
Tristan Sumarna is a talented musician in his Year 12 who learns the cello, the clarinet, the
piano and the organ.
Program:
1.Toccata and Fugue in D Minor BWV 565 – J.S. Bach (1685‑1750)
2. The Dance of the Shulammite from Four Biblical Dances – Petr Eben (1929‑2007)
3.The Carnival of the AnimalsCamille Saint-Saëns (1835‑1921)
II."Poules et coqs" (Hens and Roosters)
V."L'Éléphant" (The Elephant)
VI."Kangourous" (Kangaroo)
IX."Le Coucou au fond des bois" (The Cuckoo in the Depths of the Woods)
X."Volière" (Aviary)
XI."Pianistes" (Pianists)
XII."Fossiles" (Fossils)
XIII."Le cygne" (The Swan) - Soloist: Tristan Sumarna, cello
4.Prelude, Fugue and VariationCésar Franck (1822‑1890)
5.Intermezzo from Symphony No. 3 in F-sharp minor. Louis Vierne (1870‑1937)
6.Excerpts from Suite GothiqueLéon Boëllmann (1862‑1897)
III.Prière à Notre-Dame
IV.Toccata
Anna Duan: 1, 4, 6. Jennifer Chou: 2, 5. Duo: 3
Nordic Wind
Free Concert following the 10:15am Church Service
Sunday, 20 January 2019
We are thrilled to have Dorthe Zielke – trumpet and Søren Johannsen – organ, both
from Denmark, play for us as part of the 10:15am Family Service.
A 30 minute concert will commence immediately after the Service and this will be
followed by morning tea.
Highlights:
Prelude from Saul & David (Nielsen),
Ouverture from Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner)
Pictures at an Exhibition (Mussorgsky)
The artists are sponsored by The Carl Nielsen and Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen Foundation, Augustinus Foundation,
Jorck’s Foundation, The Danish Soloist Foundation, The Danish Arts Foundation
"Notable women of the keyboard"
Sunday 11 November 2018, 2:00pm
Clara Schumann was considered one of the most distinguished pianists of her time. As a composer, she created a substantial body of work. She wrote: "composing gives me great pleasure... there is nothing that surpasses the joy of creation, if only because through it one wins hours of self-forgetfulness, when one lives in a world of sound".
Myfanwy McIndoe will perform a program with Marian melodies* used in compositions by J.S. Bach and Nicolas de Grigny, as well keyboard works by notable female composers.
McIndoe completed her undergraduate studies at The University of Melbourne, studying organ with
Douglas Lawrence and harpsichord with Elizabeth Anderson. In 2015, she gained her Master in Organ
Performance with distinction at the Conservatorium of Music Würzburg, Germany with Prof. Christopher Bossert, as well as an exchange program to the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, where she studied organ with Prof Wolfgang Capek. Myfanwy is currently Director of Music at St Patrick’s and the Holy Angel and St John Vianney’s Mentone-Parkdale. *Marian hymns are used in services, commonly in Christian traditions. The Magnificat is one of the eight most ancient Christian hymns.
Illustrious Women from Around the World
Sunday 21 October 2018, 2:00pm
Join us with organist Elizabeth-Anne Nixon for a program dedicated to five illustrious women composers
including Nadia Boulanger and Libby Larsen.
Ms Nixon is Director of Music at St George’s Anglican Church, Malvern. After completing her Bachelor of
Music degree in Brisbane, she undertook extended studies with John O’Donnell (Melbourne) and Lorenzo
Ghielmi (Italy), Daniel Roth (France) and David Sanger (England). Elizabeth-Anne has divided her time
principally between teaching, accompanying and organ performance.
French composer Nadia Boulanger was notable for having taught and influenced many of the leading
composers and musicians of the 20th century such as Aaron Copland, Astor Piazzolla, Virgil Thomason,
and Daniel Barenboim. She taught in the most famous institutions around the world, and from her
apartment in Paris, until her death at the age of 92.
Grammy award-winner Libby Larsen is one of America’s most performed living composers. With over
500 works spanning virtually every genre, she is constantly sought after for commissions and premieres
by major artists, ensembles, and orchestras around the world. She is a vigorous, articulate advocate for
the music and musicians of our time.
Lady White Recital – "The Imaginary Space - Cultural Connections"
Sunday, 21st May 2017 2pm
Andrew Blackburn – Organ and Electronics
Jean Penny – Flutes
Music by Malaysian and European composers, performed by Australian musicians of the Western tradition. Framed by two solo organ works from the standard repertoire, Andrew Blackburn (organ & electronics) and Jean Penny (flutes) will present the Australian premieres of works commissioned as part of their intercultural research in Malaysia. Mostly premiered in collaboration with the composers, performances took place in various venues in Malaysia and also in Cambridge, England including in Churchill College in the University of Cambridge. The ideas behind the research and pieces will be explained during the concert.
Included in the program:
Enrico Bossi-Scherzo in G minor for solo organ
Robert Casteels-Transliterations for organ based on Malaysian folk songs
Affendi Ramli-The Screaming Serunai for flute and electronics
Valerie Ross-Rasa of Time for flute and organ
Valerie Ross-Synergies of Breath I for flute and electronics
Jeremy Thurlow-Luce si vivace for flute and organ
Enrico Bossi-Etude Symphonique for solo organ
Lady White Organ Recital – An all J.S. Bach recital by Paul Dean
Sunday 14th August 2016, 2pm
BWV 542 - Fantasia & Fugue in G minor
BWV 655 - “Herr Jesu Christ, dich uns zu wend”
BWV 659 - “O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde groß”
BWV 529 - Trio Sonata V
BWV 662 - “Allein Gott in der Hoh sei Ehr”
BWV 548 - Prelude & Fugue in E minor “The Wedge”
Music Service - 17 July 2016, 10:15am
Bach Cantata "Ich habe genug" BWV 82 by J.S. Bach
Guest Soloists: Allegra Giagu (Mezzo-Soprano), Anne Gilby (Oboe)
Aria:Ich habe genug
Recitative:Ich habe genug
Aria:Schlummert ein, ihr matten Augen
Recitative:Mein Gott! wenn kömmt das schöne: Nun!
Aria:Ich freue mich auf meinen Tod
Bach composed the cantata in his fourth year in Leipzig for the feast Purification of Mary. The readings
for the feast day were from Malachi 3:1-4, "the Lord will come to his temple", and from the Gospel of
Luke, the purification of Mary and the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, including the Nunc Dimittis
(Luke 2:22-32), on which the libretto is based. In previous years Bach had composed two cantatas
concentrating on the Nunc Dimittis. More than in the earlier works, an anonymous poet stresses the
desire to escape earthly misery and be united with Jesus.
Allegra Giagu
made her Sydney Opera House début as a soloist for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Australian
Chamber Orchestra at an early age. As a young performer, Allegra was the chosen soloist for The
Edinburgh Military Tattoo – Salute to Australia 2005, performed over six nights to an audience of 160 000.
Awards include The Helen Myers Vocal Scholarship from the Sydney Conservatorium and full-scholarships for studies abroad, completed at the Royal College of Music and at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. Allegra was also the recipient of a Wiener Meisterkurse Scholarship for studies in Austria. She is a current Studio Young Artist and Gertrude Johnson Fellow at Gertrude Opera [The Opera Studio].
Peter Collins Memorial Organ Concert
Sunday 15th May 2016 2pm
On 24th October 2015, Peter Collins – the organ builder who built the TUC pipe organ, died.
Peter Collins was an English organ builder based in Leicestershire. He founded his company in 1964. The
company has built pipe organs in many countries, various counties in Europe, in the UK, in North America,
in South Korea, and in Australia.
Between 1977 and 1980, Collins built 10 instruments from 3 stops box organs to 34 stops pipe organs for Australia. The pipe organ in Toorak Uniting Church is the largest among the 10 Collins instruments in
Australia.
To honour Collin's work in Australia, especially at TUC, our Director of Music Jennifer Chou will be giving
an organ concert on Sunday 15th May on the Peter Collins organ. Together with her colleague Colin
Andrews, they will perform organ works for solo and for 4 hands.
Born in Bristol, England, multiple award winning Colin Andrews is an active teacher and lecturer. He has
performed as a soloist worldwide in all the continents except Antarctica! He also has served as a jury
member for many international organ competitions around the world. He was on the Faculty of Organ
and Sacred Music Studies at Indiana University until 2015. It will be a great privilege and opportunity
for everyone in Melbourne to hear Colin in May.
Program includes:
J.S. BachPrelude and Fugue in G Major BWV 550
Sir Arthur BlissThree Royal Fanfares
Joseph BonnetVariations de Concert Op.1
Nicolaus BruhnsPraeludium in G Major
Aram KhatchatourianSabre Dance
Paul PattersonToccata “Fluorescence” Op. 22 (1973)
John RutterVariations on an Easter theme
Tchaikovsky2 excerpts from "The Nutcracker Suite"
Thomas Tomkins A Fancy for Two to Play
