ArtSound FM’s Concert Hall brings you the finest live classical and chamber music recorded in and around Canberra — from intimate recitals to full choral works, broadcast every Friday evening.
January 2026
4 January — The Best of 2025
The new year begins with a look back at the highlights. This special retrospective draws together excerpts from some of the most impressive and unusual concerts and recitals that ArtSound recorded in and around Canberra across the year — a chance to revisit standout moments or catch something you may have missed the first time around. It’s a reminder of just how rich Canberra’s live music scene truly is.
11 January — Turtles, Tangos and Parrots
What do turtles, tangos, and parrots have in common? Ask the Kurrajong Ensemble. The trio — comprising guitarist Harold Gretton with flautists Fran and Keith Griffin — brings a delightfully eclectic programme recorded at the Greenaway Studio in Chapman. Harold Gretton is an ex-Canberran trained at the ANU School of Music, and has since built a distinguished international career in classical guitar and early music research. Together with the Griffins, the Kurrajong Ensemble is known for programmes that blend wit and musicianship in equal measure.
18 January — Voice, Rejoice!
Salut! Baroque and soprano Anna Fraser join forces for an evening of baroque music spanning opera to sacred song, recorded at the Wesley Uniting Church in Forrest. Anna Fraser is a graduate of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and Boston’s New England Conservatory, and has performed as a core ensemble member of the Song Company for over a decade, as well as regularly appearing with the Bach Akademie Australia, Australian Haydn Ensemble, and Pinchgut Opera. Voice, Rejoice! is a showcase of the extraordinary range and expressiveness the baroque vocal tradition can offer.
25 January — Howard Goodall’s Invictus
The Llewellyn Choir closes out January with a powerful performance of Howard Goodall’s Invictus: A Passion — a large-scale choral work by one of Britain’s most celebrated contemporary composers, recorded at the Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest. The Llewellyn Choir has long been one of Canberra’s most admired choral ensembles, and this concert marks a landmark event in the capital’s choral calendar.
December 2025
7 December — Luminescence Celebrates Christmas
Organist Thomas Heywood — described as one of Australia’s most acclaimed concert organists — opens the evening with a Christmas Fantasia, drawing festive gems from the organ repertoire in the magnificent acoustic of the Wesley Uniting Church in Forrest. The programme then continues with Dancing Day, featuring music by Glanville-Hicks, Paul Reade, and John Rutter performed by the Luminescence Children’s Choir and Chamber Singers under the direction of Roland Peelman. It’s a joyful, many-layered Christmas offering from one of Canberra’s finest choral organisations.
14 December — Christmas Classics with Luminescence
More seasonal warmth from the Luminescence Chamber Singers and Children’s Choir, joined by special guests — a wide-ranging programme of carols and seasonal music from across the globe, again recorded in the Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest. From traditional carols to contemporary settings, the combined voices of the Chamber Singers and Children’s Choir make this a Christmas broadcast to savour.
21 December — Two Wesley Lunchtime Concerts
A double bill drawn from the beloved Wesley Lunchtime Concert series. First: Baroque Gems for Bassoon and Harpsichord, with Ben Hoadley (bassoon) and Ariana Odermatt (harpsichord) — an intimate pairing that showcases the warmth and playfulness of the baroque chamber repertoire. Then soprano Rachel Mink and pianist Callum Tolhurst-Close present ‘Is there such a thing as day?’ — an art song programme that meditates on light, time, and the lyric tradition. Two very different moods; one very satisfying broadcast.
28 December — Bach to Bach
The year closes with harpsichordist Marko Sever and Thomas Wilson performing on harpsichords and virginal at the Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest. Bach to Bach is exactly what it promises — keyboard music of beauty, rigour, and joy, played on period instruments with scholarly care. The perfect way to end the year.
Concert Hall airs on ArtSound FM. Check the schedule at artsound.fm for broadcast times and to listen again.
