Divertimento! A Sunday afternoon of joyful chamber music
Chamber Music in the Hunter presents five musicians in a sparkling programme of Haydn, Beethoven, Dvořák and more.
Chamber Music in the Hunter invites audiences to spend a Sunday afternoon with music written purely to delight.
Divertimento! takes its name from the light, sociable style of music that eighteenth-century composers wrote for entertainment among friends, and the programme celebrates that same spirit of lively conversation between instruments.
Newcastle flautist Jennifer StGeorge is joined by Adrian Quinn (clarinet), Elizabeth Holowell (violin and viola), Anthea Scott-Mitchell (cello) and Erin Sweetman (piano). Across the afternoon, the five musicians combine in a changing series of duos, trios and quartets, so each work brings a fresh combination of colours.
The concert opens with Arnold’s Grand Fantasia, in which flute and clarinet trade melodies over the piano through a sequence of lively dance movements. Haydn’s Divertimento in G major, Op. 100 No. 2, for flute, violin and cello, captures the elegance and good humour of one of the great masters of the Classical era. Franz Anton Hoffmeister, a Viennese composer and music publisher who counted Mozart among his friends, is represented by his Duo Concertante in G major for flute and viola, a rare chance to hear these two instruments in partnership.
Dvořák’s Bagatelles, Op. 47, are a set of charming miniatures full of the folk-inflected melody for which the Czech composer is so loved. Originally written for strings and harmonium, they are heard here in a version for flute, clarinet, cello and piano. The afternoon closes with Beethoven’s Gassenhauer Trio, Op. 11, for clarinet, cello and piano. Its nickname, roughly “street song”, comes from the finale: a set of variations on a popular opera tune sung around Vienna at the time.
Whether you are a seasoned chamber music lover or new to live classical music, Divertimento! offers a relaxed and uplifting afternoon of music-making in Adamstown.
Divertimento! is proudly supported by Piggott’s Pharmacy and Carly Knight of McGrath.
Event details
When: Sunday 15 November 2026, 2.30pm
Where: Adamstown Uniting Church
Tickets: Adults $25, children free
Bookings: https://www.trybooking.com/1505572
Programme
Arnold: Grand Fantasia (flute, clarinet, piano)
Haydn: Divertimento in G major, Op. 100 No. 2 (flute, violin, cello)
Hoffmeister: Duo Concertante in G major (flute, viola)
Dvořák: Bagatelles, Op. 47 (flute, clarinet, cello, piano)
Beethoven: Gassenhauer Trio, Op. 11 (clarinet, cello, piano)
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