Speeches
Monday, 06 May 2024
Adelaide Youth Orchestras Thank You Event
Rod and I are pleased to join you this evening to acknowledge the generous support of Adelaide Youth Orchestras’ donors and volunteers.
It is my great pleasure to be patron of the orchestras and to have invited some of its members to perform at a Government House dinner last year.
I have also enjoyed hearing your musicians perform in Elder Hall (Shostakovich's Symphony No.5) and Adelaide Town Hall (Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet).
During my earlier diplomatic career, and indeed during my overseas visits as Governor, I have seen first-hand how cultural exchange, particularly performances of work by Australia’s leading arts companies, can help our country to deepen ties with other our neighbours and those further afield.
Fostering the next generation of musicians and artistic practitioners promotes a rich cultural life in our community, while also contributing to how Australia is regarded on the world stage.
These are just two reasons why I look forward to continuing to support your organisation during my term.
The Adelaide Youth Orchestras is at the heart of youth music making in South Australia, and I thank you all for the role you play in providing exciting concert opportunities for young musicians to gain experience and confidence – while sharing their work with local audiences.
And to the musicians - Rod and I are pleased to count ourselves among the many who love your music and feel your energy as you play it.
While youth orchestras are important training grounds for future professional musicians, their benefits for young people go beyond this.
They support team-work, resilience, and provide a place of safety and nurture while young people are forming identities and planning their futures.
I am also pleased to see your relationship with the University of Adelaide continued to strengthen, with staff based on campus and this event marking the first celebratory event on university grounds.
I trust you are all looking forward to the 15th of June, when a super-sized Adelaide Youth Orchestra and the Elder Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra come together to perform Mahler's Symphony No.1.
I am pleased to see there has also been a recent increase in staffing numbers to support the future of the orchestras, and I thank these staff for the vision and energy they bring to their work.
I thank too the volunteers here this evening, including members of the Board, for giving your expertise and time to the orchestras.
With National Volunteer Week coming up later this month, it’s an opportune time to recognise the extraordinary contribution that volunteers make to all aspects of South Australian life, including the arts and young people.
Whether you support the organisation as a musician, conductor, administrator, production support person or in another role, your efforts are highly valued.
Many of you are parents of musicians, with busy lives, and I thank you for committing to your volunteer work, without which the organisation could not run.
Thank you also to the donors here this evening for their generous contributions.
No doubt there is great satisfaction in supporting an organisation which brings such benefit to young people, and the broader community.
I wish Adelaide Youth Orchestras the best as it continues to support young musicians achieve their artistic goals – whether that’s exploring their love of music as a hobby, studying music at the tertiary level, or forging a career on the local, national or world stage.