“A didgeridoo debut at the Elphi!?

Excuse me? What? What again? With composer Deborah Cheetham-Fraillon in attendance, arguably Australia’s most renowned didgeridoo player, William Barton, sent the Great Hall of the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg into ecstasy – four of his instruments, in balance with the large orchestra, wove soundscapes and seemingly archaic rhythms never heard before.

The whole thing seemed embedded in orchestral power and the most delicate finesse, in the exponentially developing, magnificently radiant sounds of a huge, powerful orchestra. At times, it almost reminded me of Wagner or Strauss, if it weren’t for these strange, unfamiliar vibrations. It warmed my heart.
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