ACO Unleashed
29 June 2025
In the Concert Hall
Classical Music
Celebrating 50 years of virtuosity and brilliance with music by Bach, Beethoven, Ravel, Schubert and Kuusisto.
| Date | Time |
| Sunday 29 June | 2pm |
| Standard | Price |
|---|---|
| Premium | $141 |
| A Reserve | $125 |
| B Reserve | $96 |
| C Reserve | $75 |
| D Reserve | $49 |
| Concession* Aust. Pensioner Veteran Healthcare Card | Price |
|---|---|
| Premium | N/A |
| A Reserve | $113 |
| B Reserve | $85 |
| C Reserve | $64 |
| D Reserve | $49 |
*Valid ID required
| Groups 8+ | Price |
|---|---|
| Premium | $126 |
| A Reserve | $110 |
| B Reserve | $86 |
| C Reserve | $68 |
| D Reserve | $39 |
Please telephone +61 2 9250 7700
or email groupbookings@sydneyoperahouse.com
| Under 35 | Price |
|---|---|
| Premium | N/A |
| A Reserve | N/A |
| B Reserve | $35 |
| C Reserve | $35 |
| D Reserve | $35 |
| Student Full Time Student Card holders (Aust. only) | Price |
|---|---|
| Premium | N/A |
| A Reserve | N/A |
| B Reserve | $30 |
| C Reserve | $30 |
| D Reserve | $30 |
$8.95 booking fee applies per transaction
Prices correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.
Children aged 15 years and under must be accompanied at all times. Children aged 0 - 23 months at the time of a performance may be seated on a parent’s lap free of charge. All children occupying a seat or aged 2 years of age or older must hold a valid ticket.
Authorised ticket agencies for this event are Sydney Opera House and Australian Chamber Orchestra. For more information about Authorised Agencies, see the frequently asked questions below.
General Public tickets on-sale
Friday 18 October 2024
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Wheelchair accessible:
There are a number of wheelchair and companion seating locations in our theatres. To book accessible seating contact Box Office:
Telephone
+61 2 9250 7777
(Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm AEST)
Email bookings@sydneyoperahouse.com
Find out more about accessibility at Sydney Opera House.
Run time
This performance will run for approximately 2 hours, with an interval.
Event duration is a guide only and may be subject to change.
Age
Children aged 15 years and under must be accompanied at all times.
The Opera House is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children that visit or engage with us. Read our Child Safety Policy.
ACO Unleashed
Celebrating 50 years of virtuosity and brilliance with music by Bach, Beethoven, Ravel, Schubert and Kuusisto.
ACO Unleashed is an exhilarating celebration of the ACO at 50 – bold, virtuosic and utterly electrifying. Curated by Richard Tognetti to showcase the extraordinary talent within the ACO, this program highlights the individual artistry of ACO principals Helena Rathbone, Satu Vänskä and Timo-Veikko Valve, alongside our newest member, violinist Anna da Silva Chen, where classics by Bach, Beethoven, Schubert and Ravel, alongside Finnish master Jaakko Kuusisto, celebrate the ACO’s “unwavering energy and maverick imagination” (The Times, UK).
No celebration of the ACO would be complete without the music of JS Bach. The concert opens with the Concerto for Three Violins in D Major, which gloriously intertwines soloists Helena Rathbone, Satu Vänskä, and Anna da Silva Chen in a concerto that bursts with warmth, purity and brilliance.
Ravel’s Tzigane, a fiery and intoxicating masterwork for violin and orchestra, has long been considered one of his most electrifying compositions. Satu Vänskä’s virtuosity and magnetic presence will lead audiences through its thrilling journey—from haunting mystery to an exuberant and triumphant finale.
The ACO has a rich history of presenting Beethoven’s quartets. In Richard Tognetti’s own arrangement for string orchestra of the String Quartet in F minor, Op.95 “Serioso”, the intense turbulence and poetic brilliance—foreshadowing Beethoven’s late style – is amplified, demonstrating the ACO’s uncompromising focus and raw emotional power.
Schubert’s Quartettsatz captures the composer’s vast emotional depth and restless energy in a single movement before the concert comes to an enthralling close with Jaakko Kuusisto’s Cello Concerto, performed by Timo-Veikko Valve in what will mark the work’s highly anticipated Australian premiere. Rich, expansive, exquisitely beautiful and bittersweet, Kuusisto’s last completed orchestral work before his untimely passing in 2022 holds special emotional resonance. As Tipi notes:
"Playing these notes holds a special significance for me. Jaakko’s voice is in every melody, every harmony. And while we can’t have a conversation with him anymore, somehow, playing this piece comes close."
It’s a thrilling finale to a concert that illuminates how, after 50 years, the ACO’s virtuosity, passion and artistry remains as captivating as ever.
Presented by Australian Chamber Orchestra
Program and Artists
Helena Rathbone Director & Violin
Satu Vänskä Director & Violin
Anna da Silva Chen Violin
Timo-Veikko Valve Cello
Australian Chamber Orchestra
Johann Sebastian Bach Concerto for Three Violins in D Major, BWV 1064R
Maurice Ravel (arr. violin, strings and percussion) Tzigane
Ludwig van Beethoven (arr. strings) String Quartet No.11 in F Minor , Op.95. “Serioso”
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Franz Schubert String Quartet No.12 in C Minor, D703. “Quartettsatz”
Jaakko Kuusisto Cello Concerto, Op.38
Season 2025
Australian Chamber Orchestra
The ACO is celebrating 50 years in 2025 and is one of the most acclaimed chamber orchestras in the world, renowned for their inspired programming, unrivalled virtuosity, energy and individuality. Under the direction of Artistic Director Richard Tognetti, they take audiences on the adventure to create truly transformative experiences.
Plan your visit
Venue information
Our foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
All Sydney Opera House foyers are pram accessible, with lifts to the main and western foyers. The public lift to all foyers is accessible from the corridor near the escalators on the Lower Concourse and also in the Western Foyer via the corridor on the Ground Level (at the top of the escalators). Pram parking will be available outside the theatres in the Western Foyer.
Getting here
The Sydney Opera House Car Park, operated by Wilson Parking, is open and available to use. Wilson Parking offer discounted parking if you book ahead. Please see the Wilson Parking website for details.
Please check the Transport NSW website for the latest advice and information on travel. You can catch public transport (bus, train, ferry) to Circular Quay and enjoy a six minute walk to the Opera House.
Frequently asked questions
Ticket purchases and collection at our Box Office is discouraged and eTicket or postal delivery methods should be used, wherever possible. However, if you are collecting your tickets from the Box Office, we recommend doing this at least 60 minutes before the event starts. If you have already received your tickets, the venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Please take your seats as soon as you arrive.
If you are late, we will seat you as soon as we can and, where possible, in your allocated seat. However, to reduce movement in the venue as well as minimise disruption to the performance and other patrons, ticketholders may be seated in an allocated latecomer’s seat. Please be aware that some events have lock-out periods. In these cases, latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance. On occasions, this may not be until the interval, or at all where there is no interval.
Details of our right to refuse admission can be found in our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Events.
In accordance with our venue security procedures, Opera House security will be scanning and checking bags under the Monumental Stairs, prior to entering the building. Bags will be scanned by an x-ray machine, and staff will wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when handling your belongings, such as gloves. Cloaking facilities will be open 60 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 60 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. However it is strongly encouraged that you travel lightly to minimise contact and queuing. Any bags larger than an A4 piece of paper will need to be checked into the Cloak Room.
The authorised agency for this event is the Sydney Opera House.
Only tickets purchased by authorised agencies should be considered reliable. If you purchase tickets from a non-authorised agency such as Ticketmaster Resale, Viagogo, Ticketbis, eBay, Gumtree, Tickets Australia or any other unauthorised seller, you risk that these tickets are fake, void or have previously been cancelled. Resale restriction applies. For more details, please refer to our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Attendance at Events.
Please contact Box Office on +61 2 9250 7777 as soon as possible to advise if you can no longer attend.
Foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
The venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
Please bring a credit or debit card for any on site purchases to enable contactless payment. You’re welcome to bring your own water bottle but no other food and drinks are permitted inside our venues.
The health, safety and wellbeing of everyone at the Sydney Opera House is our top priority. In line with this commitment, the Opera House became a smoke-free site in January 2022. Read our Smoke-free Environment Policy.
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