Eternity in an HourEric Whitacre Conducts
27 June 2025
In the Concert Hall
Classical Music
Legendary choral leader and composer Eric Whitacre returns to Sydney to conduct his latest choral work, a mystical meditation in sound.
| Date | Time |
| Friday 27 June 2025 | 8:00pm |
| Standard Adults aged 18+ | Price |
| Premium | $140 |
| A Reserve | $114 |
| B Reserve | $88 |
| C Reserve | $60 |
| D Reserve | $45 |
| Concession Full-time domestic & international Students Pensioner card holders (Aust. only) | Price |
| Premium | $126 |
| A Reserve | $103 |
| B Reserve | $79 |
| C Reserve | $55 |
| D Reserve | $40 |
| Children under 18 years Under 30 years | Price |
| 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.
The authorised agencies for this event are Sydney Opera House and Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. For more information about Authorised Agencies, see the frequently asked questions below.
General Public tickets on-sale
9:00am, Wednesday 27 November 2024
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.
Language
It will be sung in English. A digital program with English texts will be available a week prior to performance and a limited number of printed programs will be available for sale for $10 at the event. There will be no surtitles at the concert.
Run time
This performance will run for approximately 110 minutes, including one 20 minute interval.
Event duration is a guide only and may be subject to change.
Age
Recommended for ages 8+
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.
ClassicalSourceContemplative, mystical and soaring by turns
Useful information:
Eternity in an Hour
To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
These words by William Blake have fascinated Eric Whitacre for years, and his obsession has taken shape as an hour-long meditation in sound – a musical guide to ‘how to be truly in the moment’. Written for voices, instruments and an ethereal blanket of electronics, Eternity in an Hour shimmers and soars and fills the air with disembodied harmonies.
Whitacre is a legend in the choral world – his charismatic music with its delicious chord clusters is a dream to sing and mesmerising to hear. In a welcome return to the Sydney Opera House he conducts Sydney Philharmonia Choirs’ youth ensemble VOX in this new hour-long creation.
Preparing our ears for the ultimate in contemplative experiences, Whitacre has chosen two of his most popular choral works, Edwin London’s take on a Bach chorale, ‘Come, sweet death’, and Past Life Melodies by Sarah Hopkins, an immersive blending of global vocal traditions that has become one of the most performed Australian choral works worldwide.
Presented by Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
Program
Eric WHITACRE Lux Aurumque
Sarah HOPKINS Past Life Melodies
Eric WHITACRE Cloudburst
Edwin LONDON Bach (Again), after ‘Come, Sweet Death’ by J.S. Bach
Eric WHITACRE Eternity in an Hour†*
† Commissioned by the 2024 BBC Proms, Flemish Radio Choir and Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
* Australian premiere
Artists
Eric Whitacre conductor
VOX
Season 2026
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
The season opens on Sydney Harbour with Vivaldi’s magnificent Gloria at Pier 2/3 Walsh Bay. Sublime choral masterpieces will fill the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall: Bach’s St John Passion at Easter, the vivid colours of Duruflé’s Requiem & Poulenc’s Gloria, Haydn’s Creation and Britten’s War Requiem. ChorusOz goes to the opera with Verdi’s Aida – then to Perth with Orff’s Carmina Burana. And don’t miss World O World in the evocative ambience of White Bay Power Station.
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 7-10 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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