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Simone Young conducts with baton in the hand in front of an orchestra

Simone Young conducts Richard Strauss

3 – 6 September 2025

In the Concert Hall

Sydney Symphony Orchestra

Classical Music

Richard Strauss’ Thus Spoke Zarathustra launched into popular consciousness in the 1960s, dramatically underscoring the opening scenes of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

A musical odyssey

Strauss’ sublime shifts from darkness to light are timeless, and jaw-dropping to experience live.

Chief Conductor Simone Young is one of the world’s leading interpreters of Strauss’ music.  In this concert she draws out the vast power of these works, alongside Australian pianist Andrea Lam and the virtuosity of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. 

Embark on a profound voyage with three very different works, including one of Strauss’ great tone poems and a piano concerto in all but name. Using just 23 string players, Metamorphosen is an intimate, reflective masterpiece written at the end of his career. Burleske gives rich, colourful glimpses into his early genius, and a chance to experience Andrea Lam's ‘fine pianism full of integrity and colour’ (Sydney Arts Guide). And the famous Zarathustra is far more than its opening, with Strauss using every instrument to demonstrate just how moving a single piece of music can be.

Presented by Sydney Symphony Orchestra

Programme

R STRAUSS 
Metamorphosen
Burleske
Thus Spoke Zarathustra

Artist information

SIMONE YOUNG conductor
ANDREA LAM pianist

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