Utzon Music 2025 Genevieve Lacey & James Crabb

22 June 2025

In the Utzon Room

Classical Music

Charismatic Scottish-Australian classical accordion maestro James Crabb traverses musical centuries with Australia’s recorder virtuoso, Genevieve Lacey, performing music by Bach, Ortiz, Palestrina, Keller, Barbeler, Beamish, and traditional Scottish tunes.

A sensitive meeting of musical minds... haunting and beautiful.

Brisbane Courier Mail

Useful information:

A meeting of musical minds in joyful exchange

Recorder and accordion are a rare combination.  Strictly speaking, there’s only a tiny amount of music specifically written for these unassuming instruments.  Yet they carry many connotations: the lilt of a folk melody, where simple, repeating harmonies hold sway, the sophisticated voices of a polished concert hall, or new galaxies of Australian music.  This afternoon of music-making between two friends includes transparent early music by Renaissance Spaniard Diego Ortiz, Italian vocal composer Giovanni Palestrina, and the incomparable Johann Sebastian Bach. Written centuries later, but with similar clarity of line and purity of sound, the duo presents a handful of works composed or arranged especially for them by Andrea Keller, Damian Barbeler and Sally Beamish, before a final, gleeful set of Scottish folk tunes — James’ musical mother tongue. 

Presented by Sydney Opera House

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Artist Information

Genevieve Lacey
recorder 

James Crabb
classical accordion 

Program

Diego Ortiz Recercada Segunda & Recercada Primera 
Giovanni Palestrina Vestiva i colli  
with divisions by Francesco Rognoni

Andrea Keller Where is Everybody? 
J.S. Bach Sonata No. 3 in D minor BWV 527

Damian Barbeler Shadow Box
John Banister A Division upon a Ground 

Sally Beamish Lament
Trad Scottish arranged Crabb Mary Scott, the Flower of Yarrow, Cuckold Come out of the Amrey

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