July 13th, 2026Clunes recital
Society XVII, a group of players who specialise in 17th and 18th century music, are heading to the Clunes Town Hall for a 60-minute recital on Sunday, July 26 at 3pm.
All four members play with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra – but with that based in Sydney, the Victorian quartet have decided to also do their own thing.
They are Timothy Willis on baroque violin, Jamie Hey and Edwina Cordingley on baroque cello and Nicholas Pollock on theorbo. Jamie is the principal cello of the ABO and Nicholas is the principal theorbo player.
Jamie lives in Castlemaine, Edwina in Woodend and Timothy and Nicholas in Melbourne.
Edwina said the recital would cover cello sonatas, violin and solo theorbo work.
“We have worked together for many years but this ensemble is quite new. We had our first concert on Saturday at Elphinstone in the old St Mary’s Church which is now privately owned by an artist.
“We got together because we are all from Victoria and we spent a lot of time together on the road and in hotels – and this is the music we really love playing. This is what we are really passionate about.
“The cello sonatas and the trio sonatas and the really intimate kind of chamber works that are really beautiful to play.”
Edwina said she would like to think that their music appeals to everyone but the reality was the audiences tended to be older.
“But that’s largely because they’ve got more time to go to concerts. I know what life’s like when you’re busy and working with children and all of that. But we love having everyone in our audience.”
Edwina said the group were always interested in the acoustics of the places they were playing.
“Elphinstone is just this beautiful space with all timber floorboards and timber rafters in the ceiling. We take the time to try to find acoustics that will complement the music. It needs to be small enough that it’s an intimate chamber ensemble.
“Clunes is pretty commonly used by us. We’ve all performed there with different ensembles. It’s on the regional touring concert route. So, even the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra has performed there with their regional tour.”
Bookings: Trybooking.com
Words: Donna Kelly | Image: Contributed
