Beauty disturbed: Ruhe, Sydney Festival

Upon entering Sydney University’s Great Hall, I am faced with a multitude of tightly packed mismatched chairs filling the space. Watched by portraits of past Chancellors, I negotiate my way amongst other audience members to find a place to sit. As the last stragglers are seated, an ordinary-looking man in front of me stands on his chair, joined by another eight men. These men of the renowned choir Collegium Vocale Gent sing, in glorious a cappella harmony, a selection of songs by Franz Schubert. The title of the performance comes from their third song, Ruhe, schoenstes Gluck der Erde (Rest/calm/silence, earth's sweetest joy).

Read the rest my response to Ruhe, published in the print and online editions of Realtime #95, here.