ABSTRACT
This final chapter focuses on the symphonies from the first two decades of the twenty-first century by composers born between 1966 and 1995. Stuart Greenbaum’s five symphonies define the genre very flexibly and include compilations of (at first) independent pieces in Symphony No.1, an ingeniously constructed work for chamber orchestra (No.2), a large two-movement work portraying a Supernova (No.3), a four-movement work for strings and a symphony for chorus, strings and percussion. Likewise, Matthew Hindson uses a flexible definition of symphony in his four-movement anthology A Symphony of Modern Objects, E = MC2 (a ballet score) and the powerful third symphony which portrays the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in war veterans. Katy Abbott’s two symphonies are powerful works that incorporate notions of commemoration and loss, of playfulness and ecological disaster behind their well-crafted structures. The chapter includes a brief consideration of two symphonies premiered a week apart in May/June 2021 by John Rotar (born 1995) and Paul Dean which suggests a bright future for the symphony in the immediate future. The book ends with a call to action to Australian orchestras and music organisations to perform, record and disseminate this remarkable body of Australian symphonies.
