Australian Chamber Orchestra Sets 2016 Season

Beethoven's late string quartets are the mighty pillar on which the ACO's 2016 season is built. These remarkably complex quartets are the undisputed pinnacle of chamber music-making, like a musical Everest. Even though they were composed in the depths of deafness, Beethoven was at the height of his creative power.

But not even Beethoven was an island. His debt is to Bach and earlier masters like Handel and Vivaldi, while his own influence on later composers remains unquestioned. With a stellar line-up of international guests joining the ACO, the 2016 season explores the entire canon of classical music, with Beethoven as the centrepiece.

· Richard Tognetti's Theft (3-4 June) is a collaboration with musicians, lawyers, experts and thieves. It traces the history of appropriation through the centuries: Beethoven lifting from Mozart and being borrowed by Strauss; Bach taking from Vivaldi, in turn taken by Berg; and 21st-century 'sampling' technologies. Inspiration or plagiarism, homage or robbery? Theft examines music's past and present to ask questions about the nature of creativity and ownership.

· 'Lioness of the keyboard', pianist, Elisabeth Leonskaja, is the unrivalled doyenne of the Russian old school, a formidably distinguished personality who follows in the footsteps of the great Russians of the Soviet era, such as Oistrakh, Richter, and Rostropovich, and who never wavered in their focus on the essence of music despite working under a grim political regime. Leonskaja plays Mozart's Piano Concerto No.9, considered "one of the greatest wonders of the world". (26 August-7 September).

· Italian violinist, Lorenza Borrani, directs the Beethoven Quartets Season Finale (18-28 November). Borrani is a founding member of Spira Mirabilis, an orchestra with a twist; they never work with conductors, there are no soloists, and no management. Others have said "...they are remaking the modern classical music concert with a remarkable spirit that crosses world-class performance standards with a rebellious, almost anarchistic, streak. More socialist collective than musical organisation..." Borrani says, "Feeling close is the best way of approaching the enlarged chamber music program that the ACO and I have planned for our 'first date'." She directs a program including Beethoven's Opus 131 quartet, some Schubert minuets and trios, and Schnittke's Sonata for violin and chamber orchestra.

· Russian 25-year-old soprano Julia Lezhneva is described as one of the "...few young singers being widely celebrated so early in their careers." (The Independent) and as possessing the voice of "...angelic beauty..." (The New York Times). She caused a sensation at London's 2010 Classical Brit Awards, where she slayed Rossini's Fra il padre at the Royal Albert Hall upon the invitation of her mentor Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, sharing the stage with superstars Angela Gheorghiu, Rolando Villazon and Bryn Terfel. Lezhneva's voice is a perfect match for the "intricacy and passion of the Baroque masters" in a program of arias and sacred works. (8-15 October)

· Firebrand Italian, Giovanni Sollima, cellist, conductor and composer, beguiled our musicians and audiences in 2014 with the infectious exuberance he brings to music. His flair for showmanship can see him go walkabout on the stage as he plays, or ripping out a Jimi Hendrix encore, or performing in an igloo theatre in the Italian Alps on a cello made of ice. He returns to lead us on a wild joy-ride through 500 years of Italian music-making (25 June-10 July).

· Cinemusica (2-12 April) showcases the combined forces of the ACO and sonic identity, Synergy Percussion, exploring the thrilling possibilities of strings and percussion, and a shared love of film. We hear works from some of the greatest Hollywood composers including scores written for Hitchcock's Pyscho, Kubrick's The Shining, and Mendes' American Beauty.

· In 2016, maverick Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto assumes his role as the newly-appointed Artistic Director of ACO Collective (formerly ACO2 ) - the perfect catalyst to ignite the imaginations of the fiery young guns of ACO Collective in their spirited touring adventures across the country. (4-19 February)

· Richard Tognetti directs a program highlighting the inventiveness of two Baroque greats, Bach and Vivaldi (16-19 October). Elena Kats-Chernin composes, Miniatures for Strings, especially for the musicians and superb string instruments of the ACO: Richard Tognetti's 1743 Guarneri del Gesù violin; Satu Vänskä's 1728/1729 Stradivarius; the 1610 Giovanni Paolo Maggini viola; and Maxime Bibeau's c.1590 Gasparo da Salò double bass. Kats-Chernin says "My idea is to research the music that was written at the time these instruments were made, particularly which pieces were likely to have been played on these instruments, and I will see where this knowledge takes me in the process of creating the new piece."

· ARIA award-winning, Slava Grigoryan, one of the finest classical guitarists of his generation. Grigoryan plays Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez (30 October-7 November), which he considers it to be "a fantastic jewel in the repertoire," its popularity remaining unsurpassed to this day. The ACO plays Beethoven's Symphony No.7, which he called it "one of the happiest products of my poor talents."

· In a tour de force directed by Richard Tognetti (5-21 May), Beethoven's Grosse Fuge takes its original place as the finale of the String Quartet Op.130, a work which The New Yorker music critic Alex Ross called "a musicological Holy Grail", and "the most radical work by the most formidable composer in history".

· The ACO is at its most intimate with treasures from the giants of music, Mozart and Beethoven (23-26 September). Mozart's String Quintet in G was a favourite of both Tchaikovsky and Einstein, and Beethoven's Op.132 quartet prompted TS Eliot to write of its remarkable capacity to evoke the transcendence of human suffering and bear the "fruit of reconciliation and relief."

· After huge critical acclaim in 2012 and 2013 in Australia The Reef returns, and this time Richard Tognetti shares this genre-defying mix of music, film and the natural world with the USA. During the northern hemisphere summer, the ACO undertakes a three-week tour of Europe.

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