Through a program spanning the Baroque era to the contemporary works of Arvo Pärt, cellist Nicolas Altstaedt and lutenist Thomas Dunford demonstrated the enduring beauty of two of music’s most expressive instruments. Across the evening, the pair transported audiences gathered at Canberra’s Llewellyn Hall into a rich and harmonious sound world built upon collaboration, storytelling and musical conversation.
Marin Marais’s La Rêveuse (The Dreaming Woman) provided a fitting introduction to the evening, immediately establishing the remarkable partnership between the two musicians. The cello’s warm, resonant tone blended beautifully with the delicate colours of the lute, creating a sound that was both intimate and expressive. From the opening notes, Altstaedt and Dunford demonstrated an extraordinary ability to listen and respond to one another, moving through the arrangement with effortless synchronicity.
The energy quickly shifted with Antoine Forqueray’s La Leclair, a work bursting with rhythmic vitality and virtuosic flair. Altstaedt’s fast-moving passages evoked the lively world of Baroque dance, while Dunford’s controlled accompaniment provided both momentum and structure. Despite being written more than 300 years ago, the music felt remarkably modern, highlighting the timeless appeal of the Baroque style.
Photo: David Cox
A captivating moment of the evening came during Altstaedt’s solo arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Cello Suite No. 5 in C minor. The cellist delivered a stunning performance of this renowned work entirely from memory. Throughout the suite, Altstaedt navigated its many emotional landscapes with exceptional control and sensitivity. The cello’s rich resonance echoed throughout the hall, capturing moments of both intensity and reflection, while the audience remained completely captivated.
Arvo Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel (Mirror in the Mirror) provided a moment of meditative stillness in the concert. With the lute providing a repetitive, hypnotic accompaniment, the cello’s lyrical lines unfolded with remarkable simplicity. The absence of breaks between several of the works allowed audiences to remain immersed in the music, creating a seamless listening experience that carried through to the final pieces by Marin Marais. The concert’s final piece, Marais’s Le Tourbillon (The Whirlwind), offered concertgoers a thrilling display of virtuosity that showcased the performers’ remarkable chemistry. Their energetic and expressive playing earned enthusiastic applause from the audience.
Yet perhaps the most memorable moment came during the encore.
Returning to the stage to perform The Beatles’s Blackbird, Altstaedt and Dunford invited the audience to join them in song. What began as a simple encore quickly transformed into a shared musical experience, demonstrating that music has the power to transcend both time and genre.
Throughout the evening, Altstaedt and Dunford demonstrated not only exceptional technical ability but also a profound sense of musical partnership. From the expressive beauty of Marais and Bach to the meditative simplicity of Pärt, the concert transformed Llewellyn Hall into a space of tranquillity and connection. On a crisp Canberra evening, we were reminded that great music, regardless of when it was written, still has the power to bring people together.
Nicolas Altstaedt and Thomas Dunford performed at Llewellyn Hall, ANU School of Music, on 13 August 2026.
