Bryce Dessner is one of the more interesting figures in the music world, having risen to fame as the lead singer of the indie rock band The National before moving largely into orchestral and film work as a composer. As a result of this, he has travelled all around the world for his orchestral work, regularly writing for the world’s leading ensembles, including Orchestre de Paris and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. As part of Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s commitment to programming contemporary composers, Dessner is in Sydney as part of a month-long residency, including shows at the Opera House as well as shows at City Recital Hall.

It was at City Recital Hall that the audience gathered for Dessner’s portrait in music, featuring a selection of his works across his classical discography. The night began with Dessner’s “Impermanence Suite” for string quartet, which was inspired by the Australian bushfires and the Notre Dame fire in Paris and originally performed for Sydney Dance Company. While it was unusual to not have the medium for which the work was intended on display, the quartet really brought out the colours of the work, with the richness of the strings permeating through the wonderful acoustics of City Recital Hall with absolute clarity and precision. It was a light but also powerful start to the evening, which was greatly appreciated by the audience who were mostly at capacity in the venue.

Interestingly, Dessner chose to perform the printed program backwards, which he said was reflective of his artistry. The audience were fortunate enough to hear lengthy expositions from Dessner between each piece, as he shared anecdotes of his writing and what led him to each piece. A selection of music from “Train Dreams” was also wonderfully executed, with Dessner explaining that he has typically avoided writing for films but it worked particularly well in this instance after he was approached by the director. The music was well chosen and curated and well executed by the musicians, who brought a driving feel to the pieces as well as sensitivity where appropriate.

“Garcia Counterpoint” really did provide a counterpoint to the rest of the show, with Dessner performing on electric guitar alongside prerecorded guitar accompaniment in a piece that was a homage to Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia and was inspired from a classical standpoint by Steve Reich. This perhaps felt a little bit more out of place in the program but was still enjoyable unto itself and was a good opportunity to actually see Dessner himself perform, which was a nice experience. Arguably, the highlight of the night was the performance by Vatche Jambazian of Dessner’s lullabies, which really was quite beautiful in its execution, with Jambazian performing with sensitivity and heart, bringing the beautiful pieces to life.

The show closed with “Aheym”, which was one of Dessner’s first popularised classical works. Again, the work was performed very well, with the unconventionality of the themes and the contrasting metre really being brought out well by the orchestra to create a feeling of frenzy to end the concert.

Overall, this was a great show and a wonderful representation of just how versatile Dessner’s work is. There was so much skill on display and it was great to see some new work performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Perhaps next time Dessner comes to Australia, we’ll be seeing him performing The National’s work with the orchestra but for now, this was a great residency and one that all should be very proud of.

Rating: ★★★★1/2

Bryce Dessner + Sydney Symphony Orchestra – City Recital Hall – 24 September 2026 

All photo credits: Cassandra Hannagan