Wednesday Lunchtime Concert: Roland Peelman, piano

Born in Belgium, Roland Peelman AM has been active in Australia over 30 years as a conductor, pianist, artistic director and mentor to composers, singers and musicians alike.

For his commitment to the creative arts in Australia, he has received numerous accolades, including the NSW Award for “the most outstanding contribution to Australian Music by an individual” in 2005. In 2006 he was named “musician of the year” by the Sydney Morning Herald and he has since featured regularly as one of the most influential people in the Australian arts scene.

Over a period of 25 years, Roland transformed the Song Company into one of Australia’s most outstanding and innovative ensembles. In addition, he instigated and directed an impressive list of new work, orchestral, vocal and operatic.

Roland worked for seven years with Opera Australia (1984-91) before becoming the Song Company’s Artistic Director (1990-2015) as well as Music Director of Sydney Metropolitan Opera (1989-94) and the Hunter Orchestra in Newcastle (1990-97).

As Artistic Director of the Canberra international Music Festival from 2015 to 2024, Roland has taken the Festival to new heights, concluding his tenure with an outstanding success.

Roland is a regular collaborator with Ensemble Offspring, and various other projects in Australia and overseas, both as conductor and pianist. Since 2017, Roland has collaborated with Luminescence on numerous major projects, including Frank Martin Mass (2018) and A Luminous Christmas (2020). In 2021, he was appointed as the group’s official artistic mentor.