SUNDAYS BY THE LAKE

Ensemble Q is proud to partner again with the University of Queensland for four beautiful concerts in the stunning GHD Auditorium in the Advanced Engineering Building. The multi award winning environmentally conscious building is situated overlooking the recently refurbished lake, allowing audience members to enjoy the performance with the stunning natural backdrop adorning the huge stage windows. Deliciously air conditioned with disability access and comfortable seats, the GHD Auditorium provides an exciting home to Ensemble Q concerts in 2026.

Concert One - 3pm Sunday 8 March - The Mendelssohns

Anne Cawrse's Sanctuary for violin and cello opens our season in perfect harmony with the landscape of the lakes. It is gentle, intimate and full of the sounds of the birds that you will spy from the comfort of your seats - the most fitting tribute to our favourite venue.

Then indulge in one of the most loved piano trios of all time, the virtuosic and deeply romantic piano trio in D minor by Felix Mendelssohn, followed by his sister's absolutely exquisite string quartet, the quartet in E flat major by Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel.

Concert Two - 3pm Sunday 10 May - Mozart for Mums

In this special Mothers' Day edition, Ensemble Q provides the perfect afternoon treat for all Mums, young and not so young. Joined by ABC Classic's favourite presenter Ed le Brocq, the program features the Mozart Clarinet Quintet played by Ensemble Q heart-throb Paul Dean (well, Trish thinks so), along with a new work by Anne Cawrse, our 2026 Composer in Residence. This work pairs with Ed le Brocq's own published story Sonam and the Silence, which he will narrate, followed by the most whimsical narrated string quartet version of Michael Leunig's Curly Pyjama Letters, by Calvin Bowman.

As if it's not already special enough, the quartet will perform two of the most beautiful, romantic short works for quartet by Webern and Puccini.
With free champagne and a surprise treat for Mums, this is an absolute must for a Mother's Day afternoon.

We have the rare treat of being joined by special guest violist Roger Benedict, who is one of the most highly regarded violists in the world, let alone Australia.

Concert Three - 3pm Sunday 23 August - Bartók & Brahms

Béla Bartók's Contrasts lights the fuse of this show of virtuosity and passion. A virtuosic trio for clarinet, violin and piano that draws on Hungarian and Romani folk impulses - raw, playful and rhythmically unpredictable. Margaret Sutherland's Nocturne shifts the lens inward, its quiet shimmer and suspended lines revealing a composer of striking subtlety, portrayed exquisitely by violinist Adam Chalabi.
Brahms’s Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor, Op. 60, is an emotionally charged and deeply romantic work whose sombre beauty and soaring lyricism echo his lifelong, unspoken love for Clara Schumann.

We welcome back our Germany-based superstar violist Benjamin Roskams for this performance, which we will be taking to the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne Recital Centre.

Concert Four - 3pm Sunday 1 November - Schubert Octet

We finish off the year with one of the most loved and most important chamber works, the Schubert Octet in F major. It is a landmark piece that feels orchestral in scope - six movements, nearly an hour long, but as you're listening to the intricacy and incredible prowess of Schubert's writing, time flies.
The work is heralded by a performance of Melody Eötvös' Baelo, which we commissioned in 2025 and is most definitely one to be repeated.

The Sundays by the Lake series brings world class music in a serene location away from the hustle and bustle of the city, with plenty of free Sunday afternoon parking just a few minutes walk across the lake in the Conifer Knoll parking station (level 3).