A Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO) performance will be one of the highlights of the 75th Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers which kicks off this Friday.
The three-week event in the capital of the Darling Downs, 125km west of Brisbane, features 80 events to mark its anniversary, including the QSO performance in Queen’s Park on October 4.
In a statement, Carnival organisers said the full Orchestra would perform Symphony Under the Stars, under the baton of Chief Conductor Umberto Clerici.
“It will be Maestro Clerici’s first trip to the Garden City, and the first time the full orchestra has performed an outdoor concert in Toowoomba,” it said.
“Maestro Clerici will be joined by saxophone soloist Nick Russoniello and 84 members of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.”
Organisers said Symphony Under the Stars features music from George Gershwin, Debussy and Mussorgsky.
They said the performance was one of the highlights of the 75th instalment of the festival which was judged the best major event in the nation at the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards.
The centrepiece of the floral extravaganza is the Queens Park Botanic Gardens and Laurel Bank, but city gardeners plant more 190,000 flowers across the city every year.
Organisers have selected a number of highlights for festival goers:
- The Grand Central Floral Parade has the theme It’s A Party, with almost 100 participant groups. It’s on Saturday, September 21 from 10am.
- The Teddy Bears’ Picnic is now a four-day kids’ event at Empire Theatre by Thrive on Arts September 26-29. BYO Teddy.
- The Ferris Wheel in the Botanic Gardens gives everyone the best views over all the petals. It runs from September 13-22 from 9am to 6pm.
- Sideshow Alley runs in lower Queens Park from September 20-22.
- Cinema Under the Stars returns on Saturday September 28, in Peacehaven Botanic Park, Highfields.
- The Itty Bitty Grand Central Floral Parade allows those that can’t participate in the main parade event to showcase their creativity, community spirit and love of Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers in miniature. It’s on display at Grand Central Shopping Centre from September 14-30.
- The Festival of Food & Wine from September 13-15 is for music and food lovers, with a dedicated children’s area.
- For foodie families, #trEATS, the regional food trail, returns with a record number of bites.
For more details visit the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers website.
