Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

The Australian Music Centre (AMC) is delighted to announce the 2026 Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address will be delivered by conductor Benjamin Northey on Monday 16 November at Iwaki Auditorium, Melbourne (Naarm).

The Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address is an annual forum for ideas relating to the creation and performance of Australian music. Named after the Australian composer Peggy Glanville-Hicks, it has been igniting debate and highlighting crucial issues since its establishment in 1999.

In this year's Address, titled "A Culture of Confidence", Professor Benjamin Northey will argue that Australian art music does not primarily have a preservation problem, but a relevance, imagination and connection opportunity. He will explore how greater cultural confidence can be expressed through the elevation of Australian artists and repertoire, deeper connection with audiences and how a shared sense of responsibility for our musical future might help build a more distinctive, ambitious and inspiring musical culture.


Image: Benjamin Northey, photo by Laura Manariti

Catherine Haridy, CEO of the Australian Music Centre says: "Benjamin Northey is one of the country's most respected conductors and artistic leaders. He has spent his career championing Australian music on podiums here and around the world and is also dedicated to shaping the next generation of conductors. We're honoured to have him deliver this year's Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address and the discourse this inspires."

The 2026 Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address is on sale now and will also include performances by the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM).

2026 Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address
A CULTURE OF CONFIDENCE

6pm (AEDT) Monday 16 November
Iwaki Auditorium, 130 Southbank Blvd, Melbourne (Naarm)

Presented by the Australian Music Centre, with the address by Professor Benjamin Northey and performances by the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM).

Tickets $15
Bookings events.humanitix.com/2026pghaddress

With thanks to our Broadcast Partner ABC Classic for their support

ABOUT BENJAMIN NORTHEY
Australian conductor Benjamin Northey is the Chief Conductor of the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Conductor in Residence of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Principal Guest Conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In 2025 he was appointed Professor of Conducting at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and Director of the Australian Conducting Academy.

Northey appears regularly as a guest conductor with all major Australian symphony orchestras, Opera Australia, Victorian Opera, New Zealand Opera and State Opera South Australia.

His international appearances include concerts with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia, the Malaysian Philharmonic and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

An Aria Awards, Air Music Awards, and Art Music Awards winner, he was voted Limelight Magazine's Australian Artist of the Year in 2018. Northey's many recordings can be found on ABC Classics.

patricktogher.com/benjamin-northey

ABOUT THE PEGGY GLANVILLE-HICKS ADDRESS
The Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address was established in 1999 by the New Music Network, in honour of one of Australia's great international composers. In the spirit of Glanville-Hicks, an outstanding advocate of Australian music delivers the address each year, challenging the status quo and raising issues of importance in new music.

Since its founding, the Address has developed into a landmark event in the Australian new music scene. The Australian Music Centre took on the important custodianship of the Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address in 2018.

Speakers over the years have included leading Australian composers, performing artists, educators and artistic directors, including Elena Kats-Chernin, William Barton, Deborah Cheetham-Fraillon AO, Kim Williams AM, Nat Bartsch and Marshall McGuire.

australianmusiccentre.com.au/about/PGH