Chong Lim piano, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, Angus Burchall
drums,. David Jones ... Words and music by Cat Stevens. Arranged by Phil
Buckle.
530 4197
DAVID HOBSON THE PROMISE
When I perform my own concerts, I have the opportunity to sing material outside the classical genre. For many years now, people have asked me whether I would record some of this repertoire. I am pleased that the opportunity has finally come to bring this dream to fruition with the help and support of my old friend Chong Lim. My father, a singer and performer himself, was most concerned when I decided to leave university to pursue music composition. I would like to think that he'd be happy with how things have turned out. To Philip Hobson (1927-1996)
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1 The Impossible Dream
4’09 Words by Joe Darion, music by Mitch Leigh. Orchestration by Chong Lim and Lachlan Davidson. Choir arrangement by Jordan Murray. Arranged by Chong Lim. Chong Lim piano, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, Angus Burchall drums, David Jones percussion, Cantillation, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
2 Everybody Hurts
5’47
Words and music by Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe. Orchestration by Jessica Wells. Arranged by David Hobson. Chong Lim piano and Hammond, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, David Jones drums and percussion, Suzie Ahern, Annette Roche, Rod Davies backing vocals, Fiona Hobson, Ruth Hobson guest vocals, Suzie Ahern featured vocal ad libs, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
3 If I Loved You
3’10
3’45 Words and music by Cat Stevens. Arranged by Phil Buckle. Lachlan Davidson clarinet, Chong Lim piano and synthesisers, Phil Buckle guitar, programming, Craig Newman bass, David Jones drums, Madeleine Hobson, Samuel Hobson guest vocals 3’33
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7 Take On Me
4’01 Words and music by Magne ‘Mags’ Furuholmen, Morten Harket and Pål Waaktaar. Orchestration by Chong Lim. Arranged by David Hobson. Chong Lim piano and Hammond, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, David Jones drums and percussion, Suzie Ahern, Annette Roche, Rod Davies backing vocals, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor 5’19
Words and music by Bono and U2. Orchestrated and arranged by Chong Lim. Chong Lim piano and synthesisers, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, Angus Burchall drums and percussion, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
9 The Promise
4 Father and Son
Words and music by Joe Melson and Roy Orbison. Orchestration by Jordan Murray. Arranged by David Hobson and Chong Lim. Chong Lim piano, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, Angus Burchall drums, Tim Hook timpani, Cantillation, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
2’55
Words and music by Meredith Wilson. Stuart Fraser guitar
8 With or Without You (Duet with Christine Anu)
Words by Oscar Hammerstein II, music by Richard Rodgers. Orchestration by Jessica Wells. Arranged by David Hobson. Chong Lim piano, Craig Newman bass, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
5 Crying
6 Till There Was You
3’23
Words and music by David Hobson and Phil Buckle. Orchestration by Chong Lim. Arranged by David Hobson. Lachlan Davidson soprano saxophone, Chong Lim piano, Craig Newman bass, Attila Kuti solo violin, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
0 Iris
4’38
Words and music by Johnny Rzeznik. Orchestration by Jessica Wells. Arranged by David Hobson, Phil Buckle and Chong Lim. Chong Lim piano, Phil Buckle guitar and programming, Craig Newman bass, Angus Burchall drums, Cantillation, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
! Ave Maria
3’24
Music by Pietro Mascagni. Words by Piero Mazzoni. Arranged by Lyle Chan. Emma West solo violin, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
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@ Everybody’s Gotta Learn Sometime
4’56
Words and music by James Warren. Orchestration by Jessica Wells. Arranged by David Hobson and Chong Lim. Chong Lim piano and Rhodes, Stuart Fraser guitar, Craig Newman bass, David Jones drums and percussion, Suzie Ahern backing vocals, Cantillation Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
£ Bigger Than Us
4’27 Words and music by David Hobson and Phil Buckle. Orchestration by Jessica Wells. Arranged by Phil Buckle and David Hobson. Chong Lim Wurlitzer and Hammond, Phil Buckle guitar and programming, Craig Newman bass, David Jones drums and percussion, Suzie Ahern, Annette Roche, Rod Davies backing vocals, Sinfonia Australis, Brett Weymark conductor
$ Lullaby
3’42
Words and music by Billy Joel. Chong Lim piano Total Playing Time
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57’30
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DAVID HOBSON
Brett Weymark conductor
Australian tenor and composer David Hobson is one of Australia’s best-known performers. David grew up in country Victoria and as a youngster sang in church choirs and local musicals, fronted rock and jazz bands and wrote music. While demonstrating his rock musical Macbeth to the Victoria State Opera, he was persuaded to become a classical tenor on the basis of his distinctive singing voice, and joined the cast of the highly successful Broadway version of The Pirates of Penzance. David went on to perform many operatic roles including his award-winning performances as Rodolfo in the Baz Luhrmann production of La bohème and Orpheus in Gluck’s Orphée et Eurydice. Outside of opera he performs extensively in concert and appears at major events including an exclusive performance for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the AFL Grand Final. David is well known to television audiences from his appearances on Carols in the Domain, Carols by Candlelight, It Takes Two and Dancing with the Stars. David is also a highly successful composer whose works include a music theatre version of Macbeth, the chamber opera Remembering Rosie and the soundtrack to the film One Perfect Day, which was named Best Music Score by the Film Critics Circle of Australia in 2004. His discography includes a number of opera DVDs (including the aforementioned internationally popular La bohème), top-selling classical CDs, a collection of original compositions with David Hirschfelder and a duet album with Anthony Warlow. David has won numerous awards including a ‘MO’ award for Operatic Performer of the Year, a Sydney Theatre Critics’ Circle Award, also for Operatic Performer of the Year, The Age Performing Arts Award for Best Performer in Opera, and an Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) Award for Best Classical Album. www.davidhobson.biz
Sinfonia Australis Manager: Alison Johnston
Concert Master Emma West Violin 1 Emma West Zoe Bloomfield Matthew Bruce Myee Clohessy Sophie Cole Alexandra Mitchell Jo Sadler Veronique Serret Martin Silverton Lisa Stewart Léone Ziegler Violin 2 Michelle Kelly Caron Chan Alice Higgins Narine Melconian Leigh Middenway Elisabeth Mitchelmore Mirabai Peart Naomi Radom Esmeralda Tintner
Viola Rosemary Curtin Thomas Chauner Jennifer Compton Jennifer Curl Nicole Forsyth Heather Lloyd Luke Spicer
Bass Clarinet Sue Newsome Bassoon Matthew Ockenden Horn Anton Schroeder Casey Rippon Frankie Lo Surdo
Cello Daniel Yeadon James Beck Heather Lindsay Sally Maer Rosemary Quinn Sally Schinkel-Brown Alistair Sung
Trumpet Leanne Sullivan Samantha Robinson Trombone Nigel Crocker Ros Jorgensen Bass Trombone Joshua Davis
Bass Kees Boersma Jennifer Druery Kirsty McCahon
Timpani Brian Nixon
Flute Rosamund Plummer
Percussion Rebecca Lagos
Oboe Ngaire de Korte
Harp Genevieve Lang
Cor Anglais Rachel Tolmie
Keyboard Catherine Davis
Clarinet John Lewis 8
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Cantillation Manager: Alison Johnston
Sopranos Sarah Jones Belinda Montgomery Alison Morgan Nicole Thomson Mezzo-sopranos Jenny Duck-Chong Rose Saunders Natalie Shea Nicole Smeulders Tenors Michael Butchard Philip Chu Dominic Ng John Pitman Basses Daniel Beer Corin Bone Mark Donnelly David Greco
Produced by Chong Lim Executive Producers Lyle Chan, Cyrus Meher-Homji Coordination George Ash, Rod Cameron, Michele Porto, Michael Richardson (Universal Music Australia); Robert Patterson, Martin Buzacott, Hilary Shrubb, Natalie Shea (ABC Classics) Recording Engineers Doug Brady, Carl Schubert, Richard Lush, Chong Lim Assistant Engineer Carl Mueller Mixed by Doug Brady at Armstrong Studios, South Melbourne except ‘Father and Son’ mixed by Carl Schubert at River Studios, Abbotsford, Melbourne Mastering Leon Zervos at Sterling Sound, New York Booklet Design Imagecorp Pty Ltd David Hobson Photography Pierre Baroni Photo p11 Martin Pullan
ABC Classics and Universal Music Australia thank Darryl Sullivan and Karen Don (Universal Music Australia), Alexandra Alewood and Melissa Kennedy (ABC Classics), Daniel Leffler (Sterling Sound) and James K. Lee. 2007 Australian Broadcasting Corporation/Universal Music Australia Pty Limited. © 2007 Australian Broadcasting Corporation/Universal Music Australia Pty Limited. Distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Universal Music Group, under exclusive licence. Made in Australia. All rights of the owner of copyright reserved. Any copying, renting, lending, diffusion, public performance or broadcast of this record without the authority of the copyright owner is prohibited.
Recorded August and October 2007 at Armstrong Studios in South Melbourne, River Studios in Abbotsford, Melbourne, and Studios 301 in Sydney. I would like to thank everyone associated with the making of this album for their musicianship, goodwill and good humour, and especially Chong Lim, Lyle Chan, Mark Gogoll and my family Amber, Madi and Sam. — DH
Chong Lim with David Hobson
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