The Sound of Jane's World: Music at Chawton and Beyond

'Jane Austen's Music - Pemberley Revisited' at The Melbourne Recital Centre

Hello my friends,

I had the most exquisite afternoon at The Melbourne Recital Centre, for “Jane Austen’s Music”.

The Melbourne Recital Centre Auditorium

I was honoured to attend as their special guest for this Mother's Day concert celebrating Jane's 250th birthday. The event offered the audience a new experience and insights into a part of Jane's world we often overlook: the central role of music in her daily life and creative process.

Arriving at the High Tea Reception before the event, for Melbourne Recital Centre supporters and donors.

The program brilliantly wove together two musical worlds: the pieces Jane herself would have played and heard, and the modern film scores that have become inseparable from our experience of her novels. When pianist Aura Go read from my namesake Caroline Austen's memoir about Jane's musical habits, the audience audibly responded to the news that:

"Aunt Jane began her day with music... She practised regularly every morning – She played very pretty tunes, I thought – and I liked to stand by her and listen to them..."

Aura Go playing Joseph Haydn’s Piano Sonata No.48 in C major:

The audience laughed at young Caroline's observation that Jane's family "didn't much care for" her music, and there was genuine wonder at the description of Jane's precise handwritten music copies. These family memories made Jane's dedication to her morning practice feel so vivid and personal.

What struck me most was how the music transported us through different spaces in Jane's world. The Haydn sonata filled the modern auditorium with the same luminous notes that would have filled drawing rooms at Chawton. Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21 – performed beautifully by Aura Go – was exactly the kind of piece Jane would have treasured in her personal collection, as I treasure it in mine.

Opening of Mozart Piano Concerto No.21 in C major, with violins led by Rachel Beesley:

The quality of the musicians was exceptional. From the first notes, I found myself swaying gently (I hope I didn't disturb my neighbour!), completely immersed in melodies that travelled across centuries.

The program cleverly alternated between period pieces and beloved film scores. When they played the opening music from the 1995 Pride and Prejudice, the recognition was instant and universal. But it was the period-accurate pieces that truly transported us – especially the delightful Waltz for Piano, Tambourine and Triangle that had the whole audience smiling.

Muzio Clementi Waltz for Piano, Tambourine and Triangle in C:

The afternoon culminated in a rousing performance of "Rule, Britannia!" with four costumed singers joining the musicians. The entire audience sang along, hundreds of voices united in a song Jane herself would have known well.

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