Music / “Heart of Poland”. Peter de Jager. At the Larry Sitsky Recital Room, ANU School of Music, November 29. Reviewed by CLINTON WHITE

IF you love the piano and music written for the piano, then you very likely love the music of the Polish-French composer Fryderyk Chopin. In World War II the Nazis did too, probably because they thought they could hear influences of German composers.

Even so, they were quite happy to use Chopin’s music for political gain. In Germany it was celebrated, but in Poland the Nazis banned it from being played; banning it was a very effective tool of oppression.

But there were a few miracles along the way, including a Polish Jewish pianist, Wladyslaw Szpilman, who not only was saved from boarding a death camp train but, after then hiding for two years, was saved by a Nazi officer in November, 1944.

This concert, “Heart of Poland”, organised by The Friends of Chopin Australia, remembered the 80th anniversary of the Nazis’ invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, marking the beginning of World War II. It also celebrated the anniversary of the triumphant return of Chopin’s heart to the Church of the Holy Cross, in Warsaw, after the war ended, on October 17, 1945, and on the 96th anniversary of Chopin’s death.

At the piano was the winner of the first Australian International Chopin Piano Competition, in 2010, Peter de Jager.

He has a very elegant style. It is expressive, fluid and very attuned to the many nuances in Chopin’s music. And his interpretation of Chopin’s music, quintessentially of the Romantic music period, has developed and refined since I last saw him perform, just over a year ago.

His program featured many favourites, covering mazurkas, waltzes, polonaises, nocturnes and even a barcarolle and, of course, the perennial favourite – the “Fantaisie-Impromptu in C-sharp minor” – the one from which the melody was pinched for the song “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows”.

These pieces demand highly developed technical competence on many fronts, from big chord progressions and chromatic runs to the most delicate single note either side of judicious pauses and de Jager met all the challenges head-on with confidence and superior virtuosity. This was a very satisfying and uplifting performance.

One work in the program was a kind of outsider, but one that very much fitted the program intentions. “Folk Melodies”, written in 1945 by the 20th century Polish composer Witold Lutosławski, is a suite of 12 quite short and delightful arrangements of folk melodies to, say the program notes, “renew the connection to Poland’s musical heritage and her post-war musical re-construction”.

Despite the contrast, being written in that same 96th year after Chopin’s death, de Jager very successfully made it stand proudly next to the rest of the program. It was charming and light and a nice interlude.

This was a very fine and enjoyable concert with the audience demanding, and getting, an encore – another Chopin mazurka that skipped along delightfully. Poland may have suffered at the hands of the Nazis during World War II, but its musical heritage remains rock solid.

More of photographer ANDREW CAMPBELL’S bushfire photos: these are what he saw from just outside Bungendore yesterday (November 30). 

Social snapper TORI HERON was at Kokonut Pacific’s 25th anniversary in Queanbeyan. Here are her photos.

Social snapper TORI HERON files from the Radford Foundation fundraising dinner at Radford College.

A GRASS fire near Denison Street and Beale Crescent, Deakin, this afternoon (December 1) brought out response from emergency services. 

The fire was about 2000 square metres and was extinguished by crews from ACT Fire & Rescue and ACT Parks & Conservation Service.

FRESH from a leadership skirmish, Canberra Liberals leader Alistair Coe has rolled out his party’s preselected candidates for next year’s October poll. 

Characterising them as a “modern, diverse and representative team”, he said the party was excited at the calibre of its candidates, who came from a variety of personal, professional and cultural backgrounds.

“We are a team of working mums and dads, small business owners, entrepreneurs, public servants, teachers, musicians and hairdressers, many of whom were born overseas.

“Our team is the reflection of modern Canberra: diverse and representative.”

Here are the new Liberal candidates over and above the already preselected sitting Assembly members:

JOINING ALISTAIR COE AND JAMES MILLIGAN IN YERRABI:

LEANNE CASTLEY 

Leanne Castley is currently an IT Project Manager and performs with her band around Canberra. Leanne has lived in and around the Yerrabi electorate since she was five years old and watched Gungahlin grow from paddocks to the town centre it is. 

KRISHNA NADIMPALLI 

Dr Krishna Nadimpalli is an environmental scientist and has been in public service for the last 30 years. He recently received a Medal of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honours. Krishna has been in Canberra for the last 19 years.

JACOB VADAKKEDATHU 

Jacob Vadakkedathu arrived in Canberra in 1998 to do his masters degree in Business Administration. He has lived in Canberra since. He worked at the Commonwealth Department of Finance as a senior budget analyst and policy adviser from 2006 to April 2019 and is currently working at a private consulting firm as an associate director. Jacob was the inaugural president of the Federation of Indian Associations in ACT. Jacob has lived in the Nicholls since 2006 with his wife Beenu and two children.  

JOINING NICOLE LAWDER, MARK PARTON AND ANDREW WALL IN BRINDABELLA 

JANE HIATT 

Jane Hiatt is a small business owner, mother of four, linguist, naval servicewoman, educator and ultra-marathon runner. She moved with her husband to Canberra after leaving full-time service in the Navy to raise their family in 1993. They started a family business in the dental industry. Jane’s passion for education saw her start her own successful tuition business in 2002 in the Tuggeranong region. 

JAMES DANIELS 

Having seen different parts of Australia and the world as the son of a Defence family, James Daniels has lived in Tuggeranong since 1990. James has worked in the Canberra region as an accountant in public practice for the last 19 years. 

JOINING ELIZABETH KIKKERT IN GINNINDERRA 

KACEY LAM 

Kacey Lam is a former government ministerial adviser, with a background in small and family business. She commenced her career in the public service as an ANU graduate. 

PETER CAIN 

After starting his working life at the Newcastle BHP steelworks, Peter had a long career as a teacher and principal before becoming a lawyer. He is a vice president of the Law Society. He currently manages the tax disputes section at ACT Revenue Management. Peter and his wife have raised seven children in their own home in Evatt, where they have lived for more 20 years. 

ROBERT GUNNING 

Robert Gunning is semi-retired and runs his own business in Belconnen where he has lived for more than 40 years. His family grew up in Belconnen and went to local public schools. Robert is a former executive director of national associations and a former senior executive in the Australian Public Service mainly working in the departments of Transport and Finance. 

IGNATIUS ROZARIO 

Ignatius Rozario is a senior accountant who has lived in Belconnen since 2002. Ignatius is a member of the Community Advisory Council for Calvary Hospital, and is also involved in multicultural communities. He is married and a father of two. 

JOINING CANDICE BURCH AND ELIZABETH LEE IN KURRAJONG 

PATRICK PENTONY 

Patrick Pentony is a third generation Canberran with his family moving to the Kurrajong electorate in the 1950s. After graduating university, Patrick’s first job was as a real estate sales agent before starting businesses such as The Southside Farmers Markets and Choku Bai Jo. 

VIJAY DUBEY 

Vijay started his career as a teacher but shifted to the Australian Bureau of Statistics and joined the public service in 2010. He has returned to relief teaching within the Canberra region while running his own small businesses. Vijay and his wife Maryada have two daughters. 

ROBERT JOHNSON 

Robert Johnson is a Canberran of 15 years and was an Army Reservist for three years. He currently works in business and international trade. Robert is dedicated to serving his local community, volunteering for several organisations such as St John Ambulance Australia (ACT) and taking on leadership roles in Canberra’s multicultural community, including heading the Australia-China Youth Co-operation. 

JOINING GIUILA JONES AND JEREMY HANSON IN MURRUMBIDGEE 

ED COCKS 

Ed Cocks was born in Canberra’s South. He studied there, met his wife and was married there, and now he’s raising his own children there. Ed has previously worked as a courier, a help-desk worker, a music producer and has been a member of the APS for 20 years, where he has worked with researchers, health practitioners and economists.

SARAH SUINE 

Sarah Suine is a 33-year-old wife and mum to two boys age 8 and 6 and is active in her community through her boys’ school and sports clubs and also her own exercise groups. Sarah’s first job out of school was a hairdressing apprenticeship, which she completed in 2009. She has since worked in the Public Service, run her own hairdressing business, been a stay-at-home mum and worked at the Legislative Assembly. 

AMARDEEP SINGH 

Amardeep Singh started his career as a 20-year-old trainee engineer and is now working as a solutions consultant for a multinational corporation. Apart from spending time engaging with the diverse Canberra community, Amardeep loves being with his family as a father, son, husband and brother.

THE National Gallery won the award for Major Tourist Attraction and the National Arboretum won the Tourist Attractions Award at the 2019 Canberra Region Tourism Awards.

Taking out the Major Festivals and Events award was the National Museum of Australia for its “Rome: City and Empire” exhibition, a partnership with the British Museum. The Festivals and Events Award went to the Canberra Balloon Spectacular, part of the Enlighten Festival.

The awards – presented by the National Capital Attractions Association – recognised outgoing Australian War Memorial Director Brendan Nelson with an award for the Outstanding Contribution by an Individual Award.

The award winners will now compete against their category winners from across Australia at the 2019 Australian Tourism Awards in Canberra in March.

The full list of Canberra Region Tourism Awards 2019 winners:

• Major Tourist Attractions – National Gallery of Australia
• Tourist Attractions – National Arboretum
• Major Festivals and Events – National Museum of Australia, Rome: City and Empire
• Festivals and Events – Canberra Balloon Spectacular
• Cultural Tourism – Royal Australian Mint
• Specialised Tourism Services – GetAboutAble
• Visitor Information Services – Canberra and Region Visitors Centre
• Business Event Venues – National Convention Centre
• Adventure Tourism – Dynamic Motivation/Stromlo Shuttle Bus
• Destination Marketing – Destination Southern Highlands, Pie Time
• Tourism Wineries, Distilleries and Breweries – Shaw Wines
• Unique Accommodation – Jamala Wildlife Lodge
• Standard Accommodation – Leumeah Lodge
• Deluxe Accommodation – Little National Hotel
• Luxury Accommodation – Hyatt Hotel Canberra 
• New Tourism Business – Book Canberra Excursions
• Outstanding Contribution by an Individual – Brendan Nelson
• Tourism Visitor Education – National Capital Authority
• Markus Gibson-Huck Young Achiever Award – Michael Liu, Dionysus Movement

UPDATE: 

POLICE say Hayley has been found safe. 

POLICE and the family of 15-year-old Hayley McNally are concerned for her welfare after she went missing on Saturday (November 30). 

Hayley, who was believed to be travelling to Civic on the light rail, was last seen at the Gungahlin bus/light rail interchange at about 5.30pm.

She is described as being Caucasian, about 182cm (6’0”) tall, with a medium build, pale complexion, long dark brown hair and glasses.

She was last seen wearing a black top, pink and black chequered skirt and black sneakers.

Hayley’s family would like to assure her that she isn’t in any trouble.

Anyone who has seen Hayley or who may have information regarding her whereabouts is urged to contact ACT Policing Operations on 131 444 using reference number 6466900.

RETIRED justice Richard Refshauge is calling for the decriminalisation of personal illicit drug use following the release of a position paper from the Directions Health Services today (December 3). 

Mr Refshauge has been a long-term advocate for development of harm minimisation policies, and says: “I have seen firsthand the harms criminal penalties inflict. The personal, family and community costs are high. Having a criminal conviction can prevent a person securing employment, cause relationship breakdowns, and even lead to poverty and homelessness.” 

The call comes after the paper highlighted positive impacts around removing criminal penalties and sanctions for offences involving use and possession of small amounts of illicit drugs for personal use, saying it will have a positive effect on an individual’s health and welfare and the community more broadly. 

“All the evidence tells us that criminal penalties do not reduce drug use, yet, two-thirds of Commonwealth Government drug strategy funding is spent on law enforcement,” says the CEO of Directions Health Services, Bronwyn Hendry.

“Currently only a small portion of people with problematic drug use, receive the assistance they need.

“Early intervention and diversion into treatment, rather than the justice system, saves taxpayer dollars by reducing criminal recidivism; improving health, wellbeing and life outcomes; significantly reducing costs associated with the judicial process and incarceration; and reducing participants’ future reliance on welfare and service supports. 

“The current system is not working to reduce drug use or keep the community safer.” 

Directions Health Services argues that decriminalisation is a harm minimisation strategy that has been shown to be much more effective than the current prioritisation of criminal penalties. 

UNIDENTIFIED human remains have been found in the Murrumbidgee River, south of Kambah Pool.

Police were called to the location yesterday (December 1) following a call from the public.

Police say the identity of the remains have not been confirmed.

Anyone who could assist police should call 1800 333000 or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website. Information can be provided anonymously.

THREE days of raging fires in the Tallaganda National Park has left nearby towns without water, while other towns continue to face the threats of active fires. 

According to the Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council, the fire has burnt through 20,000 hectares and has seen several road closures, school closures and other impacts to services in the region.

Many council staff are also local residents directly affected by the fires, which means some of the council services are currently shorthanded while staff tend to their own properties and families or volunteer to fight the fires.

The Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council says a list of council services and activities have been impacted by the fires, including the temporary suspension of town water supply to Braidwood.

Pumping of water has been suspended while pipes burnt in the fire are replaced and water quality in remaining extraction ponds in the river is being assessed.

The council says drought relief taps for eligible properties not on town water remain open. Properties can access up to 1000 litres per occasion from the following sites: Braidwood – Bicentennial Park; Captains Flat – Wilkins Park; Bungendore – near council depot in Ellendon Street.

Other affected services include:

• Braidwood Pool is closed until further notice by QPRC Aquatics.
• Braidwood Waste Transfer Station is closed but is hoped to reopen as normal at 1pm Friday.
• Braidwood kerbside waste collection will continue as normal on Tuesday, December 3.
• Road construction and grading activities in areas surrounding Braidwood have been scaled back while equipment and staff have been redeployed to activities such as building of fire breaks and containment lines.
• Drivers should take care in areas that the fire has passed through. Traffic advisory signage and road name signs are likely to be damaged. Burnt trees may also present a hazard for drivers.
• The Braidwood Connect business meeting scheduled for December 3 has been cancelled. This meeting planned to host the draw of the “Christmas Shop and Win” campaign. The draw will take place in a low key public drawing on Wallace Street at 2pm on  December 3. Winners will be notified and announced in local media.
• QPRC’s Braidwood Customer Services and Library remain open but are shorthanded.

The community is reminded to continue to monitor the Fires Near Me app or rfs.nsw.gov.au/fire-information/fires-near-me for up to date information on the fire situation.

Cartoonist PAUL DORIN clearly believes in Father Christmas.

FIREFIGHTERS have extinguished a switchboard on fire at Kambah Fire Station on Sulwood Drive.

ACT Fire & Rescue contained the fire to the switchboard and are making the scene safe.

No injuries have been reported.

The fire will be investigated by WorkSafe ACT.

ABOUT 3000 Murray-Darling Basin farmers flocked to Parliament House today (December 2) calling on politicians to “can the plan” – the $13 billion plan to remove water from farmers and return it to the environment.  

Can The Plan ⁦@city_news⁩ pic.twitter.com/VxjKEYYaL6

— Mike Welsh (@Welshy54) December 2, 2019

“Seven days” columnist Mike Welsh was at the rally and says the farmers surged through the police line at Parliament House, forcing the police to move back to guard the front doors.

“They want the Murray-Darling Basin plan completely swamped,” he says.

“They were calling on Water Resources Minister David Littleproud to come out and talk to them. There was a lot of yelling and screaming.”

Mr Welsh says farmers are there from a stretch of places along the basin such as Wagga Wagga and Deniliquin, and says the farmers look like they plan to stay, with some of them bringing tents.

SOUTH Coast police have raised serious concerns after there were three seperate incidents near Batemans Bay where people were armed with guns or discharged a gun. 

In the first incident, at about 11pm last night (December 1), shots were allegedly fired into a home on View Street, Batehaven. Police believe a man was at home at the time of the shooting, and a vehicle was heard leaving the scene shortly after the shots were fired.

A few hours later, at about 1am today, shots were allegedly fired into a home on the Kings Highway, Nelligen.

Then, at about 2am today, three men were allegedly approached by another three men armed with firearms on the Princes Highway just south of Batemans Bay.

A fight broke out and a man was hit in the head with the back of a firearm.

Police received information that prior to the alleged assault, one of the alleged offenders attended a nearby service station and demanded other customers leave, before leaving the store without further incident.

South Coast police district commander, superintendent Greg Moore says: “We have had three separate incidents in the space of a few hours where firearms have been held or discharged.”

“This is a real concern for police, and there lies a real possibility that innocent people can suffer significant harm from this type of reckless and dangerous act,” he says.

“This kind of behaviour won’t be tolerated, and anyone who chooses to engage in these reckless acts will face the full brunt of the law.”

Investigators are calling for anyone who may have seen or heard anything suspicious around the time of any of the incidents to contact police.

Police are appealing for anyone with information to contact Batemans Bay police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333000.

A TAKEAWAY shop was robbed in Narrabundah this morning (December 2) after a knife-wielding man threatened staff and demanded money. 

The robber, who was wearing a black, long-sleeved jumper, took a purse, a mobile phone and cash.

He fled in a silver-coloured Subaru with NSW registration plates at about 11am.

The offender is described as male, about 183cm (6’) tall.

Anyone who witnessed the incident, or who has information that could assist police, including CCTV or dash-cam footage, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website using reference number 6467296.

THERE are “serious concerns” for a 29-year-old man, last seen at  Black Mountain Peninsula this afternoon (December 2).

Police and Timothy Kneebone’s family hold serious concerns for his welfare and are asking for public help to locate him.

He is described as being of Caucasian appearance, about 183cm (6 foot) tall, slim build with short, dirty, blonde hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a dark button-up shirt, tan pants and black shoes.

He may be driving a grey 2005 Holden Commodore (Rego YDY72N) with green duct tape on the driver’s side bumper.

Anyone with information should call 131 444.

“While Labor didn’t initially want to go there, they now are happy to claim credit for the fact that Canberra is now powered 100 per cent by renewable energy, cutting our contribution to climate heating by a massive 40 per cent,” writes TIM HOLLO.

THEY say the first casualty of war is truth. Tragically, in the face of climate disruption, truth has long been a casualty. 

We’ve had decades of deliberate denial of the science, of course. But there’s also been ongoing mythologising about what parties have done over the last 10 years which is no less damaging.

When facing a challenge of this scale, truth really matters. We need to understand and respect the science, and we need to fairly and accurately represent what our parliaments have done – the bad, the ugly, and the good. If we don’t, how can we hope to find solutions? If we’re so busy throwing blame around that we can’t give credit where it’s due, and celebrate successful negotiations for really positive outcomes like here in the ACT, we’re in a pretty dire place.

In this context, it’s deeply disappointing that political columnist Michael Moore would write an article about climate politics riddled with basic mistakes of fact (How the Greens failed climate change”, CN, November 28). Debate and opinions are important – but they have to be on the basis of reality.

Moore’s most ridiculous error is to claim that the Greens opposed Kevin Rudd’s CPRS “under the leadership of Christine Milne”. A simple Google search would have reminded him that Senator Milne became leader of the Greens in April 2012, 2 1/2 years after the CPRS was rejected. That he chooses to blame Senator Milne rather than Senator Brown should raise eyebrows. 

This isn’t the only error of fact. Moore starts off by reflecting on when “Malcolm Turnbull worked with the Rudd government and the Greens to implement a price on carbon”. This is imaginary, to put it politely. The truth was quite different.

As has long been on the public record, Kevin Rudd refused to negotiate climate policy with the Greens under any circumstances. Famously, he refused to even meet with Bob Brown to discuss it. 

The Greens, putting forward amendment after amendment, requesting meeting after meeting, had the door slammed repeatedly. Meanwhile, Rudd was negotiating with the Liberal Party while in public he was constantly niggling them, driving the wedge which eventually split the party and led to the spill which delivered Tony Abbott. 

Of course, at the same time, he wasn’t even talking with his Cabinet, leading to his own removal a few months later.

Canberrans will remember that time well. 

But Moore’s most bizarre claim is: “There has been no going back”. History records it differently. Half a year after the collapse of the CPRS, Julia Gillard scraped into government with the support of the Greens and independents. In negotiating to make her Prime Minister, the Greens secured the establishment of the Multi-Party Climate Change Committee, which to this day remains the most successful example of long-term, cross-party negotiation of difficult policy in the Australian Federal Parliament. 

The brain-child of Christine Milne, the MPCCC involved regular meetings, including expert external advice, and clear and well-understood terms of negotiation. And it produced the Clean Energy Act, which successfully turned around Australia’s ballooning climate pollution, through not just emissions trading but the $10 billion Clean Energy Finance Corporation and much more.

To pretend this didn’t happen is dishonest and deeply unhelpful. It shows that, when Labor doesn’t turn their backs on the Greens, excellent outcomes are possible. 

And that’s exactly what the ACT Assembly has shown. Moore pointedly ignores the decade of balance of power here, which has seen the Greens working highly successfully to pull Labor towards ever stronger climate action. While Labor didn’t initially want to go there, they now are happy to claim credit for the fact that Canberra is now powered 100 per cent by renewable energy, cutting our contribution to climate heating by a massive 40 per cent.

While much of our climate politics is undeniably a hot mess, there are real achievements to celebrate. In those achievements lie hope for us all. Michael Moore’s parade of untruths only dampens that hope. The truth can bring it back.

Tim Hollo, executive director of the Green Institute, was an adviser to Senator Christine Milne, 2007-2013.