Lunchtime classical concerts

Not all classical concerts start at 8pm and cost $80. Sydney office workers can enjoy some of the country's top performers during their lunch breaks, or straight after work – in some cases free, or for little more than they spend on the lunch they take into the concert hall.

Most of these concerts are held in world-class venues that are just a few minutes' walk from CBD offices, and are timed to allow you to be back at your desk in under an hour. Some are in historic churches, nourishing the eyes as well as the ears and stomach. And most relax the usual concert etiquette: you may be able to take your lunch into the hall or cathedral and eat it while waiting in your seat for the performance to begin.

Sydney has so many daytime offerings that you could catch concerts most days of any given week for less than the cost of a CD.

A Little Lunch Music
This popular monthly series is held in the City Recital Hall, Angel Place, between Wynyard and Martin Place, starting at 12.30pm. These daytime concerts cost only $10 and nobody is going to sneer at your hamburger. "We decided to encourage people to bring their lunch into the Hall," says GM Bronwyn Edinger. "Eveyone is very respectful of each other and, in particular, the performers, so chip-crunching and wrapper-rattling are never issues."

The programming by Trioz pianist Kathryn Selby is generally classical chamber music, but this month features an Introduction to Jazz on Friday 25 June. Book well ahead for the final in the 2010 series on 19 November, when the three much-loved women of Trioz are joined by Taryn Fiebig, star of Opera Australia'sMy Fair Lady, in The Voice in Company performance. The $10 tickets would make a fine Christmas present for co-workers.

The City Recital Hall also occasionally has other lunchtime concerts. For example, on Thursday 17 and Saturday 19 June the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs sing Mozart's Requiem, which fits conveniently in an hour. Conductor Brett Weymark recommends this concert for newcomers who may feel a bit overwhelmed by a long programme of unfamiliar composers.

Sydney Symphony at the Opera House
There's no free lunch, and no food allowed in the Opera House's Concert Hall, but you do get a free cuppa and delicious Swiss chocolate biscuits from Kambly with the Tea & Symphony series. These concerts are shorter than the usual evening concert: always 60-90 minutes with no interval. All seats are priced at $49, so book early and you might score the centre of the stalls in what would normally sell as Premium for $94. To get the best pick and price, subscribe to all eight concerts for $304 (that's $38 per concert) or choose either of the four-concert packages for $172. You still get many of the top artists; for example, on 13 August, Vladimir Ashkenazy conducts Elgar's much-loved Enigma Variations in Lovers and Engimas, and this month, on 11 June, Sydney-born international pianist Simon Tedeschi plays Shostakovich in Serenade for Strings. 

Lunchtime Church Concerts
Three of Sydney's historic churches offer free lunchtime concerts (donations are always welcome). Churches have a few differences to concert halls: it's easy to enter or leave discreetly between pieces; there can be a little traffic noise occasionally; it may not be as warm in winter; and the pews are uncushioned, so some people bring a small pillow or use the kneelers provided. Food is usually tolerated if munched quietly. All three make good use of their historic organs; see their websites for programmes.

St James' Church has concerts every Wednesday, 1.15-1.45pm. This magnificent Macquarie monument, 100 per cent designed and built by convicts, was started in 1819 as a court and completed in 1824 as a church. Parts of the organ date from 1827. It hosts a broad programme of classical genres with a high standard of performers including the upcoming musicians of the Sydney Symphony Fellowship.

St Andrew's Cathedral holds pure organ recitals on Thursdays at 1.10pm, but most Wednesdays at 12.30pm they strike up a band, usually the Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, or NSW Police Band, with a mix of classical and popular music.

St Stephen's Uniting Church has concerts every Friday 1.10-1.50pm, mostly organ recital or chamber musicians from the Conservatorium down the road.  

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