How a public vote shapes a symphony: inside the ABC Classic 100 in Concert
When Australia’s classical fans pick their favourites, those choices don’t just top a radio countdown—they reorchestrate a concert. The ABC Classic 100 in Concert takes the nation’s most-loved pieces, as voted by listeners, and stages them a few weeks later at Hamer Hall with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
Since 2023, the orchestra has presented the annual concert, translating a radio ritual into a full-scale performance. Co-host Megan Burslem, a breakfast presenter at ABC Classic, says the shift from broadcast to stage adds a “spine-tingling” dimension: seeing the music come alive in a hall filled with the very people who voted it there.
She will share hosting duties with Jeremy Fernandez; the pair have co-hosted the concert since 2024. “The concert is about celebrating the full spectrum of what classical music is and how it makes us feel,” he says, joking that after a childhood at the piano, he now prefers to enjoy others doing the playing.
The blueprint for each program begins well before a note is played. Each year, listeners vote for up to 10 pieces tied to a specific theme. This year’s theme is being kept under wraps and will be announced when voting opens on May 4.
Burslem, who helps launch the voting and gauges sentiment through audience messages, describes the process of watching a community’s taste coalesce—and then hearing it performed—as “really magical.” Behind the scenes, the uncertainty is real. Conductor Benjamin Northey, who has led the concert since its 2023 launch, starts tracking tallies as soon as voting opens to anticipate which works may land in the top 10.
That early intelligence matters. “One of the great challenges about this program is having to book soloists, for example, without really knowing exactly what they’re going to be playing,” he says. As voting begins and the theme is revealed, the countdown and concert will again converge—an audience’s collective choices shaping a night in the concert hall and reminding performers and listeners alike why these pieces resonate.