6 September
Stacey Yang (piano) and Ruby Gow (violin)
Sonata in C minor for Violin and Piano, Op.30, No.2 - L.v. Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
1. Allegro con brio
2. Adagio cantabile
3. Scherzo. Allegro
4. Finale. Allegro
Papillion Op.2 for solo piano - R. Schumann (1810 - 1856)
Stacey Xiaoyu Yang started to learn the organ with Kurt Ison in 2007 and received her Licentiate Diploma in Organ Performance from Trinity College London (LTCL) in 2011. She is the current organist at St Peter's Anglican Church, Cremorne. She was granted both organ and carillon scholarships by The University of Sydney. She has given many organ recitals in Sydney including Christ Church St Laurence, St James, King St, St Andrew's Cathedral, The University of Sydney and Sydney Opera House and in overseas she has played in Cathedrals in Anterwep, Madrid, El Lescorial, Burgos, San Sebastian and Royal Versailles Chapel. She gives regular carillon recitals at The University of Sydney and has played carillons overseas in Leuven Catholic University, Mechlen Cathedral, Royal Belgium carillon school, Catalonia Parliament House in Barcelona and Marktkirch in Wisebaden, Germany. She studied piano with Lyall Duke and currently, under Stephanie McCallum's tutelage, recently received her LMusA on piano. She has been a piano tutor at MLC School Burwood since 2007.
Stacey came to Australia in 2001 and received both Bachelor of Medical Science and Master of Nursing degrees from The University of Sydney.
Ruby commenced violin study when she was 4 years old. She received 3rd prize in the Tian Jin violin competition in 1990 as well as 1st prize to be entered into the special art class in primary school. Her education continued at the Tian Jin conservatorium high school from year 7. Two years later she received half scholarship from the Australian International Performing Arts High School in Sydney and during this time she also played in the SYO. After high school, she was offered place undergraduate in classical violin study in Australian Institute of Music, She finished Master of classical performance violin in 2013. Recently, she was playing as first violin in album of ever After and also her performance in NSW Gallery.
13 September
Andrew Smith (saxophone) &
Sneha Balakrishnan (clarinet)
Nachtgesang - Max Bruch (1938 - 1920)
Carnival of Venice - Trad.
The Second Thing - Jabra Latham (cont. Tasmanian composer)
Trio - Francis Poulenc (1899 - 1963)
Andrew Smith is a Sydney based freelance saxophonist who is highly active in new music, having premiered and workshopped countless new works involving saxophone. Andrew has been awarded both a B.Mus (Hons) and M.Mus from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the study of the latter was undertaken with the assistance of the prestigious Henderson Postgraduate Award. Throughout his tertiary study Andrew won numerous competitions and received a number of scholarships as well as furthering his study at the European University for the Saxophone (Gap), with lessons from some of the worlds leading saxophone performers and pedagogues. Andrew has also embarked upon further saxophone study, with trips to the Netherlands, France, England and Portugal. Throughout his study Andrew has been fortunate enough to perform in masterclasses for Claude Delangle, Niels Bijl, Kenneth Tse, Otis Murphy and the Diastema Quartet.
Andrew is a highly active performer who can be frequently seen performing in chamber, orchestral and solo settings. Andrew is a member of the acclaimed Chronology Arts core ensemble, the Nexas Saxophone Quartet, the eXa Project, Duo Plunge and The Sax Summit. He has also recently played for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Sinfonia, Win Wollongong Symphony Orchestra and the Black and White Big Band. For more details on performances and his ensemble activities please go to www.asmithsax.com
Sneha Balakrishnan graduated from the University of NSW with an Arts/Law degree, obtaining her L.Mus.A in clarinet along the way. Sneha has performed with the Sydney Youth Orchestra, the Australian International Symphony Orchestra Institute, the Paris-Sorbonne Orchestra and in 2007 successfully auditioned to be on the casual list of the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra. Sneha also has a strong interest in chamber music, performing regularly with her chamber group The Clock Ensemble. In her spare time, Sneha works as an Intellectual Property lawyer.
20 September
Oskar de Mari-Jones (classical guitar)
Suite BWV 996 - J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
- Prelude
- Allemande
- Sarabande
- Gigue
El Polifemo de Oro - Reginald Smith-Brindle (Britain, 1917-2013)
Sonatina Meridional (Sonatina of the South) - Manuel Ponce (Mexico, 1882-1948)
Born in 1987, Oskar de Mari-Jones has had an eclectic and multi-faceted musical education. His first guitar lessons were with his father at the age of five; aged 10 he took up the trombone and at sixteen, he returned to the guitar to seriously study the instrument, in particular the classical repertoire, studying privately with Giuseppe Zangari (Professor, Newcastle Conservatorium of Music). During this period he also taught himself saxophone in pursuance of his love of American Jazz music.
In 2006, Oskar received an Entry Scholarship to the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where he studied guitar with Greg Pikler and Phillip Houghton, internationally renowned guitarist-composer and technique specialist. Oskar received high marks at the Conservatorium (including the highest-scoring recital of any second year string-player in 2007) as well as numerous scholarships, including the McCaw-Baiton scholarship and the Mary Little Memorial and numerous University Prizes for high academic results. During this time, Oskar was a core member of the Sydney Guitar Quartet, which recorded the music of Phillip Houghton for an ABC television program and won prizes in numerous ensemble competitions.
In 2008, Oskar also pursued studies of the Baroque Lute and historical plucked instruments with Australia's leading lute-specialists, Tommie Andersson and Andrew Byrne and attended master classes and private lessons with Hopkinson Smith, Ben Verdery and Ricardo Gallen.
Oskar has performed throughout Sydney, making his Opera House solo debut in 2005 at the age of 17 for the Sydney Region Music Festival. In 2008 he recorded a program of Lute music for the soundtrack of 'Serenity', a Music-Therapy DVD. In 2010 he broadcast a solo recital for 2MBS as part of their Young Performer Award, for which he competed as a finalist later that year. Recently, Oskar's Conservatorium of Music Honours Recital and Thesis were awarded a Sydney University Academic Merit Award. Oskar is an Ars Musica Australis Fellowship holder.
27 September
Mark Quarmby (organ)
Director of Music, St Stephen's
Symphony No. 5 in F minor, Op. 42….……...Charles-Marie Widor (1844 - 1937)
First edition (1879)
1. Allegro vivace
2. Allegro cantabile
3. Andantino quasi allegretto
4. Adagio
5. Toccata
Widor first published this symphony in 1879. Several revised editions, with many changes, appeared over subsequent years with the final version being published in 1928-29; 50 years after the first edition. This last edition is the one most often performed today so it is out of interest and curiosity that I have chosen to perform the original version. A summary of the differences follows:
1. Allegro vivace - there have been many changes to the variations in this movement. The most significant changes involve the pedal line with pedal notes changed, added or subtracted in places; many changes to the registration markings (three variations call for 16' and 4' registrations which in later editions became either just 8' or 8' and 4'; tempo markings and many changes to the articulation and phrasing marks.
2. Allegro cantabile - The original form of this movement was ternary. This was later changed to binary form with a short coda based on A and the B section was reduced in length. Many articulation markings were changed.
3. Andantino quasi allegretto - this movement was changed the least with no significant changes.
4. Adagio - the ending was later changed with the addition of some tied notes over the repeated C major chords.
5. Toccata - Widor reduced the metronome marking in later editions, asking for the Toccata to be played slower than he originally requested. Articulation and dynamic markings were changed. The harmony of the final chords was changed and a high F was added, to be held across the last three bars.
For this performance I have consulted the Hamelle editions, (Dover and Kalmus) and the John R. Near (2007) Urtext edition.
Mark Quarmby graduated from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, studying organ under Norman Johnston and piano under Marjorie Hesse. He has given recitals throughout Australia, Europe, North America, Asia and New Zealand. For over 20 years he was the Assistant Organist of St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney, playing the organ for national live broadcasts, visits of the Queen, funerals of State governors and national memorial services. In August 2009 he was appointed Director of Music at St Stephen's, Macquarie Street.
In Europe he has played in the Cathedrals of St Paul's, London, Canterbury, Salisbury, Oxford, Winchester, Lichfield, Westminster Abbey and Notre-Dame, Paris, with recitals in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, and Holland. In 2009 he gave the opening recital of the American Guild of Organists Convention in Phoenix, Arizona.
He has been the President of the Organ Music Society of Sydney, has served on the committee of the Royal School of Church Music (NSW) and is currently a National Director of the Organ Historical Trust of Australia and teaches piano, organ and musicianship at St Patrick's College, Strathfield, and privately.
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