Category: 2018 India

Robert Ashworth

Robert Ashworth

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Australian Hometown: Sydney
Education: Universitaet Mozarteum, Austria; University of British Columbia, Canada

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Robert Ashworth is having a great time being Principal viola for the Auckland Philharmonia Orches­tra.  He arrived from Canada to New Zealand shores in 2003 for a one-year adventure, he found a connection with the country through its music, people and country-side, his animals and family.

He has been guest-​principal viola for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, as well as assistant-principal for the Calgary Philharmonic Orches­tra. He is violist with the Jade String Quartet in Auckland, and also plays with the Australian World Orchestra.

Robert is a twice recipient of the Canada Council for the Arts Award for Emerging Artists and has performed with various groups at international chamber music festivals in Europe, North America, and Japan. He has had the honour of studying with violists Thomas Riebl and Veronika Hagen at the Universitaet Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria and with Gerald Stanick at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.

Last updated 2023

Jonathan bekes

Jonathan Békés

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Australian Hometown(s): Sydney & Hobart
Education: Sydney Conservatorium of Music; Australian National Academy of Music

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Jonathan Békés is one of Australia’s leading cellists and is a renowned solo artist, chamber musician, orchestral musician and educator.

Békés grew up in Campbelltown, Sydney and began playing the cello at the age of 10. He studied a Bachelor of Music (performance) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and completed the Professional Performance Program at the Australian National Academy of Music. He studied with some of Australia’s leading cellists including Howard Penny, Julian Smiles and Susan Blake. He has worked with and played for some of the world’s leading cellists including Steven Isserlis, Pieter Wispelway, Nicholas Altstaedt, Alban Gerhart and Peter Bruns.

Békés is based in Hobart, Tasmania where he is the Principal cellist with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra. He also plays regularly with the Australian World Orchestra, with whom he toured to Singapore in 2016 and India in 2018. He has also played with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Békés has been principle cellist of the Australian Youth Orchestra, the Momentum Ensemble, the Musician’s Project, the Australian International Symphony Orchestra Institute and the Sydney Youth Orchestra.

Békés is high demand as a chamber musician and frequently performs alongside world-renowned artists including Anthony Marwood, Stephan Dohr, Ole Bøhn, Howard Penny and Timothy Young. He is a founding member of the world renowned Tasmanian String Quartet, the award-winning Clarendon Trio; semi-finalists in the 2018 Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition, First Place in the 2017 ANAM Chamber Music Competition; as well as the Estivo Trio, who have performed across the world including acclaimed concert tours of China, America, Italy and Norway. Békés tours for Musica Viva and regularly presents chamber concerts across Tasmania as an artist for Virtuosi Tasmania.

As a solo artist Békés performs often across Australia and throughout the world. He has played as soloist with many orchestras across Australia including the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, the Hobart Chamber Orchestra, the Sydney Youth Orchestra, the Beecroft Orchestra and the South Coast Orchestra. He presents a series of his own solo recitals and regional tours and frequently tours across Tasmania and mainland Australia.

As an educator Békés is a passionate advocate for music for all people at all forms of life. He has taught extensively across Australia and runs a number of different projects and workshops throughout the country. He regularly takes masterclasses at conservatoriums and schools across the world. As an orchestral tutor and chamber coach Békés teaches around Australia at various institutions and orchestras including the Residential Summer String Camp, the Australian Doctors Orchestra, the Tasmanian Youth Orchestra and the Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music.

Békés, in his spare time, is a keen sportsman and an outdoors enthusiast. He is an overly passionate golfer, crazed squash player and a true AFL fanatic. He follows the Sydney Swans and the Hobart Hurricanes, and goes on hiking and mountain biking adventures across Tasmania on a regular basis.  For more information see www.jonathanbekes.com

Last updated 2022

Timothy (Tim) Dunin

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Australian Hometown: Canberra
Education: Canberra School of Music

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Tim Dunin was born in Canberra, Australia in 1969.

After 5 years of classical guitar tuition he received his first double bass lesson at the age of 14, from Robert Nairn. Two years later Tim went to the Canberra School of Music to continue his studies with Paul Morton. From 1987 he studied with Max McBride until the completion of his Bachelor of Music degree in 1991. In this time Dunin was already a very busy orchestral musician, performing regularly with the Canberra Youth Orchestra, Australian Youth Orchestra, Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and the Australian Chamber Orchestra. In the same year he travelled to Austria to take on further studies with Professor Johannes Auersperg at the “Universität für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Graz, Expositur Oberschützen”.

In 1994 Tim Dunin was Principal Double Bass with the Graz Symphony. In 1995 he won the position for Principal Double Bass with the Vienna Philharmonic / Vienna State Opera Orchestra and remained in the orchestra as a fulltime member until September 2003.

Apart from solo performances in Australia and Europe Tim has appeared as a chamber musician with ensembles such as the “Wiener Streichersolisten” , “Küchl Quartett” , “die Wiener Virtuosen” , “Wiener Kammerensemble” , “Salzburg Orchestra Soloists”, “Camerata Salzburg” and “Klang Forum Wien” and was a member of the double bass sextet “Bass Instinct” alongside Ernst Weissensteiner, Herbert Mayer, Gerhard Muthspiel, Gina Schwarz and Peter Herbert from 2005 until it disbanded at the end of 2012.

Tim Dunin has remained a passionate orchestral musician and performs regularly with ensembles such as Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Australian World Orchestra, “Recreation” Graz, Vorarlberg Symphony Orchestra, “Niederösterreichische Tonkünstler Orchester”, Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the Vienna Philharmonic / Vienna State Opera Orchestra.

Since October 2002, Tim has held the position of Professor for Double Bass at the Graz University for Music and Performing Arts, Institute Oberschützen.

Last updated 2023

Jonathan Allen

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Australian Hometown: Canberra
Education: Canberra School of Music

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
The Australian violinist Jonathan Allen first studied at the Canberra School of Music with Vincent Edwards and Josette Esquidin before moving to Hobart to further his studies with Jan Sedivka.  His reputation quickly grew with public performances and broadcasts of concertos by Prokofieff, Tchaikovsky, Haydn, Samuel Barber and Vaughan Williams. However, it was his talent and vital interest in chamber music that led to the appointment as leader of the Petra String Quartet (Quartet in Residence at the University of Tasmania). The Quartet‘s enthusiasm for commissioning and premiering new works resulted in the CD recordings of twelve Australian quartets.

In 1987 Jonathan Allen was awarded an International Study Grant that led him through Canada to Europe attending master classes and studying with prominent musicians such as Zoltan Szekely, Lorand Fenyves, Max Rostal and Sandor Vegh.

After a short term in the London Symphony Orchestra he moved to the musically inspiring city of Vienna. Using Vienna as his base and working with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, he also toured extensively as concertmaster of the Konzert Ensemble Salzburg, Neue Wiener Solisten and Klangforum Wien.

An invitation in 1989 as guest assistant concertmaster of the Australian Chamber Orchestra led to extensive tours of Australia, South America and Europe.

Alongside commitments as a member of Philharmonia Zürich – das Orchester des Opernhauses Zürich since 1991, Jonathan Allen has appeared as Concertmaster with the Zürich Chamber Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria and the 21st Century Orchestra. During 2006 – 2007 he was acting 2nd Concertmaster at the Zurich Opera House, Philharmonia Zurich. Jonathan Allen regularly performed with Ensemble Zero and is the founding member of Ensemble/Piano Trio Il Trittico, in which the latter received outstanding critiques in the “Strad” and “Musik und Theater” for their premier recordings of the complete Joachim Raff Piano Trios, www.trittico.ch. In 2011 the prominant CD label Divox released the world premier recording of Joachim Raff’s two Piano Quartets which were nominated for the renowned Echo Prize. Jonathan Allen has for many years taken an interest in discovering undeservingly neglected chamber music works and dedicated himself to making public forgotten masterpieces. His performing schedule has included live broadcasts for Radio and TV, chamber music concerts in various Festivals  (America, Canada and Europe) and CD recordings (Divox, Arte Nova – Sony BMG, Gallo, ABC classics and ProViva). Directly inspired from the years of working with N. Harnoncourt and William Christie, (predominantly in the ensemble “la Scintilla”) Jonathan has enriched his musical spheres not only with early music performing with the historical instrumental practise but has also branched out to include jazz concerts in his musical adventures. Jonathan continues to reside in Zurich as a member of Philharmonia Zurich.

Last updated 2023

David Berlin midshot

David Berlin

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Australian Hometown(s): Sydney & Melbourne
Education: Sydney Conservatorium of Music; Juilliard School of Music, New York

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
David Berlin studied the cello with Lois Simpson at the Sydney Conservatorium and with Channing Robbins at the Juilliard School of Music in New York.

For over 25 years David has been at the forefront of music performance in Australia, as Principal Cello of both the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra (1985-1988) and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (since 1989).

David has made numerous appearances as soloist with these and other Australian orchestras and has been invited to play guest Principal Cello with the Sydney and Tasmanian Symphony orchestras, Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Australian World Orchestra.

In London in 1992, David gave the world premiere performance of the complete works for cello and piano by Franz Liszt, with Leslie Howard.

David has performed chamber music with violinists Kolja Blacher, James Ehnes, Nigel Kennedy, and Sarah Chang and pianists Garrick Ohlsson, Emanuel Ax and Yefim Bronfman, as well as tenor Ian Bostridge.

He has appeared in numerous festivals, and in chamber music projects has toured to Japan, Taiwan and New Zealand.

Along with solo recordings for ABC radio he has appeared as soloist on the Tall Poppies, Chandos and Naxos labels. His recital disc Barber & Debussy with pianist Len Vorster on the Tall Poppies label was nominated by James McCarthy as one of the best classical CDs of 2011 in Limelight magazine.

In 2020 together with Benjamin Martin he released French Cello Sonatas on the ABC Classic label, it has enjoyed highly positive reviews and streaming activity  through Spotify.

David plays on a cello made by Ivan Zgradic in Sherman Oaks, California in 1982.

Last updated 2022

Margaret Blades

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Australian Hometown(s): Adelaide & Perth
Education: Elder Conservatorium of Music, Adelaide; University of Tasmania

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Margaret Blades is forging a career as a teacher and chamber musician after having spent many years as a Leader and violinist of various orchestras, including the West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO), Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, the Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO), Sydney Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, and others.

As a soloist, she has appeared with the Adelaide Symphony, Tasmanian Symphony, Adelaide Chamber Orchestra and WASO, where her solo performances have included an appearance with superstar Nigel Kennedy in Vivaldi’s Double Violin Concerto, and the premiere of works by Richard Mills, Ross Edwards and James Ledger. She has also performed as soloist in New Zealand and the USA, where she performed the Mozart Sinfonia Concertante with Emerson String Quartet violist, Lawrence Dutton.

She has performed on stage with some of Australia’s finest artists, including Michael Goldschlager, Geoffrey Tozer, Geoffrey Lancaster, Beryl Sedivka and others, both as a recitalist and chamber musician, for Musica Viva, Adelaide International Festival of Arts, Blackwood River Chamber Music Festival, Barossa Music Festival, and in numerous broadcasts for ABC Classic FM.

Last updated 2023

Michael Brooks Reid playing violin

Michael Brooks-Reid

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Australian Hometown: Melbourne
Education: University of Melbourne

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
A member of one of Europe’s finest chamber orchestras, Camerata Bern, Michael works closely with musicians such as Steven Isserlis, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Sergio Azzolini, Antje Weithaas and Eric Höbarth (Quartuor Mosaïques), often in a chamber music context, as well as being regularly called on to lead and direct the ensemble himself.

Currently based in Munich, Michael makes guest appearances with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, German Radio Philharmonic, Bavarian State Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Aurora Orchestra, Sinfonia of London and Kammerakademie Potsdam and is a member of the Australian World Orchestra. Michael has played under many esteemed conductors, including the late greats Pierre Boulez and Claudio Abbado.

Since 2017, Michael has been a member of the Logos Chamber Group at the Joy of Music Festival in Hong Kong, where he has played chamber music with renowned members of the Hong Kong International Piano Competition jury including Peter Donohoe and Pascal Rogé.

As soloist, Michael has toured with the Camerata Bern and Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, recently performing Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in Melbourne, regional Victoria and throughout the Canton of Bern to critical acclaim.

From 2004-2008, Michael was Leader and Artistic director of the Australian Classical Players, where he programmed and directed the concert season from the first violins. Following this, Michael joined the Hamer Quartet, with whom he won the inaugural Asia-Pacific International Chamber Music Competition in 2008 and was subsequently named in The Age newspaper’s annual ‘100 most influential people in Australia’ list. Michael’s violin was made by Nicolo Gagliano in Naples in 1751.

Last updated 2023

Francesco (Frank) Celata

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Australian Hometown(s): Melbourne & Sydney
Education: Sydney Conservatorium of Music; Victorian College of the Arts

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Mr Frank Celata is Associate Principal Clarinet with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and an AWO Board Member. Mr Celata graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts 1987, prior to that he studied, and is now a lecturer, at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

He is a founding member of the chamber ensemble the Sydney Soloists and is a member of the New Sydney Wind Quintet. In 2013 he accepted the position of Lecturer in Orchestral and Chamber Music at the Conservatorium of Music in Hobart.

On several occasions between 2003 and 2009 he appeared with the London Symphony Orchestra as guest Principal Clarinet, performing on international tours and recordings. More recently he appeared as guest Principal Clarinet with the Philharmonia Orchestra of London touring internationally and recording with them. Frank plays Principal Clarinet with the Australian World Orchestra, comprising 110 of Australia’s leading musicians drawn from 47 orchestras around the world.

Last updated 2023

Sally Clarke

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Australian Hometown: Brisbane
Education: University of Queensland, Herbert-von-Karajan Akademie, Berlin

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Born in Brisbane, Australia, Sally Clarke began her musical career with violin at the age of 11; one year later she took up the viola as well, in order to play chamber music. She graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Music, Honours, degree (and various prizes and distinctions), performing with diverse chamber ensembles and as soloist with the Queensland Youth Orchestra, on its 1986 New Zealand Tour, and with the  Camerata of St John’s, of which she was a founding member. A German Government Scholarship (DAAD) enabled her to further her studies with Professor Rainer Moog in Cologne; thereafter she attended the Herbert-von-Karajan Akademie in Berlin, performing regularly with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1988 she was Principal Viola with the Schleswig Holstein Festival Orchestra, under the baton of Sergiu Celibidache, from whose mentoring she benefitted greatly.

Chamber music and solo performances have taken Sally to many places in Europe, the Middle East, Australia and Russia. She has participated in various festivals, including those of Townsville and Bangalow, Australia; and in September 2009, the biennial “German Festival” of Krasnodar. In 2014 she made a guest appearance at the World Harp Festival in Sydney and participated in the AWO Chamber Festival in the NSW Southern Highlands in November 2017. Sally teaches and performs at “Das SommerMusikFest” each year.

Sally Clarke’s recordings for CD and radio include the rarely performed Sonatas for Viola and Piano by Luigi von Kunits and Wilhelm Killmayer. Sally’s CD “another sort of fire” featuring works by contemporary women composers, is available through Bayer Records. Her great interest is in expanding traditional “classical” approaches, through “cross-over” projects involving oriental music, live dance-theatre or improvisation to silent movies. In 2009 she founded the trio “Blue Ayre”, together with Cynthia Oppermann, harp, and Veronika Fuchs, flute. The trio has performed in Germany, France and Australia; their CD “Blue Ayre” was released in 2013, and features works by Debussy, Bax, Bartok and a specially commissioned work by Rüdiger Oppermann (Celtic and experimental harp), with whose ensemble “KlangWelten” she has toured on numerous occasions. “Blue Ayre” is available on iTunes.

Sally has taught and coached at various workshops, masterclasses and youth orchestras, including the renowned Interregional Youth Orchestra (IRO), which takes place annually in Ochsenhausen, and at the Sydney Conservatorium High School, or anywhere in the world, online, via www.playwithapro.com. Her teaching style has been described as particularly empowering; she has worked extensively with orchestral musicians, violists and violinists alike, seeking support for audition preparations or just to reboot their technique.

A full-time member of the SWR Symphony Orchestra (formally known as Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart) since 1992. She has appeared with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and also with Ensemble Modern in Frankfurt.

Last updated 2023