Training News
National Training Programs - September wrap up
September has been a month filled with Learning and Engagement National Training Programs. We saw the culmination of the second year of our Australian Composers' School with performances of four concertino-style works in the Federation Concert Hall and a night at the Odeon showcasing collaborative works with eight singer-songwriting students. We also held the annual Louise Crossley Conducting Workshop with our own Associate Conductor Elena Schwarz at the helm.
Concertino performances
Over the last two years, four of Australia’s top emerging composers have been participating in a newly designed Australian Composers' School (ACS). Staff for the two years were ACS Director Matthew Hindson AM, Associate Conductor Elena Schwarz and tutors Natalie Williams, Paul Stanhope and Jessica Wells.
This year, the composers have been busy writing, workshopping and completing concertinos that were successfully premiered by the TSO to an enraptured audience. Soloists for the evening were our own incredible musicians, with Lloyd Hudson (piccolo), Stefanie Farrands (viola), Dinah Woods (cor anglais) and Mitchell Nissen (bass trombone) adding their invaluable experience and talent to the evening. Congratulations to Holly Harrison, Mark Holdsworth, Ella Macens and Harry Sdraulig – four composers to watch over the coming years!
Singer/Songwriter performances
As part of this year's Australian Composers' School assignements, Holly, Mark, Ella and Harry were tasked with working with eight emerging singer/songwriters (four from the University of Tasmania Conservatorium of Music and three from the Sydney University Sydney Conservatorium of Music) and each composer arrangend two of their songs for full orchestra.
The experience of orchestrating another artists’ work is vital for the future portfolio of our emerging composers and a practical skill set to develop. These final orchestrations were performed at the Odeon for an invited audience that included ACS staff, tutors from both institutions and family and friends of all the artists and composers.
Louise Crossley Conducting Workshop
This annual workshop has been made possible due to the generosity of the late Dr Louise Crossley, whose bequest to the TSO was intended to develop and identify opportunities for female conductors. Dr Crossley took pride in the representation of women on the podium and hoped that one day women would be equally represented as conductors of the world’s great orchestras.
We are dedicated to continuing this aspiration and last month hosted six emerging female conductors who were mentored and tutored by our Assistant Conductor Elena Schwarz as they rehearsed orchestral works by Mozart and Ravel with pianists Jennifer Marten-Smith and Karen Smithies. With participants flying in from NSW, QLD and WA, and joined by twelve Tasmanian-based observers, this program has a genuine national outreach, inspiring musicians across the country.
