Kettering Concerts

Kettering Concert 2015-05-17

Huon String Quartet
Elinor Lea (1st violin), Rohana O’Malley (2nd violin), Douglas Coghill (viola), Jane Tallon (cello)

Mozart and Dvořák

Programme:

Quartet in D minor K. 421 No. 15 – Wolfgang A. Mozart (1756-1791)
String Quartet in F major No 12 Op. 96 – American Quartet – Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)

Sunday 17 May 2015, 3pm
Kettering Community Hall
Tickets available at the door
$10
Stay for the post-concert afternoon tea, meet and chat with the musicians.

Huon String Quartet

Named after the picturesque Huon region of southern Tasmania, The Huon Quartet has become a much loved part of Tasmania's musical fabric. Since their formation in late 2012, they have performed concerts across Tasmania, broadcasted on ABC Classic FM Sunday Live, and recorded a CD of Debussy and Haydn String Quartets in collaboration with Virtuosi Tasmania. Their varied professional experiences have added to their great musical and personal rapport.

First violinist Elinor Lea was a member of the Australian String Quartet for nine years and brings her wealth of experience to the table. Cellist Jane Tallon also has much to offer. Jane was co-ordinator of Chamber Music and Lecturer at the VCA School of Music, from 2001 -2011. Rohana O'Malley (Violin) and Doug Coghill (Viola) are both Graduates from ANAM, the prestigious Australian National Academy of Music, and are now Hobart based, playing in the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra. In 2017, Doug Coghill left the quartet, replaced by violist Anna Roach.

The Huon Quartet's playing has been described as "thrillingly suspenseful - painful in its beauty - with fantastic textural contrasts", by Limelight Magazine, 2015. For more information about the quartet's 2016 musical activities, visit Huonquartet.com.

Elinor Lea

Elinor Lea is a violinist in the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra where she was the Associate Concertmaster for 15 years. At the age of 19, while studying at Adelaide University, she joined the Australian String Quartet and played with them for 9 years, touring extensively within Australia and annually to Europe, the USA and Canada. While in the ASQ she recorded many CDs for the ABC Classics and Naxos labels.   Since moving to Tasmania she has been soloist and concertmaster for the TSO, teaching privately and raising a family.

Rohana O’Malley

Rohana O'Malley (née Brown) has been a member of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra since August 2009. She moved here from Melbourne, where she completed her Bachelor of Music with honours at the University of Melbourne, majoring in performance. She studied with Elizabeth Sellars and William Hennessy and was awarded several prizes for performance, including the Zelman award, Lady Turner Exhibition and Wright Prize. After university she spent two years at the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) studying with Alice Waten.
In 2008 she moved to Sydney where she completed a Fellowship with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and also began studies for her Masters at the Sydney Conservatorium. The following year she travelled to Salzburg to participate in the Mozarteum University’s International Summer Academy.
As a member of the Australian Youth Orchestra, Rohana toured Europe in 2007 and was appointed concertmaster for the 2008 season. In both 2003 and 2006 she was a finalist in the Hephzibah Menuhin Memorial Awards. Also in 2006 she was awarded the prize for the best performance of a New Zealand work at the Gisborne International Music Competition. Rohana regularly performs chamber music, and has had many highlights such as performing for Pope Benedict during his visit to Sydney for World Youth Day in 2008. Aside from performing, Rohana also teaches violin and piano.

Douglas Coghill

Douglas Coghill began playing the violin at the age of 7 with the hope of one day playing the viola. At 12, when he was big enough, he made the change to the viola. In 2006 Douglas began studying at the Victorian College of the Arts. In 2007 he received the Brunner prize for the most improved string player. He was the 2008 winner of the John Gaitskell Memorial Mensa Trust Award. He completed his Bachelor of Music Performance degree in 2008. Following his Bachelor degree, Douglas began studies at Australia’s leading music school, the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM). At the academy he performed in the orchestra, in chamber ensembles and as a soloist. At ANAM Douglas had the opportunity to work with leading musicians from around the world.
In 2012 Douglas appeared as a soloist with the Australian Doctors Orchestra. He has worked with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, and is a member of the “Opus House” ensemble based in Hobart. Douglas plays on a viola made by Felix Scheit who is based in Berlin.

Jane Tallon

Jane Tallon has been involved in music education and performance in Australia for the past 20 years. Jane studied with Gary Williams, Nelson Cooke and in Croatia with renowned teacher Valter Despalj and has worked as a soloist and chamber musician with various ensembles throughout Australia and overseas. A founding member of Melbourne chamber ensemble, the Bach Project, Jane’s arrangement of Bach’s iconic work, the ‘Goldberg’ variations was performed to acclaim by the Bach Project at the Barossa International Festival of Music. Jane also reviews and writes articles for the Music Council of Australia’s Music Forum magazine.

Passionate about the performance and teaching of chamber music; Jane was co-ordinator of Chamber Music and Lecturer at the VCA School of Music, now the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, Melbourne University from 2001 -2011 and in that time initiated chamber music series at 45 Downstairs and the National Gallery of Victoria, as well as being musical advisor for the Picasso Exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria.

Now living in Hobart, Jane has most recently directed Brahms – Love, Life, Letters at the Hobart Town Hall; worked with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and performed with Virtuosi Tasmania and Opus House. Jane is a founding member of the Huon String Quartet.

David Hopkins – Artist

David, a watercolourist and illustrationist, trained as a lithographic artist, doing a 6 year apprenticeship in Melbourne, graduating with a Diploma in Advertising Art. He subsequently started his own freelance company, Taswegia, specialising in marketing and design, as well as manufactoring cards and stationary. He is a specialist in pre-press. These days, he is semi-retired, focusing on marine landscapes while continuing to do mining engineering illustrations. He has had 56 very successful one man exhibitions.