The Leanne Benjamin Awards 2015

In 2014 The Tait Memorial Trust in collaboration with Tait Patron Leanne Benjamin AM OBE launched new ballet awards for young Australian dancers studying in the UK.

Leanne Benjamin AM OBE, The Royal Ballet, Jewels , Emeralds, 2007 © Johan Persson, Courtesy of The Royal Opera House

The first recipient, Josephine Frick, was presented with her award at a Tait Friends event at Australia House on Tuesday 14th October 2014 as a contribution to her fees at The Royal Ballet School.

Now in its second year the Trust are delighted to announce the 2015 recipients of The Leanne Benjamin Awards

Rebecca Blenkinsop – The Royal Ballet School, John Frost Award

Rebecca is 16 years old and is from Melbourne, Australia. She started dancing at the age of 10 years and at the age of 11 was accepted into the dance programme at the Victoria College of the Arts Secondary School in Melbourne. At the age of 13 Rebecca began to develop a passion for ballet and
for the last three years has studied Cecchetti. She recently completed her final examination of ‘Advanced 2’ with a score of 100%.

At the age of 14 Rebecca won the State Silver Medal Award section, and also the National Lucie Saranova Silver section for her Cecchetti. Later that year Rebecca won a bursary to compete in the Cecchetti International Ballet Competition in United States of America. Whilst one of the youngest
competitors, Rebecca received second prize and was recognized as ‘The Most Promising Dancer’.

maxresdefault — Rebecca Blenkinsop, Prix de Lausanne 2015

Rebecca’s Cecchetti success continued this year when she won the National Lucie Saranova Gold Medal section. In January she was also delighted to be a finalist in the prestigious Prix De Lausanne in Switzerland where Mr Powney first saw her.

Rebecca had the opportunity to perform the role of a child ballerina with Victoria Opera, in their production of ‘La Traviata’. She was also cast in several lead roles in her school productions, her most memorable being a ballet work of Opus 47 choreographed by English born dancer Jonathan Taylor. Rebecca has received her ballet training from some amazing ballet teachers over the last few years, three of whom trained at The Royal Ballet School. Rebecca feels honoured to have been selected to attend The Royal Ballet School and looks forward to receiving what she considers to be the best available teaching and the opportunity to train with exceptionally talented students.

Chloe Hollow – The English National ballet School, Peggy Haim Award

Chloe started training at the age of four she studied all types of dance. She has been studying full time ballet since 2013 with Janine McGrath Classical Coaching Australia and has been studying both Cecchetti and RAD ballet syllabus over the past 10 years.

Chloe has been a member of Byron Ballet since she was seven years old where she has been in many productions leading up to become a leading artist. She also has been a full company member of Brisbane City Youth Ballet where she has been selected as a soloist and principle dancer.

Some recent highlights include:

2014 Australian Bursary winner, selected to represent Australia in the Cecchetti International Ballet Competition held in Richmond Virginia USA held in August, selected as a finalist and awarded a scholarship to Boston Ballet six week summer program for 2015.
Selected for The Queensland Ballet Junior Program 3 for 2015.
2014 Runner-up in the Australian Institute of Classical Dance International Ballet Competition (performed La Bayadere 1st Shade)
Selected soloist for the Youth America Grand Prix Finals held in New York in April 2015. Offered various places.
2015 Alana Haines Australasian Awards awarded a scholarship to Queensland Ballet Senior Program for two weeks.
2015 Auditioned for schools in the UK and Europe receiving acceptance in various schools.
Offered a half scholarship from English National Ballet School which she has proudly accepted. Starting with ENBS in September 2015.

Chloe is now studying at English National Ballet School in Level One.

Waynne Kwon, cello – Inaugural Higgins Scholar

Below is a letter from Waynne Kwon about his 1st year at the Royal Northern College of Music. Waynne is the inaugural Higgin’s Scholar. A new award generously funded by the Higgins family. The award is£5,000 per annum for 3 years.

We look forward to hearing about his 2nd year and ultimately follow the development of his professional career.

If you would like to talk to us about creating a new scholarship for a young Australian who wishes to study in the UK please contact our Chairman, Isla Baring OAM on 0207 351 0561 Please click this link for our Friends page to learn more about ways that you can help us to support another talented young artist.

“My first year as an undergraduate at the Royal Northern College of Music was full of learning and wonderful new experiences. I am very privileged to be studying under Hannah Roberts, a wonderful cellist and musician. Every week I receive an hour long lesson with her, and then also have a four hour cello class. During cello class, four of her eight students perform a piece to the class and then Hannah helps us improve and enhance all aspects of cello playing and music making. The college manages to prepare students for their future as musicians by covering all aspects of music learning and making.

There are lectures and tutorials on music history and theory, and we also have musicianship classes to train our aural and improvisational skills. Last year I had the pleasure to play for many world renowned cellists and musicians. I was privileged enough to have masterclasses with Miklos Perenyi and Ralph Kirshbaum. I was also able to attend non cello related masterclasses given by Nobuko Imai, James Ehnes, Stephen Hough and Henk Guittart and listen to concerts given by Kathryn Stott and James Ehnes to name a few. The continuous amount of quality musical figures that give masterclasses at the college continues this year. I will be performing for Rebecca Gilliver (Principal Cello of LSO) and Istvan Vardai (winner of the Munich ARD Competition) in two weeks’ time.

The number of competitions I entered last year was limited as I wanted to improve myself further. However, I managed to see good results in the two competitions I participated in. I was a finalist in the Concerto Competition at college where I played all three movements of the Schumann Cello concerto. I was also awarded the Junior Prize in the Raphael Sommer Cello Scholarship that was held in London. During the summer holiday I was able to return back to Sydney and relax with family and friends. I managed to give numerous concerts during the three month break.

The college has been very generous towards me since my audition day back in December 2013. Last year I was on a £16,000 entrance scholarship along with a loan of their wonderful Ruggieri cello made in 1694 for the duration of my studies. This year I have been awarded the Haworth Trust Fund, where they have provided me with a full £17,900 bursary and an extra £3,000 pounds to help relieve the rise in accommodation fees at the Sir Charles Groves Halls of Residence.

I often find myself reflecting on how lucky and privileged I truly am to be where I am now. I just want to thank you for the generosity you have shown towards me. Without your help and support I really would not be able to study in the UK at a very prestigious music college where I can further challenge and improve myself as a musician. I know you are very, very busy, but I hope to have the pleasure in meeting you very soon.

Yours Sincerely,

Waynne Woo Seok Kwon”

Yelian He plays cello concerto with the Sydney Symphony

2015 is a pretty special year for me. It’s the first year I’ve spent experiencing the 30’s, the first time my cello was swabbed and searched instead of me in an airport, and it’s the first time I’ve performed a concerto without a conductor – and with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra to boot.

https://instagram.com/p/21bFLsKQvt/

Speaking of, I must mention that all of these fantastic experiences happened during the month of May as a result of winning the inaugural Australian Cello Awards Grand Prize in 2014 (ACA Website, next competition in 2017). That was a highlight not soon forgotten in itself and I’m sure I’ll be hearing even greater things from CEO Roland Gridiger and his team at MOST. But as I was trying to say, my excitement grew endlessly (so too did practice) as my debut with the Sydney Symphony drew nearer.

On the way to my first rehearsal, I was nervous about what to expect. There have been times in the past where the concerts haven’t lived up to expectations owing to insufficient rehearsal time or difficulties in communication. When I arrived I was greeted by the Concertmaster Andrew Haveron before meeting the Orchestra for some one-on-one time with the Bach Concerto; this is when general & interpretational decisions are brought up so there are fewer surprises during rehearsal. It was clear from the start Andrew was confident and accommodating – vital qualities for a good musician, and a good human being.

https://instagram.com/p/3IjYnRqQvf/

A Concerto without a conductor is a trust building exercise, and it’s easy to lose your nerve or get too excited. There’s bound to be more communication between the musicians, leading to more ideas being aired, but you also better know the score intimately! Not only will there be questions from the orchestra, knowing how the 1st violins bow a particular sequence of quavers or how the cellos phrase another section makes all the difference in rehearsals and performances, all the while giving a brilliant unique interpretation of the work.

It’s not difficult when you play with a wonderful orchestra, to get carried away in the passion of a running passage and/or to indulge the slow movement so much everyone else thinks it’s like watching paint dry; it’s happened many times during my earlier years and I’m embarrassed to say that wasn’t too long ago, which is why I advocate discipline and self-control! Having said that, it doesn’t mean I’m to be lifeless on stage when not playing anything either. Here’s me and the SSO taking a couple of minutes off after the rehearsals to shred the piece we just spent hours rehearsing. (It’s definitely the SSO’s good nature that I’m allowed to get away with this…but what can I say? Music’s got to be enjoyed by the ones playing and the ones listening!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Yelian He (@kungfucellist)

About two weeks prior the SSO’s website had listed the concert as SOLD OUT which meant the only chance of securing a ticket was to wait and chance it at the returns desk. As a performer the adoration of your audience is key! Don’t believe me? Try playing for a hall half-empty (or half-full depending on your philosophical bend) and tell me you don’t wish you’d have given more love and attention to them more often; for a concert organizer that’s also a great reason not to see you again any time soon. I’m sure both the Australian Cello Awards and the Sydney Symphony have worked very hard to push this concert to the public, and if anybody else was involved, I thank you sincerely for making all of this a fantastically memorable event!

To read Yelian’s complete article please click here

Yelian He and the Tait Memorial Trust

Yelian, a former Tait Awardee, was a featured artist at the 2014 Tait Winter Prom at St John’s Smiths Square. He played Sollima’s thrilling duet for two celli with fellow Tait Awardee, Adam Szabo. Conducted by Kelly Lovelady and accompanied by the strings of the Tait Chamber Orchestra it was a highlight of the evening.

Tabatha McFadyen, Winner Tait Award, 2015 Bel Canto Awards

The 2015 Joan Sutherland & Richard Bonynge Foundation, Bel Canto Awards Finals Concert was a triumphant success.

http://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/news/two-sopranos-carry-elizabeth-connell-and-bel-canto-awards

We are delighted to report that young Australian soprano, Tabatha McFadyen was awarded the Tait Prize which gives her a coveted London performance platform. Tabatha will make her London debut singing for us at our 2015 Tait Winter Prom at the Royal College of Music on Monday 23rd November at 7pm.

Tabatha McFadyen, soprano, 2nd from right in white – attached photo. She came second in the competition – it was very close.

Biography
Tabatha was initially trained at the Queensland Conservatorium, graduating in 2013 with First Class Honours and the University Medal. She recently undertook intensive post-graduate studies at the Universität Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. Tabatha won the 2015 Opera & Arts Support Group Scholarship, the 2014 49th International Dvořák Singing Competition (Czech Republic), Mietta Song Competition, Sydney Eisteddfod Opera Awards, 32nd National Liederfest, was a finalist in the 2012 Bel Canto Award, runner-up in the Sydney Eisteddfod McDonald’s Operatic Aria and a finalist in the 2012 Australian Singing Competition winning the Mozart Opera Institute Award and the Nelly Apt Scholarship. Her stage roles have included: Musetta, Zerlina, Titania in The Fairy Queen, Suor Genovieffa, Countess Almaviva for QCGU, Susanna for Opera New England, Nina for Neglected Musicals’ presentation of Dear World (Jerry Herman) and Prilepa in Queen of Spades with SSO under Ashkenazy. An accomplished recitalist, she has been a regular guest artist with Brisbane contemporary music ensemble Kupka’s Piano, a featured artist as part of the EBCC Contemporary Music Festival in 2015 and has collaborated on world premieres with several composers. As part of the 2015 Port Fairy Music Festival she will perform with long-standing musical partner Alex Raineri, the Arcadia Quintet and Press, Play which will then transfer to the Melbourne Festival. Highlights on the concert platform include performances with Camerata of St. John’s led by Brendan Joyce & the Queensland Symphony Orchestra with Johannes Fritzsch.

Russell Harcourt, Counter tenor – Tait update

Lovely to hear from Tait Awardee, Russell Harcourt who recently returned from Sydney after working with Pinchgut Opera.

Russell Harcourt Photo by Simon Hodgson — Russell Harcourt
Photo by Simon Hodgson

He has recently updated his website with some excerpts from the opera Vivaldi’s Bajazet. Hadleigh Adams (also a Tait prize winner) was singing the title role.

Listen to Russell sing Handel here

Russell is currently preparing David (cover) in Saul for Glyndebourne on Tour as well as participating in Janice Kerbel’s piece DOUG in Glasgow which is a Turner Prize Nominee.

Follow these links to learn more about Russell:

www.russellharcourt.com

www.facebook.com/russellharcourtcountertenor

” …penetrating, glint-edged clarity.”
The Australian, July 7, 2015

Russell Harcourt is steadily gaining recognition on the operatic stage and concert platform throughout the UK and Australasia for a refined brilliance of vocal colour and the comic charm of his characterisations.

Russell studied voice with Graham Pushee and made his operatic début in 2007 as Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He made his Australian concert début in 2009 as a guest artist at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music and made his Royal Opera House début in the Crush Room in the Deloitte Ignite 2010 series.

Russell has recently returned from a critically acclaimed performance of Andronico in Vivaldi’s rarely performed pasticcio, Bajazet, for Sydney’s Pinchgut Opera. Other career highlights to date include the role of Athamas in Handel’s Semele under Sir Charles Mackerras; an extensive tour with English Touring Opera including roles in Handel’s Agrippina and Monteverdi’s The Coronation of Poppea; performances of Messiah with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, alongside Teddy Tahu Rhodes, under the baton of Richard Gill; and Corrado in Vivaldi’s Griselda, also with Pinchgut Opera.

Recent engagements include Countertenor 1 (cover) The Gospel According to the Other Mary and Hunahpu (cover) Indian Queen, both for director Peter Sellars at English National Opera, Pisandro The Return of Ulysses for Iford Arts Festival under Christian Curnyn and Soloist in the European premiere of Andrew Ford’s The Past for counter-tenor, flute and string orchestra with Ruthless Jabiru under Kelly Lovelady, Australian & New Zealand Festival of Literature & Arts.

Other engagements include Volano Il Giasone under Jane Glover; Fox/Coachman (cover) The Adventures of Pinocchio Opera North; Armindo (cover) Partenope Opera Australia (Sydney and Melbourne); Zelim (cover) La verità in cimento, Licida (cover) L’Olimpiade both for Garsington Opera and Alto soloist Vanguard Australian Ballet.

Oratorio experience includes alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Judas Maccabaeus, Israel in Egypt, J. S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, excerpts from Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater and excerpts from Vivaldi’s Stabat Mater, Magnificat and Introduction and Gloria.

Prizes and scholarships include Hariclea Darclée Special Award for Excellence, The Sir Robert Askin Operatic Travelling Scholarship, Tait Memorial Trust Grant, Australian Music Foundation Awards, Ian Potter Cultural Trust Grant, Australia Council for the Arts; Skills and Arts Development Grant and the Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarship. In 2008, Russell was the winner of the prestigious Dame Joan Sutherland Award, as well as the People’s Choice Award at the same event and in 2012 he was a finalist in The Kathleen Ferrier Awards at Wigmore Hall.

Russell holds a Bachelor of Music from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and an MA, Dip. RAM in Opera from The Royal Academy of Music. He studied part-time at the National Opera Studio and is an Associate of the Jette Parker Young Artist’s Programme at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden. He has performed in master classes for Emma Kirkby, Michael Chance, Andreas Scholl and Rosalind Plowright and he is an alumnus of the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme.

Russell currently lives in London and studies with Yvonne Kenny.

Andronico in Bajazet, Pinchgut Opera

Australian countertenor Russell Harcourt is the vacillating Prince Andronico … He has an exciting male soprano voice … excellent in recitative, growing in vocal stature as the evening progresses…”
Clive Paget, Limelight, Australia’s Classical Music & Arts Magazine, July 5, 2015

“Russell Harcourt’s Andronico is a vibrant and sometimes garish foil to the solemn fervour of Asteria.”
Harriet Cunningham, Sydney Morning Herald, July 5, 2015

“Russell Harcourt rang with impressive vocal consistency as Andronico … Characterised by a beautifully aspirated smooth falsetto that comfortably reached dizzying highs, Harcourt gave a memorable performance.”
Paul Selar, BachTrack, July 6, 2015

Narciso in Agrippina, English Touring Opera

“Russell Harcourt’s fawning Narciso, a dessicated cleric who sings like a nightingale”
Michael Church, The Independent

“Russell Harcourt was nimble-voiced and wickedly self-serving as Narciso”
Peter Reed, Classical Source

Athamas in Semele, Royal Academy of Music

“Russell Harcourt was exceptional. Fine attack, varied tone, stunning decoration, accomplished breath control, and with a clipped acting style that fitted the role like a glove.”
Peter Reed, Opera Magazine

“Harcourt however, not only possesses a beautiful voice and a fine technique, but proved himself to be one of the strongest actors in the show.”
Calvin Wells, Opera Brittania

Nutrice in Poppea, English Touring Opera

“Russell Harcourt was very soignee looking [and] brought great vocal character to the role”.
Robert Hugill, Planet Hugill, 2013

Corrado in Griselda, Pinchgut Opera

“…Russell Harcourt’s role as Corrado, isn’t designed to win hearts but his performance certainly doesn’t lose any. Snappy exchanges…are vociferous and precise.”
Neville Olliffe, Early Music Association of NSW, 2011

Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, WAAPA

“Russell Harcourt made an impressive King of the Fairies. His Oberon was consistently majestic; he moved around the stage as if it were his natural domain and his voice was informed by a slightly sinister quality that sounded entirely right.”
Neville Cohn, The West Australian

Tait Winter Prom 2015

Please save the date for our 5th annual Tait Winter Prom which will be held in the Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall at the Royal College of Music on Monday the 23rd of November at 6.30 for 7pm. This year we are delighted to welcome Australian virtuoso pianist and Tait Patron, Piers Lane AM who will be playing Chopin. With wine kindly provided by Treasury Wines Estates please join us, sit back and enjoy some of the most beautiful music written for the piano.

We will also be announcing our 2015 Awardees and look forward to hearing some of our talented young Australian artists performing for us at the beginning of the evening. Our awards would not be possible without the support of the Tait Friends, our loyal private donors and our principal partner the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Thank you.

We will first showcase some of our 2015 awardees:

• Alexandra Isted, violin – Tait Scholar at the RCM
• Tabatha Mc Fadyen, soprano – Tait Award, Bel Canto Awards Australia
• Matthew Reardon, tenor – Tait Prize, Australian International Opera Awards
• Chad Vindin, piano – Tait Prize, Royal Over-Seas League
• Peter Wilson, composer – Loewenthal Award RCM

Don’t miss this opportunity to hear Piers and our talented awardees and meet them at a small reception after the concert. For our Friends please join us for dinner at the Polish Club with Piers and our Tait Awardee performers. Please follow the link below to book your place and book early as places are limited

Other prizes and awards to be announced shortly

Please come. Help us to support these talented young Australians who are making their mark in the UK.

ABC Classics announcement — London Recital 28th May

From Jayson Gillham

ABC Classics announcement — London Recital 28th May.

ABC Classics announces three-album recording deal with Jayson Gilliam

If you haven’t already seen this through the various channels, here is a link to yesterday’s article published by the Australian music magazine Limelight about my signing with ABC Classics: http://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/news/abc-classics-sign-jayson-gillham

Needless to say, it is very exciting and I am looking forward to a long and fruitful relationship with ABC Classics. I’ll be making the recording of the first solo-piano disc in Germany next month. As part of my preparations for this recording, I’ll be giving the full programme an airing in London on 28th May – if you are in London please do come along – details below….

London Recital at
22 Mansfield St, Marylebone
Thursday 28th May, 7pm drinks for 7.30pm start

Dear friends, please join me for this exclusive London recital featuring all of the works I will be recording for my debut CD with ABC Classics.

It is a beautiful programme of masterworks by Bach, Schubert and Chopin, and this recital is your only chance to hear the CD programme live. The CD is not due to be released for another year so if you can’t wait that long, you will simply have to drag yourself to this concert!

The recital will take place in the gorgeous home of tireless music supporters Bob and Elisabeth Boas at 22 Mansfield St, Marylebone, London W1G 9NR, where the music will be complemented by a very fine and diverse art collection and followed by drinks and canapés to round off the evening.

To reserve your place, email boas22m@btinternet.com or phone 020 7436 0344. Prices are £15 for the concert only, and £25 to include drinks and canapés. Students can take advantage of the generous offer of £5 for concert only and £15 to include drinks and canapés.

It would be lovely to see you there. The full programme is as follows and is identical to the CD recording:

J. S. Bach Toccata in C minor, BWV 911
Schubert Sonata in A major, D664
Chopin Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 45
Chopin Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58

Videos from the Tait Winter Prom Dec 2014

Tait Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Kelly Lovelady

Percy Grainger
Handel in the Strand

Mozart – Ch’io mi scordi di te? with Elena Xanthoudakis

Tait Friends renewals 2015

Principal Partner

Dear Friends,

I was so pleased to see some of our Friends at the “Rising Australian Stars” concert at the ROSL last week where no fewer than four previous recipients of Tait awards played to a very appreciative audience. The music was simply glorious and I hope that you feel, as I do, the warm glow of satisfaction at being part of the nurturing of such wonderful young talent and how, with your generosity, The Tait Memorial Trust has played no small part in moving them along their musical path. With your help we have been able to help them gain the very best musical tuition and to expose them to the challenging and vibrant musical scene of the UK. What their natural talent and hard work, their families and their initial musical education in Australia began we have been able to continue. Apart from their exceptional musical talent one cannot help but be impressed with their enthusiasm, their energy, their strong sense of purpose and their total commitment to the pursuit of excellence. I so enjoyed speaking with Som, Chad, Yelian and Emily, as well as the other performers, after the concert and I am sure you will join me in wishing them all well.

What we have achieved in the past we are to continue. We have received 30 applications for this year’s awards and the standard is, as usual, exceptionally high. Our dedicated team is busy considering all those who are auditioning and we expect to be able to help a new group of very talented and committed young musicians and dancers towards a professional career such as that about to be enjoyed by the recipient of our Leanne Benjamin award for Ballet, Josephine Frick, as she shortly begins her contract with the ENB.

This leads me to the actual purpose of this letter. It is time to renew your Tait Friends membership with The Tait Memorial Trust. It is no exaggeration to write that you, our Friends, are the vital component of our commitment to our young Australian performing artists who come to study here in the UK and we trust you will be able to continue your generous support. In addition, if you know anyone else who would like to be part of this very satisfying activity in nurturing the talent of these wonderful young people please encourage them to do so and ask them to contact me on using the contact form below. I shall be very pleased to welcome them as a Tait Friend.

We have a busy calendar of events in the coming month as you will read below and I look forward to seeing you at one of these events or elsewhere.

Your donation will enable us to continue our important work.

With thanks and warmest wishes

Mrs. Isla Baring OAM
Chairman

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Australian & New Zealand Festival at King’s College, May 28 – 31.

Some highlights include:

May 30th The Story of the Kelly Gang directed by Charlie Tait (1906)

May 30th Tait Concert, Double Bill, Jayson Gillham & The Australia Piano Quartet
Tait/ Australia & New Zealand Festival of Literature & Arts joint concert

May 31st Tait Young Musicians Showcase
Tait/ Australia & New Zealand Festival of Literature & Arts joint concert

July 2nd The Leanne Benjamin Awards
Leanne Benjamin AM OBE speaking with Ross Alley about her career at the English National Ballet Studios at Jays Mews, London.

It is thanks to donations such as yours that we are in a position to offer our awardees such first class opportunities.

Tait Winter Prom 2014 at St John's Smith Square

The 2014 Tait Winter Prom was a landmark event for the Tait Memorial Trust at St John’s Smith Square, proudly supported by Australia’s largest bank, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. To see and hear our talented Awardees performing at one of London’s most prestigious concert platforms was thrilling…truly a great night for the Trust and for our young Australians we support.

Now in our 23rd year Awards have increased by 30% from 2013 largely due to the more than three fold rise in Tait Friends subscriptions in 2014 and our loyal audience who come to our events and generously give towards our scholarship fund.

Thank you.

We are very grateful for the
support that we receive
from the following organisations:

Principal Partner:
Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Partners:
Australian Business
The Australia Day Foundation
Bailey Nelson UK
The Britain-Australia Society
Cubitt House
Minter Ellison
Oliveto & Olivo Ltd
Qantas
Royal Over-Seas League
The Thornton Foundation
Treasury Wine Estates

2014 Tait Winter Prom at St John’s Smith Square
London Tuesday 9th December 2014
St John’s Smith Square,
Showcasing Australian Talent — An evening of Music and Ballet
Supported by Commonwealth Bank of Australia
Conducted by Kelly Lovelady
Tait Chamber Orchestra
Presented by former Miss Australia, Kimberley Busteed
Directed by Greg Eldridge

Jayson Gillham, Piano
Elena Xanthoudakis, Soprano
Xenia Deviatkina-Loh, Violin
Sophie Moffatt, Dancer
Calvin Richardson, Choreographer
Matthew Ball, Dancer
Marlena Devoe, Soprano
Chad Vindin, Piano
Adam Szabo, Cello
Yelian He, Cello
Nicola Crowe, Flute
Gerard Schneider, Tenor

Concert Programme

Percy Grainger (1882-1961)
Handel in the Strand
Jayson Gillham, Piano

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concerto: No. 14 in E flat , K. 449
Jayson Gillham, Piano

Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
The Lark Ascending
Xenia Deviatkina-Loh, Violin

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Ch’io mi scordi di te? Non temer, amato bene. K.505
Elena Xanthoudakis, Soprano
Jayson Gillham, Piano

Interval 20mins

Gabriel Faure
Kenneth MacMillan 1 – choreography
Requiem, Pie Jesu solo
Sophie Moffatt, dancer 2
Coached by Leanne Benjamin OBE
Marlena Devoe, Soprano
Chad Vindin, Piano

Saint-Saëns
The Swan
The Carnival of the Animals
Calvin Richardson – choreography
The Dying Swan
Calvin Richardson, Dancer 3
Adam Szabo, Cello
Chad Vindin, Piano

Giovanni Sollima (1962- )
Violoncelles Vibrez!
Yelian He & Adam Szabo, Cellos

Kevin Penkin (1992- )
Changing Feet
Nicola Crowe, Flute

Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
La Boheme, Act 1
Che gelida manina
Si, mi chiamano Mimi
O soave fanciulla

Marlena Devoe, Soprano
Gerard Schneider, Tenor 4

1 Performed with the kind permission from The MacMillan Estate
2 Appears with kind permission from The Royal Ballet School
3 Appears with kind permission from The Royal Ballet
4 Appears with kind permission from The National Opera Studio

Winter Prom highlights

Jayson Gillham playing Grainger’s, Handel in the Strand

Xenia Deviatkina-Loh playing Vaughan William’s, The Lark Ascending

Elena Xanthoudakis singing Mozart’s, Ch’io mi scordi di te? K 505 with Jayson Gillham, piano

Adam Szabo & Yelian He playing Sollima’s, Violoncelles Vibrez!

Marlena Devoe & Gerard Schneider sing the Final scene from Act 1, La boheme, Puccini

Review in Limelight Magazine

Review in Seen and Head

Jayson Gillham prepares for Le Louvre

Jayson Gillham played magnificently last night at 49 Queen’s Gate Terrace, London. The home of Sir Vernon and Lady Ellis it has become one of London’s most prestigious boutique chamber venues.

He played a program of Debussy, Chabrier & Ducas. He is such a wonderful artist and speaks and introduces each piece with humour.

We are thrilled that Jayson Gillham is playing for us at the Tait Winter Prom The concert will be at St John’s Smith

He will play this program at Le Louvre next week:

Auditorium du Louvre
12.30
Programme:
Chabrier Pièces pittoresques
Tourbillon; Mauresque; Idylle; Danse villageoise, Dukas Variations, Interlude and Finale on a theme by Rameau
Debussy Etudes, Book Two

He is a truly talented young man

The concert is at St John’s Smith Square on Tuesday 9th December at 7.30pm

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