Photography by Mikel Hoyle and Anne Rodda. On the last day of October we close the chapter of the Michael Hill International Violin Competition 2018 Winner’s Tour by featuring the stories, concert reviews and adventures of Ioana Cristina Goicea who saw off her tour last week with performing the Shostakovich Violin Concerto with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra at the Auckland Town Hall.  The week prior, Ioana undertook a variety of community outreach projects:  she judged the Auckland Chamber…

Keep Up With The Play Part 5. What girl wants, what girl needs... As you might know our Russian-Romanian duo had turned into a female solo straight after Andrey Gugnin went back to Russia last week. His departure was a time for bittersweet emotions and goodbyes, but, who knows when those two meet again and inspire the audiences with their fantastic combined artistry? Winners’ Tour 2018, as a part of The Michael Hill International Violin Competition, was definitely…

Keep Up With The Play Part 2. The magic of South Island Photography Ioana Cristina Goicea. Aren’t we are lucky that we can share some of the Winners’ tour stories with you that happened last week? A much as Ioana and Andrey are having fun seeing the scenery of the South Island, our Romanian-Russian duo is passionately devoted to their main calling - inspiring the audiences by playing brilliant concerts around the country. It requires a lot of…

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. We’ve had a marathon of emotion, beginning in Queenstown, with sixteen extraordinary young musicians sharing their passion and pathos, charm and confidence, vigour and vivacity.     Announced tonight at the Auckland Town Hall, Goicea receives NZ$40,000, a recording contract with the Atoll label, an intensive performance tour across New Zealand and Australia in 2018, a Michael Hill Spirits Bay pendant designed by Christine, Lady Hill, and a personalised professional development…