12 November 2024 Last Tuesday we played a concert in Dunedin and the composer Gillian Whitehead was actually in the audience. I'm playing one of her pieces called Bright Silence and I got to meet her backstage. She was so warm and genuine and I'm really happy that I got to meet her. After Dunedin we went to Christchurch for two days then flew to New Plymouth for a concert on Friday. That was a different experience. The…
Tuesday 5 November Earlier this week we performed in Invercargill, Christchurch and Nelson. The Opera House in Invercargill was so dark that I couldn’t see the audience so I imagined that I was an opera singer on stage. The next morning, I had a 6am Zoom class in writing short fiction for my Bachelor of Music degree at Juilliard. There’s only a certain number of classes we can miss each semester so my teacher kindly agreed to let…
31 October 2024 I'm writing this blog at Hamilton Airport. We're about to fly to Invercargill for our next concert. I had some trouble with my excess baggage because of all the dresses in my bag, but we are fine now! Last night was really fun. We had an amazing concert at the Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts. I could see the reactions of the audience and I got to play an encore session which was Schön Rosmarin…
Winner of the 2023 Michael Hill, Jenny Jin of South Korea/ USA has announced the dates of her official winners tour. Jenny is confirmed to return to Australiasia for recital and concerto engagements to celebrate her win at last year's competition. Audiences will be thrilled to reunite with Jenny, and can look forward to being treated to the talents of not one but two international competition winners, as Jenny will be touring in partnership with pianist Jeonghwan Kim,…
Keep Up With The Play Part 4. When the tour approaches its end, another opportunity comes along... Photography by Andrey Gugnin and Anne Rodda Last time you checked what our duo was up to, Ioana and Andrey were enjoying themselves on both sides of the Tasman - Sydney, Melbourne, and Whangarei. Feel free to scroll through their memories from that touring moment by clicking here. Since then our musicians moved to the lower part of the North Island to enjoy…
Keep Up With The Play Part 3. Tour adventures across the Tasman Photography by Andrey Gugnin and Anne Rodda Do you remember how the Winners’ Tour started? It felt like yesterday when Ioana and Andrey met for the first time in the Sydney International Airport. Early last week they flew back to Sydney thanks to performances offered to them by Musica Viva Australia. Ioana and Andrey performed at the Melbourne Recital Centre and at The Independent Theatre in Sydney. https://www.instagram.com/p/BoaPq1XnbSQ/…
Keep Up With The Play Part 1. The first week of the Winners' tour 2018. Photography Sheena Haywood, Anne Rodda, Andrey Gugnin. The first prize winner of Michael Hill International Violin Competition 2017 Ioana Cristina Goicea, and the winner of the 2016 Sydney International Piano Competition, Andrey Gugnin, met for the first time in the Sydney International Airport last Wednesday. They caught the same flight over the Tasman to land in magnificent Queenstown - one of the dreamy…
