Philip Arkinstall, ChrisTOPHER Moore & Kristian Chong
Bruch Brahms and Bakrnčev
MONDAY 16TH DECEMBER 2024 8PM
TICKETS $26.50 | CONCESSION $22
PERFORMERS
Philip Arkinstall, clarinet
Christopher Moore, viola
Kristan Chong, piano
PROGRAM
Johannes BRAHMS Clarinet Sonatas Op 120
No. 1 Performed on the Clarinet
No. 2 Performed on the Viola
Michael BAKRNČEV Trio *World Premiere
Max BRUCH 8 Pieces for Clarinet, Viola and Piano, op. 83 (selection)
ABOUT THE ENSEMBLE
PHIL ARKINSTALL, CLARINET
Philip has appeared as soloist with the Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland, West Australian and Tasmanian, Corpus Medicorum and Zelman symphony orchestras and also with the Malaysian and Royal Melbourne philharmonics in repertoire ranging from Mozart to Heinze. He won the young performer of the year for 2MBSFM in 1996 and won the 1997 Young Performer of the Year prize run by Symphony Australia and the ABC. Queens Trust, Big Brother and various other awards enabled him to pursue intermittent studies in Europe.
Philip has been the associate principal clarinet of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra since 2008. He was Principal of the Malaysian Philaharmonic in KL for 11 years prior to that, and has appeared as guest principal with every Australian orchestra except Adelaide. Philip has worked with the AWO, ACO, the Camerata Bern, Arcadia and the MCO amongst others and is a founding member of the Plexus Trio with Monica Curro and Stefan Cassomenos. Plexus has comissioned and premiered works from over 100 composers from across the globe since its inception in 2013. He is also a founder of the Melbourne Ensemble septet and has appeared at the Townsville, Mackay, Desert Song, Huntingdon and Port Fairy festivals amongst many others.
Philip studies conducting with Richard Mills and has assistant conducted several of Mills’ recent operas including Galileo, Nativity and The Butterfly Lovers. He teaches at Melbourne University and has given masterclasses across Asia and South America as well as being a guest teacher in clarinet and chamber music at ANAM, Monash, ANU and NMC. He studied with Peter Jenkin at the Sydney Conservatorium, Valentin Sacharov in Strasbourg and earlier with Steven Kenyon and Bernard Wattelet. He is a contracted artist for the German clarinet maker, Arthur F Ubel.
CHRISTOPHER MOORE, VIOLA
Principal Viola of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Christopher Moore spent nine years travelling the globe as Principal Viola of Australian Chamber Orchestra. As romantic as that sounds, he missed his old chums Mahler, Schoenberg and Adès, and so returned to these and other old friends at the MSO.
Not surprisingly, Christopher’s wife and two daughters are pleased that Papa has hung up his rock star garb and come home to roost like their pet chickens. If you’re lucky, he may hand you a bona fide free-range egg; if you’re unlucky, you’ll be stuck hearing about how much he loves brewing beer and riding his bike into town from the suburbs, in an attempt to prevent his waistline expanding to the size of his chickens’ coop.
Christopher Moore plays a viola attributed to Giovanni Paolo Maggini dating from circa 1600-10 AD, loaned anonymously to the MSO.
KRISTIAN CHONG, PIANO
One of Australia's leading pianists, Kristian Chong has performed throughout Australia and the UK, and in China, France, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, USA, and Zimbabwe. As soloist he has appeared with the Adelaide, Melbourne, Queensland, Sydney and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras, and orchestras in the UK, New Zealand and China with conductors such as Werner Andreas Albert, Andrey Boreyko, Nicholas Braithwaite, Roy Goodman, Sebastian Lang-Lessing, Nicholas Milton, Tuomas Ollila, Marcus Stenz, Arvo Volmer and Marco Zuccarini.
His competition successes include the Symphony Australia Young Performers Award (keyboard) and the Australian National Piano Award. Concerto highlights have included Rachmaninoff 3rd with the Sydney Symphony, the Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a theme by Paganini in Beijing, and Britten with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Recent concerto highlights include Beethoven's 2nd with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, and Shostakovich 2nd, Chopin 2nd, Rachmaninoff 3rd, Beethoven's Emperor in Melbourne, and Ravel's Left Hand concerto in Melbourne and NZ. A highly sought after chamber musician, recent collaborations include Australian and Asian tours with the Australian String Quartet, performances with violinists Natsuko Yoshimoto, Sophie Rowell, Elizabeth Layton, Ilya Konovalov(concertmaster Israel Philharmonic), Tin Alley and Flinders Quartets, flautist Megan Sterling and cellist Li-Wei Qin. He recently performed at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music and made a return appearance at the Huntington Estate Music Festival for Musica Viva Australia. In addition, Kristian debuted for ABC-Classics with baritone Teddy Tahu-Rhodes. Other recent solo and chamber highlights include the Adelaide Festival, Adelaide International Cello Festival, the Xing Hai Festival in Guangzhou, Australian Music Week in Xiamen with the Melbourne Symphony, the Port Fairy Spring Music Festival, where Kristian performed the complete Rachmaninoff Preludes and piano trios and the Beethoven Triple Concerto with Yoshimoto and Qin. Kristian studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Piers Lane and Christopher Elton, and earlier with Stephen McIntyre at the University of Melbourne where Kristian currently teaches piano and chamber music. He is also a 'Friend of Australia' for Tourism Australia.
ABOUT MICHAEL BAKRNČEV
Michael Bakrnčev (Bah-kahn-chev) is a multi-award-winning Australian composer whose music has been performed globally, including in Australia, Europe, the USA, and Canada, by prestigious orchestras including the Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra Symphony Orchestras.
Michael holds a Bachelor of Music (Honours 1st Class) from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and a Master of Music (Honours 1st Class) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. Michael's numerous awards include the Adolph Spivakovsky Scholarship for Composition and the Chamber Music Australia: New Works Award. His music has recently been described as 'neo-romantic from an alternate universe' by Australian composer, Peggy Polias.
His commissions span a variety of ensembles, including the Black Square String Quartet and Plexus Trio. Michael continues to expand his repertoire with projects including his 'Naarm Haiku' for solo piano, and a 'Nocturne for Violin and Piano'. Through his work, he integrates diverse influences, such as Eastern philosophy (Philokalia), Macedonian folklore, and technology (AI/NHI/UAP/Quantum Physics), creating a mesmerising blend of ancient and modern musical traditions through what he affectionately refers to as a 'dialect of the contemporary classical genre'.