TRIFORCE

8PM THURSDAY 29TH JUNE 2023

TICKETS $30 / $26

Rachel Bullen, oboe
Matthew Kneale, bassoon
Georgina Lewis, piano

PROGRAM

J. S. BACH Two-Part Inventions (selections) - for oboe & bassoon or piano

Charles KOECHLIN Trois Pièces for bassoon and piano

Marcel BITSCH Suite Française sur des Thèmes du XVIIe Siècle for oboe and piano

Nadia BOULANGER Deux Improvisations pour orgue (played on piano)

Naomi BROWN The Sea and the Skylark for oboe and bassoon *World Premiere

L.V. BEETHOVEN Gassenhauer Trio for oboe, bassoon, piano

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Rachel Bullen
After completing her studies at Melbourne University, where she was awarded the Lady Turner Exhibition for Excellence in Performance, Rachel Bullen continued her studies in Europe, studying with Emanuel Abbühl and then François Leleux, during which time she received an Ian Potter Foundation grant. Rachel has performed as a soloist, and orchestral musician in Europe and Australia, and she was a full-time chamber musician with Esbjerg Ensemble, Denmark, from 2010 to 2016. Since returning permanently to Australia, Rachel has appeared as guest associate principal oboe with Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestra Victoria, and was acting principal with Adelaide Symphony Orchestra in 2019. Rachel teaches at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music and with Play with a Pro. Rachel also has a strong interest in what goes on in the minds of performers, and recently completed her Honours in Psychology.
Rachel Bullen studied at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School from age 12. After graduation, she went on to study with Eve Newsome at Melbourne University, where she was awarded the Lady Turner Exhibition for Excellence in Performance.
Rachel Bullen has performed in Europe and Australia as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician. Her big love is for chamber music, and she was a member of Esbjerg Ensemble in Denmark for six years. Since returning permanently to Australia in 2016, Rachel has played first oboe with Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestra Victoria. She teaches at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. Rachel has a keen interest in the minds of performers, and recently completed her Honours in Psychology.

Matthew Kneale
Hailed by the Daily Telegraph as “a new star…who wields his instrument with virtuosic skill and with moves you usually associate with a rock guitarist”, Matthew Kneale is one of Australia’s leading lights on the bassoon.
He was the first ever bassoonist to be awarded the prestigious Freedman Classical Fellowship. Matthew used this award in late 2019 to embark on an international concert tour that aimed to shatter preconceived notions by presenting the bassoon as a brilliant solo and chamber entity in its own right, with a strong emphasis on music by Australia’s leading young composers.
Matthew is a founding member of Arcadia Winds, Australia’s leading young wind ensemble, and Musica Viva’s inaugural FutureMakers musicians. With Arcadia Winds Matthew appears as a soloist and chamber musician at festivals and venues around the Australia. Recent highlights have included performances at the Perth International Arts Festival with the Australian String Quartet; at the Musica Viva Festival with piano virtuoso Lambert Orkis; and at the UKARIA Cultural Centre with woodwind masters Ole Kristian Dahl and Thorsten Johanns. Matthew also performs as a casual musician with many of Australia’s leading orchestras, including the Melbourne and Darwin Symphony Orchestras, the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra and Orchestra Victoria. Passionate about inspiring future generations to play the bassoon, Matthew regularly performs at schools around the country through Arcadia Winds’ Musica Viva in Schools show the Air I Breathe, and teaches at music courses including the Melbourne Youth Orchestra Summer School, and the South Coast Music Camp in Bega. Matthew is also a founding member of Ensemble Françaix which also has been touring all around Australia over the last 5 years.
In 2022 Matthew will be working on a contract with Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and performing at the Orange Chamber Music festival as well as the Coffs Harbour Festival of Chamber Music. Matthew also looks forward to concerts at Tempo Rubato, Melbourne Recital Centre and the Australian Digital Concert Hall with his chamber groups

Georgina Lewis, piano

Pianist Georgina Lewis completed her Bachelor of Music (Honours) at the Victorian College of the Arts in 2007, studying Repertoire Keyboard with Donna Coleman. She has focused her attention in recent years to chamber settings, especially on music by contemporary and female composers.
She was a founding member of Solstice with Stephanie Arnold and Natasha Conrau, an ensemble dedicated to the performance and creation of new Australian works for piano trio, by women in particular. The trio performed at Peninsula Summer Music Festival, Melbourne Recital Centre, fortyfivedownstairs, and Dots + Loops Festival (Brisbane), where they gave the Australian premiere of Pascal LeBoeuf's 2017 Cortona prize-winning Obliquely Wrecked.
Georgina also performs with Latvian violinist Sophia Kirsanova. The duo has performed at the Melbourne Recital Centre, Tempo Rubato and the Melba Hall lunchtime series, and were selected as Musica Viva Featured Artists of 2023. They walso performed as part of Amanda Shone's installation in the Front Beach Back Beach arts festival at Coolart Homestead and Wetlands.
In 2018 Georgina completed her Master of Arts and Cultural Management at the University of Melbourne, focusing her final year studies on Intangible Cultural Heritage policy. Her interest in this field crosses over into her curation and performance practices.