Georgia White

Clarinetist, Musical Director

Georgia White is a clarinetist based in Melbourne, currently in her third year at the Australian National Academy of music under David Thomas. She completed her Honours in performance at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music in 2023, studying with David Griffiths. Georgia received multiple scholarships and awards, including Brett Dean Prize for the Best Performance of an Australian work in her first year at ANAM, Lady Turner Exhibitions in Music Scholarship, a Principal's Scholarship, and the Melbourne University Artist Portfolio Prize. She has worked with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Victoria and is passionate about promoting music by women and Australian composers, as seen in her recordings and performances of works by Alice Mary Smith and Ruth Gipps.

Maria Zhdanovich

Flautist, Musical Director

Maria Zhdanovich is a sonic artist, collaborator and classically trained flutist currently completing her third year at the Australian National Academy of Music. Maria has won multiple awards, including the Adelaide Eisteddfod Concerto Competition and 5MBS Young Virtuoso Award. In 2021, she was nominated for the Freedman Fellowship while completing a Bachelor of Music Performance Advanced at Elder Conservatorium. Maria has vast performance experience ranging from orchestral work across Australia and New Zealand, to performing in experimental jazz fusion outfits. She is passionate about creating evocative concert experiences that interweave western art music tradition with 21st century Australian composition and high-level improvisation.

Sola Hughes

Violinist

Sola Hughes is a violinist in her third year at ANAM, studying under Adam Chalabi and Zoë Black. She holds a Bachelor of Music from the Queensland Conservatorium, where she studied with Michele Walsh and Natsuko Yoshimoto. Recent highlights include performing with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, collaborating on new compositions, and exploring improvisation. In her undergraduate studies, she performed Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto and worked with notable conductors. A passionate chamber musician, Sola has participated in festivals like Musical Chairs in Montreal and won the 4MBS Chamber Music Prize in 2021 with her string trio.

Fergus Ascot

Cellist

Fergus started cello at age nine in Bega, NSW, then resumed lessons in 2017 with David Pereira. He attended the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School and in 2020, Fergus began a Bachelor of Music at the Melbourne Conservatorium, studying with Richard Narroway. He was principal cellist in the university’s symphony orchestra for three years and in that time gained performance experience through work with the Australian Chamber Orchestra in Sydney and the Mimir Chamber Music Festival in Texas. From 2022-2024, Fergus played with the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic and Melbourne Opera, including tours with Andrea Bocelli and Delta Goodrem. He has also been part of the Australian Youth Orchestra since 2021, performing in Adelaide, Sydney, Perth, Hobart, and Canberra.

Sebastian Coyne

Violist

Sebastian Coyne is a Melbourne-based violist, ANAM graduate, and current student at the University of Melbourne with Caroline Henbest. In 2024, he won the Brett Dean Prize for his performance of Stuart Greenbaum’s Towards the Edge of Google Maps and was a semi-finalist in ANAM’s Concerto Competition. Sebastian has performed with renowned artists like Anthony Marwood and Jakub Jakowicz and played with leading orchestras across Australia and New Zealand. His repertoire spans classical to contemporary.

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