Australian Youth Choir Showcase

The Sydney Children’s Choir’s Junior Performing Choir brings together specially selected singers aged 9 – 14 who show strong musical aptitude, enabling them to extend their choral and musical skills in an intensive way. The choir is one of 16 ensembles adding up to over 400 young people that form the Sydney Children’s Choir’s renowned choral training program, founded by Lyn Williams AM in 1989. The choir have formed part of the children’s choruses for performances with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, including for the premiere of Colin Matthew’s The Pied Piper of Hamlin in 2016, and for Opera Australia productions including Turandot, King Roger and Tosca. The Junior Performing Choir has embarked on regional tours in NSW regularly over its history, giving performances and workshops with local singers: Bathurst (2017), Albury (2018) and Wagga Wagga (2019). In 2023, the choir are conducted by Elizabeth Scott and Lachlan Massey.

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CONDUCTOR: LACHLAN MASSEY

Lachlan Massey is a young Australian conductor and composer. He conducts for the Sydney Children’s Choir, working under Lyn Williams AM and Sam Allchurch to prepare the choirs for concerts, recordings and major national events. Most recently he conducted the choir at The Sydney Energy Forum for the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, acted as assistant conductor for dramatic work Hypnopompia with director Alexander Berlage, and assisted in preparing the choirs for the reopening of the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall under Simone Young. Lachlan founded Musgrove Opera in 2018 to present contemporary opera for children and families. He composed & directed Pinocchio! (2018), which had its premiere at the Zenith Theatre, prior to a regional tour. His second children’s opera, an adaptation of Hansel & Gretel (2021), premiered at The Concourse. In 2022, Lachlan directed Sid the Serpent who Wanted to Sing and Heroes in the Sydney Opera House Utzon Room. Most recently, he worked with composer Aija Draguns, directing the premiere of her children’s opera, Max and Moritz. Recently, Lachlan appeared as a guest conductor for the RSCM Junior Schools’ Choral Festival. Lachlan is an alumnus of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and a former Young Ambassador for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

Founded in 2019, Young Voices of Hobart is a fun, inclusive choral program for young singers in the greater Hobart area. YVH is committed to providing an exceptional level of choral education, with a strong focus on providing high level performance outcomes.

Photo credit: Alistair Bett

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MUSICAL DIRECTOR: AARON POWELL

Aaron has been working as a musical director, accompanist, teacher and conductor for choirs, musicals and special events for more than 20 years. Holding a Bachelor of Music majoring in Classical Piano and a Bachelor of Teaching, Aaron has worked at a variety of schools including The Friends School, Hobart College, Rosny College, Elizabeth College, The Hutchins School, Taroona High School, and St Michael's Collegiate.

Notable productions he has been Musical Director for include the Tasmanian Premiere performances of The Phantom of the Opera, Miss Saigon, and Monty Python's Spamalot. Aaron was also the musical director for the Theatre Royal's 175th Anniversary Concert, the Myer Hobart Christmas Carols, Sisongke, and The Australian Rosny Children's Choir.

In 2007, Aaron toured to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with Hobart based soprano Allison Farrow, accompanying on piano for her show I'm a Stranger Here Myself. In 2008, Aaron sang as part of the backing choir for Michael Crawford at the Derwent Entertainment Centre. He has also worked with Kate Ceberano, Keith Potger (The Seekers), Damien Leith and many more notable performers.

As a performer, Aaron currently sings with Deep South Chorus and Hobart's award-winning a cappella vocal ensemble ThylaSing, of which he is also the founder and musical director. Aaron also trains and directs the UTAS A Cappella Club.

Aaron has a wide range of original compositions and arrangements available for purchase and is in high demand for custom musical arrangements and choral workshops in Hobart and interstate.

The mission of the Choral Excellence Program at Hillcrest Christian College is to nurture and inspire students through quality music education and the pursuit of artistic excellence in choral performance.

The Choral Excellence Program fosters leadership, self-worth, teamwork and pride. We strive to build relationships within the local community and collaborate with other performance groups within and outside the College to reach a broader audience. We perform a diverse range of styles with a particular emphasis on Australian repertoire and prioritize commissioning new works and collaborating with Australian composers.

An important aspect of the Choral Excellence Program is the opportunity to tour regularly, and the choirs have represented Hillcrest Christian College throughout Queensland and Australia in two International Tours including 5th International World Vision Choir Festival, Seoul Korea in 2015 and Pacific International Festival, Oregon, United States of America in 2018.

Award-winning Bel Canto, the SSA premier choir, is delighted to be returning to Hobart, Tasmania following their successful participation in the Festival of Voices in 2016.

Conductors: Ms Claire Preston and Dr. Robert Stewart

TYO Tasmanian Chorales is the space for young singers within Tasmanian Youth Orchestras (TYO). The chorales are for young singers aged five to 25 and have a strong focus on technique and choral skills whilst being a fun and engaging environment. The TYO Tasmanian Youth Chorale (ages 11-25) and the TYO Tasmanian Junior Chorale (ages 5-10) both have many performance opportunities throughout the year and can be seen and heard around Hobart and across Tasmania. TYO Chorales sing, perform and develop great vocal techniques and friendships – a true foundation to choral artistry!

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CONDUCTOR: MADELEINE DYER

Madeleine is a choral conductor, accompanist, teacher and Soprano from Hobart, Tasmania. She is currently the Director of Music at Choral Productions Tasmania and Hobart Orpheus Choir. She is the assistant conductor and repetiteur of the Tasmanian Youth Orchestra Youth Chorale. She has extensive teaching experience in voice, piano and class settings and performs frequently in Hobart as a soprano. She holds a BMus, A.Mus.A, a CMT and is a licenced Encore teacher.

Image credit: Mike Morffew