Balkanology Wins Again

Recently, I and the members of my recorder quartet (Owen Druery, Hugo Newman, and Henry Shannon) were excited to hear that we won an international recorder competition run by the Early Music Shop in England, and await the delivery of our prize, 3 quality pearwood recorders worth over $2000.

This quartet was formed for my HSC Music Extension ensemble piece, and we’ve spent a year rehearsing the fiendishly difficult and entrancing Balkanology by Jan Rokyta. As well as being part of my Encore-nominated HSC Music program, we’ve performed at the recent Year 12 Graduation, the Echos in the Nave concert in June, and in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall as a part of the Festival of Instrumental Music. Our performance of Balkanology also won us $200, the Woodwind Prize, in Musica Viva’s Strike a Chord competition which has been put towards purchasing a bass recorder for Fort Street’s Recorder Consort.

At very few schools could you take a university final recital level piece to a recorder consort you formed and have their reactions be “Wow… we better get practicing!” It’s been a pleasure working with Owen, Hugo, and Henry to rehearse and perform this piece, and I wanted to thank them for the hours they’ve put into this (now twice competition-winning) quartet.

Kit White