Premieres: Saturday 18th July at 2pm.
Welcome to our ‘virtual’ lunchtime concert! Over the next couple of months we will stream a concert every month on a Saturday afternoon for you to enjoy from the comfort of your own home.
TODAY’S CONCERT
Sleepers, Wake! – A piano recital with Jenny Lu
Inspired by Andrew Schultz’s Sleepers Wake – Karalananga, this concert explores the themes of dream and night, morning and hope. It opens with luscious nocturnes from Chopin and Debussy and examines Shostakovich’s declaration of defiance of humanity in calamity through a set of dark and solemn Prelude and Fugue. The second half of the recital welcomes Schultz’s Sleepers Wake, which gives a glimpse of J.S. Bach’s chorale Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme (Awake, the voice is calling us). The concert concludes in a quest for hope through Medtner’s Sonata-Tragica (Tragic Sonata).
HELP US KEEP THE MUSIC GOING
With a downturn in revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic, your support in exchange for these concerts is most welcome. Tax-deductible donations can be made the Cathedral’s Music Foundation below. Thank you for your support.
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CONCERT PROGRAM
- Frederick Chopin
Nocturne Op.27 No.2 - Dmitri Shostakovich
Prelude and Fugue in D minor Op.87 No.24 - Claude Debussy
Nocturne - Robert Schumann
Träumerei from Kinderszenen Op.15 No.7 - Andrew Schultz
Sleepers Wake – Karalananga from Journey to Horseshoe Bend - Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Morning Prayer from Children’s Album Op.39 No.1 - Nikolai Medtner
Skazka (Tale) Op.34 No.2 ‘When what we called our own, forever departs from us’
Sonata-Tragica (Tragic-Sonata) from Forgotten Melodies Op.39 No.5
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Jenny Lu is a pianist based in Victoria, Australia. She has completed her Masters research candidature at Monash University, under the supervision of Dr Joel Crotty, Professor Margaret Kartomi and Dr. Tamara Smolyar. Her undergraduate and postgraduate piano performance studies have been conducted under the nurturing tutelage of Dr. Tamara Smolyar. Jenny’s research concerns the concept of narrativity in music and the compositions of the Anglo-Russian composer, Nikolai Medtner. Jenny completed her undergraduate studies with full scholarships.
Jenny performs as a soloist and a chamber musician with an array of repertoire and is always grateful for more along her journey through the labyrinth of music. Jenny’s academic excellence has been recognized with scholarships and prizes such as the Joan Earle Prize for best performance (2019, 2017), First Class Honours (2016) and the Monash Scholarship for Excellence and Equity (2013-2015) while her secondary years under Christine Simpson saw her thriving in all her subjects, composition, written and performance.
During her studies, Jenny participated in master classes with eminent pedagogues including Janelle Carrigan, Phillip Cassard, Max Cooke, Anatoly Dokumentov, Kenji Fujimura, Tony Gould, Andrea Kats, Dobbs Franks, Ronald Farren-Price, Anthony Halliday, Leslie Howard, David Kram, Paolo Ponzecchi, Geoffrey Saba and Len Vorster, while her own teaching career began in her undergraduate years.
Based in Melbourne, Australia, Jenny is also a sought after accompanist, performing alongside choirs and soloists in auditions, competitions, concerts and exams.
An ardent writer and voracious reader, Jenny writes fiction, poetry, prose and journal articles. In 2018, Jenny performed and presented her paper on Kaija Saariaho’s Ballade at the International Gender Diversity in Music Making Conference. Jenny likewise actively participates in a range of mentoring and volunteer positions such as the student mentor at Monash University Music Students’ Society (2016), Access Monash Ambassador (2014) and English Tutor at the Adult Multi-cultural Education Services (2013-2014). Jenny is a committee member of Camberwell Music Society.
UPCOMING CONCERTS
15 August: Amogh Ananth (violin) & Harrison Lam (piano)
19 September: Emma Warburton (contralto)
17 October: Adam Simmons (flute, saxophones, shakuhachi)
21 November: Meredith Connie (classical guitar)
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ABOUT THE LUNCHTIME CONCERT SERIES
This series of lunchtime concerts was launched in 2013 to encourage city workers and others to come into and enjoy the beautiful surroundings of the Cathedral during the day. They provide fine music and space for contemplation in the midst of a busy week. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, our Lunchtime Concert has moved online, bringing stunning performances direct to homes through Melbourne and Australia.