The Lyrebird Trio, comprising three distinguished graduates of the Queensland Conservatorium, has been awarded two titles at one of the premier music contests in the world – the Asia-Pacific Chamber Music Competition.
The performers, pianist Angela Turner, violinist Glenn Christensen and cellist Simon Cobcroft, met at the Queensland Conservatorium, and came together earlier this year to formally establish the piano trio.
They triumphed over trios from Australia, Japan and China to be awarded the $12,000 Beleura Prize for best piano trio and the $3,000 audience choice prize at the finals held in Melbourne last week.
Presently, Glenn and Simon are principal players in the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, while Angela is a sessional lecturer at the Queensland Conservatorium.
Glenn says the competition has helped introduce the ensemble to an international audience.
“The attention and exposure we have received so far has been incredible. We’re thrilled that we have been able to establish ourselves as a trio against strong international competition.”
“It was an amazing experience for the trio”, says Angela. “We had such strong support from the audience right from the start, which was very heartening.
“We took the approach that this wasn’t a competition — that we were there to simply give the music the best performances we could,” she said.
With their prize money, the trio are preparing for more international activities, and plan to set up a series of concerts in Brisbane.
“Being recognised at this level is deeply humbling”, says Simon. “But we’re going to continue to build and develop as an ensemble. This is a wonderful start, and we’re excited about what the future holds.”
The Lyrebird Trio takes their name after the remarkable Australian native lyrebird, also an important emblem of the Queensland Conservatorium for much of its history.