AFCM Pathways International Masterclasses
AFCM PATHWAYS INTERNATIONAL MASTERCLASSES 2025
Held in Townsville-Gurambilbarra in North Queensland from 18 July - 1 August, before and during the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, the AFCM Pathways International Masterclasses program is an immersive experience for emerging chamber musicians, offering direct mentorship from world-class artists, chamber music training, and professional development opportunities through lessons, masterclasses, and performances, while also providing industry insights from leading musicians and arts professionals.
The AFCM Pathways Program, including the AFCM Pathways International Masterclasses, is supported by the Ian Potter Foundation.
2025 Ensembles
Cedar-Rose Newman & Rio Xiang
A recently formed duo, Rio and Cedar share a musical heritage that gives them great joy in performing sonata repertoire together. Rio has been a long-term student of Natalia Ricci, and Cedar studied piano with Gian-Franco Ricci for eight years. These relationships have nurtured the beauty of communicating stories and emotional landscapes through music.
Cedar Newman’s passion for the violin began with listening to Bach and Vivaldi’s music played on her great-grandmother’s violin, which she now performs on. At thirteen, her musical journey took her to New York, where she continues to study with Professor Lucie Robert at the Manhattan School of Music. She is a grateful recipient of a President’s Scholarship. She has played with orchestras and chamber ensembles and has performed as a soloist in Australia, North America, and Europe.
Rio Xiang is a pianist, improviser, and prolific composer. He has won many international piano competitions and performed solo with multiple orchestras in Australia and overseas. His most recent success was winning 2nd prize and the Jenny Houlihan Special Prize for the best performance of a Haydn Sonata at the Australian National Piano Award in October 2024. Rio has studied piano overseas with Natalia Ricci and composition with Richard Gill. He has made recordings for ABC Classic FM Radio Station and Sydney Fine Music Radio Station.
Infront Brass
Infront Brass is an emerging quintet, comprised of five up and coming brass musicians (David Imlay and Toby Rands on trumpet, Sarah Bernard on horn, Josh de Haan on trombone and Campbell Egan on tuba) who have been brought together by a shared appreciation of the brass chamber music sound. The members are a mixture of current and former students studying at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
Formed in 2024, Infront Brass have been studying under the chamber tutelage of Scott Kinmont and Leanne Sullivan. Since their formation, Infront Brass have performed regularly at lunch break Chamber Music and Brass Ensemble concerts at their institution as well as participating in the Los Angeles Philharmonic Wind Quintet’s chamber masterclass, lead by Andrew Bain.
They are also the proud winners of the Conservatorium Student Association's Chamber Ensemble award, presented in 2024.
Orpheus Quintet
The Orpheus Quintet is an emerging wind quintet from Sydney. Its members are Kara Thorpe (flute), Gahyun Lee (oboe), Justin Wang (clarinet), Dylan Roberts (bassoon), and Jude Austen Kaup (French horn). Meeting as part of their studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the Orpheus Quintet was established in 2024. The quintet has had the privilege of being mentored by Shefali Pryor and Andrew Barnes.
The Orpheus Quintet is passionate about sharing wind quintet repertoire with audiences and has performed in several concerts at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. In 2024, they were selected to take part in a masterclass with the LA Philharmonic Wind Quintet during their Australian tour, receiving individual and chamber group mentoring. Individually, the quintet musicians have taken part in chamber music tours across regional Australia and Australian Youth Orchestra chamber music groups.
Vanya Quartet
Formed in 2025 at the Elder Conservatorium of Music, the Vanya Quartet unites passionate chamber musicians Lucy Macourt and Nick Miceli (violins), Clara Salzmann (viola) and Henry Say (cello). The Vanya Quartet is grateful to their mentors Australian String Quartet, Elizabeth Layton, Edith Salzmann, and Stephen King. The Quartet is looking forward to exploring new works and the riches of quartet repertoire together.
Members of the Vanya Quartet have been invited to perform chamber music internationally in festivals such as the Mimir Festival Chamber Music Festival (USA), Masterclass Apeldoorn (the Netherlands) and the International Akaroa Music Festival (New Zealand).
The Vanya Quartet is eagerly anticipating a regional tour across South Australia in September 2025, where they will have the opportunity to share their music through performance and community outreach workshops.
Weichao Zhu & Catherine Li
Weichao Zhu, a student of Professor Cyrus Beroukhim, is currently a doctoral student majoring in violin performance at New York University. He previously studied violin with Professor Danwen Jiang at Arizona State University for his Bachelor’s degree and completed his Master’s degree in Performance and Literature with Professor Renée Jolles at Eastman School of Music. He has been winning multiple awards in statewide and worldwide music competitions including the Golden Classical Musician Award of 2021 Grand Prize Virtuoso International Violin Competition, the National Top-Six of 2021 United States Music Teachers National Association Young Artist String Competition, the First Place of 2020 MTNA Arizona State and Southwest Division Young Artist String Competition, and the First Prize of 2017 Vienna Leschetitzky International Violin Competition.
Catherine Li is a pianist born and raised in New Zealand who is currently majoring in collaborative piano at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She has studied under the tutelage of Richard Liu, Natalia Ricci, and is currently studying with Dr Theresa Leung and Dr Eun-Jung Byun. Catherine has competed and received prizes in numerous piano and chamber competitions such as the NZCT Chamber Music Contest, NSPAS, and had just won runner-up of the David Miller Award of NSW Accompanists’ Guild as the youngest finalist in 2024. She is also recipient of the CLEF NZ senior scholarship and Henderson Traveller’s Scholarship SCM.
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
1. Individual Lessons
- One-on-one lessons with select AFCM Faculty members, including:
- Jack Liebeck (violin)
- Ana-Maria Vera (piano)
- Lloyd Van't Hoff (clarinet)
2. Instrumental Classes
- Group instrumental classes led by AFCM artists and faculty members.
- Focus on technical development, interpretation, and stylistic approaches.
3. Chamber Music Tutorials
- Coaching sessions with AFCM artists and faculty on chamber music repertoire.
- Development of ensemble skills, communication, and musical interpretation.
4. Chamber Music Forum
- Ensembles perform for each other and receive feedback from AFCM Pathways Director Lloyd Van’t Hoff.
- Interactive group discussions and review sessions.
5. Professional Development Seminars
- A series of expert-led seminars covering key aspects of a musician’s career, including:
- Marketing & Self-Promotion (Sheridan Helft)
- Words About Music: Writing & Speaking Effectively (Andrew Ford OAM)
- Working Effectively in Groups & Creating A Shared Vision (Lloyd van't Hoff)
- Being An Entrepreneurial Leader In The Chamber Music World (Mary Jo Capps AM)
- Ensemble Photography & Briefings (Peter Hislop)
6. Public Masterclass Participation
- Each participant will perform in at least one Public Masterclass.
- Feedback from an AFCM Festival artist in a concert-style setting.
7. Final Performance – International Masterclasses Concert
- Culminating performance at the Townsville Civic Theatre.
- Opportunity to showcase repertoire developed throughout the program.
8. Festival Access
- Complimentary tickets to all AFCM Festival Performances.
- Exposure to international artists and networking opportunities.
9. Networking & Industry Engagement
- Industry Roundtables – Informal discussions with AFCM industry experts on career pathways and topics related to the broader arts ecosystem
- Industry Networking Events – Opportunities to connect with presenters, educators, and arts leaders.
- Mentor Pairing – Each participant is paired with an AFCM artist for individual career guidance.
Financial Assistance & Billeting
- Financial Assistance: Limited funding is available to assist with participation costs for Australian citizens and permanent residents. Successful Australian applicants will be eligible to apply for financial aid.
- Billeting: A participant billeting program is available, providing hosted accommodation with local families in Townsville.
APPLYING FOR THE PROGRAM
Applications are open to advanced/tertiary level ensembles and individuals. Applicants will need to submit the following:
- Basic information about the ensemble and its members, including a photograph.
- Up to ten minutes of audition video showcasing two works of contrasting style.
- A letter of recommendation from a teacher or chamber music coach and a letter of permission from your tertiary institute.
- Between 2 - 4 works that your ensemble would like to workshop during the AFCM Pathways International Masterclasses.
Applications for the 2026 Pathways International Masterclasses will open in late 2025. For more information please contact AFCM Pathways Program Manager Nick Duff at nick.duff@afcm.com.au or on 07 4771 4144.
AFCM PATHWAYS INTERNATIONAL MASTERCLASSES ALUMNI
ALEXINA HAWKINS, VIOLA
“Due to the small size of the Winterschool on both occasions, all of these interactions were very focused and a lot of valuable and inspiring information was shared which I continued to think about as I developed my musical understanding (I was 18 the first time I attended the Winterschool). Kirsty McCahon passionately conveyed the need to recognise the implications of the harmonies in the piece we studied (Schubert Death and the Maiden quartet), and to transfer a sense of what would have been musically innovative and shocking in Schubert's time to our playing. Julian Smiles shared a number of very insightful and relevant thoughts about ensemble playing which I have reflected on and still believe to be true today. Rivka Golani's musical passion and craft as a violist were impressive to encounter; I had never taken lessons with anyone as thorough as her before.”
Since moving to Berlin from Australia in 2015, Alexina has had extensive experience performing, recording and touring in classical and contemporary music ensembles, including the Deutsches Kammerorchester Berlin, Kammerakademie Potsdam, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Solistensemble Kaleidoskop, M.A.M. Ensemble and Stegreif Orchester, appearing in concert across Europe, North & South America, Asia and Australia. A curiosity for the unknown and potentially wild in music has led her to improvisation and recent recording collaborations with artists including Lione, Anna Morley, Agnes Obel and Damon Albarn, as well as two of Berlin’s most exciting young jazz musicians in the trio Hawkins/Forde/Dinsdale. Alexina is a founding member of contemporary chamber music ensemble hear now berlin, which released its debut album Music in Circles (Backlash Music) in June 2023, and has collaborated with Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Becca Stevens and clarinetist/saxophonist/composer Ken Thomson. Alexina is also a member of the Phoenix Trio, founded with flautist Lina Andonovska and guitarist Harold Gretton in 2008 at the Canberra School of Music.
MONIQUE CLARE, CELLO
“Townsville was amazing and so well thought through for us, not just in planning, but in the amount of thoughtfulness for our experience. Music doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and everything from the concerts to the Magnetic Island helped us bond as musicians and adds to the experience. We worked with Daniel Yeadon, who speaks in such a historically informed way – we were doing Mozart at the time, and it was incredibly helpful for that. It’s about much more than the knowledge though, because it’s actually the way that they talk that is so inspiring. That’s the difference between masterclasses and a music lesson at the con: you walk out really wanting to put everything they’ve just told you into action right away.”
Wielding a cello and strikingly crafted vocals, Monique Clare is a multi award-winning Australian songwriter. She weaves compelling lyrics, driving rhythms and intricate cello lines through stories of grief, love and learning. Mesmerising, cathartic and offbeat, her songwriting mirrors the classical training she grew up with, immersion in the traditional folk scene, and art-pop influences. Insatiably adventurous, her career has spanned teaching cello in war-torn Afghanistan, performing onstage with Eminem, and leading hikers up mountains for sunrise concerts.
Monique’s disarmingly candid stage presence is born from years of touring the US, UK, Ireland and Canada with The Maes, gracing stages from Orkney Folk Festival to Telluride Bluegrass Festival. Laced with chamber-pop and echoing influences from Björk and Joanna Newsom, her 2022 debut album was described as a “laudable and overdue debut” by Listening Through The Lens. Since its release she’s been awarded album of the year at the Australian Folk Awards, song of the year at the Queensland Music Awards, received a Danny award at Celtic Connections in Scotland, and been nominated for Best Instrumentalist at the 2023 National Live Music Awards.
STEWART KELLY, PIANO
"Attending the AFCM Masterclasses program as a tertiary student in 2018 was a seminal moment in my studies. It was a hugely inspiring and enjoyable experience that opened my ears to much repertoire, saw intense music making up close and provided inspiring masterclass and performance opportunities. Townsville in winter is perfection. Attending AFCM as a student was a thrilling experience I didn't want to end!"
Stewart Kelly is a pianist, artistic director and advisor, teacher and entrepreneur. He is founder and artistic director of Music by the Springs, a chamber music festival held in country Victoria each February and owner of House of Pianos, Melbourne’s premier piano salon. As a pianist he works principally within the worlds of chamber music and art song and collaborates with many of Australia’s finest musicians and singers, performing across Australia at festivals and leading concert series. Recent recital partners include violinists Sophie Rowell, Elizabeth Layton, Francesca Hiew, Markiyan Melnychenko, violists Caroline Henbest and Christopher Moore, cellists Josephine Vains and Blair Harris, bassist Emma Sullivan and singers including Michael Petruccelli, Sam Sakker, Douglas Kelly and Sofia Troncoso. For seven years he presented Stewart Kelly and Friends at Melbourne Recital Centre and his career has taken him across Australia and to performances in the USA, China, New Zealand, Italy and the UK.
Watch live as our AFCM artists coach the AFCM International Masterclasses ensembles during a series of free public masterclasses. The AFCM International Masterclasses two-week tutelage program culminates in a fantastic concert later in the week.
Monday, 28 July 2025, 1pm - AFCM Public International Masterclass 1 *FREE EVENT*
Wednesday, 30 July 2025, 1pm - AFCM Public International Masterclass 2 *FREE EVENT*
Thursday, 31 July 2025, 1pm - AFCM Public International Masterclass 3 *FREE EVENT*
Friday, 1 August 2025, 1pm - AFCM International Masterclasses Concert
- The AFCM Public International Masterclasses 1 - 3 are FREE and held in C2 at the Townsville Civic Theatre from 1-2pm.
- The AFCM International Masterclasses Concert is included in both Gold and Gold Plus Subscriptions and is held on the main stage at the Townsville Civic Theatre from 1-2pm.
