BY EMMA SULLIVAN
The Australian World Orchestra brings together some of Australia’s best and brightest musicians from orchestras all over the world. But what you might not know is that sitting amongst this wealth of experience are some of the country’s stars of the future.
The AWO Academy program allows students aspiring to a career in music the opportunity to join the orchestra for a season. Violist Sergio Insuasti is the invited academy player for 2019, and will join the orchestra for concerts in Melbourne and Canberra later this week.
The orchestra will perform one of the great masterpieces of the early 20th Century, Sibelius’ second symphony, alongside works by Janáček, and celebrated Australian composer Nigel Westlake.
We catch up with Sergio in the lead-up to his debut concerts with AWO to talk about this exciting opportunity, and how his involvement in the Sydney and Australian Youth Orchestra programs has prepared him for the experience.
Congratulations on being selected as a 2019 Academy Player with the Australian World Orchestra! Tell us a little about the selection process and what this position involves.
Thank you so much! I am beyond thrilled to be part of such an enriching experience. The AWO Academy is an annual program where pre-professional musicians are invited to rehearse and perform with the AWO.
Upon being invited and welcomed by the orchestra’s artistic director Alexander Briger AO, I am able to build upon my orchestral skills as a violist, and network with Australia’s finest orchestral musicians at home and overseas. I personally consider this opportunity to be a great kick-start to my professional music career.
The AWO is coming together for concerts in Melbourne and Canberra this week, featuring works by Nigel Westlake, Janáček, and Sibelius. What are you most looking forward to with this program, and with the AWO experience more generally?
Discovering new works such as Westlake’s Flying Dream and Janáček’s Taras Bulba is just as exciting as revisiting core repertoire such as Sibelius’ second symphony. Having watched many rehearsals and concerts with the AWO when in Sydney, I’m eager to be able to experience the orchestra first-hand on stage. Enjoying the music you play is crucial to unlocking the full potential of the piece, and I feel that surrounding myself in a professional atmosphere like AWO will easily do just that!
You have served as principal viola in the Sydney and Australian Youth Orchestra programs. What have you learnt from your involvement in these organisations, and how have they contributed to your musical development?
Both organisations have given me a plethora of experiences to build my skills as a violist and leader.
Sydney Youth Orchestra provided me with many opportunities I never thought were achievable, such as performing for Tobias Lea (principal viola, Vienna Philharmonic) and embarking on a European tour in 2017 to some of the musical capitals of Europe such as Vienna and Berlin.
The AYO took these skills I built during my time with Sydney, and exponentially improved them through participation on their National Music Camp, seasons, international tour, and fellowships with the Melbourne and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras.
Without the assistance from either organisation, I would not be able to seize amazing moments like performing with the AWO.
Shortly after your concerts with AWO, you will be relocating to London to begin postgraduate studies at the Royal College of Music. Who will you be studying with and how did you make the decision to go to RCM?
After embarking on the international tour with AYO, I gained a curiosity in studying overseas. However, the European tour with SYO the following year turned that interest to ambition. From 2017, my final undergraduate year at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, I pledged myself to use 2018 to build my skills as an artist, through orchestral fellowships and casual auditions, to then apply for conservatoires overseas. I’ve always had an attraction to studying in the United Kingdom since then, and I did not hesitate in applying for my Masters at the Royal Northern, Academy, and Royal College of Music. The hardest choice overall was picking where to study from the three, but the overall experience I had at the Royal College made that choice much easier. I am yet to be notified of my teacher; however, from the consultation lessons I had, I would not be opposed to whomever I am assigned to.
You certainly have an exciting year of music making and study ahead. What are your aspirations for your time in London, and for your career in music more broadly?
During the next two years at the RCM, I aim to expand all facets of my viola playing to a fully professional level, by taking the many offers and opportunities that will come my way. My most immediate goal would be to use these skills to earn a place in a prestigious summer school in either Europe or America in 2020.
My long-term ambition, at this point in time, would be a position in either a professional orchestra, or a touring chamber ensemble. To be invited to perform with the AWO has made those dreams much more palpable and achievable.
The Australian World Orchestra will perform in Melbourne (July 26), Canberra (July 27), and Sydney (July 30). Check out the full details and program on the website.
Images supplied. Sergio captured by Connor Malanos.
