Cellos

Catherine Hewgill: Principal Cello

MR TONY & MRS FRANCES MEAGHER CHAIR

Catherine Hewgill began studying cello in Perth, and in 1978 travelled to London for a year’s study at the Royal College of Music. She then studied at the University of Southern California and the Santa Barbara Music Academy, and was a Fellow at the Aspen Summer Music Festival.

In 1984 she won the Hammer-Rostropovich Scholarship and was invited by Rostropovich to perform in a recital at the Second American Cello Congress. A period of private study with Rostropovich followed. She then toured Europe with I Solisti Veneti, and studied with William Pleeth in London. On her return to Australia she joined the Australian Chamber Orchestra.

In 1989 she joined the Sydney Symphony, and was appointed Principal Cello in 1990. She has performed as a soloist with most of the Australian orchestras and her concerts with the Sydney Symphony have included Haydn’s D major concerto (with Charles Dutoit), C major concerto and Sinfonia concertante; Elgar’s Cello Concerto; Beethoven chamber music; Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, Brahms’s Double Concerto with Dene Olding and with Michael Dauth, and as a soloist with Nigel Kennedy.

In 2003 she toured Japan with the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa and Michael Dauth, performing the Brahms Double. She also p in the 2006 Australian Festival of Chamber Music in Townsville. Catherine Hewgill plays a 1729 Carlo Tononi cello.

Timothy Walden: Cello

London-born Timothy Walden began studying cello at the age of eight with Leonard Stehn, continuing his studies with him at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1980.

After graduating, he was appointed Principal Cello of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, becoming, at 21 years old, the youngest principal cellist in the UK. Since then, his principal positions in the UK and Europe have included the Philharmonia Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Orchestre National de Capitole de Toulouse.

He has also regularly performed as guest principal with the English Chamber Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, working with conductors such as Georg Solti, Simon Rattle, Valery Gergiev, Yuri Termikanov, Charles Mackerras, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Colin Davis and Pierre Boulez.

As a soloist, he has performed and recorded with all the major orchestras in Britain, appearing on disc and in broadcasts for the BBC, ABC and German, French and Czech radio. As a chamber musician, he has performed with the Allegri String Quartet, Soloists of the English Chamber Orchestra and Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and more recently the Sydney Soloists.

Timothy Walden was Principal Cello of the Sydney Symphony from 2009 to 2010.

Kristy Conrau: Cello

Kristy Conrau studied cello with Nelson Cooke and graduated with Honours from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1998.  In 2000, she completed the Advanced Performance Program at the Australian National Academy of Music where she studied with both Australian and international artists. She moved to Sydney in 2003 to study with Julian Smiles and participated in the Sydney Symphony Fellowship Program in 2004.

In 2001, Kristy Conrau received a grant from the Australian Youth Orchestra and was a recipient of the Elisabeth and Keith Murdoch Travelling Scholarship, which enabled her to travel to Vienna to study with cellist Howard Penny.

With the AYO, Kristy Conrau has toured Europe, China and America and was the principal cello for the 2000 season. She has also performed with Orchestra Victoria, and was the principal cellist with the Geminiani Orchestra on their 1998 European tour.

A keen chamber musician, Kristy Conrau was a member of the Florizel Piano Trio, who were finalists in the 2001 Melbourne National Chamber Music Competition. As a member of the Young Piano Trio of Melbourne, she took part in tours to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, London, Frankfurt and performed at the 2001 International Chamber Music Week in Graz, Austria.

Kristy Conrau joined the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in 2006.

Fenella Gill: Cello

Fenella Gill began her cello studies with Nelson Cooke at the age of seven. She graduated from the Australian National University in 1992 having studied with Lois Simpson and Valter Dešpalj. She has been the recipient of several awards including a Big Brother Award and an E.V. Llewellyn Memorial Award for overseas study. She undertook advanced study in Austria and the UK with cellists Christopher Bunting, Joan Dickson and William Pleeth.

Fenella Gill has been a member of the Australian Youth Orchestra, held the position of Principal Cello with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra and Australian Virtuosi, and has performed as a soloist with the Queensland and Canberra youth orchestras. She has worked with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Adelaide Chamber Orchestra, and the Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide symphony orchestras.  She joined the Sydney Symphony as a permanent musician in 1997.

As a member of the Sydney Symphony, Fenella Gill has toured Europe, Asia, the USA, and Italy. She is also active as a chamber musician and has performed with the Sydney Soloists, Australia Ensemble, Trio Novalis, the Song Company and the Australian Trio, with which she has recorded for ABC Classics. In addition to her commitments to the SSO and various chamber groups, Fenella Gill also teaches cello. 

Leah Lynn: Assistant Principal Cello

Leah Lynn was born in Adelaide where she completed her Bachelor of Music degree, studying with Janis Laurs. She was involved in various Youth Music and National Academy activities and undertook tours with the Australian Youth Orchestra, with whom she performed as Principal Cello. She travelled to Europe while in her 20s and studied with a number of distinguished cellists, including Georg Faust and Maria Kliegel.

Leah Lynn has worked with the Adelaide and Tasmanian symphony orchestras, and has toured extensively with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. She joined the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in 1997. In 2001 she took part in an exchange with the BBC Philharmonic as part of the Sydney Symphony’s Friends scholarship. While in the UK, she studied with Hannah Roberts at the Royal Northern College of Music.

In addition to her orchestral career, Leah Lynn has been a member of numerous chamber ensembles including the Sydney Soloists, Australia Ensemble, Song Company and the Australian and Seraphim trios. She has performed in several Government House series concerts as well as performing in ABC Classic FM’s Sunday Live broadcasts.

Leah Lynn was appointed Assistant Principal Cello in 2008.

Timothy Nankervis: Cello

Timothy Nankervis studied at the Australian Institute of Music with Lois Simpson, graduating with Honours in 1998.  He was awarded a Big Brother scholarship in 1995 and travelled to London where he studied with William Pleeth and Raphael Wallfisch. In 1999, he took up a scholarship to study with Vadim Chervov at the Tchaikovsky National Academy of Music in Kiev.

He returned to Australia and completed his Master’s degree at the University of Melbourne in 2002, studying with Nelson Cooke. He has also studied with Georg Pedersen, Denise Lawrence and David Berlin and prior to his appointment with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, he was enrolled as a Doctoral candidate at the University of Melbourne.

In 2000 he performed in a competition at the Australian National Academy of Music and was one of two musicians selected to perform as a soloist with Orchestra Victoria, playing Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations. Timothy Nankervis has won numerous awards for cello performance and chamber music and is a member of the acclaimed Seraphim Trio as well as performing with the Sydney Soloists and Linden String Trio. In 2004 and 2008, he performed with his colleague from the Seraphim Trio, violinist Helen Ayres, in the Sydney International Piano Competition to provide competitors with a piano trio for the chamber music component of the competition.

As a soloist, Timothy Nankervis has performed throughout Australia and has featured in numerous broadcasts for ABC Classic FM and 2MBS-FM.

Timothy Nankervis joined the SSO in 2004.

Elizabeth Neville: Cello

Elizabeth Neville was born in England and began playing the cello at the age of eight. She was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain for four years, before joining the European Union Youth Orchestra, where she was appointed Principal Cello in her third year.

She graduated from the University of Nottingham with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Music. During the course of her degree she studied with Tim Hugh, performed concertos with the university orchestra and received regular chamber music coaching from the Allegri String Quartet. With the help of scholarships from the Countess of Munster and other trust funds she was able to continue her studies with David Strange at the Royal Academy of Music in London, receiving the highest performing diploma after one year. Through the Countess of Munster Recital Scheme she also had the opportunity to perform in recitals across the country for a number of years after her studies.

Elizabeth Neville has worked with many of Britain’s top orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra of London, Hallé Symphony Orchestra, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. She also held a permanent position with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra for five years.

Elizabeth Neville moved to Australia in 2001 after participating in a job swap with the Sydney Symphony. She is a member of the Apollo Piano Trio which performs regularly around New South Wales.

Adrian Wallis: Cello

Adrian Wallis graduated from the NSW Conservatorium of Music in 1988, where he studied with Lois Simpson, Susan Blake and George Pedersen. He then undertook postgraduate studies in Europe and in the UK with Christopher Bunting before returning to Sydney where he worked for several years as a freelance cellist.

During this time he played regularly in all the major Sydney orchestras including the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra and Australian Chamber Orchestra, as guest principal cello with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra and as principal cello for the Bolshoi Ballet in Australia.

In addition to his extensive experience in the commercial field, Adrian Wallis has played solo cello in various productions for the Sydney Theatre Company, Sydney Dance Company and Belvoir Street Theatre.

A former member of the contemporary music ensemble Symeron as well as the Elektra String Quartet, Adrian Wallis has also performed with the Seymour Group, Ensemble 24 and at the Sydney Spring Festival.

Adrian Wallis joined the Sydney Symphony in 1999.