Clarinets

Lawrence Dobell: Principal Clarinet

Lawrence Dobell was born in Melbourne and studied clarinet at the Victorian College of the Arts. He held the position of Principal Clarinet with the Australian Youth Orchestra for four years and toured with them to China in 1979. In 1982 he won the Victorian State Finals of the ABC Instrumental and Vocal Competition, and in the same year was appointed to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, becoming Principal Clarinet in 1985.

In 1987, he represented Australia in the World Philharmonic Orchestra in Tokyo, and in 1989 he was awarded a Churchill Fellowship which enabled him to undertake a study tour of the United States and Europe, incorporating the orchestras of Chicago, Berlin, Vienna and Amsterdam.

Lawrence Dobell has appeared as soloist with the SSO on numerous occasions. He performed the Mozart Clarinet Concerto under Stuart Challender, and in 1989 he gave the Australian premiere of John Corigliano’s Clarinet Concerto, a work he performed again in 1997 under the baton of Marin Alsop. He also featured as a soloist in the opening concert of the SSO’s European tour in 1995, performing Berio’s Concertino with concertmaster John Harding.

Other solo appearances with the SSO include the Adagio from Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto in the 1996 Swoon concert, Lutoslawski’s Dance Preludes, Krommer’s Concerto for two clarinets and orchestra with Francesco Celata, and Bernstein’s Prelude, Fugue and Riffs under Mark Elder in 1997. He has also performed as a soloist with the Melbourne and Adelaide symphony orchestras, and the AYO.

Lawrence Dobell is an active chamber musician, having been a member of the Seymour Group and the Australian Wind Virtuosi, and appearing numerous times as a guest artist at the Huntington Festival.

Francesco Celata: Associate Principal Clarinet

Francesco Celata graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1987. Following studies in Amsterdam with Piet Honingh of the Concertgebouw Orchestra, and in Siena with Giuseppe Garbarino, he returned to Australia in 1991 where he was appointed Principal Clarinet with the Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra.

He has appeared on a number of occasions as guest Principal Clarinet with the London Symphony Orchestra. His performances with the LSO have included concerts at the Salzburg Festival, the Yehudi Menhuin Festival in Gstaad, Switzerland, and the Olympic Cultural Festival prior to the Athens Games. He has also performed on CD recordings with the LSO.

He has been a member of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra since 1993, and has appeared as soloist on numerous occasions including performances of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, Bernstein’s Prelude, Fugue and Riffs, Krommer’s Double Clarinet Concerto with Lawrence Dobell, and a concerto written for him by Australian composer Gordon Kerry. He has also appeared as soloist with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and the Auckland Philharmonia.

Francesco Celata is an active chamber musician and is a founding member of one of Sydney’s leading chamber ensembles, the Sydney Soloists. He has taught clarinet at the Sydney Conservatorium since 1994.

Christopher Tingay: Clarinet

Born in England in 1969, Christopher Tingay began playing the clarinet at the age of nine. He moved to Australia and studied with Alan Vivian at the Canberra School of Music, graduating in 1990 with a Bachelor of Music degree (Distinction). In 1991 he received a Big Brother Scholarship which enabled him to study in England and France, and later that year he won the Orchestral Excerpts Competition at the Australian National Clarinet Conference in Brisbane.

As an orchestral musician Christopher Tingay has played with the West Australian and Canberra youth orchestras and was Principal Clarinet in the Australian Youth Orchestra for three years, touring to the USA and South America in 1991. He represented Australia as Principal Clarinet in the Jeunesses Musicales World Orchestra in 1992 and 1993, touring to Europe and Canada.

Christopher Tingay was appointed 2nd Clarinet with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in 1993. Since joining the SSO he has toured to Europe, the USA, Japan, Taiwan, and Malaysia. An SSO Friends Scholarship in 1998 saw him undertake further study in England with Andrew Marriner (London Symphony Orchestra). He also plays regularly with the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra and the Australia Ensemble.

Christopher Tingay lectures at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and is actively involved with the SSO’s education programs. He regularly tutors for both the Sydney and Australian youth orchestras, and was the clarinet tutor at the 2009 National Music Camp in Adelaide.