Aspects of Nothing

Richard Tognetti AO, Curator, Violin
Satu Vänskä, Violin, Vocals
Hanna Lee, Viola
Li-Wei Qin, Cello
Konstantin Shamray, Piano
Katherine Tonkin, Actor
Professor Craig Jeffrey, Speaker

Richard Tognetti AO | Curator, Violin

Richard Tognetti is Artistic Director and Lead Violin of the Australian Chamber Orchestra. He performs on period, modern and electric instruments and has appeared with many of the world’s leading orchestras as director or soloist. He was Artistic Director of Slovenia’s Festival Maribor from 2008 to 2015 and was the first Artist-in-Residence at the Barbican Centre’s Milton Court in 2016. He has created and co-composed scores for films including Peter Weir’s Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World and collaborated with director Jennifer Peedom to create the films Mountain and River.

Satu Vänskä | Violin, Vocals

Born to a Finnish family in Japan, violinist Satu Vänskä has developed an international profile through her role as Principal Violin with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, a position that she has held for the past twenty years. Satu is also successfully developing solo violin projects reflecting her desire to continually evolve as a musician and to courageously embrace new musical challenges. This season, she will appear with the Melbourne and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras in addition to recitals at Melbourne Recital and UKARIA Cultural Centre amongst other highlights.

Hanna Lee | Viola

Violist Hanna Lee made her solo recital debut at Kumho Art Hall in 2004 for the Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation. Since then, she has performed numerous recitals, and in recent seasons she has soloed with the KBS Symphony Orchestra, Korean Symphony, Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra, Frankfurt Jungen Symphony Orchestra and the Sung Nam City Orchestra. Audience Magazine in Korea chose her as one of the ten “New Generation Artists”. Hanna is a member of Kumho Soloists, Ensemble Opus, Koreana Chamber Music Society, and Ola Viola. As a member of the Kallaci String Quartet, she has toured in Korea and abroad. She is on faculty at Korean National University of Arts, Yonsei University and Korea National Institute for the Gifted in Arts. Hanna first played as a guest with the Australian Chamber Orchestra in 2019.

Li-Wei Qin | Cello

Chinese-Australian cellist Li-Wei Qin appears world-wide as a soloist and chamber musician, and has appeared with all the BBC symphony orchestras, the LA, London, Hong Kong, Osaka, China and NDR Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestras, Berlin Radio Symphony and Konzerthaus Orchestra, La Verdi Orchestra Milan, ORF Vienna Radio Orchestra, Prague Symphony, the major Australian symphony orchestras and the Munich, Manchester, Zurich and Australian Chamber Orchestras.Li-Wei’s recordings include Beethoven Sonatas, Rachmaninov with Albert Tiu, and the Dvořàk, Elgar and Walton cello concertos.  

Konstantin Shamray | Piano

Australian based pianist Konstantin Shamray has garnered a reputation as an exhilarating performer with faultless technique and fearless command of the piano.  Here in Australia Konstantin enjoys working with its leading orchestras and at the most prestigious concert halls.  Season highlights include concerto performances with the Sydney and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras, recitals at Sydney Opera House Utzon Room, Melbourne Recital Centre and the UKARIA Cultural Centre amongst many other engagements. Konstantin looks forward to his return to Chamber Landscapes as part of the Adelaide Festival enormously.

Katherine Tonkin | Actor

Katherine Tonkin has worked as a writer, creator, and performer with a number of Australia’s leading mainstage and independent theatre companies including Melbourne Theatre Company, Malthouse Theatre, Sydney Theatre Company, Belvoir, Griffin, Bell Shakespeare and Black Swan State Theatre Company. With many screen credits to her name, Katherine is known for working across a diverse range of mediums, having appeared in live works for the ACO, Lucy Guerin Inc, Chamber Made Opera, as well as large scale immersive works. Her collaborations have taken her to Arts Festivals across Australia and overseas, and she is delighted to be returning to her home town of Adelaide for the Festival.

Professor Craig Jeffrey | Speaker

Professor Craig Jeffrey is Pro-Vice Chancellor (International) and Professor of Geography at Monash University. He is an anthropologist and geographer who works on youth, education, and social change in contemporary India. He has written eight books, including Timepass: Youth, Class and the Politics of Waiting in India and Modern India: A Very Short Introduction.