JOANNE HWANG

Joanne Hwang is a Korean-Australian cellist currently based in Boston. Her connection to the cello spans all the way back to her mother’s childhood dreams of pursuing music. In this way, she began playing the cello at the age of 7 and is currently studying a Master of Music with Yeesun Kim at the New England Conservatory, where she is a recipient of the Dean’s Scholarship. She received her Bachelor’s degree at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in 2022 where she studied with Julian Smiles and Georg Pedersen. Her previous teachers include Peter Reijto, Cho Jae Hyung, and Song Young-Hoon.

 

Joanne made her concerto debut at the age of 14 performing the first movement of Boccherini’s Cello Concerto with the Kambala Chamber Orchestra. In recent years, she has performed in recitals and competitions across Australia. Most notably, she performed Haydn’s Cello Concerto No. 1 with the Eastern Sydney Chamber Orchestra and was a semi-finalist in the Sydney Eisteddfod Doctors’ Orchestra Scholarship. Joanne has benefitted from masterclasses with world-renowned musicians such as Narek Hakhnazaryan, Brigid Coleridge, and Howard Penny.

 

Chamber music has long been a passion of Joanne’s. She participated in the Winterschool Program at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music as part of the Voce Quartet. This featured a captivating performance of Elgar’s Introduction and Allegro in collaboration with the Goldner Quartet. Joanne has also been a core member of the Sydney Schubertiade Society where she regularly performed in string quartets with Professor Goetz Richter. Her current piano trio in Boston (otherwise known as the Matilda Trio), was awarded the NEC Community Performance and Partnership Ensemble Fellowship. This will give the ensemble an opportunity to venture out into the Boston community and share chamber music to a wide range of audiences.

 

Throughout her life, Joanne’s orchestral experience has been quite extensive. Her early career included participation in Sydney Youth Orchestras (2012), Kambala international music tour to Europe (2014), and the Australian Chamber Orchestra Academy (2015). She has since then been appointed several principal positions with the Sydney Concert Orchestra, Eastern Sydney Chamber Orchestra, Sydney Conservatorium Early Music Ensemble and SCM Symphony Orchestra. Furthermore, Joanne attended the Australian Youth Orchestra National Music Camp twice in 2020 (Adelaide) and 2021 (Melbourne). Here, she was able to work with prestigious conductors such as Matthew Coorey, Umberto Clerici, and Fabian Russell.

 

Joanne seeks to continue her musical career by furthering her overseas education. She is very grateful for the opportunity to be able to make music with so many talented musicians.