He Comes Out on Top in Sydney

Alumnus Yelian He has won the inaugural Australian Cello Awards (ACA) competition, held in Sydney last month.

Yelian, who graduated in 2011, was one of three cellists aged 18 to 29 to make it through to the final following a preliminary digital round and a live semi-final. Performing to judges John Painter AM, Catherine Hewgill, Susan Blake, Goetz Richter and Nathan Wak, and accompanied by RNCM pianist Yasmin Rowe at a packed Sydney Conservatorium, Yelian played Peter Schulthorpe’s Thrednody, Mendelssohn’s Sonata No 2 in D major, and David Popper’s Elfentanz Op 39 during the final, securing a medley of prizes including the $15,000 Allen-Evans Scholarship, the Audience Prize and the Sydney Symphony Concerto Prize.

Focussing on the careers of young Australian and New Zealand cellists, the ACAs were established to help recognise and support outstanding talent and potential.

1 April 2014