Featured artists
Nicole Canham, Paul Champion & Brendan Toohey, clarinets; Eliza Shephard, flute; Matthew Kneale, bassoon; Ben Opie, oboe; Yo-yo Su and Carlo Barbaro, saxophones; Stuart Brownley, woodwinds; Ryan Williams, recorders; Clasax, Clarimania and the Monash Video Game Music Orchestra.
Carlo Barbaro, D’Addario Artist - Saxophone
Carlo Barbaro is an accomplished saxophonist and woodwind artist based in Melbourne, Australia, with over 25 years of professional experience across jazz, contemporary, and commercial music.
Throughout his career, Carlo has collaborated with an extraordinary and diverse range of internationally renowned artists, including Maceo Parker, Paul Kelly, Suzi Quatro, Michael Franti, Jackson Browne, Jimmy Barnes, Tina Arena, and The Cat Empire, among many others. His versatility has also seen him perform with leading artists including John Butler, Gurrumul, Kate Ceberano, and James Morrison.
Carlo has toured extensively both nationally and internationally, performing at major music festivals around the world. From 2002 to 2007, he was a key member of the Empire Horns with The Cat Empire, contributing to the band’s signature sound during a formative period of global success.
Most recently, Carlo recorded with Harry Connick Jr. on a new work set to premiere at Carnegie Hall in New York City—marking another significant milestone in his career. He is also a core member of Tim Finn’s band, touring extensively since 2023 with sold-out performances across Australia and abroad.
Nicole Canham, Coordinator of Woodwind
- Churchill Fellow, Nicole Canham (clarinet and tarogato), is an award-winning and versatile musician who is committed to creating transformative arts experiences, and to building new audiences for art music. Her expansive and unique artistic practice reflects her diverse creative interests which include commissioning new music, chamber music performance, and collaborations with a range of artists from outside the world of music including theatre, film, photography, visual art, dance and arts advocacy.
- Nicole holds undergraduate and post-graduate qualifications from The Australian National University Institute of the Arts, the CNR de Versailles, France, The University of Queensland and RMIT. Nicole has performed at festivals around Australia including the Castlemaine State Festival, Four Winds, the Canberra International Music Festival, the Ailan Chorus Festival and the Melbourne International and Melbourne Women’s International Jazz festivals, and overseas in France, Germany, the UK, USA, Mexico and Belgium. Her discography includes recordings for Move Records, ABC Classics, The Anthology of Australian Music and Tall Poppies.
Paul Champion, Yamaha Performing Artist - Clarinet
- Yamaha Performing Artist, Paul Champion, has been Principal Clarinet of Orchestra Victoria since 2004. During this time he has appeared as a soloist with OV in Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, Rossini’s Introduction, Theme and Variations and Weber’s Concertino. He has been Guest Principal Clarinet with the Australian World Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, and the Canberra Symphony Orchestra.
- Paul was born in Sydney and studied with Mark Walton, former Head of Woodwind at the Sydney Conservatorium. After leaving school Paul studied Commerce at the University of New South Wales and began learning from Frank Celata, Associate Principal Clarinet of the Sydney Symphony. Paul has taught at the University of Melbourne for over 15 years and teaches in his private studio. He is also co-founder of music education platform Online Virtuoso.
Brendan Toohey, Backun Artist - Clarinet
Brendan Toohey is currently a full-time professional clarinettist in the Royal Australian Air Force Band based in Melbourne. Originally from Brisbane, Brendan holds a Bachelor of Music with First Class Honours from the Queensland Conservatorium and a Master of Arts degree from Monash University. Brendan has performed with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria, Melbourne Opera and numerous semi-professional ensembles throughout Victoria and Queensland. Brendan has previously been a casual lecturer in instrumental music pedagogy at Deakin University, is the conductor of the Victorian Clarinet and Saxophone Society clarinet ensemble and a sponsored artist for Backun instrument.
Eliza Shephard, Haynes Artist - Flute
Young Performer of the Year Eliza Shephard is a vibrant flutist paving her way as a performing artist, collaborator, and curator. She is in high demand as a soloist and chamber musician. A fervent contemporary musician, Eliza has established a course on experimental flute techniques, ‘The Extended Flute’, and is a specialist on the Glissando Headjoint.
Eliza is passionate about amplifying the voices of female musicians and composers and her yearly ‘March of the Women’ recording project was instigated in 2020. The total tally of works recorded under the March of the Women banner is 155 pieces. She has received many accolades for the boldness and imagination she brings to her projects and frequently collaborates with artists from a large variety of artforms including opera, circus, and dance to create new works and imaginative renditions of familiar repertoire. Eliza is currently a Teaching Associate at Monash University and is a recipient of the Ian Potter Emerging Performers Fellowship through ANAM. She is proud to be a Haynes Artist.
Yo-yo Su, Selmer Artist - Saxophone
- Australian saxophonist Yo-yo (Ningxin) Su has been active on the international music scene for the past decade as both a soloist and a chamber musician. Alumni of the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School, CRR Montpellier, CRR Versailles, the Conservatorium van Amsterdam and the Netherlands String Quartet Academy, Yo-yo was awarded his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Iowa supported by the Iowa Performance Fellowship, specialising on the Tubax contrabass saxophone.Yo-yo has been a laureate of numerous national and international competitions as both a soloist and chamber musician. Notably the 3MBS young performer of the year award, finalist of the Australian Young Performers Awards, Dutch Classical Talent Award, Boris Papandopulo music competition and was a semi-finalist of the International Adolphe Sax Competition in Dinant, Belgium, the International Jean-Marie Londeix Saxophone Competition and the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition.
Matthew Kneale, Bassoon
Matthew Kneale was the first ever bassoonist to be awarded the prestigious Freedman Classical Fellowship. Matthew used this award in late 2019 to embark on an international concert tour that aimed to shatter preconceived notions by presenting the bassoon as a brilliant solo and chamber entity in its own right, with a strong emphasis on music by Australia’s leading young composers.Matthew is a founding member of Arcadia Winds, Australia’s leading young wind ensemble, and Musica Viva’s inaugural FutureMakers musicians. Matthew is also a founding member of Ensemble Françaix who were joint winners of Ensemble Q’s Queensland International Chamber Music Competition and finalists in the 9th Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and Fiesta. With Arcadia Winds Matthew appears as a soloist and chamber musician at festivals and venues all around Australia.
Ben Opie, Oboe
Ben Opie is an acclaimed oboist, artistic director, and educator known for his dynamic and imaginative approach to music-making. As Co-Founder of Inventi Ensemble and Artistic Director of Peninsula Summer Music Festival, he has played a leading role in shaping innovative, community-focused artistic programs across Australia. His work spans performance, curation, and education, with a strong emphasis on commissioning new Australian music, re-imagining traditional repertoire and creating engaging, story-driven concert experiences.
A highly experienced performer, Opie has appeared with major orchestras and ensembles nationwide, as well as in boundary-pushing collaborations that blend classical, contemporary, and cross-disciplinary practices. Alongside his performance career, he is deeply committed to mentoring emerging musicians, regularly delivering masterclasses and workshops for institutions including leading university conservatoria.
Opie’s teaching combines technical insight with a focus on creativity, communication, and artistic identity, equipping students with the tools to thrive in a rapidly evolving musical landscape.
Stuart Brownley, Woodwinds
For over 25 years, Stuart taught instrumental and classroom music, at state, independent, and Catholic secondary schools in Melbourne. As a commercial woodwind performer, he has supported artists including Hugh Jackman, Delta Goodrem, Jessica Mauboy, and Kate Ceberano. Stuart’s professional music theatre credits include Matilda the Musical, Chicago, Billy Elliot, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Disney’s Aladdin, and Frozen. On TV, he was a regular member of the Dancing with the Stars orchestra. Stuart is currently Band & Orchestral Specialist at D’Addario Australia, where he manages the woodwind and orchestral product lines, and heads the Education Outreach program.
Ryan Williams, Recorders
Dr. Ryan Williams is a recorder & ocarina player, improviser, and interdisciplinary-performance maker. His arts practice focuses on creating new music and transdisciplinary projects with artists and communities. Ryan performs and creates within improvisatory
& exploratory music, site-specific/installation contexts, traditional music from Eastern Europe, Japan & Ireland, western art music & jazz, and popular folk music. He has a PhD in free improvisation on the recorder and has performed at major Australian and
international festivals including WOMADelaide, Mona Foma, Setouchi Triennale (Japan), Moers Festival (Germany), and Woodford Folk Festival. He regularly performs with leading arts companies, including Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Elision Ensemble & The Australian Art Orchestra.