Kristian Winther & Brieley Cutting

Kristian Winther and Brieley Cutting look forward to sharing their violin and piano recital of major classics from the French and German repertory, the selected programmed masterworks composed within about 50 years of one another and linked together by their glowing, radiant sounds and uplifting moods. Performing together since their formative years at the Australian National Academy of Music, Brieley and Kristian together curated this program from the idea of offering music bestowed with a ‘sunny’ nature and inherent beauty. The first part of the recital comes from France, Debussy’s shimmering Violin and Piano Sonata followed by Lili Boulanger’s delicately heart-warming Two Pieces and then Messiaen’s Theme and Variations, this built on a tender and lyrical idea consisting of a floating melody. The second half commences with one last French musical moment, ‘A Child’s Dream’ by the famous violinist Ysaye, and then the recital moves to Germany for Brahms’ Sonata No.1 in G major Op.78 for Violin and Piano. A Romantic masterpiece of exquisite beauty and lyricism, the three movements of this work are interrelated and Brahms expertly allows the violin and piano parts to echo one another and intertwine whilst demanding virtuosity from both players. The final movement is known to transport its listeners, as it did for Clara Schumann who wrote to the composer, “…I wish that the last movement could accompany me in my journey from here to the next world.”

Kristian Winther is widely recognised for his ability to perform as a virtuosic violin soloist and as an energetic and brilliant chamber musician, seeking musical challenges performing classic, contemporary and rare works. As violin soloist, Kristian has appeared with the Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland, Christchurch and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras, the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria, Auckland Philharmonic, Gruppo Montebello and Orchestra Romantique.  In the role of  leader/director he has performed as Guest Concertmaster of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, the Melbourne and Western Australian Symphony Orchestras, and as leader/director of ACO Collective. A devoted chamber musician, Kristian was formerly violinist in the TinAlley String Quartet, winning first prize at the Banff International String Quartet Competition, which was followed by tours of the USA, Canada and Europe. As an original musician of the Play On series since 2016, Kristian has performed music from the 16th to the 21st centuries at diverse venues including an underground car park in Collingwood and a nightclub in Berlin. Other recent solo/chamber music highlights include performing all of JS Bach’s unaccompanied sonatas and partitas at the Canberra Festival in a single day, the complete Schumann String Quartets in one concert on raw gut strings, and Reger’s monumental violin concerto at the Orlando Festival in the Netherlands. Kristian performs on a violin crafted by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume, Paris, 1859, on generous loan from UKARIA Cultural Centre.

Brieley Cutting grew up on a farm in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. Her career highlights have been diverse, including being National Keyboard Winner of the Symphony Australia ABC Young Performers Awards and a fellow of the Winston Churchill Trust, to receiving a Doctorate of Musical Arts from Griffith University and attracting a Creative Sparks Award for her innovative concert series DeClassified Music. Brieley has performed throughout Australia and for organisations such as ABC Classic FM, 4MBS and Musica Viva, with festival appearances being from The Piano Mill, Tyalgum and Bangalow Festivals in regional New South Wales, to the Festival of Voices at Mona in Tasmania, the Queensland Music Festival and Australian Piano Duo Festivals in Brisbane, to Fringe Festivals in Sydney and Newcastle. She has also performed in European venues, such as in recitals facilitated by the Royal College of Music and Australian Music Foundation, and has collaborated regularly with many leading Australian ensembles such as Ensemble Trivium, Australia Piano Quartet, Topology and the Queensland Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players. As concerto soloist, Brieley has performed with orchestras including the Melbourne Symphony, Queensland Symphony, Melbourne Youth, and the Nizchny-Novgorod Philharmonic. As producer of music events, a recent collaboration has been with composer Mark Oliveiro, their show receiving a nomination for Best in Music at the 2023 Sydney Fringe Festival. Currently based in Sydney, Brieley is Lecturer in Classical Piano at the Australian Institute of Music.

Partners