Musical Matinees presents the Orava Quartet

Musical Matinees is so excited to present the Orava Quartet for Newcastle audiences this Saturday 30th May at 3pm at St Andrews Presbyterian Church.

Praised for their 'warmth of sound, sublime inner-voicing and spontaneity' this group is a MUST SEE quartet! Founded in 2007 the group recently completed a two year graduate quartet in residence at The University of Colorado, USA. Brisbane based, they are also the Quartet in Residence with the Camerata of St John's - Queensland's Chamber Orchestra. Orava recently won the Musica Viva Australia Tony Berg Award for outstanding Australian ensemble as well as the Peter Druce Audience Prize at the 2013 Asia Pacific Chamber Music Competition in Melbourne.

Thank you Newcastle, Singleton and Port Stephens

What a wonderful weekend of jazz!

Thank you to all of our lovely audiences who joined us for some truly stunning, hot jazz.

And a huge thank you to our phenomenal artists for lighting up the stage.

We can't wait for our next concerts in July.

Save the date:
Vocal Bliss with Acappella Nova
Singleton - Saturday July 4th @2pm
Newcastle - Sunday July 5th @2pm

Monteverdi, Mozart & Mendelssohn with Choir V and I Cantarini
Singleton - Saturday July 25th @2pm
Newcastle - Sunday July 26th @2pm

Tonight we take Singleton on a journey to 1920s Paris

Don't miss your only chance to see this stunning line up in the Hunter Valley.

Join Asha Lunarzewski, Anthea Harrington, Zoe Arthur, DJ Cotton, Vincent Parmeter, Andrew Wallace, Rob Coxon, Leigh Sherringham, John Kellaway and Jamie Pollock in their Parisian jazz club tonight only.

7pm at Singleton Uniting Church. Only $35/$25 concession including supper with the artists following the concert.

First Concert Tonight!

Look out Newcastle, A Night in Paris is coming to you tonight!

Join Asha Lunarzeski, Anthea Harrington, Zoe Arthur, DJ Cotton, Vincent Parmeter, Andrew Wallace, Rob Coxon, Jason Nelson, Jamie Pollock and John Kellaway as they take you on a journey to Paris. Presenting stunning jazz songs from the 1920s, 30s & 40s with music made famous by Hanka Ordonka, Ella Fitzgerald and The Andrews Sisters.

Don't miss this once in a lifetime line up at St Andrews Presbyterian Church tonight at 7pm. Tickets $35 at the door, including a themed supper created by local culinary artist, Jan Spencer.

Meet the star of the show!!!

Asha Lunarzewski

Born in Poland, and as a well recognised recording artist Asha toured extensively throughout Europe before moving to Australia to record her album with the award winning label Tommirock Records. Asha released her first single, charting well in Poland as well as taking third place in the national song competition. Since moving permanently to Australia Asha has headlined in many festivals throughout the country and has a great ability to connect with an audience through her songs. Asha performs in her adopted home town of Newcastle and throughout the Hunter region as well as regularly featuring at gigs in Sydney while also teaching music at St Pius X High School.

Meet our singers #2

Anthea Harrington - mezzo soprano

Anthea graduated with Honours from The University of Newcastle in 1998. Based in London from 2000 to 2011, she was a member of the pop/rock band Royal Treatment Plant, both recording and touring with the band until 2006. She spent six years as a teacher and regular performer at the prestigious Bush Hall in West London. After relocating to Newcastle in 2012, she joined forces with friend and mentor Smantha Cobcroft to form the vocal ensemble Choir V. Anthea also currently teaches singing at Newcastle Grammar School, Tyrrell Anglican College and from her home studio. Stage appearances include Amanzio (Guistino), Valetto (The Coronation of Poppaea), Madame Dubonnet (The Boyfriend), Marian (The Music Man) and Dame Durruthers (Yeoman of the Guard). She regularly appears as a soloist in the Hunter region as well as previously stage managing Eddie's Supper Club at the Polish Hall in Broadmeadow.

Meet our Singers #1

Zoe Arthur - Soprano

Zoe is a recent import to Newcastle's arts education scene. Most recently she has been performing with Choir V, Acappella Nova and vocal jazz trio while teaching at St Pius X and managing events for Renew Newcastle and publicity for Musical Matinees. Her passion for music education has led to research into the importance of universal musical opportunities and she is currently writing a schools version of Don Giovanni. A founding member of the vocal trio Scarletter Fever while at The University of Wollongong and a frequent musical theatre performer, Zoe's love of all things arts pervades every aspect of her life.

Meet our Musical Director

DJ Cotton - Musical Director, music arranger supreme, saxophone sophisticate and guitar guru!

DJ relocated to the Hunter Valley fresh from the Sydney music scene, where he started the record label Smart Records, which produced several Australian artists. DJ toured the UK with his band Three27 and was signed as a song writer with British publishing company Dinosaur Publishing. Nominated for four ABC music awards, one song he produces took out best R&B sone of the same year. DJ has supported many well-known artists including Vanessa Amorosi, and James Morrison. He is a multi-instrumentalist, playing saxophone, piano, guitar, bass and clarinet and has also played as a session musician on may albums. While playing many instruments, it is the sax he enjoys the most and he loves to share this passion with the audience.

Additional Concert - SAVE THE DATE - Orava Quartet

Musical Matinees is proud to announce another concert in their Art Song series!!!

The amazingly talented Orava Quartet are currently touring Australia and Musical Matinees is delighted to be presenting their Newcastle concert.

Save the Date: Saturday May 30th @3pm at St Andrews Presbyterian Church

Meet our MC

Nicholas Hamilton -Emerging Artist MC

Nicholas is a year 11 drama student at the Hunter School of performing Arts. Nicholas is an active part of the Newcastle theatre community and has worked with companies including Young People's Theatre, National Theatre Company, Pantseat Productions and Hunter Drama, for which he was nominated for a CONDA for his role in The Little Mermaid. He currently studies singing with Rachelle Schmidt at the Voice Studios and was most recently in the National Theatre Company's sold out production of Jesus Christ Super Star. Nicholas is currently starring in the Young People's Theatre production of Beauty and the Beast and next month will be performing as a backing vocalist in Starstruck.

Meet the band #7

Jamie Pollock - Violin aficionado

Jamie performs throughout the Newcastle/Hunter/Sydney regions with the String Trio Ensemble ARC. Jamie has studies at various institutions including the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria and Power River in British Columbia, Canada as well as private lessons with well-known teachers such as Carrie Dennis. In addition to orchestral playing, Jamie is the violinist with Hudson Arc, performing original songs by Gareth Hudson and touring around Australia, Germany and the Netherlands.

Meet the band #6

Andrew Wallace - (all about that) Double Bass

Wal is a local multi-instrumentalist and teacher. He currently teaches music at HSPA while maintaining his long standing professional music activities in the region. A sought after double-bassist, he has forged a reputation for creativity and originality as an accompanist and band leader. He regularly performs on the double bass with Fish Fry, The Terence Koo Trio  and The New Wobbly Boot,  on the trombone with Pow Wow and The Pornskas and on the alto saxophone and snare drum with The Liars. A regular dep for the Milestones on electric bass, he also has an upcoming tour with Si Cranstoun (UK) in June.

Meet the band #5

Vincent Parmeter - Pianist extraordinaire!

Vincent is a Newcastle-based pianist, piano teacher and accompanist.  He has performed with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and  regularly plays piano with local groups Scots Kirk Baroque Band and Choir V. He was awarded the LMusA before undertaking studies at The University of Sydney under Neta Maughan as well as with a number of leading jazz pianists. Vincent was a finalist in the ABC Instrumental and Vocal Competition and was the featured accompanist in the inaugural Opera by the Ocean in Coffs Harbour in 2014.

Meet the band #4

Jason Nelson - Trombone

This amazing man will delight audiences in one of the amazing concerts next weekend! Jason has a Masters Degree in Interdisciplinary Arts and a passion for improvisation and performance. He has worked with all sorts of phenomenal musicians during his 16 years in Victoria and has been to Germany to workshop ideas with Karlheinz Stockhausen. Jason plays with a number of different band varying from  jazz to Afro fusion, swing and sexy jazz funk as well as composing groundbreaking electronic music.

Meet the band #3

John Kellaway - Trumpet

John began his music career at the tender age of 8 with Frank and Dora Simm in the Newcastle Police Boys Club Brass Band. He has toured Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden, Italy and the USA. John lectures in trumpet at the University of Newcastle and is also a senior brass examiner with the AMEB.

Meet the band #2

Rob Coxon 

Rob plays a whole lot of different styles such as rock, jazz, blues and musical theatre in venues such as cruise ships, nightclubs, pubs, festivals, concert halls and for television. 

He has worked with a wide variety of national and international acts including Tommy Tycho, Tony Barber, Daryl Sommers, Vanetta Fields, Dick Emery, James Morrison, Barry Crocker, Brian Cadd, John English, Colleen Hewitt, Normie Rowe, Simon Gallaher, Lucky Starr, The Platters, The Drifters, Johnny Young and the Young Talent Team, Chad Morgan, Smokey Dawson, Johnny Nihol, Gregg Arthur, 4 Trax (later known as Human Nature) and Ian Turpie!!

In his various groups he has supported acts such as Albert King, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Canned Heat, Little Charlie and the Night Cats, Lonnie Mack, Mick Taylor (ex Rolling Stones), INXS, Mondo Rock, Midnight Oil, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Mental as Anything, Swanee, Misex, The Swingers, John Paul Young, Russell Morris and Rita Coolidge. 

He has played at festivals including Jazz in the Vines, Jazz in the Pines; Norfolk Island, Wollongong Jazz Festival and the East Coast Blues Festival as well as at venues in Newcastle, Dubbo, Morpeth, Moonan Flat, Central Coast, Wollongong, Goulburn, Bimbadgen, Thredbo and Lord Howe Island.

Rob is also a teacher, visual artist and author; including the book Art from Uranus - fine art dumbed down for the general populationI and a number of articles published in international music magazine Modern Drummer.