Soothing Springs: Queenstown

Enjoy an hour of classical music arrangements, songs from musicals, and more by a trio consisting of Lucca Ballara (voice), Kyle Hsieh (piano/percussion), and Rakuto Kurano (violin/piano), with kombucha provided by our Beverage Partner Lo Bros!

Musicians

Lucca Ballara is a versatile vocalist, originally from Greenwich Borough, England.

He pursued music throughout his time at school, where he enjoyed getting involved in musical theatre productions. Last year he took the lead role of Evan in a concert performance of Pasek and Paul’s musical Dear Evan Hansen at the University of Canterbury. 

At the end of high school, he completed his ATCL Diploma in Musical Theatre and Grade 8 Classical Singing exam.  In 2021, he was awarded the Judith Pownall and Jill Leigh scholarship and was accepted as a voice major in the Bachelor of Music programme at the University of Canterbury, where he is now in his third year.

Between 2022 to 2023, Lucca was a student at the renowned SOLE Music Academy under the guidance of award-winning vocalist Sacha Vee, where he refined his compositional, collaborative, and performance skills. He now also works as a singing and guitar teacher, and enjoys helping others discover their musical potential.

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Kyle Ching-Song Hsieh is a pianist, percussionist, composer, and songwriter, originally from Taiwan.

He is now in his second year studying towards a Bachelor of Music in Performance and Composition at the University of Canterbury, enjoying performing regularly and teaching.

His interest in music was nurtured from a young age when his parents would play a wide range of genres in his home life. In Keelung (Taiwan) he was part of the Maling Elementary School Percussion Ensemble led by Shu-Ming Tsai of the acclaimed Ju Percussion Group where he advanced his sense of rhythm and sight-reading, which brought him to compete on the national stage.

He then moved to Greymouth in 2015, where he took up the piano and began trudging through the grades. Upon seeing a Mathias Piano Man show at the Regent Theatre, he became completely enamoured, determined to continue finishing all his piano exams with distinction. He then saw a The Script concert in Taiwan and was inspired again, founding Temporarily Iced Cats, a five-piece band which went on to become PlayItStrange top 50 finalist. Kyle also takes inspiration from film/game composers and sound designers, such as Joe Hisaishi and John Williams, who have helped to ignite his passion for composition.

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Described as a musician with “flair and panache” by the Christchurch Mail, Rakuto Kurano has established himself as a versatile Japanese/New Zealand composer, performer, director and educator.
 
An extremely versatile multi-instrumentalist; he is the only musician that has professionally toured around New Zealand performing on violin, viola, piano, baroque violin, baroque viola, and harpsichord. 

He has extensive experience performing compositions by living composers, often being invited as a violinist, violist, & pianist at international festivals such as the International Society of Contemporary Music and Asian Composers League festivals.

Orchestral experiences include joining the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra first violin section at the age of 18, performing with NZ Opera, Royal New Zealand Ballet, Dunedin Symphony Orchestra, Hawke's Bay Orchestra, and the Secret Sinfonia. Musical Theatre credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Chicago, Kinky Boots, and Next to Normal; the latter with The Court Theatre - New Zealand’s largest theatre company.

In 2023, he graduated from the University of Canterbury with a Master of Music degree with a performer-composer focus.  He is currently Artist-in-Residence at the Aspiring Lifestyle Village in Wānaka, and Artistic Director of the Magic Carpet Music Trust.

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Beverage Partner

• Lo Bros

Supporters

• Te Atamira

• University of Canterbury School of Music