Wesendonck Lieder and More
Event description
"Dreams, that with glorious rays penetrate the soul, there to paint an eternal picture: forgetting all, remembering one!"
-Träume, from Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder
Mezzo-Soprano Ella Orehek-Coddington and pianist Jake Cheong present Richard Wagner's beloved Wesendonck Lieder and more songs and arias by Romantic composers in recital on June 16th, 2023.
Ella and Jake will be fundraising through this concert for their studies and training at the Royal Academy of Music and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music respectively.
Program
Wesendonck Lieder by Richard Wagner
Seste Romanze I by Giuseppe Verdi
“Mon cœur s’ouvre a ta voix” from Samson et Dalila by Saint-Saëns
“Va! Laisse couler mes larmes!” from Werther by Massenet
About Ella Orehek-Coddington
Mezzo-Soprano Ella Orehek-Coddington was awarded first class honours for studying a Bachelor of Music (Performance, Classical Voice) at the Sydney Conservatorium in 2022. While at the Conservatorium, she studied under the tutelage of Mr Barry Ryan OAM.
She completed her degree with full scholarship support having been awarded the Kevin and Margaret Duffy Scholarship, the Patricia Lucas Music Achievement Award, the Costa Rosa Harsas Award Scholarship, the Greenburg-Gurney-Jensen Scholarship and the Quinquin Foundation Scholarship. Ella was the 2022 winner of the Demant Dreikurs German Song Competition, having won both the audience choice and adjudicator prizes.
Ella has undertaken masterclasses with several esteemed industry professionals including Gerald Finley OC, CBE at the Fourth Fresno State Art Song Festival. At the Sydney Conservatorium, her masterclasses were undertaken by David Miller AM, Emily Kilpatrick, and Dr Maria Briggs.
While awaiting the autumn term in September to begin her Master of Arts (Vocal Performance) with scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music and under the tutelage of Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Ella is completing a Diploma of Language Studies at the University of Sydney. Ella also recently undertook an exchange program at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.
Ella has performed the title role in Mascagni’s Zanetto, Dido in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Juno in Handel’s Semele, Joas in Handel’s Athalia, La Feé in Viardot’s Cendrillon, Night & Juno in Purcell’s The Fairy Queen, Spoletta in Puccini’s Tosca, A Priestess in Gluck’s Iphégenie en Tauride, A Bridesmaid in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, and Suzie in Reeves’ Ever the Best of Friends. She has appeared as a soloist in Haydn’s Nelson Mass and Mozart’s Sparrow Mass. She has performed in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice. Ella has appeared in principal roles for Concordia Ensemble and The Cooperative, as well as in concert for the Con Lieder Series and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
This year, she will appear in Sydney as Irene in Handel’s Theodora, the title role in Gluck’s Iphégenie en Tauride, Mrs Grose in Britten’s The Turn of the Screw, and Donna Elvira in Mozart’s Don Giovanni.
About Jake Cheong
Jake is a first year student studying Masters of Music (Performance) majoring in Collaborative Piano. Jake studied with Professor Gerard Willems in 2015, and with Dr. Paul Rickard-Ford during his undergraduate degree. He is currently studying with Dr. Jeanell Carrigan for his masters degree.
He has competed in numerous competitions and achieved many prestigious awards. Jake was chosen as a finalist for the Sydney Eisteddfod Kawai Scholarship in 2019. His performance was broadcasted on Fine Music FM. Through his successful achievements, he was invited to perform solo recitals around New South Wales. He was awarded first place in an international music competition, earning himself an invitation to perform in Vienna.
Jake was awarded grants for four consecutive years from the Bouddi Foundation for the Arts since 2017. He performed in Youth in Performing Arts and was a representative for performing in the Central Coast Showcase. Jake achieved full marks in HSC music extension and was nominated for encore. He attended a masterclass with Alexander Gavrylyuk hosted by the Theme and Variations Foundation.
Jake studied Bachelor of Music (Performance) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and was awarded the John and Dorothy Vimpani Pianoforte Scholarship. In 2020, he was awarded the Clarence Addison Turill Scholarship from The University of Sydney. He was a finalist in the 2020 Ettlingen International Piano Competition. Jake has also been awarded the Theme and Variations Foundation Grant to support his studies in piano. He was chosen as one of the twelve recitalists in the 2021 Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition. He was awarded first prize in the 2021 United States International Music Competition. Jake was also the winner of both Best Liszt Performance Award and Best Prokofiev Performance Award hosted by the Global Great Composer’s Competition.
Jake was awarded first prize in the Golden Classical Music Awards. As a winner, he performed in the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York. He was also the winner of the London Young Artists Award, Golden Arts International Music Competition and the Charleston International Piano Competition. He also recently performed in Teatro Joffre in Spain, participating in the Ferrol International Piano Competition. Jake was awarded the George Henderson Scholarship from The University of Sydney that funded his participation in the International Summer Piano Academy in Disentis, Switzerland. He was recently awarded the Rosemary Valentine Memorial Prize on the entry of his Masters degree.
Jake also pursues his passion in composition and was mentored by screen composers, Phillip Johnston and Andrew Scott. He was the winner of the Artology Fanfare Competition where his composition “Into the Universe” was recorded by the Australian Youth Orchestra in the prestigious Trackdown Studios. His recording was broadcasted around professional venues around Australia.