QYO Conductors

JOHN CURRO AM MBE
Director of Music
Conductor, Queensland Youth Symphony

John Curro is both the founder (1966) and Director of Music of Queensland Youth Orchestras (QYO). He has conducted QYO's premier orchestra, the Queensland Youth Symphony, for 40 years. John established QYO's annual National Youth Concerto Competition, the nation's premier competition for young string players, hosted by QYO every year since 1976.

John is in demand as a conductor and tutor at youth music festivals throughout the world. He has toured overseas as conductor of the Bavarian Youth Orchestra and the Australian Youth Orchestra.

John regularly conducts professional orchestras and he has held the position of Guest Conductor with the London Virtuosi, the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. He has conducted many of Australia's professional orchestras, including the Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra and the Queensland, Melbourne, Tasmanian and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras. He has conducted many opera seasons in Australia, has worked regularly with the Queensland Ballet. He has also conducted opera and ballet performances for the Hong Kong Academy of the Performing Arts.

John received the 2002 Don Banks Award and the 2001 Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award for his outstanding contribution to music in Australia. He has also received the 2001 TOAN (The Orchestras of Australia Network) Lifetime Achievement Award, the Queensland Premier's Millenium Award for Excellence in the Arts in 2000 and the 4MBS/Perform Magazine Award for Best Music Director in 1999.

John was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in 1995 for his significant contribution to music in Australia. He also holds the honour of Member of the British Empire and Honorary Doctorates from the University of Queensland and Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University. In August 2003 he was awarded the Australian Music Centre's "Queensland Award."

SERGEI V KORSCHMIN
Conductor, 2nd Queensland Youth Orchestra & QYO Chamber Orchestra

Sergei completed studies at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory with a Bachelor of Music degree in Performance. Sergei’s conducting debut came at age seventeen, conducting Tchaikovsky’s 4th Symphony, with the Moscow Composer’s House Orchestra. In the same year he was the Conductor and Production Director of Tchaikovsky’s opera Eugene Onegin. Sergei later conducted a cycle of works by Beethoven.

As the recipient of the Internal Travel Fellowship from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Sergei participated in music classes at the Conservatoire National de Musique de Paris (France); the Academy of Music, Weimar (Germany); the Southwest Texas University, (USA), and many master classes.

Since moving to Australia, Sergei has lectured at several universities in Queensland. He has held the position of Artistic Director of the Mackay Youth Orchestra, and Artistic Director and Conductor of the Mackay Symphony Orchestra. Sergei is regularly invited both as a conductor and teacher, to tutor and direct vacation workshops and master classes.

Sergei has been guest conductor with the Queensland Youth Symphony and Western Australian Youth Orchestra and in 2003 he was appointed conductor of QYO2.

BRADLEY VOLTZ
Conductor, 3rd Queensland Youth Orchestra

Bradley has conducted the Third Queensland Youth Orchestra since 1998. He holds a Masters degree in Orchestral Conducting from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music. Other post-graduate studies include a Graduate Diploma of Music (Performance) (QCM), Graduate Diploma in Further Education and Training (USQ) and a Graduate Certificate in Music Technology (GU). In 1988 he was awarded the prestigious Hugh Neville Smith Scholarship for overseas study. The following year Bradley attended conducting master classes under Sergio Celibedache in Germany and studied with Ezra Rachlin in London.

Bradley has performed as a freelance pianist with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra, Queensland Youth Choir and for the Queensland Performing Arts Centre in productions of How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying, The Pirates of Penzance and The Sound of Music. He has appeared as both conductor and soloist for the University of Queensland Musical Society and the St Lucia Orchestra.

Bradley was Instrumental Coordinator at St Laurence’s College from 1991 to 1997. In 1998 he was appointed Director of Music at Cannon Hill Anglican College, a position he held for six years. Bradley is currently Head of Music at St Joseph’s Nudgee College.

Bradley is a sessional lecturer for the Central Queensland Conservatorium of Music and a member of the Board of Examiners of the Australian Music Examinations Board.

PETER MORRIS
Conductor, QYO Wind Symphony

Dr Peter Morris was appointed Conductor of the QYO Wind Symphony in January 2007 and he is also the Director of Music at Villanova College in Brisbane.

Peter has held university teaching positions in America at UCLA, the University of Houston and Colorado State University, where he conducted instrumental ensembles, taught courses in Instrumental Conducting, Brass and Music Education, and lectured in Music Business and Entertainment Management. He currently lectures in Instrumental Conducting at the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University and assists with their post-graduate conductors.

Peter received his Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees from UCLA in Instrumental Conducting, studying with Dr. Thomas Lee. During his post-graduate studies at UCLA, he was employed as a Teaching Fellow, and spent much of his time in the university's renowned Center For the Digital Arts. At this facility, he undertook innovative projects working on film scores with animation, the cross-disciplinary programming of music with silent film, and the study of conducting film music with Hollywood composers including Jay Chattaway and Jerry Goldsmith.

Peter has performed internationally on trumpet in a wide variety of genres from Baroque orchestras to commercial session work in Los Angeles. He has played professionally in orchestral and stage productions, including The Phantom of the Opera in Sydney, and the Australian revival production of South Pacific on tour in Asia. He was a session player in Los Angeles for commercial recordings as well as orchestral playing, and has complemented this by playing in jazz, funk, salsa and swing bands.

Peter has been a clinician and adjudicator with many schools throughout the United States, Australia and Asia and he is sought after as an adjudicator and guest conductor for young musicians. In August 2006, he was one of the invited workshop delegates for the National Review of School Music held in Melbourne by the Australian Music Association.

KATRINA MOTHERSHAW
Conductor, QYO Wind Ensemble

Katrina has directed the Wind Ensemble since it was founded in 1999. Katrina began her conducting career while studying a Bachelor of Arts (Music) at the Queensland University of Technology where she participated in conducting courses under the direction of Ralph Hultgren and Philip Davis. Since graduating, Katrina has taught brass and conducted concert and stage bands at various Brisbane secondary schools.

In 1996, Katrina was guest conductor of Queensland Symphonic Winds during its tour to Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau. In April 2001, she was presented with the award for Best Conductor for Junior A Grade at the Australian National Band Championships.

Katrina works throughout Brisbane as a concert band clinician and adjudicator. She holds a Bachelor of Education (FET) and is a classroom and instrumental music (brass) teacher at St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School.

CHEN YANG
Conductor, QYO Junior String Ensemble

Chen Yang has had a long association with Queensland Youth Orchestras. He first joined as a violinist in 1975 and was concertmaster of QYS from 1978 to 1980, touring with the orchestra in 1980 to Europe, including the International Festival of Youth Orchestras in Aberdeen, Scotland. Attributing these positive QYO musical experiences as a major influence in choosing music as a career, Chen studied at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and graduated with distinction in violin performance.

As his first professional musical undertaking, Chen was the Concertmaster of the Queensland Theatre Orchestra (later renamed the Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra), working under the distinguished Maestro, Georg Tintner. In 1981 Chen joined the Queensland Symphony Orchestra where he played in the first violin section until 1989.

Deciding on a change, Chen spent the next spent two years as musician-in-residence on Dunk Island Holiday Resort in North Queensland where he led a string quartet and performed as a cabaret violinis. He continued as a freelance musician throughout the early 1990s, performing in show orchestras for many major musical productions at QPAC.

Chen is the leader and conductor of The Sinfonia of St Andrew’s orchestra and is the string teacher and conductor at St Hilda’s School, Southport. He adjudicates regularly for eisteddfods and competitions and is also a prolific arranger of string music for the Junior String Ensemble. Chen was the conductor of QYO3 from 1983 to 1988 and since 1991 has been the conductor of the Junior String Ensemble.

DAVID COIT
Director, QYO Big Band

David started piano at the age of four and trumpet at eight, focusing his study on jazz trumpet in high school. After leaving Brisbane State High School where he was lead trumpet and lead tuba he became principal tuba with the QYO Wind Symphony and continued his studies at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music majoring in jazz performance (trumpet) under John Hoffman.

Since leaving the Conservatorium, David has pursued his playing professionally and has taught in private and state schools. In 2004, he completed Post Graduate Studies in Music Studies at the Queensland Conservatorium with Ralph Hultgren and plans to further his study in jazz education in the future. He has toured internationally to America, Canada, Asia and New Zealand and has played with bands such as Oskar, Lush, Planet Funk, Hot Mambo, La Gran Salsa, Swing Force, Decahedron, James Morrison, Delta Goodrum, Venetta Fields and The Bass Note Big Band. David is the Performance Music Director at Sheldon College and he plays lead trumpet with the Royal Australian Navy Band Brisbane. He also directs his own quintet, plays with other small groups and in session work.

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