Since its’ establishment in 1948, the Australian Youth Orchestra has been a meeting place for exceptional musicians from across Australia. But it has also been a place which holds family lineages and connects generations to each other through the shared memory of AYO.
For AYO violinist Samuel Hooper, what began as a musical connection to AYO took on new meaning when he uncovered an unexpected personal link to the organisation. HIs grandmother, Mara née Biezaitis, also performed with AYO on celeste 60 years ago after a family member stumbled across Mara’s name on the 1966 AYO orchestra list online.
“As a violinist, my relationship with the Australian Youth Orchestra has always felt deeply personal but, just before AYO’s Winter Season tour of Darwin and Sydney, this connection became even more concrete. I learned for the first time that, in 1966, my grandmother, Mara Biezaitis, an accomplished pianist, played the celeste in the Australian Youth Orchestra,” said Samuel.
“My grandmother passed away before I was born but I was amazed to learn of our common bond, and to realise that we know each other in a special kind of way, despite never having met.”
Mara Biezaitis (left) performing a solo recital in Adelaide in 1966 and her grandson, Samuel Hooper (right) in 2025 being announced as the winner of the 2025 Melbourne Recital Centre Baroque Competition
Who was Mara Biezaitis?
Mara Biezaitis was a celeste player in the Australian Youth Orchestra’s 1966 Flagship program, which included performances at the Adelaide Festival of Arts and for ABC Concerts. Mara was born in Germany to Latvian parents who had fled their homeland during the Second World War. In 1949, she arrived in Australia with her family as refugees. Growing up in Adelaide, she quickly established herself as an outstanding young musician, winning the Bach section of the City of Adelaide Music Competition while still in her early teens.
Before joining the AYO, Mara had already attracted attention as a gifted pianist and celeste player, appearing three times in the ABC Concerto and Vocal Competitions for South Australian state finalists. These prestigious performances were broadcast on ABC Radio and placed her among the state’s most promising young musicians.
On 10 June 1964, accompanied by the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra under Henry Krips, Mara performed Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 2. Although she did not receive an award, the appearance marked an important milestone in her musical development.
She returned to the competition on 21 May 1965, performing Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with orchestra, where she won first prize in the pianist section. And in the following year, on 25 May 1966, she performed Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra conducted by Rudolf Pekarek, again winning first prize.
Following her university sudies, Mara was supported by scholarship to pursue advanced studies at the Conservatoire de Paris, France from 1966 -1968.
Mara’s AYO friendships
Aside from developing her musicianship, through her involvement with the AYO, Mara formed lasting friendships with fellow young musicians, including cellist Barbara Yelland.
Yelland went on to become an accomplished performer and educator and was the first cello teacher of Pei-Sian Ng, now Principal Cello of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Ng will be a featured artist in AYO’s 2027 program, when the AYO Symphonists travel to Singapore as part of a landmark Asia-Pacific collaboration.
Much later in life, Mara returned to music education as Music Director at Walford Anglican School for Girls in Adelaide, where she influenced a new generation of young musicians.
Two ends of the same orchestra
AYO connections run deep, but are particularly special for Samuel, who though never got to meet his grandmother Mara, now understands a piece of her life as though they lived it together. Though the members of the orchestra have changed; the walk-on stage, flicking of the music, shuffling of the chair all remain the same.
While both Samuel and Mara have both performed with AYO, Samuel says their experiences on stage would have been very different. “The celeste and the violin are very different instruments. My grandmother provided small and magical textures from the back of the stage on the celeste whereas I, as a violinist, am situated at the front of the stage and experience the ensemble from within the massive, continuous wall of sound provided by the strings section. Her role on the celeste required sharp precision, injecting specific percussive colours into the orchestral texture whereas my role, as a violinist, is based around blending seamlessly into a collective section.”
Samuel said it was during AYO’s recent Brave New Worlds tour that he became more aware of the various orchestral instruments as conductor Antony Hermus guided the orchestra. “Each musician was temporarily and repeatedly moved so that they were playing next to an instrument from a different section of the orchestra, such as a violinist next to an oboist, a trumpeter next to a flautist, a clarinetist next to a percussionist and so on. In doing so, I heard parts of the orchestra that I had never heard before and it was a deep learning experience (and, by the way, we did have a celeste on tour as well!).”
“Experiencing both the hard work and finished results of the 2026 AYO tours has given me a genuine respect for what my grandmother achieved sixty years ago. Discovering this connection has changed how I view my own experience in the Australian Youth Orchestra, and made it feel less like a solo milestone, and more like the continuation of a family timeline.”
From 1966 to 2026 AYO Flagship
While Samuel said the performance aspect of AYO would have differed for his grandmother, playing the celeste, the experience of being on tour with AYO spans generations.
“The actual experience of an AYO tour, including the exhaustion of long rehearsals, the post-concert adrenaline, the everlasting musical memories, and the strong bonds you form with other musicians, is exactly what bridges the generations between my grandmother’s experience (and the experiences of all other AYO musicians before and after her) and my own.
“Although the repertoire and various details of the experience may have changed, the significance of performing and the rewarding experience of participating in the Australian Youth Orchestra remain the same. And it’s definitely heartening to know that my grandmother and I would have a lot to talk about!”
Samuel had no idea of this musical connection and only uncovered it after a family member discovered Mara’s name on the orchestra list for the 1966 Flagship. All orchestra lists from 1948 through to today can be found on the AYO’s ‘Through the Years’ page.
Samuel Hooper’s family story is a testament to the musical connections the AYO fosters through its programs. From the inaugural 1948 National Music Camp up to today, the AYO continues to provide world-class training opportunities to Australia’s young classical musicians.