About
At age eight, James declared that he was to become a “mathemusician”. 13 years later, it appears he was largely correct. Now a casual cellist with the Adelaide and Canberra Symphony Orchestras, a regular soloist and chamber musician with Musica Viva, and a theoretical physics student undertaking his honours year at the Australian National University (ANU), James plans to continue this dual life into the future – although he is yet to find a similarly catchy portmanteau of “music” and “physics”.
James has a penchant for chamber music and has had the privilege to perform chamber works with such renowned musicians as William Barton, Wilma Smith, Kirsten Williams, and Claire Edwardes’ Ensemble Offspring. He is a regular recitalist, appearing as a soloist in the Canberra International Music Festival, the InterHarmony International Music Festival in Acqui Terme, and at numerous embassies. His performances of cello concerti by Lalo, Elgar, Dvořák, and Shostakovich with orchestras have garnered “wild acclaim”, with Canberra City News calling him a “dynamo on the cello.”
James has been supported by the ANU Friends of the School of Music Performance Scholarship, the Ruth Pfanner Scholarship, the Erika Haas Prize, and the Fankhauser Travelling Fellowship. He studies with Rachel Johnston, and his other teachers include Li-Wei Qin, Howard Penny, Simon Cobcroft, and Orfeo Mandozzi.
Australian Youth Orchestra
