Above Us
Monday 21st November 2022
6pm
Melbourne Recital Centre
Be immersed in the repertoire of Elliot Gyger, George Crumb, Somei Satoh, Hildegard von Bingen and Robert Schumann and discover the multilayered and multidimensional timelessness of the celestial world. A shimmering constellation of music, which invites audiences to reach for the stars and celebrate creativity in all its forms.
Elliott Gyger
The Pleiades at Midnight
George Crumb
Lux Aeterna
Somei Satoh
The Heavenly Spheres Are Illuminated by Lights
Hildegard von Bingen
O coruscant lux sell arum
Robert Schumann
Mein Schoner stern
Mondnacht
Justine Anderson voice
Stuart Fisher sitar
Joy Lee piano
Michelle John cello
Peter Neville percussion
Eliza Shephard piccolo/bass flute, soprano recorder *
Hamish Upton percussion*
Alison Lemoh mezzo soprano*
*Guest Artists Biographies
Sierra-Leonean Australian mezzo-soprano Alison Lemoh completed her undergraduate studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She received her Postgraduate Diploma in Music Performance and Master of Music Performance at the Victorian College of the Arts. Following these studies, she was awarded the Lauris Elms Scholarship to study with the Gertrude Opera Studio in Melbourne.
As alto soloist, Alison has performed with the VCA orchestra, The Melbourne Lawyer’s Orchestra, Gloriana Chamber Choir and Baroque Orchestra, St Peter’s Eastern Hill Choir and Frankston Symphony Orchestra. In opera productions, her roles include Carmen, Orphee, Cherubino, Osmin and The Old Maid (Menotti.) She sang the role of Melons in Lyric OPera’s production of Our Man in Havana and the role of Amor in the company’s production of the The Coronation of Poppea. She will be performing the role of Charlotte with BK Opera in December this year.
As a chamber musician, Alison performed in trio with pianist John Martin and clarinettist Deborah de Graff and she present a concert Seasons of Love featuring Schumann’s Dichterliebe and Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’Ete with pianist Dr Timothy Stevens. She performed in concert with her sister, pianist Tonya Lemoh to raise funds for the Bo Children’s Hospital in Sierra Leone.
Alison also works as an ICU liaison nurse at the wonderful Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
She is excited to be performing with her dear friend and colleague Justine Anderson along with the other lovely musicians of Six Degrees Ensemble.
Eliza Shephard graduated from Australian National University with a Bachelor of Music (First Class Honours) in Flute Performance studying under Virginia Taylor, and has completed her Master of Music Research through Griffith University Conservatorium looking at the Glissando Headjoint, a mechanism designed to bend sounds and expand upon the pitch spectrum of the flute. Eliza has studied and performed in Canada and USA and has completed three years in the Professional Performance Program at Australian National Academy of Music. During her time at ANAM, Eliza received the Outstanding Program in a Solo Recital award, the ANAM Volunteer’s Prize, the Ursula Hoff Institute Prize for Most Outstanding Performance in a Solo Recital, and the Director’s Prize. Eliza was awarded the International Woodwind Player Award at the Gisborne International Music Competition, and has guested with Plexus Collective, Arcadia Winds, Rubiks, and Elision Ensemble. She is paving her way as a young performer in Australia, and has a passion for collaborating with other musicians and artists, and designing striking performances that are memorable and daring. Described as ‘fiery’, Eliza has a background in theatre and dance, and enjoys drawing on these skills within her performances. She also tours around Australia sharing her passion for contemporary music through her flute program ‘The Extended Flute’, where she aims to introduce extended techniques and their many benefits to the young flute players of Australia.
Hamish Upton is a percussionist who thrives as a collaborator, champion of contemporary music, and educator. He holds a Master of Music Research from Griffith University focusing on the use of laptop-based sound technology as an enhancement to solo percussion performance. He studied at the Australian National Academy of Music where he won multiple awards for his curation and performance of contemporary art music, and prior to this was supported with full tuition and board for four years of study at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory at the National University of Singapore. Hamish was a performer in Semaphore, Kate Neal’s APRA award winning interdisciplinary work (2015). Hamish performs with Speak Percussion, and has previously worked with BOLT ensemble, Elision, and was a performer at Bendigo International Festival of Exploratory Music in 2016, 2017 and 2019. Hamish is a co-director of Ossicle Duo, with trombonist Benjamin Anderson. Ossicle Duo won the contemporary masters prize for their performance of Mauricio Kagel’s L’art Bruit in 2019 and the duo are 2022 Local Heroes at the Melbourne Recital Centre.
Six Degrees Ensemble 
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