Spring Soiree ~ A concert organised by the Friends of the Sydney Cultural Council ~ October 2006

The Spring Soiree was an unexpected invitation by the Friends of the Sydney Cultural Council.
Mr. Barry Strong called one day asking if I'd like to perform as part of this event. I was thrilled. There were to be another seven performers beside myself.

The soiree was hosted with the kindness of Dr. Tom and Mrs Christine Wenkart.
The members of the Friends of the Cultural Council were pleasant and interested in asking a lot of questions, we had lengthy conversations while enjoying the Hors d'ouvre, which was aplenty.

I had a front seat listening to Boy Soprano Robert Adam singing 'Il mio bel fuoco' for Bernadetto Marcello. Also listening to the beautiful voice of Jess Pollard.
The end of the concert was a big finale with Baritone Douglas McRae singing Verdi's 'La Donna e mobile' and Puccini's 'Nessun dorma'. As for me, I chose to play Tarantelle for Mertz and Balalaika for Stepan Rak.

I also met the Female Soprano Emma Pratt, she's a close friend of Classical Guitarist Ben Castelli. The first time I heard Ben play was at the Inner West Eistedffod in June 2003, where he performed "Tarantelle". It's a cheerful piece of music, so after the competition, I asked my parents to order the sheet music and since then, it became my favourite upbeat music.

Every one of the performers received various gifts for participating in this beautiful afternoon. What a day!