The Art of the Violin, Hunter Valley NSW, October 2026

14 October:

Quick stopover in Sydney tonight before heading to the Hunter Valley tomorrow for my next Hayllar Music Tours adventure.

15 October:

Coach-ing it today from Sydney to the Hunter Valley for the second of this year's chamber music weekends for Hayllar Music Tours. Our theme is The Art of the Violin.

Amalia Hall, Andrew Haveron and Emily Sun are the violinists joining us over the next few days, with pianists Stefan Cassomenos and Konstantin Shamray. Quite the line up!

.....

The Art of the Violin, our Hayllar Music Tours chamber music weekend in the Hunter Valley, is underway.

After arriving [at Spicers Guesthouse, Pokolbin] a little ahead of schedule (despite the wet conditions) we had time to settle into our rooms here at this beautiful resort before meeting for a drinks reception. After this I gave my first talk to our guests.

A little later it was pre-concert drinks before our first opportunity to hear the five artists who have joined us for this event. The program was:

Mozart Violin Sonata No. 35 in A major, K. 526 (Amalia Hall, Stefan Cassomenos)

Szymanowski Three Paganini Caprices, Op. 40 (Andrew Haveron, Konstantin Shamray)

Brahms Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 108 (Emily Sun, Stefan Cassomenos)

You just know that whole thing was marvellous. What a privilege to hear such stellar music making in so intimate a context.

After the concert we all headed to the restaurant for a fantastic welcome dinner. Two more incredible days ahead.

16 October:

Day two of The Art of the Violin here in the Hunter Valley was full of wonderful experiences. I gave my second talk to our guests in the morning, after which we had the first of our two short morning concerts.

This was a tribute to Fritz Kreisler and his unique contribution to violin technique and repertoire. The program was:

Kreisler Syncopation and Tambourin chinois, Op. 3 (Emily Sun, Konstantin Shamray)

Kreisler Viennese Rhapsodic Fantasietta (Andrew Haveron, Stefan Cassomenos)

Kreisler Recitativo and Scherzo-Caprice, Op. 6 (Amalia Hall solo)

I then led a thoroughly enjoyable Q+A with Andrew and Stefan which gave our guests some fascinating insights into their work.

We then jumped on the coach and headed to Margan Wines for a wonderful three-course lunch.

After a few hours to rest back at the resort, pre-concert drinks led us into the second of our evening concerts, which was spectacular. It started with a work I adore and specially requested given the presence of three wonderful violinists. Each then held the stage with dynamic - and very different - 20th century works:

G. Gabrieli Sonata con tre violini (Amalia Hall, Andrew Haveron, Emily Sun, Stefan Cassomenos)

Korngold Suite from Much Ado About Nothing, Op. 11 (Emily Sun, Konstantin Shamray)

Stravinsky Suite Italienne (Amalia Hall, Stefan Cassomenos)

Prokofiev Violin Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 80 (Andrew Haveron, Konstantin Shamray)

Yet again we were in awe of the dazzling musicianship of these five artists. What a privilege to witness.

17 October:

What a day! The Hayllar Music Tours chamber music weekend - The Art of the Violin - ended in spectacular fashion today.

After I gave my third and final talk to our guests we had the second of our morning concert conversations. The program was:

Stravinsky Divertimento for Violin and Piano: Pas de deux (Emily Sun, Konstantin Shamray)

Gareth Farr Wakatipu (Amalia Hall, solo)

Castelnuovo-Tedesco Figaro (Andrew Haveron, Stefan Cassomenos)

This was followed by another fascinating Q+A session with Emily Sun, Amalia Hall and Konstantin Shamray.

We then went to a curated wine tasting at Mount View Estate Winery. This took place in their new building, which makes the most of the spectacular views of nearby hills.

Spare time in the afternoon prepared us for our big final evening. The concert which followed our pre-concert drinks was mind-bogglingly good. Three incredibly different sonatas and one incredible showpiece brought the house down:

Poulenc Violin Sonata (Emily Sun, Stefan Cassomenos)

Ysaÿe Sonata for Solo Violin No. 3, Ballade (Andrew Haveron, solo)

Beethoven Violin Sonata No. 7 in C minor, Op. 30, No. 2 (Amalia Hall, Konstantin Shamray)

Marcus Barcham-Stevens Fantasia on Themes from Carmen (Amalia Hall, Andrew Haveron, Emily Sun, Stefan Cassomenos)

We then all went to Hunter Quarters for a fabulous three-course farewell dinner.

I cannot adequately describe the virtuosity and musicianship on display in this final program, and throughout our time here, from all five of these incredible artists. The concluding Carmen Fantasia was simultaneously hilarious, terrifying, awe-inspiring and something I shall never forget.

I know I say this a lot, but what a privilege to witness this, let alone be a part of it.