Catherine Hewgill (born 1963) is an Australian cellist. Since 1990 she has been the principal cellist of the

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra that was initially formed in 1908. Since its opening in 1973, the Sydney Opera House has been its home concert hall. Simone Young is the orchestra's chief conductor and firs ...

. As a chamber musician she was a founding member of the Novalis Quartet and has recorded with The Australian Trio for

ABC Classics ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

Life and career

Hewgill grew up in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

. Her father was an academic and both her parents were amateur musicians. As a child she began playing a 3/4 size cello given to her by a family friend and shortly thereafter began formal studies in Perth with Jill Cole, a cellist with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra. In 1978 her father's work took the family to London for a year where she studied at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...

with Eileen Croxford.Mendelson, Henry (August 2013)
"Catherine Hewgill, the Mellow Cello of the Sydney Symphony"
pp. 9–10. '' Fine Music Magazine''. Retrieved 26 September 2014. After graduating from high school in Perth, she attended the University of Southern California's

Thornton School of Music The USC Thornton School of Music is a private music school in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1884 only four years after the University of Southern California, the Thornton School is the oldest continually operating arts institution in Los An ...

where she was a student of Gabor Rejto and received her

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of prescr ...

in cello performance in 1985. Hewgill continued her studies at the

Aspen Music Festival The Aspen Music Festival and School (AMFS) is a classical music festival held annually in Aspen, Colorado. It is noted both for its concert programming and the musical training it offers to mostly young-adult music students. Founded in 1949, the ...

and the

Music Academy of the West The Music Academy is a classical music training program in Montecito in Santa Barbara County, California. Overview The academy hosts an annual eight-week summer music festival, highlighted by concerts and workshops directed by famous composer ...

and had private tuition from

Mstislav Rostropovich Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian cellist and conductor. He is considered by many to be the greatest cellist of the 20th century. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was wel ...

and

William Pleeth William Pleeth OBE (12 January 1916 – 6 April 1999) was a well-known British cellist and an eminent teacher, who became widely known as the teacher of Jacqueline du Pré. Biography Early years William Pleeth was born in London. His p ...

. In 1988 after touring Europe with

I Solisti Veneti I Solisti Veneti is an Italian chamber orchestra founded in Padua in 1959 by Claudio Scimone.Australian Chamber Orchestra The Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) was founded by cellist John Painter in 1975.Verghis, Sharon"Bach with more bite pays off" ''Sydney Morning Herald'', 2 September 2005. Richard Tognetti was appointed Lead Violin in 1989 and subsequently appo ...

. She joined the

in 1989 and in 1990 became the orchestra's Principal Cellist. That same year she became a founding member of the Novalis Quartet, a

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...

which specialised in the music of the Romantic era. She had a 14-month forced career hiatus when she fell outside the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

in 2001 while carrying her cello, a 1729

Carlo Tononi Carlo Annibale Tononi (1675–1730) was a luthier who trained and worked with his father in the Tononi family workshop in Bologna, Italy until his father, Johannes Tononi, died in 1713. After his father's death, Tononi moved to the more importan ...

. The cello was unscathed, but all the bones in one wrist were crushed. After months of surgery and rehabilitation, Hewgill returned to the concert stage as a soloist in November 2002 with a performance of Brahms' ''

Double Concerto A double concerto (Italian: ''Doppio concerto''; German: ''Doppelkonzert'') is a concerto featuring two performers—as opposed to the usual single performer, in the solo role. The two performers' instruments may be of the same type, as in Bach's ...

'' with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.Meacham, Steve (29 November 2006)
"Cellist faces her toughest workout yet"
''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

''. Retrieved 26 September 2014. In addition to her orchestral and chamber work, she has served as an adjudicator for the inaugural Australian Cello Awards and has given

masterclass Yanka Industries, Inc., doing business as MasterClass, is an American online education subscription platform on which students can access tutorials and lectures pre-recorded by experts in various fields. The concept for MasterClass was conceiv ...

es at the

Australian National Academy of Music The Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) is a classical music performance training facility situated in Melbourne. History ANAM was established in 1994, as part of prime minister Paul Keating's "Creative Nation" initiative. On 23 Oct ...

. Hewgill is married to a cinematographer. The couple have two children, a son and daughter.

Recordings

Hewgill's recordings with The Australian Trio include: *Saint-Saens: ''The Complete Piano Trios''. 2008,

*The Australian Trio: ''A Piano Trio Anthology'', 2006, ABC Classics With the Sydney Symphony Orchestra: *Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No 2, Romance, Song Without Words, Humoresque (SSO)Scott, Phillip (26 September 2013)
"Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No 2, Romance, Song Without Words, Humoresque (SSO)"
. ''

Limelight Limelight (also known as Drummond light or calcium light)James R. Smith (2004). ''San Francisco's Lost Landmarks'', Quill Driver Books. is a type of stage lighting once used in theatres and music halls. An intense illumination is created when ...

''. Retrieved 27 September 2014.

References

External links

Official biography
Sydney Symphony Orchestra *Concert reviews in the ''

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

''
Brahms's Double Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra
(with violinist Michael Dauth), Sydney Opera House, 24 November 2002

City Recital Hall City Recital Hall in Sydney, Australia, is a purpose-built concert venue with the capacity for an audience of 1,238 people seated over three tiers of sloped seating. It is situated in the city centre in Angel Place, just off Martin Place. City ...

, 19 June 2003
Haydn's Cello Concerto in D
Sydney Opera House, 1 December 2006

(with violinist

Nigel Kennedy Nigel Kennedy (born 28 December 1956) is an English violinist and violist. His early career was primarily spent performing classical music, and he has since expanded into jazz, klezmer, and other music genres. Early life and background Kenn ...

), Sydney Opera House, 1 March 2010
Video: "Catherine Hewgill describes and plays her beloved cello, Richmond"
on the official YouTube channel of the Australian Cello Awards (2014) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hewgill, Catherine 1963 births Living people Aspen Music Festival and School alumni Australian cellists Musicians from Perth, Western Australia Alumni of the Royal College of Music USC Thornton School of Music alumni Music Academy of the West alumni Women cellists