Meet some of the people who help make us great…

Patron

Bill Tweddell

Artistic Director

Theodore Kuchar

Management Committee 2023/2024

The following committee was elected at the AGM on 24^th April 2023.

President	Prof. Stephen Boyle
Vice-President	Judy Hunter
Immediate Past President	Helen Land
Secretary	Janet Askern*
Treasurer	Neil Renison
Committee:	Nita Vasilescu
	Ioana Bowden
Logistics Officer:	Noel Price
	Suzanne Darrigan
	Lindsay Brinkman
	Rianta Belford

* Replaced Linda Bridge in September 2023

Orchestra Manager

Sally Frewen-Lord

Life Members

Annette Elliss

Life member since June 2020

Annette Elliss had the role of Treasurer from 2004 until 2015. In that time she ...

Carol Dall'Osto

Life Member since July 2010

Carol has been a leading figure in music performances in Townsville for many ...

Donna McMahon

Conductor / Life Member

Donna has been a leader in the Townsville music community since she arrived in ...

Jacinta Payne

Life Member

Jacinta has been part of the Orchestra from the beginning when she played 1st ...

Jenny Carr

Life Member since July 2010

Jenny Carr came to Australia from Scotland in the early 70s and instantly ...

Simon McConnell

Life member since June 2020

Simon McConnell agreed to be President in 2006 when the Orchestra was in danger ...

Stephen Frewen-Lord

Life Member since 2015

Stephen has been involved with the Barrier Reef Orchestra since its inception; ...

Suzanne Darrigan

Life member since June 2020

Barrier Reef Orchestra stalwart Suzanne Darrigan was excited to be in the first ...

Guest Conductors

Gwyn Roberts

Conductor

Gwyn Roberts has had a very active career as a cellist, conductor and music ...

Warwick Potter

Conductor

Dr Warwick Potter is one of Australia’s leading conductors, equally at home directing a youth choir as he is a professional orchestra.

Carolyn Watson

Conductor

Originally from Sydney, Carolyn Watson is Music Director at the La Porte ...

Mark Eager

Conductor

Mark Eager is an exciting and passionate conductor with extensive knowledge ...

John Hopkins OBE

Conductor

Professor John Hopkins OBE was involved with the Orchestra from its earliest ...

Mark Shiell

Conductor

Mark has guest-conducted ensembles including the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, ...

Gyula (Jules) Cseszkó

Conductor

Gyula Cseszkó (Jules) kindly agreed to conduct our August concert because of ...

Craig Johnson

Conductor

Lieutenant Colonel Craig Johnson, born and raised in Sydney, NSW, joined the ...

Patrick Pickett

Conductor

Patrick Pickett is owner, Artistic Director/Conductor of the Queensland Pops Orchestra...

Raymond Yong

Conductor / Piano

Raymond Yong was born in Malaysia, emigrating to Australia at the age of two. ...

Donna McMahon

Conductor / Life Member

Donna has been a leader in the Townsville music community since she arrived in ...

Theodore Kuchar

Conductor

The multiple award-winning conductor Theodore Kuchar is the most recorded ...

Richard McIntyre OAM

Conductor

Richard McIntyre, OAM, BMus (University of Sydney) has maintained a long and ...

Andrew Ryder

Conductor

Andrew has conducted the Barrier Reef Orchestra for several concerts, ...

Richard Davis

Conductor

Richard Davis is presently Chief Conductor and Head of Orchestral Studies at ...

Sean O'Boyle

Conductor

Sean O’Boyle is a composer, arranger and conductor with a particular interest ...

David Lawrence

Conductor

David conducted the Barrier Reef Orchestra with the Spirit of the Voice Choirs in a performance of Beethoven's 9th Symphony in 2011.

Mario Dobernig

Conductor

Mario Dobernig is Conductor in Chief and Artistic Director for the Art of Sound ...

Guest Artists

Cassandra Wright

Soprano

Cassandra Wright is a versatile soprano with diverse performance experience. ...

Sarah Calderwood

Singer

Sarah is a multi award-nominated singer and storyteller who unites storytelling ...

Justin Ankus

Organist

Justin Ankus began playing the electronic organ as a teenager and by the age of ...

Rebecca Chan

Violin

Gregory Moore

Singer

Gregory, a graduate of the QLD Conservatorium of Music, is in high demand as a ...

Siobhan Patrick

Soprano

Siobhan is a lyric soprano with a Graduate Diploma of Music (Opera) from the ...

Blair Harris

Cello

2010 winner of the Australian Concerto & Vocal Competition, Melbourne-based ...

Kim Kirkman

Tenor

Kim gained a Post-graduate Diploma in voice from the Queensland Conservatorium. ...

Ji Won Kim

Violin

Ji Won Kim began playing the violin at the age of four and attended the Yewon ...

James Dong

Violin

James Dong began learning the violin at the age of 6 and has studied with Sook ...

David Hudson

Guitar & Vocal

David Hudson is a proud Ewamian/Western Yalanji man of North East Qld. He is ...

Jennifer Bradstreet

Flute

Jennifer Bradstreet completed a Bachelor of Music with Honours at the Sydney ...

Rebecca Cassidy

Soprano

Rebecca is a fourth year Bachelor of Music (Adv. Performance) student at the ...

Jeremy Sun

Pianist

Pianist Jeremy Sun has won numerous international competitions along with major prizes in Australia...

Matthew Rigby

Violin

Matthew Rigby, born in Townsville in 1985, developed a love of music at an ...

Tanya Christensen

Mezzo-Soprano

A graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts, Tanya Christensen attained a ...

Benjamin Martin

Piano

Identified by Newsday NY as an 'Excellent craftsman', The New York Times as ...

Jade Moffat

Contralto

At 21 years of age, Jade Moffat's career is just beginning. Currently in her ...

Domenico Taraborrelli

Accordian

Domenico is one of Brisbane’s most experienced and versatile multicultural ...

Bronwyn Douglass

Mezzo-Soprano

Bronwyn is a Mezzo-soprano who comes from Milton on the coast of NSW. She ...

Kevin Higgins

Irish wooden flute and uilleann pipes

Kevin hails from Downpatrick, County Down in the north-east of lreland. He took ...

Arthur Athan

Piano

Arthur Athan is a pianist and teacher from Melbourne, Australia. He currently ...

Cherin Lee

Violin

Cherin Lee began playing the violin at four years old. Cherin is one of the ...

Ruby Luck

Piano

Ruby Luck is undertaking a Masters of Music Studies at the Queensland Conserv...

Adam Lopez

Vocal

Adam Lopez’s exceptional vocal artistry has paved opportunities to perform ...

Lyubov Dika

Contralto

Lyubov Dika became a full-time member of the Lviv National Opera of Ukraine in ...

James Morrison

Trumpet

Sally Walker

Flute

Flautist Sally Walker was Grand-finalist in the Leonardo de Lorenzo Internati...

Stefan Cassomenos

Piano

Melbourne pianist, conductor and composer Stefan Cassomenos gives regular solo ...

Bruce Grice

Piper

Bruce Grice's musical journey commenced at the age of 12, when he discovered ...