About the Musicians

Emma Jezek is currently the Assistant Principal 2nd Violin at the Sydney Symphony, a position she has held since 1997, also spending 2 years in the role of acting Principal 2nd. Her first professional position was in the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. She has also played with the Australian World Orchestra, the Vienna Symphony, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra and Klangforum Wien, as well as orchestras around Australia.  

Emma loves playing chamber music and has played in many ensembles at the SSO’s Utzon Room series as well as ABC live recitals. She also loves working with young people as a teacher and tutor and has tutored at National Music Camp and AYO amongst others.

Emma was born in Adelaide and commenced her violin studies at the age of 8 with Alita Larsens and Beryl Kimber. She received her Bachelor of Music Performance with First Class Honours from the Elder Conservatorium in 1992, under the tuition of Ron Woodcock. She furthered her studies in the United States with Franco Gulli at Indiana University Bloomington and Isaac Malkin at State University of New York.

Emma plays a Ferdinand Gagliano violin, c. 1769

Andrew began his musical journey on the piano at the tender age of six and added violin to the mix at his primary school in Canberra so he could join the local youth orchestra society. He studied viola with Vincent Edwards and Charmian Gadd at the Australian National University, Canberra School of Music, graduating with honours in 1991.

With a strong desire to explore his central European roots for a couple of years, Andrew continued his studies in Europe with scholarships at at the Hochschule für Musik in Munich with Jürgen Weber (viola) and the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Vienna with Karl Österreicher (conducting).

Andrew was co-principal viola in the renowned Viennese contemporary music ensemble Klangforum Wien from 1996 to 2013, and has performed at most major contemporary music festivals in Europe.

Andrew has had the great fortune to work closely with some of the foremost contemporary composers including Georges Aperghis, Luciano Berio, Beat Furrer, Georg Friedrich Haas, Enno Poppe, Helmut Lachenmann, Salvatore Sciarrino.

Andrew was also strongly involved in the avantgarde music scene in Vienna and delved into many genres as a member of the Vienna Art Orchestra, MozartBand and active in the improvised jazz scene.

In 2013, Andrew relocated to Sydney and now performs regularly with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Australian Chamber Orchestra, and as guest principal viola with the Australian and Opera Ballet Orchestra and Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. He is also a member of the Australian World Orchestra.

Andrew has been a member of the Sydney Art Quartet since 2019, and Co-Artistic Director since 2023. 

Andrew plays a Anton Kreutzinger viola, c. 1908

Andrew Hines was born in England, had his early education in Australia, and then returned to England in his teens to study at the Purcell School, the Royal Academy of Music, and finally the Guildhall School of Music with Prof. Stefan Popov. He also studied with the Amadeus, Borodin, LaSalle and Alban Berg Quartets.

On completing his studies Andrew became an active member of a number of chamber ensembles, touring Europe and the Far East with the Parnassus Ensemble, which recorded and broadcast in Italy and Germany to critical acclaim.

In 1992 he became a member of the Medea Quartet, who were Quartet in Residence at York University and Fellows of the Royal Academy of Music. The quartet performed extensively throughout Britain and Europe until 1997.

Andrew performed as soloist in England, Europe and the Far East, and undertook freelance orchestral work in England and Scotland. After a brief twenty-three year stint with Opera Australia Orchestra, Andrew resigned from his position to be able to enjoy freelance work and gardening.

Andrew plays a Gagliano cello, c.1807.

Hank Xiang graduated from the Sydney Conservatorium with a Bachelor of Music (Honours) in 2012, studying with Dr Paul Rickard-Ford. Taking keen interest in Russian music, its school, and its culture, he pursued further studies at the Rimsky-Korsakov State Conservatory in Saint Petersburg in the class of the late Nina Seryogina.

In competitions, he won the prestigious Kawai Piano Award in 2011 of the Sydney Eisteddfod, and was the third-prize winner of the 2019 Maria Yudina International Piano Competition in Russia. Throughout his studies Hank was a recipient of the John and Dorothy Vimpani Scholarship, the Theme and Variations Foundation, and the Ian Potter Cultural Trust.

Hank has performed in many iconic concert venues across Australia and Europe. He had the privilege of playing Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto with orchestra in the historic Grand Hall of the St. Petersburg State Conservatory before the building’s closure. Hank has also delved in the field of modern music with a world premiere of “The Aether Rings…” by Martin Friedel live on ABC radio at Eugene Goossens Hall in 2010 as part of the ISCM World New Music Days festival, and was a performer of the “Stop, Prepare, Repair: Variations on ‘Ode to Joy’ for prepared piano” by Allora & Calzadilla during its exhibition in the National Art Gallery of NSW in 2019.

Since returning to Sydney full-time in 2019, Hank has established his own teaching and accompaniment studio. He continues to perform regularly, with particular fondness for chamber music.