Roger Benedict
Roger Benedict’s wide-ranging career has encompassed work as a conductor, soloist, orchestral player, chamber musician and teacher. He is currently principal viola of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Artistic Director of the orchestra’s Fellowship Program.
His studies took him to the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, and to the International Musicians’ Seminar at Prussia Cove. A highly sought-after teacher himself, he was a Professor at the Royal Northern College of Music from 1997-2002, and is a Tutor to the European Union Youth Orchestra. Roger Benedict is a Senior Lecturer at the Sydney Conservatorium and gives masterclasses worldwide. He is proud of his work with the Sydney Symphony Fellowship program, which has grown into Australasia’s leading professional training program for musicians.
In 1991, still in his twenties, Roger Benedict was appointed Principal Viola of the Philharmonia Orchestra, London. He left the Philharmonia in 2000 to dedicate more time to solo work, chamber music and conducting, before accepting the position of Principal Viola with the Sydney Symphony.
As a viola soloist Roger Benedict has appeared with the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Ulster Orchestra in the UK as well as the Sydney Symphony in Australia and the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa in Japan. With the Sydney Symphony he gave performances of Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante in 2002, 2004 and 2010, Berlioz’s Harold in Italy in 2005 and 2012, Andrew Ford’s The Unquiet Grave in 2007 and Vaughan-Williams’ Flos Campi in 2009.
As both recitalist and chamber musician Roger Benedict has appeared at London’s Wigmore Hall and Purcell Room, as well as at all the major festivals and concert series in the UK, and his chamber music partners have included such musicians as Lorin Maazel, Sir Simon Rattle, Louis Lortie and Leif Ove Andsnes. In Australia he performs widely as a chamber musician, as a guest with such groups as the Tinalley String Quartet and Sydney Soloists, and as a frequent recitalist.
Roger Benedict’s debut recital CD Volupté (with pianist Timothy Young) of rare works by Charles Koechlin and Joseph Jongen, released by Melba Recordings in 2010, was greeted with considerable critical acclaim and selected as one of the ten best recordings of 2010 by www.theclassicalreview.com. His recording of Vaughan Williams’ Flos Campi with the Sydney Symphony was released by the same label in 2011, and a disc of music by Hans Gál and Ernst Krenek is due for release in 2014.
Increasingly active as a conductor, Roger has conducted the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in subscription concerts at the Sydney Opera House, City Recital Hall and in regional centres, as well as in special events. He regularly conducts the Sydney Symphony Fellowship Orchestra, including concerts at the Sydney Opera House and on tour. He has also collaborated with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, as well as many other orchestras in Australia and New Zealand. In the UK, he has conducted the National Youth Orchestra in London and Aldeburgh, and recently appeared with the Southbank Sinfonia in London. A devoted orchestral trainer, he has coached the European Union Youth Orchestra since 2000, and worked regularly with the National Youth Orchestra (UK), Australian Youth Orchestra and YouTube Symphony Orchestra. He has also conducted orchestras at the Sydney Conservatorium and the Australian National Academy of Music.
Roger Benedict is also active as editor and arranger; recent publications include viola transcriptions of works by Schubert and Mozart for Partitura-Verlag. He also writes regularly for journals such as The Strad.
Roger Benedict plays a fine Carlo Antonio Testore viola made in Milan in 1753.