Thames Music Group to present pianist Katherine Austin and cellist Hyein Kim

Pianist Katherine Austin.

The combined talents of acclaimed pianist Katherine Austin and successful cellist Hyein Kim will be on show on the afternoon of Sunday, May 7 at St George’s Church in Thames.

Katherine Austin

Austin graduated as a Master of Music with First Class Honours in Piano Performance from Auckland University, where her teachers were Janetta McStay and Bryan Sayer. In 1982, she won both the NZ Young Performer of the Year (PACANZ) and the TVNZ/NZSO New Zealand Young Musician of the Year awards, playing Schumann’s Piano Concerto with the NZSO.

Seven years of study and performance in London and Europe followed, including a full scholarship to the Royal College of Music London to study with renowned Russian pianist and teacher Irina Zaritskaya, as well as postgraduate studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. In 1987, Austin won the Top Duo Prize in the Stresa International Chamber Music Competition in Italy, performing with cellist Vincenzo Giuliani.

Katherine has performed a Romantic piano concerto repertoire with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and the Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra and performs as a concerto soloist with the Auckland Chamber Orchestra and the Opus Orchestra, specialising in the concertos of Mozart and Beethoven.

She is also the co-ordinator behind the Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts’ successful ongoing concert series and the producer for the numerous University of Waikato Conservatorium of Music concerts.

Cellist Hyein Kim.

Hyein Kim

Hyein Kim was born in 1999 in Seoul, South Korea and moved to Christchurch in 2007. Hyein started his musical adventure at the age of six with lessons on the piano. At eight, he switched to studying the cello and was given a scholarship to study at the Pettman Junior Academy with Edith Salzmann for eight years.

He has since moved to Hamilton in 2016, where he continued his studies with James Tennant and was accepted into the Soloist Stream Specialisation programme at the University of Waikato for 2017 - 2019. In 2023, Hyein was accepted to study in the soloist programme at the Korea National University of Arts.

Hyein has had many successes in competitions, including being the youngest semifinalist in the NZ National Concerto Competition at the age of 11. At 13, he was awarded first prize at the International Padova Competition in Italy and performed Saint-Saens’ Cello Concerto with the Padova Symphony Orchestra as a finalist.

Recently, Hyein was awarded firstst prize in the Michael Hill National String Competition.

The Details

What: Thames Music Group Sunday Afternoon Concert featuring Katherine Austin and Hyein Kim

When: Sunday, May 7 at 2pm

Where: St George’s Church, Thames

Entry is $20 cash at the door; TNG members $15