MEDIA RELEASE: Wednesday 5 July 2023
ANAM ANNOUNCES ADAM CHALABI AS NEW HEAD OF VIOLIN
After a significant international search, the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) is delighted to announce violinist and pedagogue Adam Chalabi as its new Head of Violin, commencing in 2024.
ANAM Artistic Director, Paavali Jumppanen said: “I am thrilled to announce the appointment of Adam Chalabi as Head of Violin, one of the key faculty roles at ANAM. Adam will bring his broad experience as a violin pedagogue, chamber musician, concertmaster, and soloist. Throughout the recruitment process we witnessed Adam’s holistic approach to music making and, in his teaching, an unusual ability to connect his wide knowledge with the students’ specific strengths and weaknesses. Adam demonstrated a capacity to work on violin students’ sound production, phrasing, relaxation of the physical movements, as well as interpretation and musical style – all within the scope of a single lesson. He is an exceptionally beautiful player and a great role-model, proclaiming an intense interest in the manifold ways of the violin but conducting his quest in a friendly and supportive atmosphere.
“Describing so distinctly the impression Adam made on us during the lessons he taught during his audition process, I would like to quote one of his referees: “Adam is a creative person who wants to find pragmatic solutions for his creativity”. To me that describes the very essence of teaching on the highest level. I look forward tremendously to working together with Adam in enabling every one of the ANAM violin students to expand and reach their musical potential, and thus collectively raising the standard of violin playing in Australia.”
Adam is currently Associate Professor at the University of Queensland School of Music and is first violinist of the internationally renowned Tinalley String Quartet. He held the position of Concertmaster of Orchestra Victoria from 2009-2014 before assuming the Artistic Directorship of the company from 2013-2014. He has appeared as guest concertmaster with major Australian orchestras including the Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland, Adelaide, and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras and has previously been on the ANAM Faculty.
Of his appointment Adam said:
“I am thrilled to be joining the vibrant, high quality, performance focused and internationally connected space that ANAM occupies. The opportunity to work with some of the brightest young talents in classical music and assist them on their various professional pathways is incredibly exciting. I’m very much looking forward to working as part of an internationally renowned faculty and contributing towards the next exciting chapter in the story of ANAM.
“For me personally, the opportunity to focus solely on teaching and performance in my work and contribute with relevance to the art form is immensely gratifying. I’m also looking forward to re-discovering the many wonderful aspects of life in Melbourne.”
ABOUT ADAM CHALABI
Adam Chalabi holds the position of Associate Professor at the School of Music at the University of Queensland. He is first violinist of the internationally renowned Tinalley String Quartet and held the position of Concertmaster of Orchestra Victoria from 2009-2014 before assuming the Artistic Directorship of the company from 2013-2014. He has appeared as guest concertmaster with major Australian orchestras including the Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland, Adelaide, and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras and has previously been a faculty member at the Australian National Academy of Music.
Born in 1977 Adam Chalabi began his violin studies at the age of 4 with the Suzuki Method. His early teachers were Alison Apley and Felicity Lipman. He subsequently attended the junior department of Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the Purcell School of Music before completing his studies at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester under the tutelage of Maciej Rakowski.
In 2001 Adam won a position in the Zürich Chamber Orchestra 1st violin group and in 2004 was appointed to Principal 2nd violin. In Switzerland he also worked as Principal 2nd violin in Camerata Bern and Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and more recently as Guest Concertmaster of Symphonieorchester Vorarlberg in Austria and Suedwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim in Germany.
Adam has appeared as soloist with the Brisbane Philharmonic Orchestra playing Barber Violin Concerto and the Zürich Chamber Orchestra in performances of Bach, Vivaldi, and Schnittke Concerti. He has given performances of Nielsen Violin Concerto in England and Sweden and the rarely performed Alban Berg Chamber Concerto. He has recorded numerous acclaimed CDs for the Decca, ABC Classics and Capriccio labels with Tinalley String Quartet, UQ Chamber Players and Linos Ensemble.
Adam plays on an 1805 Joseph Panormo violin. He is also very grateful to have been supported by the Countess of Munster, Ian Fleming, and Lawrence Atwell Charitable Foundations.