Sine Winther, Hubert Nuss, Jinzi Ju & Mami Shikimori
Professors, students and guests of the University of Music and the Performing Arts Stuttgart/Germany are playing on our prototype Sirius 6.0, a Yamaha GB 1 with Laukhuff 6.0 keyboard – the first grand piano with 6.0 keyboard at a European University of Music.
Program:
Johannes Brahms
Intermezzo op.117 No. 3: Andante con moto
Sine Winther
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Hubert Nuss
Extended Colours
Hubert Nuss
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Ludwig v. Beethoven
Sonata op. 31 No. 3 in E flat major: 1. Allegro
Jinzi Ju
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Gershwin/Wild
Embraceable You
Mami Shikimori
BIOS
Sine Winther is acclaimed as one of Australia’s commanding young pianists. Based in Germany, her curiosity and diverse musical interests have led her to work as a concerto soloist, chamber and lied pianist, recording artist, and piano teacher. Born in a Danish-Chinese family of pianists, Winther began learning from her parents at age 5. Performing became a natural part of her upbringing, playing in the family concert series ‘Piano Viva’. As a soloist, she enjoys retreating into her own world, and as passionate chamber musician relishes in musical connection and spontaneous dialogue.
Throughout her formative years, she has been a concerto soloist with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Philharmonia, the Queensland Conservatorium Orchestra and other Australian orchestras. Other notable highlights include performances at the Dartington International Festival, the Stretto International Piano Festival, Resonanz Räume, the Australian Showcase Sydney International Piano Competition, Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition, Melbourne Recital Centre, Queensland Performing Arts, and has won the Queensland Piano Competition and was a finalist in the Australian National Academy of Music Concerto Competition.
Winther moved to Germany in 2020 to undertake a Masters Degree at the Hochschule für Musik and Darstellende Kunst in Stuttgart, guided by Professor Florian Wiek. Her Bachelor degrees were attained at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, studying under Natasha Vlassenko and Leah Horwitz, and then at the Australian National Academy of Music, mentored by Timothy Young. Aside from her primary teachers, she has received masterclasses from acclaimed artists including Stephen Kovacevich, Pascal Roge, Angela Hewitt, Stephen Osborne, Kathyrn Stott and Piers Lane.
Winther is a recipient of the International Stipedium and Yehudi Menuhin “Live Music Now” scholarships and currently tutors at the Musikschule Aalen, Germany. When she’s not sitting at the piano, Sine enjoys cooking, walking in nature, and always has a cup of coffee (or something stronger) nearby. In 2022 Sine Winther supported the Future Initiative Sirius 6.0 of the University of Music and the Performing Arts Stuttgart (Germany) as a tutor.
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Pianist/Composer Hubert Nuss (b.1964 Neckarsulm, Germany) began classical piano lessons at the age of eight. Nuss became involved with jazz when he was 15, and went on to study at the Cologne University of Music, graduating with summa cum laude. Nuss has played piano on studio productions for virtually every major German media network (WDR, NDR, SDR, SWF, HR, RIAS), plays on over 60 CDs and has worked with the likes of Mel Lewis, Clark Terry, Shirley Bassey, Benny Bailey, Bobby Shew, Don Menza, Johnny Griffin, Art Farmer, Slide Hampton, Toots Thielemans, Ack van Rooyen, Paul Heller, Jeff Hamilton, Carl Allen, Dennis lrwin, John Abercrombie, Till Brönner, Paul Kuhn, Bob Brookmeyer, Peter Herbolzheimers RC&B, Wolfgang Haffner.
Nuss is well known for his work with saxophonist Peter Weniger, with whom he won the German Recording Industry’s award for best album in 1996. Praised for his »intensely beautiful sound and structural mastery« by Germany’s Jazz Zeitung magazine, Nuss’ 5 trio albums with bassist John Goldsby and drummer John Riley have been acknowledged for introducing the harmonic colours of Olivier Messiaen to jazz piano in a very mesmerizing way. He got multiple CD of the month poll wins from magazines AUDIO and PIANO NEWS and is the recipient of the prestigious SCALA AWARD in 2001.
In 2008 he was awarded the WDR JAZZPREIS for IMPROVISATION and in 2012 he was nominated for the German Composers Award by GEMA. Nuss teaches at the Cologne University of Music and holds a professorship for jazz piano at the HMDK (University of Music and Performing Arts) in Stuttgart.
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Jinzi Ju was born in Harbin, northeast China. She began her musical journey at the age of six and succeeded in numerous piano competitions as a teenager. In 2008 she came to Germany to study piano, first at the International College of Music Hamburg with Prof. Johanna Wiedenbach-Wuerdinger and Prof. Manfred Fock, and from 2010 at the University of the Arts Bremen with Gundel Deckert and Martin von der Heydt.
Since receiving her bachelor's degree in 2015, Jinzi Ju has performed as a soloist, in chamber music formations and with choirs. Until 2018, she served as a piano teacher at the Delmenhorst Music School. Later on, she continued her teaching career in Southern Germany.
Since 2020, Jinzi Ju is studying Master of Advanced Studies in instrumental/vocal pedagogy at the State University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart with Prof. Ulrike Wohlwender (piano pedagogy) and Alexander Sonderegger (piano). Recently, she was engaged as a teacher at the Filderstadt Music School.
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Mami Shikimori
Described by the BBC Music Magazine, “sheer delight” and “dazzling”, Japanese pianist Mami Shikimori’s latest album of Piano Quintets by Franck and Faure, her chamber music debut with the Wihan Quartet has been chosen as the "Chamber Choice" in the BBC Music Magazine with a 5-star rating both for the performance and recording.
As a soloist, Mami has performed at world-renowned concert venues including New York’s Carnegie Hall, London’s Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Cadogan Hall, Bridgewater Hall and Tokyo’s Suntory Hall. She has recorded for Naxos, Nimbus labels, and Mami's solo album “Tchaikovsky Piano Music” released by Naxos is also receiving critical acclaim in the UK, Japan, France, Spain and the USA. Her recording is frequently broadcast on radio stations such as BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM and it has recently been featured in the Canadian radio programme “Women in music” on the Grand 101 as well as on Classic FM’s programme “Rarely heard gems”.
Mami’s performances of Beethoven’s “Emperor” Concerto with Japan’s foremost orchestra, the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Ken-Ichiro Kobayashi, Grieg Concerto with the Ensemble Raffine TOKYO conducted by Kenshiro Sakairi can be watched on her YouTube channel: YouTube
photo credit: Peter Austin
You are cordially invited to watch two presentations of the Future Intiative Sirius 6.0 of the HMDK Stuttgart (Germany):
Sirius 6.0 - a piano that grows your hands 2021 with Prof. Ulrike Wohlwender, Annette Seiler, Silvia Molan, Sophia Weidemann (8 min) -- subtitles in EN / PT / CN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjFA0Kolq_0
Sirius 6.0 Concert & Get Together 2022 - introductory lecture with Prof. Ulrike Wohlwender (35 min) -- subtitles in EN / CN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwNV3IsNrS0
Further information around Sirius 6.0: https://www.hmdk-stuttgart.de/facilities/sirius-60/?L=1