2026 Australian Music Foundation
Classical Awardees
We are delighted to announce the ten outstanding young Australian musicians selected to receive our 2026 Australian Music Foundation Classical Awards.
These Awards provide vital support as our recipients pursue advanced training and build their careers in Australia and internationally. They are made possible through the generosity of our donors and the invaluable commitment of our major supporters: The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust, the Breen Family Foundation, the Donus Australia Foundation and Ida Lichter, whose Award is given in memory of David Constable. This year, we are also grateful to the Breen family for generously funding a one-off Special Encouragement Award.
Once again, the standard of applications was exceptionally high. Following a rigorous two-stage judging process during July and August, our panel selected musicians who demonstrated remarkable talent, dedication and artistic potential.
The need for this support continues to grow. Every donation helps create opportunities that can make a lasting difference to the development and future careers of these exceptional young musicians.
Meet our 2026 Awardees
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Bella Marslen
SOPRANO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
YVONNE KENNY AWARD
supported by The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust -
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Bernice Chua
PIANO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust -
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Jane Pankhurst
CLARINET
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust -
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Hayley Lau
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Noah Oshiro
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Max Wung
CELLO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
in memory of David Constable AM
donated by Ida Lichter -
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Eklavya Mudgil
ACCOMPANIST
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
RICHARD BONYNGE AWARD
donated by Maestro Richard Bonynge AC CBE -
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Lewis Blanchard
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Raphael Masters
VIOLA
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by the Donus Australia Foundation -
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James Birch
Our Awardees’ Biographies
SOPRANO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
YVONNE KENNY AWARD
supported by The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust
Royal College of Music | London, UK
Perth soprano Bella Marslen is part of the Royal College of Music Opera Studio, studying with Janis Kelly. She is an Andrew Treagus scholar, Mimi and Colin Watts Scholar, Tait Memorial Trust Award recipient, Drake Calleja Trust scholarship recipient, Samling Artist and Josephine Baker Trust Artist.
A 2022/23 Young Artist with West Australian Opera, Bella made recital debuts at Wigmore Hall and Salle Cortot through 2024’s Wigmore French Song Exchange, returning in 2025.
Delighted to be supported by the Australian Music Foundation, she will use the award for professional development and maintenance costs during her final year of studies.
Bella Marslen
PIANO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust
Mozarteum University | Salzburg, Austria
Pianist Bernice Chua is currently studying a Master of Arts Degrees in Piano Solo Training at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg, Austria under Professor Jacques Rouvier, and has commenced a PhD in Musicology at the MDW in Vienna and a Master of Arts in Piano Trio at the Mozarteum.
A Canberra native, Bernice studied under Marie Cull, and later under Dr. Bernadette Harvey before moving to Salzburg at age 15, where she completed the pre-college program (2018) and her Bachelor of Arts in Piano Performance (2023) under Professor Andreas Weber. In 2025, she graduated with a Master of Arts in Chamber Music and Song Accompaniment under Professors Connie Shih, and Donald Sulzen. Bernice won the 2015 ArtSound Young Virtuoso of the Year Award and was a finalist in the MBS National Young Virtuoso Awards. She was also a scholar at the Wesley Music Centre, Canberra Girls Grammar School, and the ANU School of Music.
Bernice has previously received a 2024 Ian Potter Emerging Artist Grant, the 2024 Australian Music Foundation Nora Goodridge Young Artist Award and the 2025 Australian Music Foundation Trustees Award.
Bernice’s 2026 Australian Music Foundation Classical Award will directly contribute to her expenses while living in Austria.
Bernice Chua
CLARINET
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust
University of Southern California | Los Angeles, USA
Jane Pankhurst is a classically trained clarinettist from Perth, Western Australia.
Jane completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Western Australia, where she studied under the tutelage of Allan Meyer and Ashley Smith. In May 2026, she graduated with a Master of Music (M.M) in Clarinet Performance at the University of Southern California (USC) Thornton School of Music in Los Angeles, studying under world renowned clarinet pedagogue Yehuda Gilad. Jane is continuing her studies with Professor Gilad, currently undertaking a Graduate Certificate Performance degree at USC.
Jane has performed regularly with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Perth Symphony Orchestra, and Australian Youth Orchestra. In Los Angeles, Jane performs with the USC Symphony Orchestra, the Thornton Edge New Music Ensemble, is a member of the Cooinda Trio, and has appeared as a featured soloist with the USC Wind Orchestra.
Jane in incredibly grateful for the support of the Australian Music Foundation and will use her award to contribute towards living and professional development expenses whilst studying abroad.
Jane Pankurst
VIOLA
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by the Breen Family Foundation
Manhattan School of Music | New York, USA
Hayley Lau, originally from Sydney, is a violist pursuing a Bachelor of Music on full scholarship at the Manhattan School of Music in New York, studying with Pinchas Zukerman and Patinka Kopec. She previously studied in the Rising Stars Program at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music with Fox Chan.
Hayley has performed solo works with orchestras across Australia and is an avid chamber musician who has performed with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Her performances have taken her to venues including the Morgan Library and Museum and the Australian National Academy of Music, as well as community outreach programs.
She has participated in the Kneisel Hall Young Artists Program and Morningside Music Bridge, and was a Chamber Music Fellow at the Heifetz Institute. Hayley frequently performs as a substitute violist with the New York Philharmonic.
The Australian Music Foundation Classical Award will support Hayley’s living expenses in New York and contribute to further professional development as she continues her studies abroad.
Hayley Lau
CELLO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by the Breen Family Foundation
Mozarteum University | Salzburg, Austria
Noah Oshiro was born in Sydney, Australia, where he completed a Bachelor of Music at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in 2024, studying with Julian Smiles, Danny Yeadon, and chamber music with Alice Waten.
In late 2025, he relocated to Salzburg to continue his studies at the Mozarteum University under Giovanni Gnocchi. Previously, he was a Fellow with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2022) and Opera Australia Orchestra (2023–25).
An avid chamber musician, Noah was part of the Schumann String Quartet residency at Echo Arts Munich with the Elvina String Quartet and has performed at the Sydney Festival, Sydney International Jazz Festival, Orange Chamber Music Festival, and the UTZON Room Series at the Sydney Opera House with the Brodsky Quartet.
As a soloist, he has won the National Fine Music Young Virtuoso Award (2024), 1st Prize at the Sydney Eisteddfod Drs Instrumental Scholarship (2025), most recently the winner of the Australian Classical Youth Music Competition (2026) and 2nd prize at the Enrico Mainardi Cello Competition (2026).
From 2026, Noah will be joining the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig as a part of the Mendelssohn Academy.
Noah is a recipient of a 2026 Australian Music Foundation Classical Award supported by the Breen Family Foundation.
Noah Oshiro
CELLO
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
in memory of David Constable AM
donated by Ida Lichter
Die Hochschule für Musik und Theater | Leipzig, Germany
Max Wung is an Australian cellist from Perth, Western Australia, who has completed three years at the Australian National Academy of Music, studying with Howard Penny. As an ACO emerging artist in 2026, Max also studies with Timo-Veikko Valve. He graduated from the University of Western Australia with a Bachelor of Music in 2023 and joined the West Australian Symphony Orchestra as a casual cellist in 2022.
Max has performed as a soloist with orchestras including WASO, TSO, MetSo, FCO and won the ANAM Concerto Competition in 2024. In October 2026, he will commence a Master’s degree at HMT Leipzig with Professor Peter Bruns.
The Australian Music Foundation Classical Award will support his overseas studies, contributing towards tuition, living expenses and travel.
Max Wung
ACCOMPANIST
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
RICHARD BONYNGE AWARD
donated by Maestro Richard Bonynge AC CBE
New England Conservatory | Boston, USA
Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Collaborative Pianist Eklavya Mudgil holds a Master of Music (Studies) and a Bachelor of Music (Performance) degree with First Class Honours from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music (SCM). Previous teachers include Dr Theresa Leung, Ms Natalia Ricci and Dr Paul Rickard-Ford. He has also collaborated with Alexandra Osborne, violin (Associate Concertmaster, Sydney Symphony Orchestra), Rachel Siu, cello (Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra) and Liisa Pallandi, violin (Australian Chamber Orchestra).
The Australian Music Foundation Richard Bonynge Award will support Eklavya’s tuition fees during further studies at the New England Conservatory in Boston, USA, with Ms Vivian Hornik Weilerstein and Dr Cameron Stowe.
Eklavya Mudgil
CLARINET
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
Sibelius Academy, University of the Arts | Helsinki, Finland
Lewis Blanchard is an Adelaide-born clarinettist pursuing a Master of Music at the Sibelius Academy, studying with Christoffer Sundqvist, Solo Clarinet of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He previously studied with Paul Dean at the Queensland Conservatorium and David Thomas at the University of Melbourne, graduating with First Class Honours.
Lewis has served as Principal Clarinet with the Adelaide, Queensland, and Australian Youth Orchestras, and has performed with the Adelaide, Melbourne, Queensland, and Lahti Symphony Orchestras. In 2025, he toured internationally as Principal Clarinet with the Australian Youth Orchestra, performing at the Concertgebouw, Musikverein, and Sydney Opera House.
In 2026, he toured Germany and Switzerland with the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra under Jörg Widmann, performing at KKL Luzern, Isarphilharmonie, and the Berliner Philharmonie. He will also perform with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Finnish National Opera and Ballet through their apprenticeship program.
He gratefully acknowledges the Australian Music Foundation for supporting his studies and living costs throughout his degree.
Lewis Blanchard
VIOLA
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
CLASSICAL AWARD
supported by the Donus Australia Foundation
Musik und Kunst Privatuniversitat Wien | Vienna, Austria
Raphael Masters is an Australian violist based in Vienna and Budapest where he is a member of the European Orchestra Academy of the Budapest Festival Orchestra. As a soloist, he has appeared at Carnegie Hall, the Sydney Opera House and as a chamber artist at the Edinburgh International Festival. Additional festival appearances include Ravel, Geneva, Aspen, Fontainebleau, IMS — Prussia Cove Open Chamber Music and Kronberg Masterclasses.
He has performed chamber music with Noah Bendix-Balgley, Arnaud Sussmann, Jon Kimura Parker, Clive Greensmith, and Peter Bruns, and has worked with mentors including Günther Pichler and Martin Beaver. Raphael has also performed with the Vienna Staatsoper, LA Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony, LA and Vienna Chamber Orchestras, and the Philharmonia Orchestra in London. Currently studying with Jennifer Stumm, Raphael is a graduate of the Colburn School, where he studied with Paul Coletti, Yura Lee and Tatjana Masurenko.
Raphael performs on a modern instrument from Leipzig and is supported by the Australian Music Foundation and Ian Potter Cultural Trust.
Raphael Masters
VIOLIN
AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FOUNDATION
SPECIAL ENCOURAGEMENT AWARD
donated by the Breen Family
The Juilliard School | New York, USA
James Birch is an Australian violinist from Sydney and a Bachelor of Music student at The Juilliard School, where he studies with Itzhak Perlman and Catherine Cho as a Kovner Fellow. Previously a Kohl Scholar at the Colburn Music Academy under Robert Lipsett, he has also studied with David Takeno and Evgeny Sorkin.
James has performed as a soloist with numerous orchestras and recitals across Australia, United Kingdom and the United States. He is the youngest-ever winner of the Juilliard Concerto Competition and has performed as a soloist at Lincoln Center. He is also a Career Grant Winner from Salon de Virtuosi, winner of the International Busan Maru Chamber Music Competition, and Second Prize winner of the Klein International String Competition.
James is the recipient of an Australian Music Foundation Special Encouragement Award, which will support the purchase of a professional violin bow to further his artistic development and professional career.
James Birch
Our previous Australian Music Foundation Awardees
Please visit the ALUMNI page for details of all previous Australian Music Foundation Awardees.