MAKER/RESTORER

I have always been drawn to making things. From the age of eight, when I began learning the cello, I was also building - cardboard castles, wooden bridges across creeks, and even stories of my own. Growing up in Canberra, the “bush capital” of Australia, I spent much of my childhood outdoors, exploring our nine-acre backyard and my parents’ farm on the Monaro.

Music and books filled my childhood home. A strong musical education meant much of the classical repertoire is still lodged in my memory. Later, my horizons broadened into electric and amplified music - including a stint as the “token string player” in an experimental rock band.

At university, my curiosity led me across disciplines: archaeology, linguistics, philosophy, biochemistry, and human ecology. After completing degrees in the arts and sciences, I worked in government, helping to negotiate climate change treaties. Yet I longed to make something tangible with my hands - and I still loved music. I had an epiphany in a forest and realised I could make the instruments I loved to play.

I trained at the Newark School of Violin Making in England, graduating in 2001. After working with Florian Leonhard Fine Violins and Frederick Phelps in London, I returned home to Canberra in 2003.

My approach to making instruments is shaped by this eclectic background. As a cellist, I understand the demands musicians place on their instruments. As a philosopher, I bring a spirit of analysis and continual refinement. As an environmentalist, I carry a deep appreciation for wood - its beauty, its function, and its power to inspire musicians to reach new levels of expression. And as a restorer with more than two decades of experience, I have developed a close understanding of historic instruments - knowledge that continually informs and enriches my own making