Emma Black

“I’m very happy to be returning to Australia to perform Bach’s wonderful Concerto for Oboe and Violin in C minor and 2 of Bach cantatas featuring sublime solos in ‘Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen’ BWV 56 and ‘Ich habe genug’ BWV 82.” Emma Black

Australian born Emma Black is the principal oboist of the Wiener Akademie,The Balthasar Neumann Ensemble (Thomas Hengelbrock) and Le Cercle de l’Harmonie (Jérémie Rohrer). She has recently been appointed Professor of oboe at the Kunstuniversität Graz. She also performs regularly with Musica Aeterna (Teodor Currentzis), Ensemble Prisma, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Bach Consort Wien, and the Wiener Kammerorchester. She is also a member of the Paris based Orfeo 55 (Dir: Nathalie Stutzman) and can be heard on this chamber group’s Deutsche Grammophone recording of “Une Cantate Immaginaire” amongst others. Over the past 15 years, Emma has pursued a strong interest in early music and study of the historical oboe. This interest had its genesis following her move to Zurich in 1993 where she began playing with the Orchester der Opernhaus Zurich with conductors such as Nicholas Harnoncourt, Nello Santi and Franz Weiser-Möst. It was here she had her first experiences with historical instruments in the opera house orchestra La Scintilla. This led to a decision to study historical oboe and performance practice at the Scuola Cantorum, Basel. She subsequently became an active member of the Zurich Bläser Quintett recording several CDs with this group and making regular radio recordings and performances in leading European festivals.
Emma’s primary musical studies commenced at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne before winning the position of associate principal oboe in the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra in Sydney at the age of seventeen. However, after two years she decided to return to Melbourne to complete her Diploma. During this time she worked as member and soloist with many different orchestras and festivals, including the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Spoleto festivals in Italy, Charleston and Melbourne. After winning the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Award and the Australia Council scholarships in 1990 she travelled to Freiburg to pursue postgraduate studies with Heinz Holliger and 1993 with Maurice Bourgue in Geneva. During this time she she performed with the German contemporary groups Ensemble Recherche, Ensemble Aventure and both the Basel and Zurich Chamber Orchestras.