Alumni Profile: Nick Russoniello

One of our greatest classical saxophonists

WollCon Alumnus Nick Russoniello, an accomplished saxophonist and composer based in Sydney, has been the recipient of major awards over the years, including the ABC Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year, and the Fine Music Kruger Scholarship. Both awards have helped propel his career here in Australia and internationally.

“The ABC Young Performer of the Year award certainly opened a lot of doors, and still continues to do so. It was often quite hard to be taken seriously as a “classical” saxophonist, so taking out a big prize like that made people pay more attention. It gave me the chance to play with a lot of the top orchestras and ensembles in the country, and that kind of experience is extremely rare, priceless really.” Said Nick.

He has appeared as a soloist with the Adelaide, Queensland, Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney Symphony Orchestras and as a guest artist with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Australian World Orchestra and the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra.

He plays the soprano sax mostly, but also plays alto, tenor and baritone sax when he wants to mix it up and, depending on the compositions he writes and plays.

“The soprano sax has a really rich and expressive tone. It’s a great lead instrument. More recently I’ve been messing around with a C Melody saxophone, a type of sax that was popular in the 1920’s but is basically extinct today. It has an amazing mellow sound.”

His research into that 1920’s style of sax is for a recent project he’s been working on – recording live music to silent films.

“I did a few concerts with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra where we played the soundtrack live and the film was screened. It’s a fantastic formula for a concert and I wanted to try my hand at writing for film. The old silent movies didn’t necessarily have soundtracks composed for them, so I thought that would be a good place to start.”

A sample of Charlie Chaplin’s classic 1917 comedy classic “The Immigrant” with live soundtrack (abridged) and original score by Nick Russoniello.

His journey at WollCon began with saxophone lessons with Nigel Edwards, playing in a jazz combo with Eric Dunan, and also playing in BlueScope Youth Orchestra for many years.
He recalls a special solo performance in Akaroa in New Zealand during a 2003 tour of the BlueScope orchestra.

A younger Nick Russoniello performing at Wollongong Town Hall.

“I think that’s when my music stand fell off the stage during my concerto and Tanya Phillips had to hold up the music for me! That was certainly memorable. There were lots of other great times too. I remember some music retreats at Bundanoon and lots of concerts at the Town Hall. The outdoor Christmas concerts were also really memorable.”

He has many WollCon mentors to thank for helping to guide his career and his success.

“Nigel was my saxophone teacher until I went to Sydney Conservatorium for further study. He opened up a whole world of classical repertoire to me. It really shaped my decision to go down the contemporary/classical path. Mrs Powell was a fantastic music theory teacher and I was lucky enough to play lots of jazz with musicians like Nick Southcott and Eric Dunan. All these experiences were so important, I learnt an incredible amount from a lot of different people at WollCon.”

Nick has recently completed a PhD at the Sydney Conservatorium – a doctorate on composition that looks at creative cognition and ways we can better understand the creative process.

“The PhD was an enormous amount of work, but I got to write and play some great music so it was definitely worth it.”

His future plans were stalled due to covid lockdowns and restrictions, and as such has a backlog of projects he is keen to get on with.

“There is a new album soon to be released, called The Golden Age Project. It’s 1920s inspired, with a string quartet, and I play some of the C melody sax. There were a lot of really, really good saxophone players that played that instrument that are now forgotten so I play some of their music. There is also some Gershwin, Schulhoff and some originals on the album.”

He also has some exciting collaborations and performances coming up, with percussion virtuoso Claire Edwardes and another with internationally acclaimed pianist and improviser Daniel Rojas.

“There are also some Duo Histoire gigs (with classical guitarist Murilo Tanouye) that we’re in the process of rescheduling. I believe we’ll be playing the Seymour Centre soon.”

His advice for young music students is quite simply to do as much music making as you can.

“Experience is so important. You have to do big, big practice hours alone in your room but it’s also very important to be playing in groups and performing as much as you can. I know there are lots of opportunities at the Wollongong Conservatorium for ensemble playing so get involved! Also, you need to be listening to music all the time. You can’t expect to play well if you haven’t taken the time to listen to the masters.”

Sue is an accomplished and seasoned manager with a wealth of experience in government administration and community service delivery. With a strong background in strategic planning, organisational development, community engagement, project planning, and building strategic partnerships, Sue has consistently demonstrated her leadership and expertise and brings a wealth of knowledge to the board. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Business focusing on Local Government and Creative Industries from the University of Wollongong, reflecting her commitment to public service and innovative leadership. Sue’s extensive career and dedication to community and social service make her a valuable asset, offering both strategic insight and practical experience to drive meaningful impact.

Anne has been a member of the Wollcon Board since 2019. She holds a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts from UNSW. She is an Accredited Specialist in Family Law and an accredited Mediator and Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner. She has taught family law and other subjects at Wollongong University.

For a number of years she has been a subscriber to the Australian Chamber Orchestra which regularly performs in Wollongong . She has been passionate about music and in particular music education to children and adults.

Jake has worked in the disability sector for 24 years- 17 of these with Interchange and 7 years as their CEO. Jake is passionate about inclusion and equality for both people with disability and their carers.

He holds an MBA, Bachelor of Commerce, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, as well as completing Diploma’s in Case Management, Community Services Coordination and the AICD Company Directors Course.

Jake is also a committee member on the International Short Breaks Association Board and has been a Director on the Wollongong Conservatorium of Music Board since 2022.

Wayne is a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors as well as being a qualified company secretary and accountant with over 35 years experience in banking and finance. He performed for nine of those years as Chief Executive of IMB Ltd, and the preceding seven years as Company Secretary and Chief Financial Officer, also with IMB. Wayne’s primary expertise is in the areas of governance, management, accounting, risk management and banking and finance. He has spent his whole life living in the Illawarra and is passionate about ensuring the Illawarra can provide the best possible opportunities and lifestyle for its residents. In 2024 Wayne was awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for services to the community.

Dr Terumi Narushima is a senior lecturer and Music Discipline Leader at the University of Wollongong. She is a composer, performer and sound designer specialising in microtonal tuning systems. Her works include Tritriadic Chimes, a sound installation for LA MicroFest, Hidden Sidetracks, a composition for custom-made instruments premiered by Ensemble Offspring at Sydney Opera House, and a project to build microtonal flutes using 3D printing. She has worked on theatre collaborations which have been presented nationally and internationally, including Yasukichi Murakami: Through a Distant Lens, Lost in Shanghai, and The Story of Chi. She performs with microtonal ensemble Clocks and Clouds, and her book Microtonality and the Tuning Systems of Erv Wilson is published by Routledge.

Nicky is the CEO of Community Industry Group. She has degrees in Dementia Care, Community & Environment and Marketing, and a Grad Dip in Project Management. She is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and an Honorary Fellow of UOW. In addition to Chairing the WollCon Board, she is Deputy Chair of the Regional Development Australia Illawarra Shoalhaven Board and an Independent Non-Executive Director of Warrigal, a large not-for-profit specialising in the provision of services for older people.

Her corporate governance and strategy experience extends through a 20+ year career on boards in the corporate, government and NFP sectors.