Ambassadorship Program part two:
meet the new Ambassadors of Theresia

Theresia has three new Ambassadors!

Laurène Patard, French violinist, Ciara Sudlow, Irish/Australian violinist and violist, and Javier Sanchez Castillo, Spanish bassoonist, are the new flag bearers who will have the honour of representing Theresia in their home countries as part of the Ambassadorship Program.

What is the Ambassadorship program?

The Ambassadorship program was launched in 2022 as part of the EU-funded project EMPOWER. At the core of the project is the idea that music needs people who study and play it, but also people who can disseminate, communicate and promote music. And not necessarily they have to be different groups of people, like professional musicians on one and communication professionals on the other hand. Actually, gaining soft skills in the field of communication can empower young musicians and help them build solid careers. This is at the heart of The Ambassadorship program of which trying to engage new audiences –  especially young people – is an important part. To do so, over the course of three years, a total of nine young musicians, representing nine different European countries, are asked be Ambassadors and Ambassadresses, embodying and conveying the core values of classical music and its importance for their countries. A heartfelt THANK YOU to our first three Ambassadress – Anna Krzyżak, Irina Fârtat and Lena Ruisz – who have completed their tasks. Now, it is the turn of three new Theresians to champion hip-music.

Let’s meet the new ambassadors

We have already met Laurène Patard-Moreau, French violinist who studied in Toulouse and moved to Canada in 2019 for a Bachelor in Modern Violin. Now focusing on HIP, Laurène currently lives in Amsterdam and she is passionate and curios about many things, as she told us in her interview.

Ciara Sudlow, Irish/Australian violinist and violist, is studying a masters in historical violin and viola at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam who has a Bachelor of Music Honours (First Class) in Baroque Violin performance from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. She came to historical performance practice from a background in playing traditional Irish music. We are looking forward to knowing more about her and see her at work as an Ambassadress!

Last but certainly not least, we’d like to introduce you to Javier Sanchez Castillo, the very first wind player and male to be Ambassador for Theresia. He defines himself as an “enthusiastic musician who loves baroque music. Since I was 12 years old, I was sure that I wanted to achieve a life dedicated to music, particularly in early music. I am currently finishing my studies for a master’s degree in modern bassoon, combined with a minor in baroque and classical bassoon.”

Ambassadors at work

Our ambassadors’ journey began with an intensive multi-day workshop in which communication experts of the wider Theresia team at Fondazione ICONS showed them how to use key communication tools, such as social media, blogs, filmed videos, and graphic design to promote their activities. In the coming months, they will be busy implementing communication strategies to develop, and promote HIP projects that mainly targeted at young audiences in their home country. Parts of their journeys will be published on the blog and we look forward to featuring these new voices. Follow us for more updates!