Violinist Lorna Zhang on Michael Hill’s legacy as the competition he founded continues without him
Auckland violinist Lorna Zhang has one piece of advice for aspiring young musicians: dream big.
Lorna Zhang picks up her violin – a beautiful, honey-coloured piece handcrafted in 1917 by famed Paris luthiers Caressa & Francais – closes her eyes and starts to play.
She’s chosen Adagio from Bach’s Sonata in G Minor for solo violin, and her performance begins before the opening sweep of her bow.
Musicians are taught to first imagine the sound in their heads, she says. “So when you play, it communicates exactly what you want to hear.” And in those magical moments when there’s perfect synergy between intention and sound, “it feels like flying”.
Zhang was 3 when she learned how to nestle a violin into her shoulder and pluck at the strings. In those early days, she thought of it as more of a fun toy than a musical instrument. By her teens, it had become an obsession.
In March, the 21-year-old Aucklander won the National Concerto Competition for musicians under 25, with a piece by Shostakovich. Next month, she flies to Germany, where she’s been invited to audition for a place at the Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media.
Zhang, who has a Bachelor of Music, has twice attended master classes at the prestigious cultural centre and already has a teacher lined up, if she’s accepted for post-graduate study.
At her audition, she’ll perform two movements from a Bach sonata and a contemporary work by New Zealand composer Gareth Farr, Wakatipu, inspired by the lake’s creation story in te ao Māori.
Farr is also a percussionist, and Zhang describes Wakatipu as a primal piece with a strong rhythmic pulse and a “grounded, earthy colour”.
“It’s cool to have the opportunity to present something from New Zealand, because that’s where I’m from,” she says.
Born in Auckland, Zhang was only a few months old when her family moved to China, returning to New Zealand when she was 10.
Both she and her older sister, Cecilia, were surrounded by music from a young age. Their mother taught piano and Cecilia is training as an opera singer in London.
Zhang was 14 when she decided to pursue a professional career in violin, knowing the level of sacrifice and commitment that would involve.
At times, her path has been a lonely one. During her high school years at Macleans College, she practised for up to four hours a day and music took priority over social events.
Academic studies took a back seat, too, although research has consistently shown a strong connection between playing a musical instrument and enhanced cognitive skills. To relax after violin practice, Zhang would put on some music and do her maths homework.
“How harmonies are arranged and how the form of the piece is structured, that’s all maths,” she says.
“Then you need to translate the theoretical into feelings and emotions, so that’s in your heart. From there, you transfer that energy to your arms and into how you play.
“For me, there’s so much to explore in music – and to explore myself in the music. I find a lot of freedom there.”
Zhang, who plays with the Amada String Quartet, will soon be soaking up exposure to some of the world’s most talented young musicians at the Michael Hill International Violin Competition, which opens in Queenstown on May 29.
Through the fellows programme, she’s been appointed to help out backstage, including score reading for the videographers (so they know where to direct their cameras), and take part in community outreach performances.
In the main competition, 16 violinists selected from 160 applicants will compete for a prize package worth $100,000 in a series of ticketed performances.
Six will make it through to the semi-finals in Auckland, and three will play at the grand final on June 6, accompanied by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.
Open to violinists aged 18 to 26, the competition attracts a high level of international talent and has captured the public imagination. In 2023, the last time it was held, 350,000 people watched a livestream of the final.
That year, the winner was South Korean violinist Yeyeong Jenny Jin, who trained in the United States. She also received the Sheila Smith Prize, a three-year loan of an early 18th-century Domenico Montagnana violin.
The 2026 competition will be weighted with emotion in the absence of founder Sir Michael Hill, who established the event 25 years ago. After his death last July, aged 86, all 11 previous winners contributed to a recording of Bach’s Chaconne in a musical tribute to his legacy.
A household name (and face) through his family jewellery business, Sir Michael dropped out of school at 16 to become a concert violinist but fell short of the mark.
Advised to relinquish his bow, he became an apprentice in his uncle’s jewellery shop in Whangārei and set about building an empire, but his lifelong love of music remained undimmed.
Zhang finds that kind of passion inspiring. Her message for talented young musicians is to give it their best shot, ignoring doubters and critics who think they’re being too ambitious.
“When I was younger, I felt the pressure that I couldn’t dream big, and that if I didn’t succeed, it would be a failure,” she says.
“I hope young musicians know that dreams have a higher possibility of coming true than they might think.”
- The Michael Hill International Violin Competition runs from May 29 to June 6. For full programme details and where to buy tickets, visit michaelhillviolincompetition.co.nz
Joanna Wane is a senior lifestyle writer with an interest in social issues and the arts.