" Your generosity and passion to nurture young musicians and showcase beautiful chamber music locally is incredible."
The Pascoe Awards are now OPEN!
Applications due 9th October, 2026
Principal Sponsor
ARTS NATIONAL BOWRAL DISTRICT
Highlands Music Collective established the Pascoe Awards in 2023 with a distinctive mission: to support, encourage and inspire young musicians to strive for excellence and provide them with the unique opportunity to transition from talented students to emerging professional players.
The Pascoe Awards are open to exceptional classical musicians (aged 14-24) from the Southern Highlands and surrounding regions - Wollondilly, Hume and Illawarra - and to young musicians who have contributed to our community by performing in the Emerging Artists Series at St Jude’s Church, WSC’s Tulip Time, Bowral Autumn Music Festival, Rose Recital Room, SHSO Concert Series, etc.
Talented musicians must prepare and submit a high-quality video of their performance. A judging panel, comprising Myee Clohessy (strings), Aaron Smart (winds) and Natalie Woods (keyboards), will select the six best applicants to perform their solo work at the Pascoe Awards Finalists’ Concert at Bowral Memorial Hall on Friday, 13 November.
On the concert night, the Judges will decide which performers will be announced as recipients of the 2027 Pascoe Awards outlined below.
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Eva Pascoe Award ($3,000): Awarded to the most outstanding Finalist. The EPA stipend includes the unique opportunity to receive mentorship from Highlands Music Collective and invitations to perform chamber music with professional musicians. The EPA recipient will feature in Highlands Music Collective's opening concert on Friday, 19 February 2027, as well as other events throughout 2027
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Timothy Pascoe Award ($1,000): Awarded to the most outstanding local Finalist from the Southern Highlands. The TPA stipend includes mentorship with Highlands Music Collective and performance opportunities in HMC’s events in 2027. (N.B. Local Finalists are eligible to receive either award.
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Pascoe Encouragement Awards ($300 each): Awarded to the remaining four young musicians performing at the Finalists' Concert at Bowral Memorial Hall to acknowledge their talent and dedication to music.
2026 Pascoe Award Finalists (left to right) - James Munro (22) cello; Sophie Chen (18) piano; Oscar Dunn-Luck (19) piano; Samantha Roberts (21) flute, Paul Nicolaou (22) piano and Robert Nelson (15) piano.
Submission Guidelines
The requirements for applying for the 2027 Pascoe Awards are:
Upload a High-Quality Video:
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Record a 5–8-minute video of the work you wish to perform on Friday, 13 November, if selected.
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At the beginning of the video, clearly state your name, age, and the title of the piece you will perform.
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It must be recorded in one single take.
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You must include piano accompaniment in your recording if the composition requires it.
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If sending a YouTube link, it must be on Private Settings.
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Recording quality and presentation is of the utmost importance.
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Include the video link in your application form.
Supply a Portrait Photograph:
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High-resolution portrait photo: minimum 1000px on the shortest side.
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In JPG or PNG format
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Well-lit and facing the camera and with your chosen instrument if possible.
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This will be used for promotion, so please supply an excellent publicity photo
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Supply the name of the photographer.
Completed Application Form: -
Write a detailed 150 - 200-word proposal of how you would use your $3,000 Eva Pascoe stipend, if awarded.
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Examples - using it towards performance costs, instrument purchase, recording costs, attend music camps, further tuition, join youth orchestra tours, attend masterclasses, etc.
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Provide your biography.
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Please complete the attached Application Form HERE
2026 Eva Pascoe Award Winner
Paul Nicolaou (22)
Harpist Paul Nicolaou is rapidly emerging as "One of Australia’s most exciting young artists” (ABC Classic). Paul Nicolaou is a multi-award-winning harpist and composer based in Sydney, Australia. He has quickly gained international recognition as a creative and virtuosic young artist, receiving numerous accolades, including the 2026 Eva Pascoe Award and the Most Outstanding Performer Award at the 2022 Sydney Harp Eisteddfod.
Paul is known to local audiences for his performances in the Inspire Music Emerging Artists' Concert Series. In 2023, he was invited to perform at the opening of Bowral Memorial Hall alongside HMCollective's inaugural Eva Pascoe Award recipient, violinist Cedar-Rose Newman. He presented the recital ‘Meditations by Nightfall’ for violin & harp at St Jude's Church, featuring the world premiere of his composition, ‘Nocturne for a Southern Cross’, written especially for the occasion. He returned to St Jude's with the program ‘Birth and Rebirth’ for harp, viola & cello, featuring another of his compositions, ‘Of Light, Divided’. In 2024, Paul was a soloist at the 'Music4Medicine Fundraising Concert for The Flying Doctor Service' at Wollongong Town Hall, alongside pianist Vivian Choi Milton. In 2026, Paul will perform chamber music with Highlands Music Collective at Bowral Memorial Hall on Friday, 20 February.
Photo by Brian Rapsey
2026 Eva Pascoe Award recipient harpist Paul Nicolaou (22)
Equally honoured as a composer, Paul was a finalist in the 2025 APRA Professional Development Awards for Screen Composition and received the Highly Commended Award in the Willoughby Symphony Orchestra’s 2023 Young Composer Competition. He has won First Prize in the 2023 National Youth Music Arranging Competition, the 2022 Artology ‘Fanfare’ Competition and the 2021 Monash University Emerging Composer Prize. He was recently chosen for ABC Classic’s Commissioning Fund and for AMC’s 2025 MOMENTUM Plus project.
An Honours graduate from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Paul studied with harpist Alice Giles AM. After commencing harp at the age of 16, he has appeared as Guest Principal Harp with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and Auckland Philharmonia, as well as Omega Ensemble, the Ensemble Apex and the Orange Chamber Music Festivals in 2024 and 2025. Paul was Principal Harp of the Australian Youth Orchestra from 2022-24 and was the inaugural Co-Chair of the AYO Youth Council.
History of the Pascoe Awards
The Pascoe Awards were created in memory of our Founding Patrons, Mrs Eva Pascoe and Dr Timothy Pascoe AM, two of Australia's most significant supporters of excellence in the Arts, both nationally and locally. They were an integral part of the early days of Highlands Music Collective, and dear friends of our Artistic Director, Myee Clohessy.
The Pascoe Awards, now in its third year, have become an important event for aspiring classical musicians aged between 14 and 24 years of age, with a connection to the Southern Highlands and surrounding regions.
Mrs Eva and Dr Timothy Pascoe AM
Auditions are held via video application in October. A judging panel of three skilled musicians will choose up to six finalists to perform at the Finalists' Concert at Bowral Memorial Hall in November.
All performing Finalists receive a Timothy Pascoe Encouragement Award, and one will be announced as the Eva Pascoe Award winner.
2025 Eva Pascoe Award Winner
Flautist Annabel Wouters (17)
Annabel, a flute student at the Wollongong Conservatorium, has previously performed in the Southern Highlands as part of Inspire Music Australia’s Emerging Concert Artist Series at St Jude's Church, and as the Highlands FM's 100% Home-Grown Artist of the Month. Annabel was the first flautist to win the WollCon Concerto Competition. In 2024, she travelled with the WollCon Flute Ensemble to the International Flute Convention in America and will travel this year to Europe with the Regional Youth Orchestra. and AYO Young Symphonists as Principal Flute.
Photo by Peter Hislop
2025 Eva Pascoe Award winner flautist Annabel Wouters (16)
2024 Eva Pascoe Award Winner
Highlands Music Collective presented Annabel in 'Birds of a Feather (are Better Together!), at the Bowral Memorial Hall on Friday, 21 February, and again at the Nowra School of Arts for Music Shoalhaven in May 2025. Annabel was invited to perform at HMCollective's private Music Soiree in August and will perform alongside Myee Clohessy and Luke Bowen for Berrima Vivace in October 2026.
Pianist Luke Bowen was the 2024 Eva Pascoe Award winner, aged nineteen. He has a diploma in music from the University of New England and is currently studying science at UNE and piano privately under Professor Robert Constable AM. As a frequent recitalist in the Emerging Artists series at St. Jude's Church in Bowral and a soloist with the Southern Highlands Symphony Orchestra, Luke has delighted audiences with his charming and virtuosic performances. In addition to his involvement in the Highlands, Luke has performed extensively in the Shoalhaven and Illawarra regions, appearing in Music Shoalhaven’s concert series and the Gerringong Music Club.
Photos by Peter Hislop
2024 Eva Pascoe Award Winner pianist Luke Bowen, performing at 'Vienna Gold' with the Highlands Music Collective at Bowral Memorial Hall
Luke performed throughout 2024 with Highlands Music Collective at our Vienna Gold concert at the Bowral Memorial Hall, the Braille Music Camp Fundraiser at St Jude's Church, our Music Soireé at the Rose Recital Room, and a private home in Kangaroo Valley. Luke used his $3000 Eva Pascoe Award for public speaking courses and masterclasses with Robert Constable AM.
"Winning the Eva Pascoe Award has been an incredible experience, particularly for the professional opportunities and connections it has brought me. I had the chance to rehearse and perform with some of the best instrumentalists in the region, receiving valuable, actionable feedback along the way. As someone with a largely solo background, gaining experience in chamber music has been one of the most important additions to my pianistic and musical skillset. My ability to collaborate, balance parts and listen within an ensemble has improved dramatically. Beyond the performance opportunities, the financial support from the award has been equally beneficial. It has allowed me to focus on honing my skills as a pianist without the financial strain of paying for lessons, competition fees and other professional development costs. I highly recommend the Eva Pascoe Award to any musician beginning their career."
We were thrilled to have Luke join HMCollective for performances 'Birds of a Feather' (are Better Together!) in February 2025, and again in May 2026 for 'Soldier's Tale' and the Music Soirée
2023 Eva Pascoe Award Winner
Violinist Cedar-Rose Newman was the inaugural winner of the Eva Pascoe Award in 2023 at the age of 19. Originally from Wollongong, Cedar-Rose's journey as a musician has been nurtured by many over the years. Three particular influences in her life have been her piano teacher Gian-Franco Ricci, (with whom Cedar gained her Licentiate Diploma for Piano Performance in 2020), her violin mentor Ass. Prof. Goetz Richter at Sydney Conservatorium of Music and her first violin teacher, Sarah Hindson, in Wollongong.
Photo by Peter Hislop
Cedar Newman & HMCollective performing at the Bowral Autumn Music Festival
Cedar-Rose's passion for music led her to New York at a young age, following an invitation to study with legendary Russian violinist Albert Markov. In 2019, Cedar won the Manhattan School of Music Pre-College String Concerto Competition and has participated successfully in several national and international competitions. In 2022, she was selected to attend Music at Menlo in San Francisco, a specialist chamber program for young string players worldwide. Cedar has been a semi-finalist in the Classicalia International Music Competition and a finalist in the Melbourne Bach Competition. She is currently on a President’s Scholarship, studying for a Bachelor of Performance Degree at the Manhattan School of Music with Lucie Robert.
Cedar has given many recitals in Australia, the United States and Europe, made solo appearances with the Steel City Strings and the Southern Highlands Symphony Orchestra, and was a Young Recitalist at the 2017 Bowral Autumn Music Festival. As winner of the 2023 Eva Pascoe Award, Cedar performed as soloist with Highlands Music Collective Piazzolla’s virtuosic ‘Four Seasons of Buenos Aires’ at the Bowral Autumn Music Festival, Wollongong Art Gallery and Wesley Music Centre in Canberra. Cedar used her $3000 Eva Pascoe Award to perform and record with renowned concert pianist Simon Tedeschi. ABC's Ed Le Brocq recently interviewed Cedar about her life and new recording of Bloch's Violin Sonata.
"Winning the inaugural Eva Pascoe Award in 2023 was a turning point for me. Receiving the Award from Timothy Pascoe at the Bowral Autumn Music Festival was particularly special because Timothy and Eva were such colourful people who loved music and were generous in their support of the arts. The Award opened doors that I would not otherwise have had. It led to performance opportunities with Highlands Music Collective in Canberra, Bowral and Wollongong, where I was able to work alongside inspiring musicians and mentors who bring a real joy and lightness to making music. The scholarship also enabled me to record one of my favourite works, Ernst Bloch’s Violin and Piano Sonata No. 2, ‘Poème Mystique’, with Simon Tedeschi at ABC Studios Sydney. That recording helped me gain entry to international masterclasses and competitions and led to an interview with Ed le Brocq on ABC Radio. For a young musician, the value of the Pascoe Award goes well beyond the financial support. It provides performance opportunities, mentoring, professional connections and a genuine connection with the Highlands music community.
If you are a young musician looking for the opportunity to take the next step, I strongly encourage you to apply for the 2026 Eva Pascoe Award."
Pascoe Encouragement Awards
2026 Pascoe Encouragement Award Alumni:
Sophie Chen, piano (18);
James Munro, cello (22);
Oscar Dunn-Luck, piano (20);
Samantha Roberts, flute (21);
Robert Nelson, piano (15)
2025 Pascoe Encouragement Awards Alumni:
Hana Lee, violin (18);
Fin Torpy, flute (19);
Charlotte Blake, flute (18)
Oscar Dunn-Luck, piano (19)
Robert Nelson, piano (14)
2024 Pascoe Encouragement Awards Alumni:
Sophie Chen, piano (17);
Charlotte Black, flute (17);
Oscar Dunn-Luck, piano (17);
Samantha Roberts, flute (18);
Fin Torpy, flute (18)
Highlands Music Collective is delighted to be in partnership with Arts National Bowral District
and thank them for their sponsorship of the Pascoe Awards
Arts National Bowral District are renowned for their generous philanthropic efforts in the Southern Highlands, we are immensely appreciative of their support for our mentoring program for gifted young local musicians.
ANBD present captivating monthly lectures by International and Australian lecturers on a diverse range of subjects. For further information about ArtsNational Bowral visit:
https://www.artsnational.au/societies/bowral-district/
