Get to know Holly Piccoli, ASO’s Principal 1st Violin

What sparked your journey to begin playing your instrument, and when?

I was 7 and my cousin Mee Na had just started playing cello, so I asked for a violin for Christmas. Mum wasn’t sure I knew what a violin was. My cousin is the cellist and founder of Affinity Quartet who just recently won the Musica Viva Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition! 

Is there anything special about your instrument?

My violin was made in 2004 by Alessandro Di Matteo, who is making violins in Cremona, Italy. I am its first owner and have loved getting to know it and finding our voice together. 

My bow came to me in 2012. I had been trying bows from a famous bow shop in NYC called Salchow and Sons. On returning the 20 loaners I had, I was presented with a bow to try in shop.

It had the stamp “Vuillaume” on the wood, who was a famous Luthier and workshop owner of the 19th century, which made me pause as I certainly couldn’t afford a bow like that. Isaac Salchow then told me that this bow, my bow, had had a repair at the tip, very well completed and not inhibiting the action at all. The repair meant the resale value was in my price range! A friend equated my purchase to finding a Picasso that had damage in the corner, beautifully restored by another artist. The bow works so wonderfully and I have no intention of ever selling it haha. My bow was made by François Nicolas Voirin, cousin of Vuillaume. Voirin worked in the Vuillaume workshop. 

How did you come to be with the ASO, and do you have a favourite memory so far?

During the pandemic I was chatting with Associate Concertmaster Cam Hill, a friend since our days competing against each other in eisteddfods as kids. He mentioned to me about a couple of violin positions opening up and although the pandemic meant we had to wait a while, eventually I had the chance to be guest Principal 1st Violin for 5 months in 2022! At the very end of the 5 months, the audition for the job of Principal 1st Violin took place, and after enjoying myself so much as guest, I went for the job and they voted me in! Something that makes ASO very special to me is that quite a few of the players were my friends during our student years, and reconnecting with them has been so fun and fulfilling.

Do you enjoy playing any other genres of music besides classical? What are they and why?

While living in the USA I specialised in baroque violin, performing early music on period instruments with gut strings. I love the repertoire and the sound world is so different from a modern symphony orchestra. But I also love performing pop gigs like playing with the strings on Dancing with the Stars, and my most favourite gig was with John Farnham and Olivia Newton John for their 2 Strong Hearts tour!

What part of performing with an orchestra do you find most meaningful or important to you?

I really believe in what we do as musicians, giving nourishment to the soul, body and mind. Together we bring our art form to life, voices of composers from today and centuries ago being heard in the same space, creating art in the moment. Sometimes I look around during a performance and am in awe of my colleagues, and it feels very special to be part of it.

Is there a piece or concert from this season that gets you excited?

There is often something to be excited about and it’s always something different.  ASO has the privilege of being the orchestra of South Australia who performs for the opera and the ballet. Unlike other symphony orchestras who don’t work in the pit, we enjoy collaboration with these incredible artists and we get to perform some fantastic repertoire that would otherwise be missed. This year I was excited to work with my husband, tenor Kyle Stegall, during SOSA’s Così fan tutte, and next year I’m excited for Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty with the Australian Ballet. 

 Holly is supported by Bruce Debelle AO KC via our Musical Chairs program.