Sonya Helen Hanke (27 September 1933 – 4 September 1993) was an Australian pianist and educator. The daughter of Henry Aloysius Hanke, an Archibald- and

Sulman prize The Sir John Sulman Prize is one of Australia's longest-running art prizes, having been established in 1936. It is now held concurrently with the Archibald Prize, Australia's best-known art prize, and also with the Wynne Prize, at the Art Galle ...

-winning artist, and Emily Mortimer, she was born in

Hunters Hill Hunters Hill is a suburb of the lower north shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Hunters Hill is located north-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government ar ...

in Sydney. Hanke was educated at

North Sydney Girls High School , motto_translation = Towards Higher Things , established = , type = Government-funded single-sex academically selective secondary day school , gender = Girls , oversight = New South Wales Department of Education , principal = Megan C ...

and the

New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

, receiving diplomas in performance and teaching in 1951. In the following year, she won the open piano championship at the

Sydney Eisteddfod The Sydney Eisteddfod is an independent community based not-for-profit organisation limited by guarantee a registered charity in Sydney, Australia, and listed on the federal Register of Cultural Organisations eligible to receive tax-deductible do ...

and a Pedley, Woolley, McMenamin Trust scholarship. These funds enabled her to study at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

from 1953 to 1956; she received the Hopkinson Gold Medal for piano playing in her final year. She subsequently studied at the

Accademia Musicale Chigiana The Accademia Musicale Chigiana (''English'': Chigiana Musical Academy) is a music institute in Siena, Italy. It was founded by Count Guido Chigi-Saracini in 1932 as an international centre for advanced musical studies. It organises Master Clas ...

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

with the help of a scholarship from the Italian government. Hanke also studied at the

Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia The Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia ( en, National Academy of St Cecilia) is one of the oldest musical institutions in the world, founded by the papal bull ''Ratione congruit'', issued by Sixtus V in 1585, which invoked two saints promi ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. She performed in Italy, Switzerland, France, Germany, Britain, Israel and the United States. In 1959, she married Aldo Lucchetti, an agricultural scientist. The couple later separated. However, they spent the latter part of her life together. She returned to Australia in 1974 and joined the keyboard department at the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music in 1977, retiring in 1992. Her students included

Kathryn Selby Kathryn Shauna Selby AM (born 1962) is an Australian classical pianist. She is often known as Kathy Selby. Biography She grew up in Sydney. She entered the Sydney Conservatorium of Music at the age of seven, studying under Nancy Salas. She ...

, David Howie, Lisa Moore, Corey McVicar and

Michael Kieran Harvey Michael Kieran Harvey (born 7 July 1961) is an Australian piano, pianist and composer whose career has been notable for its diversity and wide repertoire. He is renowned for commissioning, performing and composing new music. He has especially pr ...

. She was an examiner for the

Australian Music Examinations Board The Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB) is a federated, privately funded corporation which provides a program of examinations for music, speech and drama in Australia. The organisation had its beginnings at the Universities of Melbourne ...

. She was known for her performances of music by

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

and contemporary Italian composers. In 1980, she became founding president of the South Pacific Liszt Society. Hanke died in Sydney at the age of 59, of

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanke, Sonya 1933 births 1993 deaths Australian women pianists Australian classical pianists Sydney Conservatorium of Music alumni Academic staff of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music 20th-century classical pianists Women music educators Piano pedagogues Women classical pianists 20th-century women pianists Accademia Musicale Chigiana alumni Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia alumni