At 24, violinist Sola Hughes is stepping into one of the most coveted stages of Australian classical music: performing with the Australian World Orchestra (AWO). Not only that but she’ll be playing what is probably the AWO’s most ambitious concert yet – its 2025 MAHLERFEST, a back-to-back concert of the composer’s Fourth and Fifth Symphonies.

For a young artist completing her studies at Melbourne’s Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM), the invitation to join this unique ensemble is a personal and professional milestone, says Hughes. It’s also “incredibly cool”.

Sola Hughes. Photo @ Pia Johnson

Hughes’ musical journey, she recalls with a laugh, began in front of the TV. “When I was two – apparently! – I started begging for violin lessons. I must have seen it on a show or something, and I was very insistent,” she says. Her parents – neither of whom were musicians – held off until she was seven, by which time her determination hadn’t wavered.

“I just wanted a violin, nothing else” she explains. “Eventually, they let me start with Suzuki method lessons, which I loved – especially the social side of...