Musica Viva Strike a Chord is an Australia-wide chamber ensemble competition open to all high school students. It is a wonderful opportunity for students to engage in making music in small ensembles with their peers.

This year the ANU Open School of Music had six ensembles enter the competition from the Developing Musicians Chamber Program. To enter, students were required to record their selected piece of chamber music as well as an introduction video.

One of these ensembles, the Open School Winther Quartet (violin, viola, cello and piano) was selected to participate in the final alongside just eleven other ensembles out of 120 entries received from across Australia. The final was held at the end of August at the Melbourne Recital Centre and was an incredible and exciting performance experience for these students.

Alex Munro, violist from the Open School Winther Quartet, says "Strike a Chord was a very enlightening and engaging experience that allowed us to be expressive in our communication of our love for music. Playing in the amazing venue of Melbourne Recital Centre alongside so many other fantastic players pushed us to play our best. The environment allowed us to pursue success and have fun and enjoyment on the journey.”