She wowed the crowd with her oboe skills at the Dubbo Eisteddfod, but Cecilia De Sousa Shaw was still shocked when she was named as the recipient of the Daily Liberal Scholarship.
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The $1000 instrumental scholarship is presented to a competitor who displays the ability to further their studies with their instrument.
It's chosen by the adjudicator based on their overall performance throughout the eisteddfod.
The recipient must have performed in at least three solo classes.
As well as the oboe, which she has been learning for the past five years, Cecilia has also played the piano since she was nine-years-old.
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"I practice piano every day for a solid 45 minutes but oboe... I try to do it every day but being lazy is my arch nemesis. I try to do about 30 minutes every day. But I like waking up late. It just happens sometimes that I sleep in," she said.
Cecilia said she enjoyed playing a "good, solid" concerto or sonata.
"Those go for ages but they're really pretty, like Clair De Lune. I love the nocturnes too, they're beautiful," she said.
Long-term she has plans to keep playing instruments and performing.
"I'd like to be part of the Doctors Orchestra. I've been told about that. I want to become a doctor so I can help people but I also like to be very involved in music. If I can do the best of both worlds, that would be really cool," Cecilia said.
It's been a busy few weeks for the talented musician. It was only a few days before the eisteddfod that she attended the Regional Youth Orchestra NSW to play oboe. They were able to work with expert musicians from the Australian World Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.
"I got to meet professional musicians and I was fan-girling. It was really cool," Cecilia said.
It's the social aspect of laying that keeps her going. Cecilia said she particularly enjoyed playing the piano in her jazz band.
Cecilia was also awarded a Macquarie Conservatorium Award for the most outstanding woodwind performer.
The other Macquarie Conservatorium Award for a brass performer went to Jessica Hall, while The Bentley Family Encouragement Award for a woodwind player under 15-years-old went to Joseph O'Brien.
Jessica also won the Woodwind/Brass Senior Championship 13 to 18 years.
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