Wednesday, 19 October, 2011 - 10:28
Perth plays a second orchestra
Setting up a second symphony orchestra in Perth is ambitious but for a convivial pair like Bourby Webster and Annalisa Oxenburgh it is an obvious choice for the city.
Bourby Webster
Director of Creative Activation and Public Engagement / Edith Cowan University
Talented musician Bourby Webster has studied at Oxford University and Royal College of Music in London, but it’s Perth where she feels most at home. Completing a MBA at the University of Western Australia has allowed her to combine performance music with business.
Ms Webster is the director and founder of North Street Music (NSM), Perth Symphony Orchestra and Perth Chamber Orchestra. She started the business as a way to spread her love for music across the state. NSM oversees all elements of the orchestras’ operations, from concert creation and player selection to sponsorship and marketing. Perth Symphony Orchestra played its first concert in November 2011 and Perth Chamber Orchestra was launched in 2013. Ms Webster said the orchestras aimed to engage hundreds of talented local musicians with world-class opportunities. Both orchestras are set to tour regional areas of WA, aligning with education and community programs that have been put in place by NSM. She stepped down from Perth Symphony Orchestra in December 2022.
Ms Webster previously spent 12 years performing at a high level in the sport of rowing, as a coxswain trying out for both the Sydney and Athens Olympics.
She lecturers at WA Academy of Performing Arts, performs as part of a rock string quartet and, when possible, plays viola with Perth Symphony Orchestra.
Ms Webster is a winner in the Arts & Culture Award category of the 2019 Western Australian Of The Year Awards.
