Leighton Triplow (CC2010) attended the Cornish campus of St Leonard’s from 1998 to 2008, before moving to the Brighton campus for VCE. Since then, Leighton has pursued his passion for music in tertiary studies, including his recently-awarded PhD in musicology and classical singing. Below, he shares some reflections on his time since Cornish.
“2019 was a busy year of music-making, concluding with my graduation from The University of Melbourne with a PhD in musicology and classical singing. This special occasion signified the end of a decade of tertiary education and is the beginning of my new chapter as a freelance musician and independent scholar.
“In the period 2011–2019, I focused on several years of doctoral research on the English composer Henry Purcell (1659–1695). I was most fortunate to visit Europe and the United Kingdom on study exchanges to the University of Birmingham and Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, being granted a unique opportunity to consult world experts in the field of Purcellian scholarship. Highlights included organising and performing in a musical soirée at the Australian High Commission, London, and at the Handel House Museum.
“In this new decade, I want to advance my career as a classical soloist, dabble in events management, and engage in performance-based research projects at the postdoctoral level. Wherever these scholarly pursuits may take me, I am forever indebted to Cornish for the significant role that it played in my early education — particularly a strong music curriculum overseen by Liz Furman — and countless fond memories provided by the unique learning environment.”
This story featured in the Summer 2019/2020 edition of The Difference
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