William Hennessy

William Hennessy is a violinist and concertmaster who has made hundreds of soloist appearances with Australian orchestras. He is the current Artistic Director of the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra. In 2008, he became an Artist in Residence at the Australian National Academy of Music, with duties including performance, violin teaching, and the fostering and coaching of chamber music.
He was founder/leader of the Australian String Quartet 1985-1996, founding deputy leader of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and a founder/director of the Tasmanian Symphony Chamber Players, the Melbourne University Chamber Orchestra and the Adelaide Youth Chamber Orchestra. He was Concertmaster of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra for four and a half years and has been a member for substantial periods of the Macquarie Trio, the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Australia Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra (now Melbourne Chamber Orchestra).
Hennessy has also been closely associated with the development of the Flinders Quartet, the Seraphim Trio, the TinAlley Quartet, the Tailem Quartet and the Hamer Quartet.
His students have been prominent in the Australian Youth Orchestra for many years. Many former students are members of leading professional orchestras in both Europe and Australia and several of his students have achieved notable successes in prestigious Australian competitions.