Christine Faron was born in England of Polish parents. She began piano lessons in London at the age of four, and gave her first public performance to an audience of over 1,000 at the age of five. Her family emigrated to Australia when she was twelve. She continued learning at the ANU School of Music, gaining scholarships, first for piano, and later for tertiary studies, during which time she was also a percussionist in the Canberra Symphony Orchestra. She returned to England and studied harpsichord construction and Baroque performance practice (under Michael Thomas, a leading pioneer of historic keyboard restoration, making and playing) at The Harpsichord Centre in London, where she also made her own harpsichord.
On returning to Australia, Christine completed her tertiary studies (under Nancy Salas) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, graduating with Distinction in l979. Whilst in Sydney, she also taught at the Conservatorium, and was the regular concert touring and recording harpsichordist for the Australian Chamber Orchestra.
She did further studies abroad (under Robert Kohnen) at the Conservatoire Royale de Musique in Belgium. Whilst resident in Germany during the l980's, she embarked on extensive research into fortepiano (l8th century piano) performance, techniques, history and construction. In l982 she assisted one of the world's leading fortepiano makers (Werner Keil of Schriesheim, near Heidelberg) in making her replicas of Mozart's favourite model of piano (J.A. Stein of Augsburg) and of Beethoven's Viennese piano (Nanette Stein & Brother).
She did further studies abroad (under Robert Kohnen) at the Conservatoire Royale de Musique in Belgium. Whilst resident in Germany during the l980's, she embarked on extensive research into fortepiano (l8th century piano) performance, techniques, history and construction. In l982 she assisted one of the world's leading fortepiano makers (Werner Keil of Schriesheim, near Heidelberg) in making her replicas of Mozart's favourite model of piano (J.A. Stein of Augsburg) and of Beethoven's Viennese piano (Nanette Stein & Brother).
Christine spent ten years working throughout Europe as a professional soloist, doing regular concert tours, solo CD recordings (mostly recorded in London), radio broadcasts, specialized research and teaching. She has performed in many countries including Germany, England, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland and Austria to great critical acclaim. She regularly performed in Mozart's house in Salzburg, Austria, including numerous concerts there during the Salzburg Festival.
Christine's European teaching included international summer schools, Lecture Recitals and Masterclasses in major specialist tertiary institutions throughout Europe. In l988 she was appointed Senior Lecturer and Head of Chamber Music in the North Oxfordshire Music School. In l989 she was appointed guest lecturer and Advisor in Classical (l8th Century) Music Studies at the Birmingham Conservatoire (University of Central England), and was one of the four founders of the British National Institute of Classical Music Studies, along with Stephen Daw (world authority on Bach), Horace Fitzpartick (world authority on the history of the French Horn) and H.C. Robbins Landon (world authority on Haydn and Mozart).
Her solo CD recordings for the Koch International label (London/Frankfurt/Vienna) include sonatas by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Clementi, as well as first-ever piano recordings of their lesser known Bohemian contemporaries, the virtuosi Leopold Kozeluh and Jan Dussek. These have been featured in all major international CD magazines such as Gramophone, Fono Forum and CD Review. They are often heard on radio throughout Europe, Japan and U.S.A., and have been included in the compulsory "listening lists" for historic performance studies in several U.S. University postgraduate courses. During the "Mozart Year" (l99l), the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna selected Christine's CDs to illustrate the sound of Mozart's favourite piano for a special exhibition, "The Sound-World of Mozart".
Since returning to Australia, Christine has given many successful concerts, broadcasts, teachers' workshops and in-service courses in Canberra and interstate, including the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the Australian Music Examinations Board, and the Music Teachers' Association. She has been an external examiner in postgraduate performance at the University of Melboume, where she has also given lectures and masterclasses. She has taught at the ANU School of Music, and is a member of Canberra's Early Music Council. She has recorded solo piano works and appeared solo on "Sunday Live" for ABC FM, is frequently broadcast on radio around the world, has appeared on TV, and has had her CDs included in Qantas' in-flight music programmes. Christine currently runs a busy private teaching studio with an impeccable track record for outstanding achievement in Piano and Theory Examinations, does freelance work for various institutions and is preparing a series of books on piano technique.
.... Another jewel has found its way into Canberra 's Cultural Crown
Editor, Canberra Times