Cyril started violin at age 7 years and finished all his grades to 6th by about 13 years. Cyril only played intermittently during his studies for the Catholic priesthood at the seminary during the next 4 years He played in a Gilbert and Sullivan performance and maybe one or two other times.
 He didn't continue exams again till mid 40s completing 8th and doing the ATCL  at a second attempt.
 
He initially played with Beecroft Orchestra under Allan Styles  and is still with us.HeI also plays wih Suzanne Maslin at Kevinwood at Eastwood, which also puts on 4 or 5 concerts a year.
 Cyril plays regularly chamber  music with a set of friends 3 or 4 times a week as well as a regular couple of hours with a friend pianist for donkey's years. They play Elgar and a little Brahms as well as Mozart, and he loves Fritz Kreisler, his Shon Rosmarie, and Liebesfreud.
 For twenty years or so he has played  with the Amateur Chamber Music Society and also goes to Wagga Wagga for the Riverina Summer School for Strings during that period as well.
 
 The violin is a great instrument

Cyril's memories of his mother Dulcie, who played with Beecroft for many years.

Dulcie, my Mum first learnt piano , and then took up the violin shortly after at about 7 years.
When asked by her mother which she would continue she wailed and said" I want to do both" and so it was.
One year after  passing a high violin exam, piano and theory exams, the nun at Bethelem college , Ashfield said to the girls, " you should carry this girl high on your shoulders'. That was nice.
 Mum continued  after the Leaving Certificate at the Con under Cyril Monk, whose arrangements  are still floating around.
 She boasted 16 letters on the brass plate her mother had made and displayed at the front of their house. It was also lighted at night and read "school of music' , for mum was teaching, accompanying singers etc from an early age. The letters are something like  A mus A, vln and piano, also 2 ATCL's and I think Licentiate in violin.
 She was still studying when the time to marry arrived, and she cried that she wanted to continue with her studies, her mum said "you're 21;you'll be left on the shelf !".
 Mum played under Miller, and Clive Pascoe, and others at Willoughby, and there were soiree's with soloists, Ladislav Yasset, and I don't know who else.
 She played in the Italian orchestra  for a long time, an orchestra which played for special occasions, like for the italian ambassador.
 We did have an old vinyl of mum's from Con days, of "Dance of the Hours", and a flip side of which I've forgotten the name. I think we played "Dance of the Hours " with Beecroft once.