Biography

Alex Monro is an Australian violist, harpist, and composer. Born in Adelaide in 2006, he is currently pursuing a double degree in Music and Advanced Science (physics) at the Australian National University and performs professionally on both viola and harp. He composes for chamber ensembles, films and plays, and creates digital media, and is a member of the Australian Youth Orchestra’s (AYO) Youth Council.

Alex is a violist in the Canberra Symphony Orchestra (CSO), playing with acclaimed conductors such as Jessica Cottis and Erin Helyard. He was a Principal Viola in the AYO’s 2026 National Music Camp (NMC), and is a violist in the AYO flagship orchestra and in AYO’s Momentum Ensemble — “Beautiful Equations”.

Alex has appeared as a guest artist with Apeiron Baroque, with Canberra CityNews describing him as a “confident and extroverted figure throughout”. He has performed in Parliament House and has performed solo at the Hungarian and Croatian embassies.

Alex’s awards include the 2025 ANU Whitworth Roach Performance Scholarship and the Wesley Uniting Church Forrest Music Scholarship. His trio (AAA Battery: Viola, Clarinet, & Piano) won the 2026 ANU Friends of the School of Music Ensemble Prize Finals, and his string trio won the 2024 Musica Viva Strike a Chord Australian Prize.

Alex studies viola with Marianne Yeomans, with occasional lessons with Tor Frømyhr, Stephen King, and Kirsten Williams. He studies harp with Alice Giles.

When Alex is not performing or practicing, he enjoys immersing himself in fantasy worlds through reading and watching films.