Rachel Hocking

Rachel Hocking originates from Sydney, Australia. Her father, a rock 'n' roll pianist with an apprenticeship in pipe organ building, introduced her to various music from a young age, from opera to jazz. As a child, she studied classical and jazz piano, organ and theory, eventually gaining a Bachelor of Music in piano performance from the University of New South Wales as well as studying Kodály methodology at NSW Conservatorium of Music under Doreen Bridges. Rachel has also had lessons and lectures with composers such as Miriam Hyde, Peter Sculthorpe and Eric Gross. Rachel has performed extensively, including works for solo piano and piano duos. She has also worked collaboratively on piano, as a ballet repetiteur, and performed with choirs/orchestras on piano, chamber and pipe organ, and celesta. In 2007, Rachel was awarded a PhD in Musicology for her research on music for the dance in Australia, 1960-2000, supervised by Jill Stubington.

Rachel has lectured in Music and Music Education at the University of New South Wales, Australian Catholic University, and currently teaches in the tertiary and Young Con programmes at Queensland Conservatorium of Music, Griffith University. As a piano teacher, adjudicator and AMEB piano/theory examiner, Rachel has worked with aspiring young musicians in the ACT, NSW and Queensland. She has also been commissioned to undertake industry research in music education, supporting music education advocacy in Australia and collaborating with researchers such as Anita Collins. Rachel is currently the President of the Accompanists’ Guild of Queensland and Co-Director of Music at St Andrew’s Uniting, Brisbane, where she plays pipe organ for the Sanctuary Choir, in collaboration with Musica Viva. 

Since expanding her focus into composition, Rachel has undertaken ongoing mentorship with Australian composer Gerard Brophy, and she writes for solo instruments, ensembles, and voice including choirs. Her choral composition Werte! won the Australian National Choral Association's composition prize at Choralfest 2026 where it was premiered by The Yarra Voices, and her recording of Liana’s Daydream was nominated for a 2026 Queensland Music Award, Contemporary Classical. Her music has also been performed and recorded by musicians and ensembles including Dr Jeanell Carrigan, Eliza Shephard and Peter de Jaeger for March of the Women, Daniel Johnson, Muses Trio for Her Australian Songbook, The Sanctuary Choir and the choir of All Saints' Wickham Terrace, as well as in schools and churches nationally and internationally. Rachel has also participated in the International Choral Composers Institute where she is a member, receiving tuition from Dr Raphael Fusco. Her compositions are published by Wirripang and she is an Associate Artist with the Australian Music Centre. 

Rachel lives in Brisbane with her family.