Help me get to Europe to grow as a young musician

My dream is to be a professional composer and conductor active in the creation and performance of contemporary classical music. I'm raising funds to be able to take up a string of opportunities I've recently been presented with to travel to Europe in August/September and hone my craft as a young conductor/composer to enable me to make this a reality.

The trip comes in two halves:

The first involves attendance from August 20-26 at the Florence Conducting Masterclass, where I will take part in classes in conducting technique, theory, score analysis, and also take part in meetings with two European agencies based respectively in Budapest and in London.

The tutor for this course is Günter Neuhold, who is engaged across Europe as a conductor with a number of the continent's finest orchestras (including among others the Vienna Philharmonic) and operas houses - including l'Opéra National de Paris, La Scala in Milan, Teatro Real in Madrid, as well as all three of Berlin's main opera houses, the Staatsoper Berlin, Deutsche Oper, and the Komische Oper.

Following this, I will travel to Berlin to take up a formal invitation from the Mahler Chamber Orchestra to observe its rehearsals in the Berlin Philharmonie with Sir George Benjamin - one of the industry's leading composers and conductors. George Benjamin's latest opera, Lessons in Love and Violence, was premièred in May at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden - which co-commissioned the work with several leading European houses - and the première run was also conducted by George Benjamin himself.

This concert with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, 'George Benjamin III' is presented in cooperation with the Berliner Festspiele/Musikfest Berlin as part of a substantial focus on his work as the Berlin Philharmonic's 2018/19 Composer-in-Residence. While George Benjamin is an esteemed composer and conductor across Europe, on a smaller scale he teaches at King's College London, where I aim to undertake my Masters in Composition under his supervision in 2020 or 2021.

In September I will also be observing rehearsals at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden with director Claus Guth and conductor Simone Young, and further rehearsals in the Berliner Philharmonie with Donald Runnicles and the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper.

In addition, I will be meeting with several composers and performers involved in the contemporary classical music scene in Berlin (and also Canada), which will help with the foundation of my own network of professional contacts in Europe.

This is thrilling and invaluable opportunity to come into contact with and learn from some my field's leading practitioners, and to gain a range of skills that would help me on my path to develop as a young composer/conductor both in New Zealand and elsewhere - and in particular, one passionate about the creation and performance of contemporary music.

Any support given would be help me to take up these opportunities and set out on the path to fulfill my professional aspirations.