Piers Lane, piano
Australian pianist Piers Lane has a flourishing international career, which has taken him to more than 40 countries. Highlights of past years have included a sold-out performance with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall, concerto performances at Avery Fisher Hall, a three-recital series entitled Metamorphoses and other performances for the Pianoforte series at Wigmore Hall and 5 concerts for the opening of the Recital Centre in Melbourne.
Valerie Tryon, piano
Now living in Canada, Valerie Tryon’s career as a concert pianist began while she was still a child. Before she was just twelve years old, she had broadcast for the BBC and was appearing regularly before the public on the concert platform. She was one of the youngest students ever to be admitted to the Royal Academy of Music where she received the highest award in piano playing and a bursary which took her to Paris for study with Jacques Février.
Katya Apekisheva, piano
Katya Apekisheva is one of Europe's foremost pianists, in demand internationally as a soloist and chamber musician, and has been described by Gramophone as 'a profoundly gifted artist' who has 'already achieved artistic greatness'. A prize-winner at the Leeds Piano Competition and Scottish Piano Competition, she has appeared as soloist with many of the world's leading orchestras and has collaborated with such conductors as Simon Rattle, David Shallon and Alexander Lazarev.
Callum Smart, violin
Callum Smart came to wide public attention when at the age of thirteen he won the string section of the 2010 BBC Young Musicians Competition and was subsequently selected as one of three concerto finalists. In the finals he performed Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales conducted by Vasily Petrenko at the Millennium Centre in Cardiff broadcast on BBC 2 and Radio 3.
Gordon Back, piano
Welsh-born 
Gordon Back's distinguished career as a pianist has taken him to many continents of the world. His international reputation was established in 1978 when he played with Dong-Suk Kang in Alice Tully Hall, New York, to great critical acclaim. Since then he has travelled extensively throughout Europe, Russia, U.S.A., Japan, Korea, China, Malaysia, Singapore and, of course, the UK, performing and recording with artists such as Yehudi Menuhin and Yo Yo Ma.
Christopher Atzinger, piano
A native of Michigan, Christopher Atzinger enjoys an expanding career and reputation for excellence throughout the United States, Canada, Austria, England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. He is a medalist of the Cincinnati, New Orleans, San Antonio, Shreveport and Seattle international piano competitions. He was also a winner of the National Federation of Music Clubs, the Simone Belsky Piano Competition, and at the IBLA Grand Prize Competition in Italy.
Madeleine Mitchell, violin
"The dynamically talented Madeleine Mitchell" (Barry Millington, Evening Standard) is one of Britain's most celebrated violinists, performing as a soloist and chamber musician in over 40 countries. She was a finalist in both the European Women of Achievement and the Creative Briton Awards, Helen Wallace, Editor of BBC Music Magazine describing her as "not only a violinist of great virtuosity but also of a very special poetic character...a pioneering figure in the violin world".
Andrew Ball, piano
Andrew Ball studied with Kendall Taylor at the Royal College of Music and took a First in music at Queen’s College, Oxford. Regarded as one of the foremost British pianists of his generation, a busy career has taken him all over the world. He has given countless premieres (including the first British performance of Sofia Gubaidulina’s Piano Sonata at the Bath Festival), made his Proms debut playing Messiaen and studied Tippett’s sonatas with the composer.
