British pianist Ashley Fripp frequently appears as solo recitalist, chamber musician and concerto soloist in many of the world's most prestigious concert halls, having performed extensively throughout Europe, Asia, North America, Africa and Australia. Recent highlights include the Carnegie Hall (New York), Musikverein (Vienna), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), the Philharmonie Cologne, Bozar (Brussels), the Royal Festival, Barbican and Wigmore Halls (London), the Laeiszhalle (Hamburg), Cité de la musique (Paris), Hamamatsu City Concert Hall (Japan), the Megaron (Athens), Konzerthaus Dortmund, the Gulbenkian Auditorium (Lisbon) and the Konserthus (Stockholm).
Will Duerden was born in 2000 and began to play the Double Bass when he was seven years old, starting with a three-quarter size instrument which was considerably bigger than him! A year later he performed with members of the Yehudi Menuhin School at an event organised in conjunction with the West Sussex String Academy, and was then invited to audition for the Menuhin School, where he is studying with Caroline Emery (who was able to lend him an instrument that was more appropriate to his size).
Amber Emson started playing violin at the age of 5 as a pupil of Margaret Norris and later Natasha Boyarsky; in 2009 she joined the Royal Academy of Music’s Junior Department. As a student at Chetham’s School of Music 2014-16, she won the Concerto Competition resulting in a performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with Chetham’s Sinfonia at Manchester Cathedral, and the Catherine Perkins Chamber Music Prize. Since September 2016 Amber has been home schooled; she currently studies violin under the tutelage of Maciej Rakowski and enhances her music education at the Royal College of Music’s Junior Department.
British pianist Ivana Gavrić created a sensation with her debut disc In the mists, winning BBC Music Magazine Newcomer of the Year for ‘playing of an altogether extraordinary calibre’. Her third disc of works by Grieg, also on Champs Hill Records, was selected as Editor’s Choice in Gramophone and noted for ‘an electrifying performance’ (BBC Music Magazine). The Grieg Society has voted the CD as its ‘Recording of the Year’.
Ivana has performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, the Trondheim Soloists, Aurora Orchestra and South Denmark Philharmonie. She has collaborated with conductors including Rafael Payare, Nicholas Collon, Christian Kluxen and Ben Gernon.
Chloë Hanslip (b. 1987) has already established herself as an artist of distinction on the international stage.
Prodigiously talented, she made her BBC Proms debut in 2002 and her US concerto debut in 2003, and has performed at major venues in the UK (Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall), Europe (Vienna Musikverein, Hamburg Laeiszhalle, Paris Louvre and Salle Gaveau, St Petersburg Hermitage) as well as Carnegie Hall, Metropolitan Arts Space in Tokyo and the Seoul Arts Centre.
Sophie Kauer is 16 years old and attends the Junior Department of the Royal Academy of Music where she holds a scholarship. During her time at the Academy she has won the Cello and Lower Strings Prizes and been a finalist in the Chamber Prize. She studies the cello privately with Melissa Phelps. Previously, she was also taught by Maria Zachariadou.
At the age of 13 Sophie was chosen by former BBC Young Musician winner Guy Johnston to make her debut as a soloist with orchestra and, since then, she has performed in Switzerland, Germany, Norway and Denmark, as well as across the UK.
Svitlana Kosenko was born in Ukraine and studied at Kharkov University of Arts with professor Meinikov and in Germany with Professor Mokatsyan. In 1999, she won second prize in the International Competition of French-Polish Music in Paris.
2001 saw Svitlana take first prize in the Smetana International Competition and was awarded a Special Prize for her performance at the Enescu Competition. In 2012, she won Best Pianist at the Joseph Suder Lieder Competition. Since 2014, Svitlana has been Accompanist in Residence at the Yehudi Menuhin School.
Harvey Lin is 15 years old. started his first piano lesson at seven years old. At nine years old, he was the youngest participant in the history of the BBC Young Musician of the Year to be selected to compete in this competition, and the youngest competitor ever to get through to the 2nd round.
Harvey has won numerous top awards at international and national piano competitions, including the 1st prize for the 5th Young Pianist of the North International Piano Competition, Newcastle, 2012;
Matilda Lloyd, 22, won her first international trumpet competition in October 2017: the inaugural Eric Aubier International Trumpet Competition. Beating 53 other contestants of all ages from around the world, Matilda won the Master Category accompanied by the Opera Orchestra of Rouen, with which she will make her international debut with a tour of France in Spring 2019. Matilda gave her BBC Proms Solo debut in July 2016, performing the third movement of Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto with Alpesh Chauhan and the BBC Philharmonic in the two Ten Pieces II Proms at the Royal Albert Hall. She also performed live on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune Proms Special and BBC 4’s Women’s Hour.
Erdem Mısırlıoğlu started music lessons when he was six. Having completed his undergraduate studies and master’s course in performance at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, both with first class honours, he has recently finished his Artist’s Diploma there, studying with pianists Martin Roscoe and Ronan O'Hora.
In 2006, Erdem was a prizewinner in the International Rachmaninov Competition for Young Pianists and was also awarded both the Keyboard Instrument Prize in 2006 and the Principal's prize in 2008 at GSMD.
Leo Nicholson studied at the Purcell School, the Junior Royal Northern College of Music, and with Douglas Finch and the late Yonty Solomon at Trinity Laban.
He was a consistent prize-winner at Trinity, winning both the John Longmire Beethoven Competition and the Alfred Kitchen Chopin Competition, and graduated with First Class Honours, the TCM Silver Medal (Keyboard) and a Silver Medal awarded by the Worshipful Company of Musicians. He continues to work as a soloist and performs with six-piano group Piano Circus and the Birmingham-based contemporary group Thumb.
Born in Bulgaria in 1990, Michael Petrov studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and with Louise Hopkins at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, where he is now a Fellow.
In 2013 he was selected for representation by Young Classical Artists Trust (YCAT) and in 2014 won the Gold Medal at the GSMD, following a performance of Shostakovich’s Concerto No. 1 at the Barbican. He went on to win the GSMD Wigmore Hall Prize in 2016.
Alison Rhind is recognised as one of the leading collaborative pianists specialising in the repertoire for piano and strings. Her ability to accompany was recognised and nurtured at an early age whilst still at Chetham’s School of Music and she became increasingly in demand throughout her time at Oxford University where she read Music at Wadham College. Chetham’s invited her back immediately she had finished her degree but she completed her studies with Edith Vogel at the Guildhall School of Music before returning there.
Callum Smart attracted wide public attention at the age of thirteen having won the strings category of the 2010 BBC Young Musicians Competition performing Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Vasily Petrenko. In the same year he went on to become the top European prize-winner at the Menuhin Competition and now enjoys critical acclaim for his silky tone, lyrical lines and accomplished interpretations.
Callum recently made his debut with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performing Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1, a work he visits again this season with re-invitations from the Philharmonia Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.
Masayuki Tayama, one of today’s most accomplished pianists, is much in demand across Europe and Japan. He first came to prominence when he won First Prize in the Takahiro Sonoda International Piano Competition in Japan, followed by numerous top prizes in Europe, including the Birmingham International Piano Competition.
Tayama studied at the Toho University of Music in Japan, and subsequently in London on a Fellowship from the Japanese Government, where he was awarded the Performer’s Diploma with Honours from both the Royal College of Music and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Cédric Tiberghien’s career spans five continents taking him to some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, including, Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Centre in Washington, the Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wigmore Hall and Barbican in London, the Salle Pleyel and the Theatre des Champs Elysees in Paris, Berlin’s Bechstein Hall, Salzburg’s Mozarteum, the Sydney Opera and Tokyo’s Bunka Kaikan and Asahi Halls.
Highlights of the current season include return projects with the Cleveland Orchestra, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Auckland Philharmonia, Tasmania Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestras; and an extensive residency with the Orchestre de Bretagne which will see Cédric direct the orchestra from the piano in concertos by Mozart as well as concerto performances by Saint-Saens and Mendelssohn and a chamber project with the orchestral wind principals.
Coco Tomita was born in Japan in 2002 and began to play the violin when she was four years old. She became a pupil of Natasha Boyarsky when she was six, and in 2012 she was awarded a place at the Yehudi Menuhin School where she is continuing to study with Mrs Boyarsky.
In 2010, at the age of eight, Coco became the youngest contestant to win 3rd Prize in the Junior section of Andrea Postacchini International Violin Competition in Fermo, Italy. Two years later, she made her debut appearance at the Cadogan Hall, London performing as a soloist with the Southbank Sinfonia.
Richard Uttley is noted for the integrity and breadth of his musicianship as soloist, chamber musician and recording artist. He has been recognised for his ‘musical intelligence and pristine facility’ (International Record Review), ‘amazing decisiveness’, and ‘tumultuous performance’ (Ivan Hewett, The Daily Telegraph). His playing is regularly broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and has featured on BBC Four and Sky Arts. Richard was selected for representation by Young Classical Artists Trust (YCAT) in 2011.
Recent highlights include solo recitals in Bridgewater Hall, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival and Cité des Arts, and concertos by Mozart, Brahms and Grieg.