Competition 2015

Kana Sugimura
Anna Szulc-Kapala
Martha Bijlsma
Endri Nini

Winners of the Gianni Bergamo Classic Music Award 2015 in Lugano, the four musicians of the Flex Ensemble have quickly established themselves as one of the most vibrant ensembles of their generation.

Within a year of their formation, the Flex Ensemble was awarded 1st prize at the International Schumann Chamber Music Award in Frankfurt in 2013, where they also received a special prize for their interpretation of the Schumann piano quartet. They are the recipient of awards and prizes at the Kiejstut Bacewicz International Chamber Music Competition in Lodz/Poland, the Premio Trio di Trieste/Italy, and the Solti Foundation in England.

Based on this success, the Flex Ensemble has appeared at venues such as the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Alte Oper Frankfurt, the Beijing Performing Arts Center, the Meistersingerhalle Nürnberg and Festivals such as the Festival de Musique de Menton, the Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker, the Heidelberger Frühling, and the Prishtina International Music Festival. On many occasions their performances have been recorded and broadcast live on German Radio (SWR and NDR Kultur) and Dutch Radio (Radio 4).

The Flex Ensemble’s dedication to the major piano quartet literature is complemented by their wish to enrich artists and audiences alike by commissioning new works. Their programs include world premieres of Victor Kioulaphides’ ‘Mandolin Quartet’ (with mandolinist  Alon Sariel) and the string trio ‘Dardania Sacra’ by Kreshnik Aliçkaj. In 2016 they will premiere a work by Marton Iles, commissioned for Flex Ensemble and accordionist Elsbeth Moser.
They collaborate with a wide range of distinguished artists such as Wolfgang Güttler (double bass), Oliver Wille (violin), and Kostas Raptis (bandoneon).

In addition to their concerts the members of Flex Ensemble create and perform musical programs for children. They visit schools and let children experience chamber music of all possible styles and characters. 

Formed in 2012, the members of the Flex Ensemble study at the Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media, working extensively with Oliver Wille. They had many inspiring masterclasses with Eberhard Feltz, Mark Gothoni, and Konrad Elser, to name a few. They are a scholar ensemble of Villa Musica, where they have worked with such influential mentors as Günther Pichler, the Artemis Quartett, and the Julliard String Quartet.

In November 2014 their Debut CD 'The Arrival of Night' including works by Hartke, Brahms, and Piazzolla was released from GENUIN Classics. It has been reviewed as: ''What a Debut!'' (Rhein-Main-Magazin) ''from elegant to elegiac, a wonderful harmonising ensemble'' (hr2 Kultur), ''A good production that makes you want to hear more from the Flex Ensemble!'' (Das Orchester) and ''Stunning! Truly, all three pieces on the CD received transcendent performances!'' (Composer Stephen Hartke).

They are the founders and artistic directors of the 'Chamber Music Fest Rheinhessen' that will see its third edition in the summer of 2016.

Gerard Spronk
Irene  Enzlin
Vera Kooper

The Delta Piano Trio was founded in Salzburg (Austria) by three young Dutch performers: violinist Gerard Spronk, cellist Irene Enzlin and pianist Vera Kooper.

In a world of globalized uniformity the trio stands out by its personal sound, dedication and natural youthful vigor. Their playing is honest, un-affected and passionate, merging three personalities into one musical entity. They approach chamber music as a form of communication, an exchange of ideas, and a shared road of reflection, discovery and evolution. Aiming to shape it’s own path, the Delta Piano Trio has an eclectic and personal choice of repertoire, encompassing the entire range of the piano trio literature.

Since their founding in 2013, the Delta Piano Trio has performed extensively in The Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, Russia and the United States. In the spring of 2014 the trio won the first prize, as well as a special prize for the performance of a twentieth-century work, at the 7th International S. Vainiunas Chamber Music Competition in Vilnius, Lithuania. Their debut at the 4th Salzburger Kammermusikfestival, in a shared concert with the Borodin Quartet, was highly acclaimed by both audience and critics. In September 2014 the trio won a first prize at the Salieri-Zinetti International Chamber Music Competition in Verona, Italy. In March 2015 the trio made their United States debut at the New York Chamber Music Festival and had the chance to work with composer Lera Auerbach on her first piano trio. 

In the summer of 2015 the trio won the First Prize (Prix Charles Hennen) at the Orlando Competition in The Netherlands as well as the second prize in the international Gianni Bergamo Award Competition in Switzerland. The next seasons include engagements in Korea, Hong Kong, Argentina, Chile and Europe, as well as a cd recording for Naxos Records. 

The Delta Piano Trio has the privilege to work with Wolfgang Redik (founding member of the Vienna Piano Trio) and Rainer Schmidt (Hagen Quartet) at the Universität Mozarteum in Salzburg. Further musical influences include Stephen Kovacevich, Alexander Bonduriansky, Louise Hopkins, Miguel da Silva, Johannes Meissl and Hatto Beyerle (founding member of Alban Berg Quartet). Since 2015 the trio combines their studies in Salzburg with the Cycle Concertiste in Paris, a program for young ensembles especially established to help jumpstart their career, under the guidance of the Trio Wanderer.

Sehoon Ahn
Sanghee Ji
Sangyoon Lee
Jinho Hong

The Moa quartet was founded in 2014 with four Korean musicians. They are currently studying at Hochschule für Music and Theater Würzburg, Mainz with Prof. Denise Benda and Prof. Anne Shih. The quartet is having concerts in Germany, Italy, France and South-korea regularly.

They participated festivals as ‘Zeister Musiekdagen in Holland’, ‘Mozart Festival in Würzburg’, ‘Casalmaggiore international festival in Italie’, ‘Spring festival’, ‘Schumann festival’ and ‘Dae-jeon chamber music festival’ in South Korea.

The quartet has attended masterclasses by Valentin Erben (Albanberg quartet), Gabriel Le Magadure (Ebene Quartett), , Grzegorz Kotow (Szymanovski Quartet), Volodia Mykytka (Szymanovski Quartet), Marcin Sieniawski

(“The playing of four young musicians worked harmoniously and perfectly aligned with each other, which is also reflected in the choice of name: MOA means in Korean playing together or cohesion.” <Main Post> 09. Feb 2015.
 

Verena Nothegger
Doris Lindner
Stefanie Huber

1st prize in the Svirél International Music Competition 2015
1st prize in the „I Reino del Aneto“ International Chamber Music Competition 2015
3rd prize in the Malta International Music Competition 2015
Finalist in the Gianni Bergamo Classic Music Award 2015
Bank Austria Kunstpreis 2015

Trikolon was founded in Vienna and is currently studying at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna with Johannes Meissl (Artis Quartett) and Christoph Eggner (Eggner Trio). In 2015 Trikolon was also accepted to study at the Conservatoire à rayonnement régional in Paris with the Wanderer Trio.

Trikolon was a member of the International Summer Academy of the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (isa). There they were greatly influenced by internationally renowned musicians such as Evgenia Epshtein, Patrick Jüdt, Othmar Müller, Johannes Meissl, Anita Mitterer and Péter Nagy and the Quartetto di Cremona. Furthermore Trikolon gathered new ideas from their mentors Mark Steinberg, Henk Guittart and Vincent Coq. 
Trikolon was invited to be a participant in the Orlando Festival in 2015.

For years, the ensemble has been regularly playing concerts in some of the most famous Austrian concert halls, among them the „Franz Schubert Haus“ and the „Beethoven Haus“ as well as the „Salvator-Saal“ and impressed their audience during their tour through Romania, playing among others in the Filarmonica de Stat Sibiu, in Brasov and Medias. They gave a memorable performance at the Gala Concert of the 2015 Svirél International Music Competition in Slovenia, from which they were chosen as a winner. Trikolon was also celebrated in Spain, Malta and the Netherlands.

Trikolon has won many prizes at international competitions and received the Bank Austria Kunstpreis in 2015. 
Trikolon has specialised in the interpretation of contemporary music, commissioning pieces to be performed for the first time by the ensemble. Because of it’s Viennese origin, Trikolon is also much appreciated for it’s interpretation of classical works from the „Viennese School“. 

Gianni Bergamo was born in Milan, Italy in 1941, attended primary school in Italy and Liceo in Switzerland. After a degree in Economy (1964) at the Catholic University of Milan, he dedicated himself to the study of music with Tissoni (harmony and composition), D. Maffeis (organ) and N. Sanzogno (orchestra conducting) at the Conservatory of Bergamo, Italy.
From 1964 to 1994 has been a businessman with his own import-export, real estate and finance companies, though at the same time he has remained close to music and to its world.
In 1990 he created the Cultural Association “Gli Amici Cantori”, first as a chorus alone, then later accompanied by an orchestra. He has given many concerts in Italy with them, preferring the symphonic-sacred repertoire (masses, oratories, passions, etc.). At present, he lives in Santiago del Chile.

Daniel studied with Davina van Wely, Viktor Liberman and Igor Oistrakh, and worked intensively with Herman Krebbers, Ruggiero Ricci and Ivry Gitlis. Having won various national and international prizes, including the Brahms Prize of the Brahms Society in Baden-Baden and the prestigious Oskar Back Competition at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, he made his concerto debut in 1992 performing the Tchaikovsky Concerto at the Concertgebouw. Since then, he has been recognised as a highly charismatic, expressive and versatile artist, who maintains a busy international career as soloist, recitalist, chamber musician and chamber orchestra director.

As a soloist, Daniel Rowland has performed in some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, most notably the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Carnegie Hall in New York, the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Glinka Hall in St. Petersburg and the Gulbenkian in Lisbon, and has collaborated with noted conductors such as Andrei Boreiko, Djanzug Khakidze, Viktor Liberman, Lawrence Foster, Heinz Holliger, Francois Xavier Roth, Bernhard Gueller and Jaap van Zweden. Apart from the core classical and romantic repertoire, Daniel is an enthusiastic advocate of 20th century and contemporary music, appearing as a soloist with ensembles such as the Nieuw Ensemble, Musikfabrik and Contrechamps. Recent highlights include the Berg Kammerconcert under Heinz Holliger, Saariaho's Graaltheater and Ferneyhough's Terrain - as well as Berio's Sequenza at the Wigmore Hall.

A passionate chamber musician, Daniel has performed with artists as diverse as Ivry Gitlis, Polina Leschenko, Heinz Holliger, Dawn Upshaw, Gilles Apap, Alexander Lonquich, Priya Mitchell, Marcelo Nisinman, Michael Collins, Nicolas Daniel, Willard White and Elvis Costello. He is a frequent guest at foremost international chamber music festivals in Kuhmo, Stellenbosch, Risor, Sonoro, Beethoven Festival Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, Chiemgau, Osnabrück and Oxford. The Stift International Music Festival, of which he is founder and artistic director, will see its tenth edition in August 2014. This summer festival, held at an idyllic spot in the eastern Netherlands with concerts given in a 15th century church renowned for its fine acoustics, has garnered widespread acclaim as a festival of exceptional musical intensity and intimacy.

In July 2007, Rowland joined the internationally renowned London-based Brodsky String Quartet as first violinist. The group miaintains a busy international performing schedule, in addition to its residency at Kings Place in London, and frequent recordings for Chandos.

Since 2012, Daniel is also the violinist of the acclaimed London Conchord Ensemble.

Daniel forms a recital duo with acclaimed pianist Natacha Kudritskaya. Two discs of the duo due for release in '14: 'The Paris connection' (Ravel, Debussy, Poulenc, Gerschwin & Antheil) for Gutman Records and the complete Enescu violin/piano works for Champs Hill Records. He indulges his passion for tango with ChamberJam Europe with bandoneon virtuoso Marcelo Nisinman. The group recorded it's debut disc 'Tangos del angel y del Diablo' in Berlin in June '14. Records. His recording of the Vivaldi/Piazzolla Seasons for Two Pianists Records was released to tremendous critical acclaim (“to understand the meaning of fabulous, listen to these Piazzolla Seasons"- Die Burger)

In demand as a soloist/director, Daniel has been invited to work with the Gulbenkian Orchestra (Lisbon, Portugal), the Camerata Scotland, the Tromsø Chamber Orchestra (Norway), the Chamber Orchestra of South Africa, and the London Mozart Festival Orchestra, among many others.

Daniel is professor of violin at the Royal College of Music in London and gives Masterclasses all over the world. He is also a guest concertmaster with the BBCSO, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Mahler Chamber Orchestra. His instrument is by Lorenzo Storioni, Cremona, 1776.
 

He was born in Heidelberg (Germany) on May 1, 1940 and studied music (main subject: flute) at the Universities of Music in Berlin, Stuttgart and Freiburg with Karl-Friedrich Mess, André Jaunet and Aurèle Nicolet, obtaining the concert diplo-ma.

Co-founder of the Music Institute in Erlangen in 1966, he was its director until 1979.

He has played various concerts in different chamber music groups and as soloist and has made several radio recordings.

From 1979 to 2011, he was director of the Musik-Akademie Basel and teacher for flute and chamber music at the same institute.

In 2001 he was co-founder of the European Chamber Music Academy (ECMA), being its president from 2007 to 2011. He started the research project “Musik und Raum“.

From 2006 he is invited professor for chamber music at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna (Joseph Haydn Institut).

Jürg Dähler, Born in Zurich, completed his studies on the violin and the viola at the Music Academy in Zurich with the highest honours. Various prizes and scholarships enabled further studies with Sándor Vegh, Pinchas Zukerman, Kim Kashkashian and Fjodor Druzhinin. That was followed by influential encounters with artists such as Brenton Langbein, Heinz Holliger, Nikolaus Harnancourt, and György Lígeti. He gave his debut in the Tonhalle Zurich with Paul Sacher’s Collegium Musicum under the direction of Brenton Langbein in the creation of the Violaconcerto by Daniel Schnyder.

His multi-faceted artistic activities from the classical repertory to contemporary music and jazz include first performances of solo pieces – many of them are written for and dedicated to him – by György Lígeti, Elliott Carter, Heinz Holliger, Hans Werner Henze, Arvo Pärt, Friedrich Cerha, Fjodor Drushinin, Daniel Schnyder, Mischa Käser, John Polglase, Christian Jost, Charles Bodman-Rae, Hermann Haller, Hans Ulrich Lehmann, Nadir Vassena and Alexander Brincken. As a soloist as well as a member of the Swiss Chamber Soloists (the former Kammermusiker Zürich) he regularly performs at important concerthalls and Music-Festivals such as the Salzburger Festspiele, Konzerthaus Wien, City of London Festival,  Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia di Roma, Biennale di Venezia, Lucerne Festival and the Montreux Jazz Festival and tours throughout Europe, the USA, South America, and Australia. He received international acclaim for his CD-productions with labels such as ECM, Neos, Accord, Jecklin, Claves and Cantando.

Jürg Dähler is a founder-member of the Collegium Novum Zürich and since 1993 principal violist of the Orchestra Musikkollegium Winterthur and a member of the Winterthurer Streichquartett. In 1997 he was appointed Artistic Director of the Festival Kultur Herbst Bündner Herrschaft Bad Ragaz and since 1999 he is a founder-member and Artistic Director of the Swiss Chamber Concerts. In 2007 he was the first Swiss to receive the academic title “Executive Master in Arts Administration” (EMAA) in the philosophy and business department of the University Zurich. In 2008 he received the Zolliker Kunstpreis for his artistic activities and his services to the cultural life in Switzerland. He plays a violin by Antonio Stradivarius, Cremona 1714, and a viola by Raffaele Fiorini, Bologna 1893.
 

Marcello Parolini was born in Milan, and received his diploma at the “G. Verdi” Conservatory of Milan in piano (with the highest marks) with L. Leonardi and in composition with S. Gorli and U. Rotondi, obtaining successfully his diploma in Milan.

He was permanent conductor of the “Ensemble Traiettorie Sonore” and of the Baveno Festival Ensemble. He collaborated with the group “Musica XX” and the choir of the “Nuova Polifonica Ambrosiana”. At present, he is permanent conductor of the SIMCensemble.

He has collaborated with several ensembles (Ensemble Nuove Sincronie, Divertimento Ensemble, Tactus Ensemble, Orchestra Cantelli, Orchestra Verdi etc) and has recorded for Stradivarius, Ricordi, Agorà, Eucled, Curci, RAI, Radio France and BBC.

He was awarded at several competitions, he teaches at the CSM C. Abbado in Milan. Beside his teaching activity, he is director of the Music School “Scuola Civica Cassano d’Adda”. He is often invited as jury member of the “Gianni Bergamo Classic Music Award” in Lugano and permanently plays in duo with the famous harmonica player Willi Burger.
 

Nora Doallo was born in Buenos Aires and studied piano with Juan Salomon at the Music High School of the Cuyo National University where she received her diploma in 1959. She then continued her studies with Vincente Scaramuzza, one of the most important teachers of the time. In 1960 she was unanimously awarded first prize at the “Mozart” competition in Argentina.

She performed in Latin America, Italy and Germany. Since 1978, she has been teaching piano at the Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana – University of Music.

She regularly holds masterclasses in Switzerland and Argentina.