Pavel Vernikov, a student of David Oistrach and S. Snitkowsky, gained a reputation as a virtuoso violinist more than twenty years ago. He has won prizes such as the International ARD Violin Competition in Munich and the Grand Prix at the International Violin Competition “Vittorio Gui” in Florence. He has appeared in prestigious venues such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Carnegie Hall and Kennedy Center in New York, Wigmore Hall in London, and Santa Cecilia in Rome. For the past 30 years, he has been a member of the Tchaikovsky Trio.
His artistic partners include Sviatoslav Richter, James Galway, Christian Zimmermann, and Anthony Pay, among others. He inaugurated the Russian Academy of Higher Learning in Portogruaro and was the Artistic Director of the Gubbio Music Festival, the Dubrovnik Chamber Music Festival and the Eilat Chamber Music Festival.
Facundo Agudin is a Swiss-Argentine conductor. After completing a master’s in Conducting at the Universidad Católica Argentina, he trained in medieval music and historical composition with Pedro Memelsdorff in Bologna and at the Schola Cantorum in Basel. His six-year tenure with the Schweizer Kammerchor and performances alongside maestros such as Claudio Abbado and Sir Simon Rattle at the Tonhalle Zurich significantly influenced his artistic development.
In 2007, Agudin won the first prize at the Colin Metters Seminar with the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra. Based in Basel, he founded and directs Musique des Lumières. He has also served as Principal Guest Conductor at the Armenian National Opera and conducted performances at the Mariinsky Theatre.
His debut performances include appearances at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest, Festival Ljubljana, and the Festival del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Agudin has conducted numerous prestigious orchestras, such as the Prague Chamber Orchestra, Basel Symphony Orchestra, and Buenos Aires Philharmonic.
One of the most versatile musicians of his generation, Vicente Alberola, was the first Spaniard to conduct the prestigious Mahler Chamber Orchestra, performing it at the Beijing China Festival. He is considered one of the best clarinettists in the world in the field of chamber music and symphony orchestra, as well as in the field of pedagogy. He has been a member of the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam, New York Philharmonic, and Luzern Festival Orchestra. Currently, his orchestras are Mahler Chamber, Utopia and Dissonances.
During his time as a member of the Madrid Symphony, he conducted four operas at the Teatro Real in Madrid, with L'elissire d'amore being a success with the public and critics. He has dedicated his entire musical career, especially to young people, bringing young orchestras to the highest level. He currently combines his work as a musician-performer with orchestra direction and that of a teacher. His MMCV academy is a great success, preparing young musicians for the professional world.
A formidable and incandescent presence on the podium, conductor Gisèle Ben-Dor has been described by the Los Angeles Times as ‘’a ferocious talent’’.
Most recently, she led the final performance of the 2024 International Jerusalem Solo Dance Festival and was honoured as “A Great Immigrant and A Great American” by the Carnegie Foundation. Her latest CD, “Cien Años,” celebrating Piazzolla’s centenary, has received five-star reviews. This past season, she also conducted the world premiere of the opera “Cuitláhuatzin” in Mexico City.
Among the orchestras she has led are the New York Philharmonic, London Symphony, London Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Helsinki Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, New World Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, Jerusalem Symphony, and the Israel Chamber Orchestra, as well as the Seoul and Rotterdam Philharmonics, among others.
In 1991, Mauro Bucarelli left the artistic direction of the Rome Opera House after four years to become Artistic Administrator at Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (Rome). In this role, he closely collaborated with conductors such as Daniele Gatti, Christian Thielemann, Myung-Whun Chung, Antonio Pappano, and Daniel Harding, among many others. He is a musicologist, having studied piano, composition, arts and humanities in Rome and is a former teacher of music history.
After working at the Treccani Encyclopaedia and becoming consultant for the RAI Radio 3 (classical music channel), he was researcher for the Fondazione Rossini in Pesaro where he collaborated with Bruno Cagli, as well as for the University of Chicago with Philip Gossett on the editing of the new critical edition of the complete works of Rossini.
He also specializes in musical iconography and has been involved in many exhibitions. Among these, he was the curator for the redesigning of Rossini’s house in Pesaro into a museum. Working with the designer Pier Luigi Pizzi, he was scientific co-ordinator for the exhibition Rossini 1792-1992 held in Pesaro with the support of the European Cultural Commission.
He is a prolific writer and essayist and writes programme notes for opera companies, such as the Metropolitan Opera New York and La Scala, as well as for major record companies.
Epifanio Comis is a distinguished musician who studied under renowned teachers such as Agatella Catania, Lazar Berman, and Pietro Rattalino. He has toured extensively as a soloist across Europe, Asia, Russia, and the United States, performing with prestigious orchestras worldwide. His recitals in the USA and Asia have garnered significant critical acclaim.
Comis conducts masterclasses at esteemed institutions, including the Manhattan School of Music, Chopin Academy in Warsaw, Royal Conservatoire in Mons, Ecole Normale in Paris, Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, and the Bucharest Music Academy. He has performed in notable venues such as Carnegie Hall and Osaka Symphony Hall, among others.
In addition to his performances, Comis is also an active conductor. His recent performances include all of Rachmaninov’s Piano Concertos and Rhapsody and Prokofiev’s Piano Concertos with the Bellini Theatre Symphony Orchestra.
Damiano Cottalasso began his music studies at the age of 8. He studied violin at the Genoa Conservatory of Music “Niccolò Paganini,” where he earned his master’s degree in 1988 with full marks and praise.
He participated in masterclasses with renowned violinists, including Franco Gulli (a teacher at Indianapolis), Regis Pasquier, Pierre Amoyal at the High School of Music in Saluzzo (Italy), and Berl Senofsky at the Peabody Institute of Baltimore (USA). Cottalasso won several violin competitions at a young age, followed by an orchestral competition in Genoa, Turin, and at Teatro alla Scala in Milan, where he performed in opera, ballet, and symphonic concerts with world-renowned conductors such as Riccardo Muti, Daniel Barenboim, Claudio Abbado, Zubin Mehta, Valerij Gergiev, Georges Prêtre, Myung-whun Chung, among others. He also performs chamber music with different groups, including the Concertmaster of the La Scala Orchestra.
Multi-talented Mischa Damev received his first music lessons from his grandfather Michael Lefterov, a famous Bulgarian conductor. He completed his piano studies at the Musikhochschule in Basel in 1986 with a soloist diploma. From 1990 to 1999, he was the artistic director of the Orpheum International Festival for Young Soloists in Zurich and led the Swiss Lilienberg recital series and the Lilienberg Foundation Art & Culture Division from 1992 to 2007. In 2000, he became a Trustee of the London International Master Prize Competition for Contemporary Symphonic Music.
In 1991, Damev switched from a concert pianist career to intensive conducting studies. After his successful debut with the Orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio and the Sofia Opera House, he has conducted major orchestras in Europe, including the Orchestra del Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, and many others. He has also worked with prestigious Russian orchestras, including the Moscow Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra and Russian National Orchestra.
Dražen Domjanić is a distinguished pianist, educator, and cultural manager dedicated to fostering young musical talent. Born in Croatia and based in Liechtenstein, he is the founder, CEO, and artistic director of the Academy of Music in Liechtenstein, providing world-class training for outstanding musicians, as well as the artistic director of the non-profit Music & Youth Foundation.
Mr. Domjanić founded DOWANI International, a publishing house specialising in educational music editions that support aspiring musicians worldwide. As a passionate promoter of classical music, he has played a key role in organising prestigious competitions, festivals, and institutions, including the Sinfonieorchester Liechtenstein (SOL), Vaduz Classic, Festival Next Generation, Festival Alpenarte, Festival Olive Classic, Ensemble Esperanza, and KULMAG, offering platforms for emerging artists.
Chief conductor of The Polish Chamber Orchestra ROK, Artistic Director of the Orchestra of the Royal Capital City of Krakow Sinfonietta Cracovia (2014–2022), an acclaimed conductor and musician of the Vienna Philharmonic. He has made appearances with the Beethoven Orchester Bonn, Radio Symphonie Orchester Wien, Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederosterreich, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo, L'Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Wiener Kammer-Orchester Wiener Concert-Verein, Concerto Köln, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra, Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Polish Radio Orchestra, Silesian Chamber Orchestra, Wrocław's Leopoldinum and National Forum of Music Symphony Orchestra, as well as Philharmonic Orchestras in Poznań, Kraków, Łódź and Gdańsk and Silesian and Krakow Operas. He also supports as its artistic leader and conductor the „NADIIA” Ukrainian Symphony Orchestra Kharkiv, which found its artistic refugium in Poland.
Jurek Dybał is the founder and director of the Krzysztof Penderecki International Music Festival – Level 320 held in the historical hall of Guido Mine in Zabrze. He conducted the Polish premieres of Krzysztof Penderecki's Adagio for Strings and Music for Three Recorders, Marimba, Percussion and Strings. He also participated in the world premiere of the composer's quintet Leaves of an Unwritten Diary and Duo concertante (Polish and French premiere).
Umberto Fanni is a prominent figure in performing arts, currently serving as the Director General and Artistic Director of the Royal Opera House Muscat. He has garnered recognition for his leadership in theatre management and as an award-winning concert pianist.
Fanni’s musical journey began at the Conservatory of Music in Brescia, where he graduated with high honours, before continuing his studies at the Conservatory of Music in Geneva. In 1985, he founded the Young Italian Chamber Orchestra, composed entirely of talented young musicians who are now established soloists or are playing in renowned orchestras such as La Scala in Milan and Wiener Philharmoniker.
Under the mentorship of renowned conductor Maestro Claudio Scimone, Fanni entered the world of performing arts management, taking on the role of Assistant Artistic Director for “I Solisti Veneti,” Italy’s finest chamber ensemble. His contributions to the music community include founding a theatre and music festival management company.
Jean-Baptiste Fra holds two Master’s degrees: one in administration and music management and another in musicology from Université de Lyon. He is also a trained clarinettist and graduated from the Grenoble Conservatoire.
Fra has been the general manager of the Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse since April 2022. Working alongside music director Tarmo Peltokoski, Jean-Baptiste Fra’s primary mission is to perpetuate an ambitious artistic programming of this prestigious institution and to develop the orchestra’s national and international outreach and influence.
From 2017 to 2022, he served as the artistic administrator of the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire, where he developed a comprehensive artistic strategy that significantly contributed to the institution’s growth and increased recognition. The audience expanded notably during this period thanks to high-quality artistic collaborations and programming that engaged various local stakeholders, including artists, institutions, and amateur musicians.
Robert Hanc became General Manager and Artistic Director of the Czech Philharmonic in February 2011, having previously worked for six years as Orchestra Manager of the Brno Philharmonic. At the Czech Philharmonic, he is responsible for developing the artistic concepts for the orchestra’s concerts and projects in Prague, their touring both in the Czech Republic and abroad, their chamber music presentations and their recording. He oversees the orchestra’s management and the staff planning its activities.
Robert Hanc is an arts management lecturer at the Music and Dance Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and a consultant to the Prague Philharmonic Choir and the Smetana’s Litomysl festival. He serves on the board of directors of the Czech Philharmonic Foundation.
After completing her studies in languages and business management in London, Eleanor Hope worked in advertising, marketing, and public relations. In 1975, she became Yehudi Menuhin’s personal assistant and soon took over his general management. By 1980, she was appointed the artistic administrator of his festival in Gstaad, Switzerland, a position she held until he retired as director in 1996.
Eleanor served as the managing director of Anglo-Swiss Artists in London for over ten years, representing more than 100 artists and orchestras. She has also been the artistic director of the Bath Mozartfest in England, served on the advisory boards of the Schleswig-Holstein and Vilnius festivals, and was the chairman of the Yehudi Menuhin Memorial Trust in 1999. Additionally, she took on the artistic direction of the Menuhin Festival for three years.
At IMG Artists, her responsibilities included programming classical music, entertainment, and dance subscriptions for Frankfurt’s Jahrhunderthalle, as well as collaborating on feasibility studies for the Basel Symphony Orchestra and the Polish National Music Forum in Wroclaw.
Konstantin Ilievsky served as Chief Conductor of the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Sofia and conductor of the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra in Bratislava. He was also the General Music Director of the international “Sinfonietta dell’Arte” and taught at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna and the Conservatory in Bratislava.
A conductor, composer, and pianist, Ilievsky made numerous recordings for Bulgarian, Slovak, and Austrian radio and television, performing widely across Europe, China, and beyond, receiving the prestigious “Golden Pen” award in 2024 for his contributions to Bulgarian culture.
Previously, Ilievsky was Artistic Director of the “Dianopolis” Chamber Orchestra and the “Golden Diana” International Music Festival. In 2022, he received the Austrian Choir Directors’ Gold Pin for over 25 years of choir conducting in Austria and several diplomatic awards for promoting Bulgarian culture. He also earned an honorary membership in the Armenian humanitarian charity AGBU.
Daye Lin is a luminary figure in orchestral music, holding several esteemed positions. He is the music director and principal conductor of the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, artistic director and chief conductor of the Wuxi Symphony Orchestra, and a special guest conductor for the China National Symphony Orchestra. Professionally, he also serves as a professor at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and the Chinese University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Conservatory of Music. He is part of the Shanghai municipal innovation team “First-Class Orchestra Talent Training and Practice” and was appointed the first chairman of the Shenzhen Youth Musicians Association in 2023.
His career is highlighted by numerous accolades, including receiving the He Lüting Art Achievement Award and winning first prize at the 6th George Solti International Conducting Competition in 2012, marking him as the first Chinese recipient. In 2023, he was named among the Top Ten Outstanding Youth of Shenzhen.
Tigran Mikaelyan was born in 1969 in Yerevan. He began taking violin lessons at age five and enrolled in the Tschaikovsky Music Gymnasium when he was seven. After completing his studies in 1987, he continued his education at the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg under the guidance of Professor A. Fischer. At the conservatory, he performed numerous solo and duo concerts.
Mikaelyan later performed as a soloist with the St. Petersburg Chamber Orchestra and gave solo concerts in Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium. In 1995, he moved to Germany, where he currently serves as the concertmaster of the Neue Philharmonie Hamburg. He also founded several ensembles, including the Neue Philharmonie Hamburg in 2003, with which he has performed many successful concerts as a soloist and leading violinist.
In addition to his work as a soloist, Tigran is deeply committed to promoting music education and serves as a lecturer at various music schools and academies. Furthermore, he has participated in numerous charity concerts and has been involved in social projects.
Lucas Macías Navarro debuted as conductor in the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires in 2014 following an exceptional career as one of the world’s finest oboists. He was Principal Oboe of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, and founding member of the Mozart Orchestra alongside his mentor Claudio Abbado.
He began his musical studies at the age of nine and was later accepted into Heinz Holliger’s oboe class at the University of Freiburg. He continued his training at the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic, and then in Geneva with Maurice Bourgue. He won several first prizes including the Sony Music Foundation Tokyo International Oboe Competition in 2006. As a conductor, he trained with Mark Stringer at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna.
In previous seasons he has conducted the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Orchestre de Paris –where he was assistant conductor for two years in close collaboration with Daniel Harding– Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, Staatskapelle Dresden, Filarmónica de Buenos Aires, Het Gelders Orkest, Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia and the Euskadiko Orkestra, among others.
Marios Papadopoulos started his career as a concert pianist before founding the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra in 1998, a role he has embraced as its Music Director ever since. Under his guidance, the Orchestra has risen to prominence as one of the leading orchestras in the UK, regularly collaborating with esteemed artists including Anne-Sophie Mutter, Janine Jansen, Evgeny Kissin, Maxim Vengerov, and Martha Argerich.
Papadopoulos has appeared as guest conductor and soloist with the Philharmonic Orchestra, European Union Chamber Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In June 2022 he conducted the Oxford Philharmonic in their Carnegie Hall debut in New York and in 2023 at the Musikverein in Vienna, as well as the Isarphilharmonie in Munich with pianist Martha Argerich as soloist.
Christoph Poppen is a distinguished conductor renowned for his innovative programming and dedication to all classical music genres. A frequent guest conductor, he has worked with orchestras such as Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Staatskapelle Dresden, Bamberger Symphoniker, and the New Japan Philharmonic, while maintaining long-term artistic relationships with ensembles such as the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and the Netherlands Philharmonic.
An accomplished educator, Poppen has served as Professor of Violin and Chamber Music at the Hochschule für Musik in Detmold and the Hanns Eisler Hochschule für Musik in Berlin, where he was president from 1996 through 2000. He has been a professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich since 2003 and founded the International Academy for Music, Arts and Science in Marvão, Portugal, in 2019. As of the 2021/22 academic year, he is the Chair Professor of Violin at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid.
Sergey Smbatyan is the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra, the Principal Conductor of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and the Principal Guest Conductor of the Berlin Symphony Orchestra. A passionate populariser of classical music, the conductor has extensive international engagement while championing the rejuvenation of classical music audiences and promoting contemporary classical music worldwide.
Smbatyan serves as Artistic Director of several annual music festivals and the Khachaturyan International Competition. He has initiated various educational and cultural programs which the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra implements to foster cultural development among the younger generation. Meanwhile, the Music for Future Foundation (M4FF), established by Sergey Smbatyan, has supported young musicians’ professional advancement since 2019.
Described by the Herald Tribune as “charismatic, brilliant, energetic”, Anu Tali is one of the most captivating and versatile conductors on the international scene today, whose unique artistic vision has drawn acclaim from critics and audiences globally.
She has been featured in numerous documentaries by international broadcasters such as ARTE, NHK Japan, YLE Finland and Deutsche Welle. Starting her career as a pianist, she trained under esteemed conductors at the Estonian Academy of Music and the St Petersburg State Conservatory, solidifying her place in classical music.
As the former Music Director of the Sarasota Orchestra in Florida, Tali frequently collaborates with international orchestras, such as the New Japan Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France, the Houston Symphony Orchestra, the Deutsches Symphonieorchester Berlin and the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks.
Christiane Weber studied musicology, art history and history at the Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg in Germany. During her studies, she completed internships at various festivals and wrote concert reviews for several newspapers. Since 2001, she has been working for the Lucerne Festival, where she heads the Artistic Office, which organises three smaller festivals throughout the year, each with different themes, in addition to the main summer festival. Weber has played a key role in developing various focal points and concert formats for these events.
Since its foundation by Claudio Abbado and Artistic Director Michael Haefliger in 2003, she has managed the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and organised numerous tours. In addition, Christiane Weber has served on various juries and is involved in chamber music festivals.
Born in 1961, Christopher Widauer studies and works in the Department of Philosophy at Salzburg University. He began his career in arts management, collaborating with musicians such as Thomas Zehetmair, Friedrich Gulda, and Claudio Arrau. From 1987 to 1991, he acted as the director of the Styriarte Festival in Graz under the artistic direction of Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
Widauer developed a ticketing software that is used in leading venues, including the Konzerthaus Vienna, Salzburg Festival, and Elbphilharmonie. In 1989, he founded a puppet theatre dedicated to contemporary music and literature, commissioning and premiering works by renowned authors and composers with orchestras and ensembles throughout Europe. Notably, he also organised 24 concerts with the Vienna Symphony in the main hall of the Konzerthaus Vienna.
Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer is the Music Director of the Swiss Orchestra, which performs a large part of the symphonic program as the orchestra in residence. She is known for her innovative concert programs that venture off the beaten path, inspiring audiences to explore new musical experiences. Since 2022, she has also been the artistic director of ANDERMATT MUSIC, overseeing the concert operations of the Andermatt Concert Hall.
Born in Zurich in 1983, Wüstendörfer studied violin and conducting at the Hochschule für Musik der Stadt Basel, as well as musicology and economics at the University of Basel. She furthered her conducting studies with Sylvia Caduff and Sir Roger Norrington and served as assistant conductor to Claudio Abbado. Her monograph “Klingender Zeitgeist” on Mahler’s Fourth Symphony was published in June 2019 and was reviewed as a “groundbreaking” and “highly stimulating pioneering work”.