Festival Artists

The Jupiter String Quartet is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Mélanie Clapiès and Meg Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (Meg’s sister), and cellist Daniel McDonough (Meg’s husband). Founded in 2001, the ensemble is firmly established as an important voice in the world of chamber music, and exudes an energy that is at once friendly, knowledgeable, and adventurous. The New Yorker states, “The Jupiter String Quartet, an ensemble of eloquent intensity, has matured into one of the mainstays of the American chamber-music scene.” 

The quartet has performed across the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and the Americas in some of the world’s finest halls, including New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, Mexico City’s Palacio de Bellas Artes, Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center and Library of Congress, Austria’s Esterhazy Palace, and Seoul’s Sejong Chamber Hall. Their major music festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival and School, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, Rockport Music Festival, the Banff Centre, Taos School of Music Summer Festival, Virginia Arts Festival, Music at Menlo, Maverick Concerts, Caramoor International Music Festival, Lanaudiere Festival, West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Tucson Winter Chamber Music Festival, Skaneateles Festival, Madeline Island Music Festival, Yellow Barn Festival, Encore Chamber Music Festival, the inaugural Chamber Music Athens, and the Seoul Spring Festival, among others. 

Their chamber music honours and awards include the grand prizes in the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition in 2004. In 2005, they won the Young Concert Artists International auditions in New York City, which quickly led to a busy touring schedule. They received the Cleveland Quartet Award from Chamber Music America in 2007, followed by an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2008. From 2007-10, they were in-residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Two and, in 2009, they received a grant from the Fromm Foundation to commission a new quartet from Dan Visconti for a CMSLC performance at Alice Tully Hall. In 2012, the Jupiter Quartet members were appointed as artists-in-residence and faculty at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where they continue to perform regularly in the beautiful Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, maintain private studios and direct the chamber music program. 

The Jupiter String Quartet feels a strong connection to the core string quartet repertoire; they have presented the complete Bartok string quartets at the University of Illinois and the complete cycle of Beethoven string quartets at the Aspen Music Festival and School, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Lanaudiere Festival in Quebec. Also deeply committed to new music, they have commissioned string quartets from Nathan Shields, Stephen Andrew Taylor, Michi Wiancko, Syd Hodkinson, Hannah Lash, Dan Visconti, and Kati Agócs; a quintet with baritone voice by Mark Adamo; and a piano quintet by Pierre Jalbert. They are also part of a commission for chamber choir and string quartet, with music by Su Lian Tan and words by Robin Wall Kimmerer.

The Jupiters place a strong emphasis on developing relationships with future audiences through educational performances in schools and other community centres. They believe that, because of the intensity of its interplay and communication, chamber music is one of the most effective ways of spreading an enthusiasm for classical music to new audiences. The quartet has also held numerous masterclasses for young musicians, including most recently at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Cleveland Institute of Music, Northwestern University, Eastman School of Music, the Aspen Music Festival, Encore Chamber Festival, Madeline Island Music Festival, and Peabody Conservatory. 

The quartet’s latest album is a collaboration with the Jasper String Quartet (Marquis Classics, 2021), produced by Grammy-winner Judith Sherman. This collaborative album features the world premiere recording of Dan Visconti’s Eternal Breath, Felix Mendelssohn’s Octet in E-flat, Op. 20, and Osvaldo Golijov’s Last Round. The Arts Fuse acclaimed, “This joint album from the Jupiter String Quartet and Jasper String Quartet is striking for its backstory but really memorable for its smart program and fine execution.” The quartet’s discography also includes numerous recordings on labels including Azica Records and Deutsche Grammophon. In 2024, the Jupiter Quartet recorded an album with Judith Sherman, featuring the world premiere recordings of Michi Wiancko’s To Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores, Stephen Taylor’s Chaconne/Labyrinth, and Kati Agócs’s Imprimatur, which were all composed for the Jupiters.

Recent and upcoming highlights include residencies at Taos School of Music Summer Festival, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the Adam Chamber Music Festival in New Zealand, and the University of Idaho, as well as performances presented by the Library of Congress, the University of Florida Performing Arts, Bay Chamber Concerts, Calgary Pro Musica, San Antonio Chamber Music Society, Buffalo Chamber Music Society, and many more. As artists-in-residence at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana, they also perform a series of concerts at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts.

The quartet chose its name because Jupiter was the most prominent planet in the night sky at the time of its formation and the astrological symbol for Jupiter resembles the number four.

Established in 1987, the New Zealand String Quartet – Te Rōpū Tūrū o Aotearoa is Aotearoa New Zealand’s longest-serving professional string quartet. New Zealand String Quartet provides transformational chamber music experiences to diverse audiences throughout the motu and abroad.

Through their programming the quartet strives towards a vision of reimagining what a string quartet can be for all New Zealanders in the 21st century. NZSQ offers high-quality musical performances, blending fresh and familiar repertoire, including New Zealand music, major composers and cross-genre collaborations. Proud cultural ambassadors, NZSQ has commissioned over 150 New Zealand works and actively champions New Zealand and Māori music. In addition to performing, the musicians are devoted teachers and mentors, playing a leadership role in music education by teaching at the New Zealand School of Music – Te Kōkī since 1991, and running the annual Adam Summer School for Chamber Music in Nelson. Through partnerships with organisations like Sistema Aotearoa, NZSQ mentors young musicians throughout the country.

Gillian Ansell, violist and longest-serving member of the quartet, has been awarded a MNZM for services to music in New Zealand.

For the 2026 Adam Chamber Music Festival, the New Zealand String Quartet is Peter Clark (violin), Arna Morton (violin), Gillian Ansell (viola) and Martin Smith.

Known for his ‘exquisite control and emotional directness’, Colin Ainsworth has built a versatile and compelling career performing both the iconic roles of Classical and Baroque opera and bringing new contemporary works to life, while continuing to expand into the repertoire of the 19th and 20th centuries. Renowned for his stage presence, he has performed the title roles in Idomeneo, Orphée et Euridice, Pygmalion, Castor et Pollux, Roberto Devereux and Albert Herring; Steuermann in Der fliegende Holländer; Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Ernesto in Don Pasquale, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, Fenton in Falstaff, Tonio in La Fille du Régiment, Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de Perles, Pylades in Iphigénie en Tauride, Renaud in Lully’s Armide, David in David et Jonathas, Tom Rakewell in The Rake’s Progress, Alfredo in La Traviata, Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, King Admète in Alceste, and as Lensky in Eugene Onegin. He has performed at the London’s Royal Opera, Canadian Opera Company, Chicago Opera Theater, Glimmerglass Opera, L’Opéra Français de New York, Opera Atelier, Pacific Opera Victoria, the Greek National Opera, Teatro Nacional São Carlos, Vancouver Opera and Seattle Opera.

As a prolific concert singer, Colin has appeared with the Cincinnati Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble Pygmalion, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Symphony, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra of San Francisco, Music of the Baroque in Chicago, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Mercury Baroque in Houston, Les Violons du Roy in Montreal, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Orchestre Métropolitain, Oregon Bach Festival, Göttingen Handel Festival, Rhode Island Philharmonic, and at Carnegie Hall with Leon Botstein and the American Symphony Orchestra. His vast concert and recital repertoire includes Bach’s Mass in B Minor, St. Matthew Passion, St. John’s Passion, Handel’s Messiah, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Mozart’s Requiem, Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin and Janácek’s Diary of One Who Vanished.

Colin’s growing discography includes Vivaldi’s La Griselda (Naxos), Castor et Pollux (Naxos), Schubert Among Friends (Marquis Classics), Gloria in Excelsis Deo with the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (CBC Records), the collected masses of Vanhal, Haydn, and Cherubini (Naxos), and the première recording of Derek Holman’s The Heart Mislaid which was included on the Aldeburgh Connection’s Our Own Songs (Marquis Classics). His second recording, A Play of Passion, features music written for him and Stephen Ralls also by Derek Holman.

Recent performances include Handel’s Messiah with Dame Jane Glover and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, recitals in Ottawa, Victoria, and Vancouver, Charpentier’s David and Jonathas with Opera Atelier in Toronto, Alceste with Opera in Concert, and the recording release of Jeffrey Ryan’s Afghanistan: Requiem for a Generation with the Vancouver Symphony.

A Juno award winner and Order of Canada recipient, James Campbell has been called ‘Canada’s pre-eminent clarinettist and wind soloist’ by the Toronto Star, ‘a national treasure’ by the CBC, and ‘one of the top half dozen clarinettists in the world today’ by Fanfare Magazine. 

James has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in more than 35 countries with over 65 orchestras, including the Boston Pops, London Symphony and Philharmonic, and every major orchestra in Canada. He has collaborated with Glenn Gould and Aaron Copland and toured with over 35 string quartets, including the Guarneri, Amadeus (when he replaced Benny Goodman on a tour of California) and Vermeer. Of his more than 50 recordings, the BBC and The Times UK rated his recording of the Brahms Clarinet Quintet as the best available. He was named Canada’s Artist of the Year, awarded the Queen’s Gold and Diamond Jubilee Medal, an Honorary Doctor of Laws, and was recently inducted into the CBC’s Classical Music Hall of Fame. 

James has been the Artistic Director of the Festival of the Sound, the annual summer Canadian chamber music festival, since 1985 and has programmed over 1500 concerts for the festival. Under his direction, the festival has travelled to England, Japan and the Netherlands, and been the subject of documentaries by BBC Television, CBC Television and TV Ontario.

From 1988-2019, James was a Professor of Music at the famed Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University. His former students now occupy positions in orchestras including Boston Symphony, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony and St Louis Symphony, professorships in numerous conservatories worldwide and are Grammy-nominated performers. 

James is the subject of numerous features and cover stories in Clarinet Magazine (USA), Clarinet and Sax(UK), Piper Magazine (Japan), and Gramophone, and is featured in the book ‘Clarinet Virtuosi of Today’ by British author and clarinet authority Pamela Weston.

James lives in Canada and continues to give concerts and masterclasses worldwide.

Jeremy Denk is one of America’s foremost pianists, proclaimed by the New York Times as ‘a pianist you want to hear no matter what he performs’. Jeremy is also a New York Times bestselling author, the recipient of both the MacArthur Genius Fellowship and the Avery Fisher Prize, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In the 2024/25, Jeremy continued his collaboration with longtime musical partners Joshua Bell and Steven Isserlis. This included performances at the Tsindali Festival and Wigmore Hall, on the heels of his multi-concert artist residency at the Wigmore in 2023/24.

Jeremy also returned to the Lammermuir Festival in multiple performances, including the complete Ives violin sonatas with Maria Wloszczowska, and a solo recital featuring female composers from the past to the present day. He continues to perform this same solo programme on tour across the US, and will further his exploration of Bach in ongoing performances of the complete Partitas.

Jeremy is known for his interpretations of the music of American visionary Charles Ives — and in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth, Nonesuch Records will release a collection of his Ives recordings later this year.

Highlights of Jeremy’s 2023/24 season included premiering a new concerto written for him by Anna Clyne, co-commissioned and performed by the Dallas Symphony led by Fabio Luisi, the City of Birmingham Symphony led by Kazuki Yamada, and the New Jersey Symphony led by Markus Stenz. He also reunited with Krzysztof Urbański to perform with the Antwerp Symphony, and with the Danish String Quartet for their festival, Series of Four.

Jeremy has performed frequently at Carnegie Hall, and in recent years has worked with such orchestras as Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and San Francisco Symphony. Meanwhile, he has performed multiple times at the BBC Proms and Klavierfestival Ruhr, and appeared in such halls as the Köln Philharmonie, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and Boulez Saal in Berlin.

Jeremy has also performed extensively across the UK, including recently with the London Philharmonic, Bournemouth Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

Jeremy is also known for his original and insightful writing on music, which Alex Ross praises for its ‘arresting sensitivity and wit’. His New York Times bestselling memoir, Every Good Boy Does Fine was published to universal acclaim by Random House in 2022. Meanwhile, his latest album of Mozart piano concertos was deemed “urgent and essential” by BBC Radio 3, while his recording of the Goldberg Variations reached No. 1 on the Billboard Classical charts.

Jeremy Denk is proudly supported by The Turnovsky Endowment Trust.

Born into a family of musicians in Novosibirsk, and settling in New Zealand in 1996, Natalia has established herself internationally as a versatile performing artist. Since her debut with the Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of seven, Natalia has performed as a soloist with many orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Lord Menuhin, Philharmonia, Singapore Symphony, New Zealand Symphony, Auckland Philharmonia, Christchurch Symphony, Tokyo Royal Philharmonic, Moscow Philharmonic and numerous others. Natalia has collaborated with many distinguished conductors including Lionel Bringuier, Matthias Bamert, Arvo Volmer, Olari Elts, Vladimir Verbitsky, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Eckehard Stier, Dmitri Slobodenyuk, Vladimir Ashkenazi, Valery Polyansky and Mikhail Gerts.

Following her 1st prize wins at ‘Premio Paganini’ and the Michael Hill International Violin Competition, Natalia recorded with pianist Olga Sitkovetsky for Dynamic, Fone, Trust Records and Atoll; with violinist/violist Yuri Zhislin for Naxos and Orchid, with Alexander Karpeyev for Somm Records, and pianists Ivan Martin and Dinara Klinton for Orchid Classics. Her latest album of Schumann, Prokofiev and Szymanowski was chosen byBBC Music Magazine as Chamber Choice of the Month in 2024. October 2024 saw the release of Vierne Piano Quintet on Sony Classical (France).

Natalia has performed extensively as a soloist and chamber musician in prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall, Kings Place, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Buckingham Palace, the Barbican and Royal Festival Hall. She has performed chamber music with distinguished musicians such as Maxim Vengerov, Gidon Kremer, Paul Meyer, Eric Le Sage, Michael Collins, Emmanuel Pahud, Yuri Bashmet, Ivan Martin, Daishin Kashimoto, Alessio Bax, Claudio Bohorquez, Natalie Clein, Lise Berthaud and Tabea Zimmerman.

A passionate educator, Natalia with her husband Yuri Zhislin, established a concert series in London to enable young musicians to perform as soloists with Camerata Tchaikovsky Chamber Orchestra. Natalia was appointed Professor of Violin at the Royal College of Music in London in 2010, and The Yehudi Menuhin School in 2024. She currently resides in London.

Double bassist Phoebe Russell thrives both as an experienced orchestral musician as well as a dynamic soloist and chamber musician, captivating audiences worldwide by showcasing the beauty and versatility of the double bass beyond the confines of the traditional orchestral realm.

At 17, Phoebe moved to Berlin, where she debuted with the Berlin Philharmonic’s esteemed double bass section. A graduate of its prestigious Karajan Academy, she has since performed in over 20 countries with leading ensembles, including the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Radio Symphony Orchestra Berlin, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester, Netherlands Philharmonic and Mahler Chamber Orchestra. In 2017, Phoebe was appointed Principal Double Bass of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra. She is also a regular guest principal with orchestras in Australia and abroad, including the Australian World Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, and most recently, the Impossible Orchestra led by Alondra de la Parra at the PAAX Festival in Mexico. 

As a soloist, Phoebe has performed widely across Australia, the USA and Europe, including a packed recital in the Berlin Philharmonic’s lunchtime concert series. She has appeared with the Queensland, Tasmanian and Canberra Symphony Orchestras, Baden-Baden Philharmonic, and premiered several new works, including Paul Dean’s Double Bass Concerto.

A passionate chamber musician, Phoebe is a core member of Ensemble Q and regularly appears at festivals including the Australian Festival of Chamber Music and Martinborough Chamber Music Festival, and recently toured with Musica Viva Australia. A dedicated educator, Phoebe is a lecturer in double bass at the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University. She has taught masterclasses internationally, including at the Guildhall School of Music in London, Penn State University, the Melbourne and Sydney Conservatoriums of Music, Australian National Academy of Music, and Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá. 

Bob Bickerton has worked within the New Zealand professional performing arts industry for 50 years in a myriad of roles including as trustee, manager, audio engineer, producer, composer and performer.

After moving on from trustee and management roles, Bob is now focussed on creative exploits and in recent years has performed as a taonga puoro practitioner with Nelson Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand Composers’ Workshop and with New Zealand String Quartet in their performance of Gillian Whitehead’s Hine Pū Te Hue, which was broadcast as part of Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts in 2022 and Ngā roimata o Mānuka which premiered at the 2024 Adam Chamber Music Festival.

A specialist in traditional Celtic music, Bob first discovered the world of taonga puoro – traditional Māori instruments – when he moved to Nelson in 1987 as Director of the Nelson School of Music. It was then he encouraged Richard Nunns to deliver a workshop on these ‘singing treasures’. Bob went on to work with Richard and Aroha Yates-Smith on various projects including several film scores and with poet Glen Colquhoun and Richard Nunns in Glen’s poetry cycle North South. Following encouragement from Hirini Melbourne, he included taonga puoro in his school shows and in the last 30 years has presented the taonga to many hundreds of thousands of students around New Zealand.

Bob has collaborated with Ariana Tikao on several occasions and toured with Chamber Music New Zealand in October 2024 with their new album, Muriwai, receiving critical acclaim in the prestigious internationalSonglines magazine.

As a music creator, Bob has had songs performed and recorded internationally and has had his own recordings released on the international Naxos label. Recent projects have included music for videos, exhibitions, art projections, video games and theatre.

Paul Chan is one of the country’s leading organists with a magic combination of virtuoso keyboard skills, a big repertoire of music and a wonderful improviser. All of these qualities he has used with imagination and flair while presiding over the four-manual Willis organ as Director of Music and Organist for five years at St Matthew-in-the-City, Auckland. He was also the organ tutor at King’s College from 2016 to 2021.

Paul received his first musical training in Hong Kong from a young age and has recorded for Radio Television Hong Kong with a prize-winning performance. A former organ scholar of Auckland’s Holy Trinity Cathedral, Paul gained his music qualifications from the University of Waikato and the University of Auckland, in addition to several diplomas from the Royal Schools of Music and the Royal College of Organists. He holds a teaching diploma from ABRSM and was awarded a Fellowship Diploma in Organ by Trinity College London in 2018.

He has performed Saint-Saëns’ Organ Symphony with St Matthew’s Chamber Orchestra and given numerous organ recitals, including two at Auckland Town Hall, one of which includes his improvisation on the New Zealand National Anthem. During his time in Auckland, he also served at St Andrew’s First Presbyterian Church. Before moving to Nelson, he was a trustee of Auckland Town Hall Organ Trust and has served on the committee of Auckland Organ Association. He was appointed Organist at Nelson Cathedral in 2021.

Chroma Chamber Choir is a Nelson-based choir of around 25 to 30 auditioned singers who love choral singing and enjoy sharing interesting and challenging music with Nelson music lovers.

Currently directed by Pete Rainey, Chroma’s repertoire is mainly drawn from formal choral music. The choir performs both a cappella and accompanied. The content of its carefully crafted programmes range through the centuries from Gregorian chant to contemporary, including both sacred and secular, sometimes themed, such as the concert of Russian Treasures.

Since its inception in 2010, Chroma’s performances have featured choral pieces from the wealth of the renaissance and baroque choral repertoire, through to classical and romantic songs, and compositions from the 21st century. Longer choral works performed during Chroma’s 15 years have included Bach’s Easter Oratorio, Handel’s Messiah, Britten’s Saint Nicholas, Fauré’s Requiem, Duruflé’s Requiem and recently Will Todd’s Mass in Blue. 

While not defining its parameters, a touchstone for Chroma singers is singing a cappella, especially in Nelson’s Christ Church Cathedral. 

Yuka Eguchi has been a violinist of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra since 2015. Before making her home in New Zealand, Yuka was Solo Concertmaster of the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra. 

Yuka studied with Dr. Suzuki, Josef Gingold (at Indiana University), F. Gulli and Y. Yaron. As a high school student she won the 55th Japan Music Competition. After receiving a Bachelor of Music degree and a Performers Diploma from Indiana University, she won a prize in Washington International Violin Competition and 3rd prize in Paganini International Competition.

New Zealander Todd Gibson-Cornish was appointed principal bassoon of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in 2016. As an in-demand guest principal, Todd has performed with many of Europe’s leading orchestras including London Symphony Orchestra, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (Rome), Oslo Philharmonic, Sinfonia of London, the Hallé, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House (London), BBC Symphony and Academy of St Martin in the Fields. He has performed at the BBC Proms and on tour throughout Europe, Asia and the United States under conductors including Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Antonio Pappano, Klaus Mäkelä and Daniele Gatti. In Australia, he has toured with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and LSO.

Concerto appearances with Sydney Symphony Orchestra include the Australasian premiere of Christopher Rouse’s Bassoon Concerto, Mozart Bassoon Concerto, and Vanhal Concerto for two bassoons (with Matthew Wilkie). He has also performed Jolivet’s Bassoon Concerto with the NZSO National Youth Orchestra.

Committed to education, Todd has given masterclasses at leading institutions including the Royal College of Music (London), Royal Northern College of Music (Manchester) and Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

A passionate chamber musician, Todd has performed at festivals and venues including Martinborough Music Festival (NZ), UKARIA Cultural Centre (Adelaide), Ensemble 360 (UK), and Les Concerts du Zeppelin (France). He is also Co-Artistic Director of the Cambridge Chamber Music Festival in New Zealand.

Todd graduated in 2016 with First Class Honours from the Royal College of Music, where he studied under Joost Bosdijk, Andrea de Flammineis, and Julie Price. He was a Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Scholar, supported by a Douglas and Hilda Simmonds Award, and was awarded the prestigious Tagore Gold Medal for his outstanding contribution to the RCM, presented to him by HRH King Charles III.

German/New Zealand pianist Michael Endres has been described by Richard Dyer of the Boston Globe as ‘…one of the most interesting pianists recording today’, and by British Gramophone magazine ‘…as an outstanding Schubert Interpreter’. Among his many recordings (thirty-three in total) Michael has won the prestigious French award Diapason D’or three times and awarded the Choc du Musique twice, with The New York Times claiming, ‘performances with pianist Michael Endres were revelatory’. 

Michael gained a master’s degree at the Juilliard School in New York under Jacob Lateiner, chamber music under Felix Galimir, and studied with Peter Feuchtwanger in London. He has won many prizes including the Concours Geza Anda (Zurich) and first prize at the International Schubert Competition. His solo recordings include sets of the complete sonatas by Mozart, Schubert, Weber and the rarely heard English composer, Arnold Bax. As well as all works of Ravel and Gershwin, he has recorded the Songs Without Words by Mendelssohn, Barcarolles by Faure, and a three CD set of works by Robert Schumann.

Michael has a wide repertoire and a keen interest in performing lesser played composers like Leopold Godowsky, Charles Ives and Eduard Tubin and is one of only three pianists who has ever recorded the entire 400 Dances of Franz Schubert (with whom he has a special affinity). Michael plays at many festivals in Europe, America and Asia including Newport (USA), Beethoven Fest Bonn, Salzburg Festival and Shanghai Festival, and has performed at Wigmore Hall, Berlin Philharmonie, Munich Philharmonie, Zurich Tonhalle, Musikverein Vienna, Suntory Hall Tokyo and La Scala Milan, to name a few.

He accompanied the legendary German baritone, Hermann Prey for many years and performed with the Berlin Philharmonic soloists, string quartets such as the Artemis, Fine Arts Quartet, Enso Quartet on their New Zealand tour with Chamber Music New Zealand, and the New Zealand String Quartet. He has a distinguished teaching career as Professor of Piano in various leading European schools such as the Hochschule fuer Musik Cologne, Hanns Eisler Hochschule in Berlin and the Barrat Due Institute in Oslo, Norway. Michael currently lives in Canterbury.

Dr Kemp English is one of New Zealand’s leading concert performers. Much in demand as a solo organist, collaborative pianist and specialist fortepiano and harpsichord exponent, he relishes the opportunity to work in a diverse array of styles and periods. He has given solo concerts in prestigious venues throughout the world and his 23 CD recordings on the Decca, Naxos and Ode Record labels have all met with unanimous international critical acclaim. Kemp studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London (being elected an Associate in 2001) and at York and Adelaide universities.

Liam Furey was born in Wellington and first learnt piano when he was nine. After discovering classical music at eleven, Liam was inspired to live and work with the artform. Liam started lessons in piano and composition with Gillian Bibby in 2011, running with the foundations she provided and garnered numerous prizes at local IRMT piano competitions. In 2016, Liam received the prestigious Senior Composition Prize for Chamber Music New Zealand’s Secondary School Contest, and in 2017 achieved the distinguished LTCL (Distinction) and LMusNZ Piano Diplomas. Liam began studying at the New Zealand School of Music (NZSM) in 2018, learning piano under Jian Liu and composition under Michael Norris. During this time, Liam was exposed to numerous internationally acclaimed pianists including Lars Vogt, Michael Endres and Deirdre Irons, and was a frequent place-winner in many of the school’s competitions for composition and New Zealand music. Liam’s proudest achievement in the NZSM was co-founding the Sounds of Te Kōkī concert series in 2019. In this concert series, Liam ran and oversaw eight concerts which performed over eighty works by students from the NZSM. In 2022, Liam graduated with a Bachelor of Music with First-class Honours in Classical Performance and Composition.

Liam is a fervent advocate for social implications in music. Through carefully curated programmes that blend genres and focus on contemporary and New Zealand music, he weaves together genre juxtaposition, history, and theory, resulting in captivating and unique expressions. In 2025 Liam began studying at the Australian National Academy of Music’s (ANAM), developing his skills as a pianist under the tutelage of Timothy Young.

Robert is principal oboe of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. He has also played as guest principal oboe with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Symphony Orchestra. 

During his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London, he performed with London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia and City of London Sinfonia. 

Robert is passionate about chamber music and has appeared at the New Zealand International Festival of the Arts and has toured extensively for Chamber Music New Zealand. As a concerto soloist he has appeared with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and Dunedin Symphony Orchestra. 

Robert teaches at the New Zealand School of Music.

Ariana Tikao (Kāi Tahu) is a renowned practitioner and composer of taonga puoro based in Ōtautahi Christchurch. She is a New Zealand Arts Laureate who has gained recognition as a soloist with Aotearoa’s principal orchestras and chamber groups including Stroma and the New Zealand String Quartet. Ariana’s music moves between realms, and enables audiences to feel like they are being ‘bundled up in a big feather cloak and transported to another world’.

Ariana’s music career started in 1993 with folk group Pounamu and between 2002-12 she released three critically-acclaimed solo albums. She is currently a member of art music quartet Tararua, and duo Muriwai (with Bob Bickerton). Ariana co-composed with Philip Brownlee the first concerto for taonga puoro Ko te Tātai Whetū based on a mōteatea relating to southern star lore. Manaaki, another co-composition with Brownlee, was commissioned by the New Zealand String Quartet and was a finalist for the 2022 SOUNZ Contemporary Award.

Ariana was a featured singer in John Psathas’ epic international collaboration No Man’s Land; she recently performed in the world premiere of Dame Gillian Whitehead’s opera, Mate Ururoa with US-based Māori baritone David Tahere, Stroma and Wellington Opera. She has also performed with the likes of Marlon Williams, Brooke Singer, and Warren Maxwell (Trinity Roots).

In 2024, Ariana undertook several international projects, including a collaboration with Austrian bass clarinettist Anna Koch, with violist Sophia Acheson at the 49th International Viola Congress in Brazil, and she began a creative fellowship at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, UK. In 2025, Ariana performed with the Rothko Collective in London at the iconic venue, Café OTO, as well as a solo performance at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford. Ariana is also a published writer and poet.

Shadley is a French Horn player based in Wellington, Since 2015 Shadley has been Principal Horn of Orchestra Wellington. His orchestral and professional work includes the National Youth Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, and since 2019 has been on contract as Sub-Principal Horn with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

In 2022 be became Musical Director of Kāpiti Youth Orchestra. Under Shadley’s guidance, the orchestra has flourished and their performances have gone from strength to strength. 

Shadley has a Bachelor of Music and a post grad diploma from Victoria University of Wellington. His teachers include Gregory Hill, Edward Allen and Samuel Jacobs. As well as performing around New Zealand, he has performed in South Africa, Australia and Tonga.

Sarah Watkins has enjoyed an impressive and busy career as a collaborative pianist. She performed across Australasia, Asia, the USA and Europe as a founding member of NZTrio (2002-2018) and now enjoys a wide variety of collaborations with musicians throughout Aotearoa New Zealand.

Sarah has been an official pianist for the Michael Hill International Violin Competition since its inception in 2001, the Gisborne International Music Competition from 2008-21, and has performed as a freelance player with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia and Auckland Chamber Orchestra. She has also appeared as concerto soloist with St. Matthew’s Chamber Orchestra, ACO, and the APO, and in 2014 recorded Chris Watson’s ‘sing songs self’ for solo piano and orchestra with the NZSO – a composition which was awarded the prestigious 2015 SOUNZ Contemporary Award. 

An award-winning recording artist, Sarah was named Classical Artist of the Year with violist Robert Ashworth at the 2022 Aotearoa Music Awards for their CD ‘Moonstone’, and in 2020 with violinist Andrew Beer for their CD ‘11 Frames’. ‘Sway’ (NZTrio, 2017) and ‘Gung-ho’ (2009, with NZSO principal trombonist David Bremner) were both previous winners of the Vodafone New Zealand Music Award for Best Classical Album.

Sarah is a graduate of the University of Canterbury and the Juilliard School in New York City, where she earned both Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in collaborative piano. While living in the US, Sarah worked as a staff pianist at Juilliard, Yale University and the Aspen Music Festival. She also served as coordinator of the collaborative piano programme at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara in California and spent several years on the music faculty of Purchase College, New York. In 2023 Sarah was appointed Senior Lecturer in piano at the University of Auckland.

The Fellowship Ensemble Programme is a joint venture by New Zealand String Quartet Trust, Chamber Music New Zealand and Adam Chamber Music Festival as an exciting professional development opportunity for four of New Zealand’s most promising young string players. 

Throughout 2025, the quartet took their debut tour across New Zealand and performed alongside the New Zealand String Quartet and Orchestra Wellington.

The Antipodes Quartet brings together the brightest emerging string players of New Zealand: violinists Eden Annesley and Mana Waiariki, violist Tal Amoore and cellist Lavinnia Rae.

Named after the Antipodes, a term that signifies New Zealand’s geographical position on the opposite side of the world from Europe, the quartet embraces a unique perspective on classical music. From the southern hemisphere, they approach the rich traditions of the string quartet with fresh energy, drawing from their diverse experiences across the Asia-Pacific and Europe while remaining deeply connected to their musical roots at home in Aotearoa.

With a commitment to innovation, accessibility and artistic excellence, the quartet explores a diverse repertoire, from beloved classics to contemporary works. The Antipodes Quartet champions a bold, engaging approach to performance, education, and outreach, fostering meaningful connections with audiences across Aotearoa.