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Prazak Quartet
The new Prazak Quartet is the evolution of the Prazak Quartet, which has performed with great success all over the world for almost 50 years. This evolution began in 2015, when Jana Vonášková joined the quartet as first violin, bringing new blood into the group. Since her arrival, she has won over audiences and critics alike with her expressive interpretations of the greatest works written for this chamber music group, including the complete Beethoven quartets.
After careful consideration, the original Prazak Quartet has decided to retire at the end of the 2020-21 season and form a new formation under the same name Prazak Quartet 2020. The quartet's mainstays, violist and founding member Josef Klusoň and Jana Vonášková, will continue the tradition.
The new members, second violinist Marie Fuxová and cellist Jonáš Krejčí, have extensive experience in chamber music and quartet playing, having played with the Pavel Haas, Škampa and Petersen Quartet, as well as in many prestigious orchestras and chamber ensembles. They bring their own experience and energy, while remaining true to the tradition, character and quality of the Czech Quartet.
The ensemble offers a wide-ranging repertoire from early classical to contemporary works, as well as the famous Czech quartet literature. The projects also include music by Czech-Jewish composers who perished during the Holocaust - Schulhoff, Ullmann, Krasa, Klein and Haas.
The quartet's two new recordings for the Praga Digitals label (released in 2021 and 2022) include a disc of the last three quartets of Joseph Haydn, which has been praised by The Strad and Diapason, among others, and a CD released in June 2022 in collaboration with pianist Francois Dumont to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Cesar Franck. In the next season, which will mark important anniversaries of Czech composers, the quartet plans to record works by Dvořák's pupils Josef Suk and Vitězslav Novák.
After careful consideration, the original Prazak Quartet has decided to retire at the end of the 2020-21 season and form a new formation under the same name Prazak Quartet 2020. The quartet's mainstays, violist and founding member Josef Klusoň and Jana Vonášková, will continue the tradition.
The new members, second violinist Marie Fuxová and cellist Jonáš Krejčí, have extensive experience in chamber music and quartet playing, having played with the Pavel Haas, Škampa and Petersen Quartet, as well as in many prestigious orchestras and chamber ensembles. They bring their own experience and energy, while remaining true to the tradition, character and quality of the Czech Quartet.
The ensemble offers a wide-ranging repertoire from early classical to contemporary works, as well as the famous Czech quartet literature. The projects also include music by Czech-Jewish composers who perished during the Holocaust - Schulhoff, Ullmann, Krasa, Klein and Haas.
The quartet's two new recordings for the Praga Digitals label (released in 2021 and 2022) include a disc of the last three quartets of Joseph Haydn, which has been praised by The Strad and Diapason, among others, and a CD released in June 2022 in collaboration with pianist Francois Dumont to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Cesar Franck. In the next season, which will mark important anniversaries of Czech composers, the quartet plans to record works by Dvořák's pupils Josef Suk and Vitězslav Novák.
Niall Brown, Cello
Having studied with Maurice Gendron, William Pleeth, Ralph Kirshbaum, Radu Aldulescu, Robert Masters, Alberto Lysy and Nadia Boulanger, Niall has established himself as an internationally recognized cellist, chamber musician and educator over the past four decades.
As cellist with the renowned Australian String Quartet, principal cellist with the Camerata Bern and the Scottish Ensemble, Niall has travelled the world performing in some of the most prestigious concert halls and festivals including the Wigmore Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, Carnegie Hall and Avery Fischer Centre, New York, Théâtre des Champs Elysées and Théâtre du Chatelet, Paris, Konzerthaus and Philharmonie, Berlin, Sydney Recital Hall and Melbourne Concert Hall, Australia, Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Menuhin Festival, Gstaad and Semaine Internationale de Piano, Blonay, Switzerland, Sydney and Adelaide Festival of the Arts, Australia, Festival Lysy, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria and Incontri in Terra di Siena in Italy working with artists such as Lord Yehudi Menuhin, Nikita Magaloff, Janos Starker, Bruno Giuranna, Stephen Kovacevich, Paul Coker, Melvyn Tan, Edith Fischer, Alberto Lysy, Antonio Lysy, Prazac Quartet, Sine Nomine Quartet, Jesus Lopez Cobos, Thomas Füri and Milan Horvat.
Since 1990, Niall has performed with pianist Isabelle Trüb in front of enthusiastic audiences all over the world. Their recordings include the complete works for cello and piano by Fauré and Schumann, the sonatas of Brahms and the collected works of Hindemith.
In 2009, Niall founded the "Automne Musical d'Ollon" in Switzerland, where Niall's passion for chamber music is expressed in the performance of great new and old masterpieces.
A committed educator, Niall has been Professor of Cello and Chamber Music at the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Adelaide, Australia and the International Menuhin Music Academy in Switzerland, Professor of Chamber Music at the Conservatoire du Nord in Luxembourg, and is regularly invited to give master classes in Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and the United States. In 2015 and again in 2022, he is Visiting Professor at UCLA in Los Angeles, and has given cello and chamber music courses at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore, the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Australia, the National Chiao-Tung University in Taiwan, and the Utrecht Conservatory of Music in the Netherlands. He also organizes the International Master Academy for Chamber Music, which takes place annually in Germany.
Niall, who lives in Luxembourg, combines his position as deputy chief cellist of the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra with his numerous chamber music and teaching commitments.
As cellist with the renowned Australian String Quartet, principal cellist with the Camerata Bern and the Scottish Ensemble, Niall has travelled the world performing in some of the most prestigious concert halls and festivals including the Wigmore Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, Carnegie Hall and Avery Fischer Centre, New York, Théâtre des Champs Elysées and Théâtre du Chatelet, Paris, Konzerthaus and Philharmonie, Berlin, Sydney Recital Hall and Melbourne Concert Hall, Australia, Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Menuhin Festival, Gstaad and Semaine Internationale de Piano, Blonay, Switzerland, Sydney and Adelaide Festival of the Arts, Australia, Festival Lysy, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria and Incontri in Terra di Siena in Italy working with artists such as Lord Yehudi Menuhin, Nikita Magaloff, Janos Starker, Bruno Giuranna, Stephen Kovacevich, Paul Coker, Melvyn Tan, Edith Fischer, Alberto Lysy, Antonio Lysy, Prazac Quartet, Sine Nomine Quartet, Jesus Lopez Cobos, Thomas Füri and Milan Horvat.
Since 1990, Niall has performed with pianist Isabelle Trüb in front of enthusiastic audiences all over the world. Their recordings include the complete works for cello and piano by Fauré and Schumann, the sonatas of Brahms and the collected works of Hindemith.
In 2009, Niall founded the "Automne Musical d'Ollon" in Switzerland, where Niall's passion for chamber music is expressed in the performance of great new and old masterpieces.
A committed educator, Niall has been Professor of Cello and Chamber Music at the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Adelaide, Australia and the International Menuhin Music Academy in Switzerland, Professor of Chamber Music at the Conservatoire du Nord in Luxembourg, and is regularly invited to give master classes in Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and the United States. In 2015 and again in 2022, he is Visiting Professor at UCLA in Los Angeles, and has given cello and chamber music courses at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore, the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Australia, the National Chiao-Tung University in Taiwan, and the Utrecht Conservatory of Music in the Netherlands. He also organizes the International Master Academy for Chamber Music, which takes place annually in Germany.
Niall, who lives in Luxembourg, combines his position as deputy chief cellist of the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra with his numerous chamber music and teaching commitments.
Isabelle Trüb, piano
The pianist Isabelle Trüb was born into a family of musicians and discovered her passion for chamber music in all its forms at an early age. As a scholarship holder of the Swiss Goehner/Migros Foundations, she completed her musical education at Indiana University, Bloomington, USA.
After her return to Switzerland, she was engaged as a pianist/harpsichordist by the International Menuhin Music Academy in Gstaad/Camerata Lysy. She regularly works with numerous renowned artists, including the cellists Pierre Fournier, Janos Starker, the violist Bruno Giuranna and the violinists Shmuel Ashkenasi and Maxim Vengerov.
The duo, which she founded with her long-time partner, cellist Niall Brown, has an extensive repertoire and has recorded the complete works of Gabriel Fauré, Johannes Brahms, Robert Schumann and Paul Hindemith, among others.
Since teaching also occupies a very important place in her career, Isabelle worked for ten years as a piano and chamber music teacher at the Ecole Sociale de Musique in Lausanne, Switzerland. From 1997 to 2006, she lived in Australia, where she worked as a teacher and piano accompanist at the University of Adelaide. She is an expert jury member for the AMEB examinations and gives numerous chamber music concerts in Australia and Europe. Since 2006, Isabelle has lived in Luxembourg, where she initially worked as a cultural journalist before being hired by the Conservatoire de Musique de la Ville de Luxembourg, where she has been teaching piano accompaniment and working as a piano accompanist for several years.
Elisabeth Perry, Violine
Versatile British violinist Elisabeth Perry is widely recognised for her contributions to all facets of the musical profession. She is acclaimed for her virtuosity in the standard repertoire, a keen advocate of contemporary music, a dedicated chamber musician, a committed educator and an internationally recognised concertmaster. Ms Perry has been widely praised for her ability to convey urgency whilst emphasising the distinctive lyrical and dramatic qualities of a large repertoire.
Ms. Perry showed great musical talent from an early age. She was privileged to be admitted to the first class of Yehudi Menuhin's school in 1963. At the age of 14, Perry appeared on stage with Lord Menuhin in a memorable concert at the Royal Albert Hall and subsequently recorded the Bach Double Concerto with him for Teldec. Perry was a welcome guest soloist with Britain's leading orchestras, including the LSO, Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestra. Generous scholarships enabled her to continue her studies at the Juilliard School in the famous class of Dorothy Delay and Oscar Shumsky. In the United States, she made a name for herself by winning New York's prestigious Concert Artists Guild Competition and being invited to play Bartók's Second Violin Concerto at Orchestra Hall in Chicago.
A passion for contemporary music and a commitment to expanding the violin repertoire have led to numerous acclaimed premieres. Perry was the first to use Alfred Schnittke's Quasi Una Sonata, playing its US premiere at Lincoln Center.
Her critically acclaimed recordings include premieres of works by Michael Nyman and Andrew Poppy. In 1984, her CD recording of Leon Kirschner's Duo for Violin and Piano was released on the American Heritage Series.
Known for her leadership qualities in the orchestral field, Ms. Perry was concertmaster of the Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss from 1985 to 1999. She has been concertmaster of the Rundfunk-Kammerorchester since 1991 and of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra since 2013.
Ms. Perry showed great musical talent from an early age. She was privileged to be admitted to the first class of Yehudi Menuhin's school in 1963. At the age of 14, Perry appeared on stage with Lord Menuhin in a memorable concert at the Royal Albert Hall and subsequently recorded the Bach Double Concerto with him for Teldec. Perry was a welcome guest soloist with Britain's leading orchestras, including the LSO, Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestra. Generous scholarships enabled her to continue her studies at the Juilliard School in the famous class of Dorothy Delay and Oscar Shumsky. In the United States, she made a name for herself by winning New York's prestigious Concert Artists Guild Competition and being invited to play Bartók's Second Violin Concerto at Orchestra Hall in Chicago.
A passion for contemporary music and a commitment to expanding the violin repertoire have led to numerous acclaimed premieres. Perry was the first to use Alfred Schnittke's Quasi Una Sonata, playing its US premiere at Lincoln Center.
Her critically acclaimed recordings include premieres of works by Michael Nyman and Andrew Poppy. In 1984, her CD recording of Leon Kirschner's Duo for Violin and Piano was released on the American Heritage Series.
Known for her leadership qualities in the orchestral field, Ms. Perry was concertmaster of the Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss from 1985 to 1999. She has been concertmaster of the Rundfunk-Kammerorchester since 1991 and of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra since 2013.
Richard Wolfe, Viola
Richard Wolfe was born in New York City, where he studied violaunder the direction of Aaron Shapinsky. After studying with Dorothy DeLayand Walter Levin (first violin of the LaSalle Quartet) he moved to Israel.As a member of the Israel Chamber Orchestra, he performed as A soloist in the "Soldier's Tale by Stravinsky". Here he also had his first professional appearanceas violist in Bach's 3rd Brandenburg Concerto.
In 1982 Richard settled in the Netherlands and in 1984 began a 35-year Term as principal viola of the Netherlands Philharmonic / NetherlandsChamber orchestras. He often performed as a soloist with these orchestras. Among others,Concerts by Henk Badings, Leo Smit,Mozart (Sinfonia Concertante) and Bach (6th Brandenburg Concerto). InIn his retirement year 2019, the Tacet label released a CD of the Sinfonia Concertante with violinistGordan Nikolitch and the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra released.
Richard was a viola teacher at the conservatories of Utrecht andAmsterdam and has been an enthusiastic chamber musician for half a centuryIn the USA he was a member of Sergiu Lucas Music in Context
and in Belgium by Roel Dieltien’s Ensemble Explorations.In the Netherlands he is a member of the Rietveld Ensemble and the MonwardWife.
