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Prazak Quartet
The new Prazak Quartet is the evolution of the Prazak Quartet, which has been performing with great success around the world for almost 50 years. This development began in 2015 when Jana Vonášková joined the quartet as first violin and brought 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 mainstays of the quartet, the 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 quartets, having played with the Pavel Haas, Škampa and Petersen Quartet, as well as in many renowned orchestras and chamber ensembles have. They bring their own experience and energy while staying 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 ( out in 2021 and 2022 ) include a CD with the last three quartets by Joseph Haydn, which was praised by The Strad and Diapason, among others, and a CD released in June 2022 in Collaboration with pianist Francois Dumont for Cesar Franck's 200th birthday. In the coming season, which marks important anniversaries of Czech composers, the quartet plans to record works by Dvořák's students 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 mainstays of the quartet, the 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 quartets, having played with the Pavel Haas, Škampa and Petersen Quartet, as well as in many renowned orchestras and chamber ensembles have. They bring their own experience and energy while staying 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 ( out in 2021 and 2022 ) include a CD with the last three quartets by Joseph Haydn, which was praised by The Strad and Diapason, among others, and a CD released in June 2022 in Collaboration with pianist Francois Dumont for Cesar Franck's 200th birthday. In the coming season, which marks important anniversaries of Czech composers, the quartet plans to record works by Dvořák's students Josef Suk and Vitězslav Novák.
Niall Brown, Cello
Completing his studies under the guidance of Maurice Gendron, William Pleeth, Ralph Kirshbaum, Radu Aldulescu, Robert Masters, Alberto Lysy and Nadia Boulanger, Niall has over the past 4 decades established himself as an internationally renowned cellist, chamber musician and pedagogue.
As cellist of the prestigious Australian String Quartet, principal cellist of the Camerata Bern and the Scottish Ensemble, Niall toured the world performing in some of the most prestigious venues 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 Festivals of the Arts, Australia, Festival Lysy, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria and Incontri in Terra di Siena in Italy collaborating with such artists 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 partnered by pianist Isabelle Trüb has performed widely across the globe to enraptured audiences. Their recordings include the complete cello and piano works by Fauré and Schumann, the Sonatas of Brahms and collected works of Hindemith.
In 2009 Niall founded the “Automne Musical d’Ollon” in Switzerland where Niall’s passion for chamber music is evident in the programming of great masterpieces new and old.
Philharmonic Orchestra with his many chamber music and teaching commitments.
As cellist of the prestigious Australian String Quartet, principal cellist of the Camerata Bern and the Scottish Ensemble, Niall toured the world performing in some of the most prestigious venues 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 Festivals of the Arts, Australia, Festival Lysy, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria and Incontri in Terra di Siena in Italy collaborating with such artists 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 partnered by pianist Isabelle Trüb has performed widely across the globe to enraptured audiences. Their recordings include the complete cello and piano works by Fauré and Schumann, the Sonatas of Brahms and collected works of Hindemith.
In 2009 Niall founded the “Automne Musical d’Ollon” in Switzerland where Niall’s passion for chamber music is evident in the programming of great masterpieces new and old.
A committed pedagogue, 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 as well as 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 invited as Visiting Professor at the UCLA in Los Angeles and has given classes in cello and chamber music at Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, Singapore, Elder Conservatorium of Music,Australia, National Chiao-Tung University, Taiwan and Utrecht Conservatory of Music,Holland.
He also organizes the Internationale Meisterakademie für Kammermusik held annually in Germany.
Living in Luxembourg, Niall combines the position of co-principal cellist of the LuxembourgPhilharmonic Orchestra with his many chamber music and teaching commitments.
Isabelle Trüb, piano
Born into a family of musicians, pianist Isabelle Trüb discovered her passion for chamber music in all its forms at a very early age. After receiving a scholarship from the Goehner/Migros foundations in Switzerland, she completed her musical training at Indiana University, Bloomington, USA. On her return to Switzerland, she was engaged as pianist/harpsichordist by the International Menuhin Music Academy in Gstaad/Camerata Lysy.
She works regularly with many renowned artists, including cellists Pierre Fournier and Janos Starker, violist Bruno Giuranna and violinists Shmuel Ashkenasi and Maxim Vengerov. The duo she founded with her long-time partner, cellist Niall Brown, has a vast repertoire and has recorded the complete works of Gabriel Fauré, Johannes Brahms, Robert Schumann and Paul Hindemith, among others.
Teaching is also an important part of her career, and for ten years Isabelle taught piano and chamber music at the Ecole Sociale de Musique in Lausanne, Switzerland. She lived in Australia from 1997 to 2006, where she worked as a teacher and piano accompanist at the University of Adelaide. She sits on the jury as an expert for the AMEB examinations, while giving numerous chamber music concerts in Australia and Europe.
Isabelle has lived in Luxembourg since 2006, where she first worked as a cultural journalist, before being hired by the Conservatoire de Musique de la Ville de Luxembourg, where she teaches piano accompaniment and has been working as a pianist accompanist for several years.
Elisabeth Perry, Violin
The versatile British violinist Elisabeth Perry is widely acclaimed for her contributions to all facets of the musical metier. Applauded for her virtuosity in the standard repertoire, an avid proponent of contemporary music, a committed chamber musician, dedicated pedagogue and an internationally renowned concertmaster, Ms Perry has reaped unanimous praise for her ability to convey urgency while emphasising the distinctive lyrical and dramatic qualities in a large repertoire.
Ms Perry showed great musical talent at an early age. She was privileged to join the first class of pupils at Yehudi Menuhin's school in 1963. At the age of 14 Perry shared centre stage with Lord Menuhin in a memorable Royal Albert hall concert and subsequently recorded the Bach double concerto with him for Teldec. Perry has been a welcome guest soloist with Britain's leading orchestras including the LSO, Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestra. Generous grants allowed her to continue her studies at the Juilliard School in the famed classes of Dorothy Delay and Oscar Shumsky. Making her mark in the United States, Perry won New York's prestigious Concert Artists Guild Competition and was invited to play Bartók's second violin concerto in Chicago's Orchestra hall.
A passion for contemporary music and a commitment to expanding the violin repertoire led to many acclaimed premieres. Perry was the first to champion Alfred Schnittke's Quasi Una Sonata performing its US premiere at Lincoln Center.
Critically acclaimed recordings bear testimony to her premieres of works by Michael Nyman and Andrew Poppy and her American Heritage series CD recording of Leon Kirschner's Duo for violin and piano was released in 1984.
Ms Perry showed great musical talent at an early age. She was privileged to join the first class of pupils at Yehudi Menuhin's school in 1963. At the age of 14 Perry shared centre stage with Lord Menuhin in a memorable Royal Albert hall concert and subsequently recorded the Bach double concerto with him for Teldec. Perry has been a welcome guest soloist with Britain's leading orchestras including the LSO, Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestra. Generous grants allowed her to continue her studies at the Juilliard School in the famed classes of Dorothy Delay and Oscar Shumsky. Making her mark in the United States, Perry won New York's prestigious Concert Artists Guild Competition and was invited to play Bartók's second violin concerto in Chicago's Orchestra hall.
A passion for contemporary music and a commitment to expanding the violin repertoire led to many acclaimed premieres. Perry was the first to champion Alfred Schnittke's Quasi Una Sonata performing its US premiere at Lincoln Center.
Critically acclaimed recordings bear testimony to her premieres of works by Michael Nyman and Andrew Poppy and her American Heritage series CD recording of Leon Kirschner's Duo for violin and piano was released in 1984.
Renowned for her leadership skills in the orchestral sphere, Ms Perry served as concertmaster of the Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss from 1985 to 1999. Since 1991 she holds the position of concertmaster in the Radio Chamber Orchestra and since 2013 she holds that same position with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra.
Richard Wolfe, Viola
Richard Wolfe was born in New York City, where he began his violin studies under the guidance of Aaron Shapinsky. After studies with Dorothy DeLay and Walter Levin (primarius of the LaSalle Quartet), he moved to Israel. Asa member of the Israel Chamber Orchestra he appeared as soloist in A Soldier’s Tale by Stravinsky, and here he also had his first professional engagement as a viola player, in Bach’s 3rd Brandenburg concerto.
In 1982 Richard settled in the Netherlands, and in 1984 began a 35-year tenure as solo-violist of the Netherlands Philharmonic/Netherlands Chamber Orchestra. With these orchestras he appeared often as soloist,
performing, among other works, concertos by Henk Badings, Leo Smit, Mozart (Sinfonia Concertante) and Bach (6th Brandenburg concerto). In his retirement year, 2019, a cd of the Sinfonia Concertante with violinist
Gordan Nikolitch and the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra was released on the Tacet label.
Richard was on the viola faculties of the conservatories of Utrecht and Amsterdam, and has been a devoted chamber music player for half a century. In the U.S., he was a member of Sergiu Luca’s Music in Context,
and in Belgium, of Roel Dieltien’s Ensemble Explorations. In the Netherlands he is a member of the Rietveld Ensemble and of the Monward Consort.
