KATI SEBESTYEN - violin

Brussels Conservatory 

Prins Claus Conservatory, Groningen

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Born in Hungary, Kati Sebestyen has been the head of the String department at the Brussels Conservatory. She was also "extraordinary professor" of the Queen Elisabeth Chapel  and was a member of the artistic comission of the Queen Elisabeth International Competition-violin.

She's regularly invited as jury member and for master classes: Mozarteum Salzburg,  Jong Talent Amsterdam , Hannover, Lübeck,  University of North Carolina, CIM Morges Suisse, Conservatoire de Reykjavik, etc.

She performed as a soloist or as a member of a chamber music ensemble all over Europe and in the USA.  She was a member of the Haydn Quartet, violin-conductor of the Sebestian Strings-chamber orchestra and member-founder of the Ensemble Contrats. She recorded several CD's for EMS Records and other label.

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DALIA SESELGIENE - violin

Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, Vilnius

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The teachers in the LMTA Chamber Ensemble Department value Dalia Šešelgienė-Lapėnaitė as a pedagogue-assistant for her exeptionally wide chamber music repertoire, her professionalism, diligence and loyalty to the department‘s interest. In 1984 she started working as an illustrator and lecturer in the Chamber Ensemble Department at the LMTA.

Dalia Šešelgienė-Lapėnaitė was born on October 21, 1955 in family of pedagogues. She graduated from the M. K. Čiurlionis School of Arts in 1973 (from the class of E. Armonienė) and continued her studies at the Lithuanian State Conservatory (in the class of Prof. S. Sondeckis). From her first year of studies she intermittently played in the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra and toured extensively throughout in the former Soviet Union, Europe and the United States. In 1984-1988 she completed post-graduate studies at the Gnesin Pedagogical Institute in Moscow in the class of Prof. Ch. Achtiamova. In 1976 she became a laureate of the Inter-Republic Violonists’ Competition in Talinn (3rd Prize).

D. Šešelgienė plays in concerts with various ensembles. She and her twin sister Saulė Lapėnaitė arrange sonata evenings- they have performed all L. van Beethoven‘s sonatas for violin, works by R. Schumann and J. Haydn, as well as other thematic programs. The violonist plays second violin with the „Akademija“ string quartet.

D. Šešelgienė has also coducted chamber ensemble master classes at the International Creative Camp „Let‘s play music together“ in 2011 and 2012 (in Biržai, Lithuania), and at the Fondation Bell‘Arte (Braine l‘Alleud, Belgium) 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016. These master classes are held annualy for pianists, string and chamber ensembles, and are organized by Prof. Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri.

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PIERRE-HENRI XUEREB - viola/Viole d'amour

Conservatoire Royal de Musique de Liège

Conservatoire Supérieur de Musique de Paris

IMEP - Namur

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After receiving a first prize in viola in the Conservatoire d’Avignon at the age of 13, Pierre-Henri Xuereb received a first prize in viola at the CNSMD in Paris at the age of 16.

After two years at the Juilliard School and 2 years at Boston University, where his teachers were Walter Trampler, Lillian Fuchs, the Juilliard Quartet… , he becomes solo viola of the Ensemble Intercontemporain in Paris, conducted by Pierre Boulez at the age of 19.

He is one of the last students of William Primrose (Provo-Utah).

Since then, his international career took him to many concert halls throughout the world : Lincoln Center, Wigmore Hall, Théâtre des Champs Elysées, Teatro La Scala (Milano)…

He recently created a new chamber ensemble (The Primrose Ensemble) and is the Artistic Director of the « Fête de l’Alto » in Lasalle in Cevennes.

Pierre-Henry Xuereb teaches viola in the CNSM in Paris, Conservatoire Royal de Musique de Liège and viola d’amore in IMEP, Namu and is regularly invited to give internatonal master classes in Beijing, Kyoto, Korea, Les Arcs, Fontainebleau, Novisad, Malte, Domaine Forget-Canada, USA, …

He has recorded over 70 records and recently performed and recorded, under the direction of the composer, Vladimir Cosma’s concerto for viola and orchestra, which was written specially for him.

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FLORENT BREMOND - special "orchestra competition" workshop

Alto solo - Orchestre de la Monnaie

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Born in Marseille, Florent Bremond studied at the Conservatoire national supérieur de Musique de Paris (CNSM)where he obtained in 1996 his First Prize "A l’unanimité.

Throughout his international orchestral career, Florent Bremond had the chance to play with many of today’s greatest conductors. During his years in the Orchestre de Paris, he worked regularly with conductors such as Lorin Maazel, Pierre Boulez, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Valery Gergiev, Frans Bruggen, Sir Roger Norrington, George Prêtre, ...

As a member of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, he performed during ten years under Claudio Abbado and Pierre Boulez, later Riccardo Chailly. Both as dedicated chamber musician and orchestra player, he found an artistic home of many years as member of the internationally acclaimed Mahler Chamber Orchestra, where collaborations included projects with orchestra founder Claudio Abbado as well as with a long row of outstanding conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Daniel Harding, Klaus Mäkelä and Daniele Gatti. His years at the Mahler Chamber Orchestra brought a much-loved focus on soloist-led projects in collaboration with a.o. Leif Ove Andsnes (The Beethoven Journey), Mitsuko Uchida (Mozart Cycle), Daniil Trifonov or violinists such as Isabelle Faust and Pekka Kuusisto.

Within the extensive touring activity of both Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Orchestre de Paris, Florent Bremond has performed on all international stages, including Carnegie Hall New York, Musikverein Wien, Berliner Philharmonie, Suntory Hall Tokyo and many others. With his orchestras, he was regular guest at all major festivals, incl. Hong Kong Arts Festival, Musikfest Berlin, Saint Denis Festival, Ravenna Festival.

In October 2019, Florent Bremond has been appointed Solo Viola of La Monnaie Symphony Orchestra.

As member of the viola section, he is asked regularly to play as solo viola and play chamber music concerts during worldwide tours.

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RAMUTE KALNENAITE - 'cello
Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, Vilnius

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Ramutė Kalnėnaitė studied cello with Romanas Armonas at the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art. In her school years she won the first international and several national competitions.

1975-1980 she studied in Moscow State Conservatory. There she qualified as a performer, pedagogue, chamber musician, and concerto-soloist. 1980-1982 she furthered her cello studies in Moscow State Conservatory. She spent all seven years in Moscow studying with prof. Stefan Kaljanov.

 

Since 1983 Kalnenaitė has been teaching the cello class at the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art. Since 2012 she has been holding classes in Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre.

 

In 1984 Kalnenaitė won the first place in the International music competition. She has held her performances in the most prestigious halls of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Latvia, Estonia, France, Switzerland, Belorusia, Uzabekistan, the USA, and Russia. She performed as a solo cellist with the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra,, Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, Klaipėda Chamber Orchestra, The String Orchestra of the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art, Chamber Orchestra o Tashkent State Conservatoire. Kalnenaite took part in numerous international and national music festivals both in France and Lithuania (Th. Mann „Alternative“, “Kristupa‘s Summers”, “Summers in Druskininkai with M. K. Čiurlionis” and etc). As a chamber musician she performed with renown Lithuanian and foreign musicians.

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ARNAUD GIROUD - conductor

Orchestre Symphonique de Nivelles

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Arnaud Giroud embarked on his musical studies at the age of 11.

After one year of guitar lessons, he took private piano lessons, before being accepted in the Conservatoires d’Angoulême and Poitiers (FR), in the classes of Vovka Ashkenazy and Pierre-Yves Jalicon. At the same time, he studied musicology at the University of Poitiers and graduated (Bachelor) in 2008.

He specialized in music theory and composition, and also took viola and oboe lessons. In 2011, he entered into the class of Philippe Gérard (orchestral conducting) in the Conservatoire royal de Bruxelles and graduated with a Masters in 2014.

Since 2013, he is the conductor of Nivelles Symphony Orchestra (B), and also manager of the music shop Point d’orgue (Brussels, from 2017). Also, he created the Felix Mendelssohn European Festival, of Brussels in 2015, worked as coordinator at the Conservatoire royal de Bruxelles (2016 to 2018), often presents on the radio programme "Sur un air de cinéma" (Musiq3) from 2020, and was a teacher at the musical theatre "Way to stage", 2016 to 2021.

In the classical repertoire, he has a preference for the romantic period, especially the German Romanticism from the first half of the 19th century, notably Felix Mendelssohn. He is also passionate about musicals, from the first American composers (Cole Porter, Irving Berlin and so on...) to the contemporary creations of Broadway, New-York or the West End in London.