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Rang Tae began studying the viola at age 12 and entered Yewon Music School (Seoul, South Korea) shortly thereafter. At 14, she gave her debut performance alongside Richard Yongjae O’Neill at the Seoul Arts Center. She has since performed solo recitals at Union City Museum, The House Concert, and Kukje Art Hall. Rang continued her musical education at Seoul Arts High School, where she focused on both solo and chamber music. Since 2021, she has studied with Professor Ensik Choi at Seoul National University. She is the first prize winner of the 2022 Dong-A Music Competition, one of Korea’s most prestigious music competitions, following earlier successes at the World Ilbo, Music Journal, and Hudson International Competitions.
Seoyeon Ryu studies viola at the College of Music, Seoul National University. She was awarded first prize and the audience prize at the 6th Oskar Nedbal International Viola Competition and won first prize at the 2022 Johansen International Competition in Washington, D.C. As part of the Johansen laureates’ programme, she was invited to participate in Morningside Music Bridge in the United States. Seoyeon made her recital debut at age 16 through the 2019 Kumho Prodigy Recital Series in Korea and continues to develop her solo and chamber music performance through international competitions and festivals.
Gatien Leray is currently pursuing the Diplôme d’Artiste Interprète at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. At 17, he entered the Haute École de Musique de Genève, studying with Miguel da Silva, and in 2022 joined the International Menuhin Music Academy, where he works with Gérard Caussé and Ivan Vukčević. He completed a master’s degree in 2024, earning the Albert Lullin Special Prize. Passionate about both solo and chamber repertoire, Gatien has taken part in academies and masterclasses with Tabea Zimmermann, Lawrence Power, Nobuko Imai, and Jean Sulem, and has worked in chamber settings with Gábor Takács-Nagy, Valentin Erben, and Bruno Giuranna. He has performed at the Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad, Rencontres Internationales d’Évian, and Festival Pablo Casals, appearing alongside artists such as Renaud Capuçon, Clemens Hagen, and Daishin Kashimoto. He was a semi-finalist at the Oskar Nedbal International Viola Competition.
Hiroki Kasai has performed across Europe, Asia, Australia, and the United States, with appearances at the Marlboro, Beethovenfest, Pablo Casals, Schleswig-Holstein, and Gstaad Menuhin Festivals. After graduating with first-class honours in violin from the Royal Academy of Music, he began studying viola on the recommendation of Nobuko Imai, with whom he now studies at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía. In 2024, he won First Prize at the International Johannes Brahms Competition. As a soloist, he has performed with orchestras in Europe, Asia, and America under the baton of conductors such as Ton Koopman. An active chamber musician, he has collaborated with artists including Midori, Lawrence Power, Thomas Riebl, Ivan Monighetti, and Christoph Richter. In 2025, he will tour the US and Canada as part of ‘Marlboro on Tour’.
Zofia Groblewska is a student at the Chopin University of Music in Warsaw. She is a prizewinner of multiple viola, violin, and chamber music competitions, including the Grand Prix at the Centre for Art Education Music Competition in Poland and the viola and double bass competition in Gdańsk, as well as prizes at the Josef Micka Competition in Prague and the International Bohdan Warchal Competition in Slovakia. In 2023, she made her solo debut with the Jerzy Semkow Polish Sinfonia Iuventus Orchestra, performing Bruch’s Romance, and returned in 2024 for a second appearance. In 2022, she joined Concertgebouworkest Young, performing under Gustavo Gimeno and collaborating with Isabelle Faust. Since 2024, she has been a member of the Penderecki Youth Orchestra in Lusławice.
Vincenzo Calcagno is in his senior year at The Juilliard School, where he studies with Heidi Castleman and Misha Amory as a recipient of the Irene Diamond and E&J Brenner Scholarships. Before Juilliard, he studied with Helen Callus. This fall he will begin graduate studies with Ettore Causa at Yale University on full scholarship. Vincenzo’s recent performances include recitals featuring works by British composers, and with guitar, works by Schubert, Piazzolla, and Fauré, He also served as principal violist in the Juilliard Orchestra’s performance of Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht. With his quartet, he participated in the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Master Class Series with the Calidore Quartet and performed at Carnegie Hall in “A Celebration of Meredith Monk.” Previous summer fellowships include the Taos School of Music, the Perlman Music Program, and the Music Academy of the West, where he studied intensively with the Takács Quartet.
Dillon Scott attends the Curtis Institute of Music where he holds the Mark. E. Rubenstein Fellowship and studies with Edward Gazouleas and Roberto Diaz. Dillon was a finalist in both the junior and senior divisions of the Sphinx Competition and was awarded first place at the Nelly Berman Young Classical Virtuosos of Tomorrow. He was also featured on NPR’s From the Top. Dillon has performed as a soloist with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra orchestras and as soloist at the Kimmel Center and Carnegie Hall. He performs frequently at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia. As a supporter of contemporary and underrepresented voices, he has championed the Viola Concerto by Roberto Sierra and the Viola Sonata and String Quartet No.1 by George Walker. In past summers, he attended the Perlman Music Program, Kneisel Hall, the Sphinx Performance Academy, and the Dali Quartet International Music Festival.
Ayano Nakamura is currently earning a Master’s degree at the Yale School of Music where she studies with Ettore Causa. She recently received a Bachelor’s degree from the New England Conservatory, studying with Martha Katz and Mai Motobuchi, and has attended the Perlman Music Program Chamber Music Workshop and Kneisel Hall Young Artist Chamber Music Program among others. She recently performed with A Far Cry Chamber Ensemble and Nobuko Imai’s celebration concert in Japan.
Laura Liu, a native of Miami, Florida, currently lives in New York City where she studies with Cynthia Phelps and Misha Amory. Last summer, she took part in the Olympic Music Festival Fellowship, Music@Menlo’s International Performer’s Program and Perlman Music Program’s Chamber Workshop. She previously attended Taos School of Music, Kneisel Hall, Music Academy of the West, and Heifetz International Music Institute. Laura made her Casals Forum debut, performing in recital at the Kronberg Festival Masterclasses. This past season she received an Honorary Mention and the Pirastro Prize for outstanding young talent at the Third Oskar Nedbal International Viola Competition. She recently earned her Bachelor of Music, and is now pursuing her Master’s as a recipient of a Kovner Fellowship at The Juilliard School.