Marie-Christine Klettner, 17, Violin

Marie-Christine Klettner, born in 1992, started taking violin lessons with Eberhard Staiger at the tender age of five. Since 2005 she has been studying at the Mozarteum University with Prof. Benjamin Schmid. For the last four years, Marie-Christine has been a student at the “Leopold Mozart Institut” (an institute for highly talented young musicians).

She has won several competitions including “Prima la Musica”, Austria’s biggest competition for young musicians. The award she is most proud of is the “Yehudi Menuhin Medal” having become “String Player of the Year 2009”.

Marie-Christine has been performing regularly as a soloist since age eleven. She will give her debut with the Mozarteum Orchestra in December 2010 and with the Camerata in May. She continues to perform recitals in several European countries.

Ivan Karizna, 18, Cello

Ivan Karizna was born in Minsk, Belarus in 1992 and has studied the cello in his native city from the age of seven onward. He is the winner of numerous competitions for young musicians, and for many years he has enjoyed the patronage of the Spivakov Foundation, who have for instance supported him by supplying him a cello.

At age 7 he gave his debut at the Belarusian Conservatory in Minsk. Since then he has participated in multiple concerts with the Moscow Virtuosi under Vladimir Spivakov and has performed as a soloist across Europe.

Ivan speaks Russian, Belarusian, English, French and aside from the Cello he also plays the piano. He enjoys performing and listening to Bach, Haydn, Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Brahms.

Filip Merčep, 18, Marimba

The percussionist Filip Mercep born in Zagreb in 1991 began playing instruments at a young age and discovered his love for percussion at age 12 whilst attending the Samobor music school with a preference for the Marimba. He is currently in his fourth-year as pupil of the High School of Music "Ferdo Livadic" in the class of Goran Gorše. Furthermore he regularly participates in numerous percussion seminars in Croatia and abroad.

He won the National Competition for Music and Dance Students in Varazdin twice as well as being awarded a special recognition from the Minister of Science, Education and Sport.

He now performs with several orchestras and ensembles and last year gave a solo concert in the Young Musicians at Matica hrvatska cycle.

Lambis Pavlou, 14, Piano

Lambis Pavlou was born in 1996 in Lefkosia (Nicosia), Cyprus where he started playing the piano at the age of of four and a half, in the class of Anna Forari. From there, at age seven, he moved on to continue his studies with Pitsa Spyridaki at the Hellenic College of Music in Cyprus. He is currently a student at the ARTE Musical Academy of Cyprus, and is advanced in theory of music (Royal Schools of Music, Grade 6) plus Greek curriculum Harmony and History of Music.

He has won the multiple prizes both at national and international level including a win at the 9th International piano competition "Evangelia Tziarri",and in 2006 the first prize in the Pancyprian Steinway competition.

He has had the honour of representing Cyprus at the 12th Steinway International Festival in Hamburg.

 Lukáš Dittrich, 18, Clarinet

Born in 1992 in the south bohemian city of Jindrichuv Hradec, Lukas Dittrich began to play the piano at age five and the clarinet at age eight. He began his musical studies at the musical school in Jindrichuv Hradec and Treboll before moving on the to study at the  Brno Conservatory under guidance of Lubomir Bartoli.

He began performing while still at musical school and has since then won numerous awards as a soloist and as a chamber musician. In 2007 he took part in Concertino Praga competition. Since 2008 he has been member of the chamber ensemble D-Trio Brno, which has given performances broadcast on Czech radio.

In 2006 he was honoured for being the most successful student of arts in Jindrichuv Hradec.

Hayrapet Arakelyan, 18, Saxophone

Born in 1991 in Yerevan, Armenia, Hayrapet began studying the saxophone and piano at age 8 and spent from 1999 to 2003 at the Alexander Spendiarian Music School with Prof. Alexander Manukyan. In 2002 he began taking part in master classes with Prof .Theodoros Kerkezos of Greece) and Prof. Daniel Gauthier of Germany whose class he was to join in 2005 at the Cologne "Hochschule für Musik".

He is the winner of numerous saxophone competitions all across Europe, from Scotland to Russia and has played with several prestigious Orchestras in Armenia, Russia and Germany as well as the Julliard School Orchestra.

Beginning with the concert season of 2009/2010 he is a member of the Alliage Quintet.

Konstantinos Destounis, 19, Piano

Pianist Konstantinos Destounis was born in 1991 in Athens, Greece where he began playing the piano at age 7. By age 10 he had started performing and has obtained diplomas from the 'Schola Cantorum' Conservatory in Paris and the 'Hellenic Conservatory' in the class of Prof. Agathe Leimoni. Currently he is a student of Prof. Igor Petrin at the University of Music, Science and Art, Thessaloniki.

He has won multiple national and international competitions and a scholarship from the Yamaha music foundation. He has attended master classes with professors such as C. Katsaris, K. Ganev, and many more.

As a soloist he has appeared with the Athens State Symphony Orchestra amongst others.

Dana Zemtsov, 17, Viola

Dana was born in Mexico City in 1992. She began studying violin with her grandmother, Rimma Matioukova, at the age of 4. She then went on to study with Loudmila Kugel and Hans Scheepers at the Young Talent School of the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. In 2002 she switched to the viola and she currently studies in the preparatory class of Michael Kugel at the Maastricht Conservatory.

She is the winner of several 1st prizes at international competitions around Europe and in her native Netherlands, most recently the 2009 Netherlands Young Artist Competition.

At the Christmas Concert 2005 in the Haarlem Philharmonie she was introduced by the world famous pianist Boris Berezovsky, performing Scene de Ballet by Beriol together with him.

Guro Kleven Hagen, 15, Violin

Guro Kleven Hagen, born 1994, started her musical life aged five and a half, learning the violin and from age eight the piano. She is currently studying with Stephan Barratt-Due at the Barratt Due Institute of Music in Oslo, after eight years with Alf Richard Kraggerud at the same institute. She also has been frequently tutored by Norway's celebrated violin soloist, Henning Kraggerud.

Guro has won ten prizes at national and international competitions, most recently the "The Norwegian Soloist Prize" at "Virtuos 2010", Oslo. She has been soloist with orchestras in Norway, Russia and Germany.

Guro currently plays on a J. B. Vuillaume (1848-50) on loan from Dextra Musica.

Bartosz Głowacki, 18, Accordion

Born in the town of Brzozow, eighteen year old accordionist Bartosz Glowacki, has been playing the accordion as well as piano and guiter since age ten. He is regarded by many as a one of the most talented young accordionists, who thanks to his diligence is developing at an outstanding pace. Currently he studies at the Panstwowa School of Music under the tutelage of Andrzej Smolik.

He is the winner of several competitions in his native Poland as well as high placings in international competitions held in countries such as Germany, Lithuania and Italy.

Next to his studies he performs regularly, has given broadcast performances, important recitals and regularly attends master classes.

Daniil Trifonov, 19, Piano

Daniil Trifonov, born in Nizhniy Novgorod in 1991, began studying music at the age of five. From 2000-2009 he studied at Moscow's Gnesin School of Music, under the tutelage of Tatiana Zelikman. Since the beginning of 2009, he has been a student of the Cleveland Institute of Music under Sergei Babayan.

Daniil is a winner of a number of competitions for young pianists, with titles in Moscow and successes in Beijing to his credit. He has performed with renowned orchestras in Russia, Germany, Austria, China, Italy, Canada, USA and Israel.

As a winner of Guzik Foundation Career Grant, Daniil Trifonov toured the U.S. including giving his Carnegie Hall debut in May 2009.

Ştefan Cazacu, 16, Cello

Born January 1994, Stefan Cazacu started studying the cello at six, with his father, cellist Marin Cazacu. At ten he enrolled at the Music School No.5 in Bucharest, where he studied with Professor Anca Iarosevici. From 2008 he has been a student of the "George Enescu" Music High School in Bucharest, working with Professor Anca Vartolomei.

At nine he won his first prizes at national competitions and since then he has been the winner of multiple 1st prizes at the most prestigious national competitions in Romania, he also regularly competes against international champion violinists, pianists, low string and wind instrument players.

He currently gives performances and recitals in Bucharest and around Romania as well as broadcast performances for radio and television.

Eva-Nina Kozmus, 16, Flute

Eva-Nina Kozmus, born in 1994 in Celje, Slovenia, began playing flute and piano at age seven. She is currently an undergraduate at the Ljubljana Music and Ballet Conservatory and a first year student of the First Secondary School in Celje. Eva-Nina's mentor at the Conservatory is Prof. Milena Lipovsek.

She began competing in 2005 in an international flute competition in Serbia and has since then gone on to compete in several competitions in Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia as well as Italy. She regularly attends in her home country and around Europe.

Eva-Nina is a member of the Ljubljana Music and Ballet Conservatory Symphony and Chamber Orchestra and performs with several renowned international orchestras.

Mattias Hanskov Palm, 17, Double Bass

Bassist Mattias Hanskow Palm was born in Denmark 1992, in a household where both  parents are professional musicians. When he was six years old he started playing the cello, three years later he decided to dig even deeper in the string family and switch to the double bass. His first teacher was his aunt Mette Hanskov,for the last several years he has studied with Joel Gonzalez from the Danish national symphony orchestra and Kjetil Laukholm from the symphony orchestra of Malmö.

He has participated in several classical music competitions beginning at age 12 and has won the title of "Öresund soloist", competing with the best young musicians from Sweden and Denmark.

He performs mainly as soloist where he hopes to have a successful international career.

Peter Moore, 14, Trombone

Peter was born in Belfast on January 1st 1996 and started to play the baritone horn at the age of five. He became Northern Ireland Primary School Musician of the Year at the age of seven but had already decided that the trombone was the instrument for him and soon became solo trombone with Newtownards Silver Band.

On moving to England in 2004, Peter entered Chetham's School of Music in 2005. From 2006 -2008 Peter was the solo trombone player with Wingates Band where he added to his list of honours by becoming best soloist in the entertainment section at the French Open contest.

He appeared as soloist with the band in the Bridgewater Hall playing the Grafe Concerto and twice won the Junior Solo prize at the British Open.