Charles Castleman has been soloist with the orchestras of Philadelphia, Boston, Brisbane, Chicago, Hong Kong, Moscow, Mexico City, New York, San Francisco, Seoul and Shanghai. Medallist at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and the Queen Elisabeth in Brussels, his Jongen Concerto is included in a Cypres CD set of the 17 best prize-winning performances of the Brussels Concours’ 50-year history. Chair of Eastman’s String Department, Mr Castleman has conducted master-classes throughout Europe, North America, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. His students have been winners at Brussels, Munich, Naumburg and Szeryng, are in 30 professionally active chamber groups and are 1st desk players in 11 major orchestras. His teachers were Emanuel Ondricek and Ivan Galamian, his most influential coaches David Oistrakh, Henryk Szeryng, and Joseph Gingold.

Stephen Larsenはニュージーランドで大変よく知られたヴァイオリン講師である。 特にヴァイオリン教授法に興味があり、講師を続ける傍ら現在もその研究に取り組んでいる。 現在、カンタベリー大学にてヴァイオリンやアンサンブルの指導に当たる一方、 Pettman Junior Academy of Music やバーンサイド高校の音楽科プログラムにても指導に当たる。 彼の指導する生徒はThe National Concerto CompetitionやThe Rotorua Competitions, The New Zealand Secondary Schools Chamber Music Contestなど数々のコンテストにて功績を残している。 またニュージーランド各地にて行われるマスタークラスや個人レッスン、 ヴァイオリン演奏法に関する講演などに精力的に取り組んでいる。

Olga Nodel joined as concertmaster and soloist of the Kurpfalzisches Kammerorchester Mannheim (Germany) in 1994. She studied in Hanover, Wurzburg (both Germany) and Bloomington (USA) and also participated in a number of master classes for violin as well as chamber music. Recipient of the German National Merit Foundation Scholarship from 1987 to 1990 and subsequently scholarship holder of the German Academic Exchange Service, (DAAD), from 1991-1993, she has won awards at several international competitions in Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain. She previously served as the concertmaster of the Remscheider Symphony, and as first violinist in the Corda-Quartett. Olga Nodel has been on the faculty of the Johannes Gutenberg-University since 1996.

Kees Hilhorst studied in Rotterdam with Jan Hulst and Benzion Shamir. Kees concentrated since on early music played on authentic instruments, as well as performing works of contemporary composers and chamber music, especially with the Don Banks Trio and Alauda String Quartet. He especially enjoyed being a member of Barokensemble de Swaen in Amsterdam, a group that takes research in the true way of performing baroque music very seriously. At the moment Kees is one of two leaders of Baroque Orchestra Il Concerto Barocco. Since his arrival in Christchurch last May Kees gave Jack Body’s new Violin Concerto ‘Meditations on Michelangelo’ the first performance as a soloist with the NZSO. Helen Bowater wrote him a new solo-piece ‘Atsinganos’.

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