Elizaveta Saul is a violinist performing extensively as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral leader. She regularly appears as a guest leader with orchestras across the UK and Europe, and has performed at major venues including Wigmore Hall, Royal Festival Hall and Royal Albert Hall, as well as in Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, France and Norway.

Her concerto appearances include performances with the Sevenoaks Symphony, Wrexham Symphony, Piccadilly Sinfonietta, Sampson Symphony, Croydon Symphony, Guildford Symphony and Chetham’s Symphony orchestras. She has also led the Royal College of Music Symphony, Opera and Philharmonic Orchestras and recorded at Abbey Road Studios on numerous
occasions.

A dedicated chamber musician, Elizaveta has led string quartets for over 12 years, performing extensively and premiering numerous contemporary works. She has collaborated with internationally acclaimed musicians such as pianist Peter Frankl, and performed internationally as a member of LGT Young Soloists. Her orchestral and ensemble experience also extends to staged productions, including performances of Dido and Aeneas, The Wizard of Oz and A Little Night Music.

Elizaveta graduated from the Royal College of Music with a First Class Honours Bachelor of Music and Master of Performance with Distinction, studying with Alexander Gilman and Jan Repko. She is a prizewinner at numerous national and international competitions and has participated in masterclasses with artists including Maxim Vengerov, Alexander Markov and Tatiana Samouil. Alongside the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Elizaveta performs regularly with Covent Garden Sinfonia and serves as concertmaster of The Beaufoy Sinfonia and Parsons Green Sinfonia, as well as the leader and resident soloist of the Piccadilly Sinfonietta.

She performs on a 1775 Landolfi violin, generously loaned by the Harrison-Frank Family Foundation.

‘One woman, one instrument, one evening-but what an evening, instrument and woman.’ Hastings Observer

Ayşen Ulucan is a versatile musician enjoying a diverse career as a soloist, chamber musician, teacher and orchestra musician. Based in Hastings, UK, she regularly performs in and outside the UK with various chamber music partners and orchestras such as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.

Having completed her studies in Freiburg, Germany in the classes of Prof. Rainer Kussmaul and Prof. Muriel Cantorreggi, she has played as a soloist with Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, Anima Musicae Chamber Orchestra, Baden Baden Philharmonic Orchestra, Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfonica de Minas Gerais, Istanbul, Izmir, Adana, Antalya, Eskisehir State Symphony Orchestras; and received invaluable coaching from Maxim Vengerov, Jorg Widmann, Rosa Fain, Zakhar Bron, Duncan Riddell, Svetlana Makarova, Ayla Erduran, Cihat Askin,Rosa Fain, Lukas David, over the years.

Among her chamber music partners are Maxim Vengerov, Richard Harwood, Chian Lim, Francis Rayner, Ellen Jewett, and Ozcan & Birsen Ulucan with whom she also has recorded a CD ‘Bir Agac Gibi’.

Ayşen was born 1985 in Bulgaria to a Turkish family of a paediatrician mother, a surgeon father and two older siblings playing the violin and the piano. She had her first violin lessons at the age of 4 with her brother Ozcan. Upon emigrating to Istanbul, Turkey in 1989; she was accepted to the Istanbul University State Conservatory as a junior student; where she studied with Veniamin Warshawsky and Genoveva Burova.

Born in London in 1974, Emily began playing the violin at the age of 4. In 1992 she was awarded a scholarship to the Royal Northern College of Music where she studied with Roger Raphael and Andrew Manze.

Emily began her professional career whilst still a student, performing regularly with the Hallé and BBC Philharmonic Orchestras as well as a fulltime member of the Manchester Camerata and Northern Chamber Orchestras. A move to London in 1998 saw Emily gain more orchestral experience, working with the London Philharmonic and BBC Symphony Orchestras as well as joining the acclaimed chamber ensemble CHROMA.

In 2000 Emily moved to Edinburgh to take up a post as Co-Principal second violin with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, a position she held for 4 years before moving to the same position with the Philharmonia Orchestra in 2004. In this seat Emily was privileged to work closely with some of the world’s finest conductors and soloists.

Since leaving the Philharmonia in 2024 Emily has been in demand as a guest principal, performing with the RSNO, CBSO, BBC Symphony and National Orchestra or Wales as well as ECO, CLS and the London Mozart Players.

Emily was appointed Assistant Concertmaster to the Oxford Philharmonic in 2025.

Elizaveta’s musical journey began at the age of five with her first violin lessons, and she first appeared on stage as a soloist at the age of eight, performing with a symphony orchestra from Lindau, Germany, at The Marble Palace of St. Petersburg. In the same year, Elizaveta entered the Specialist Music School of the St. Petersburg Conservatoire.

In 2012, she became a student at Chetham’s School of Music (Manchester), and a year later was chosen to lead Chetham’s Symphony Orchestra in a performance at the Royal Festival Hall, as well as becoming a Category Finalist of the BBC Young Musician 2014 competition. The following year, Elizaveta was awarded a full entrance scholarship, kindly provided by Soirée d’Or Committee, to study at the Royal College of Music. After graduating with First Class Honours in her Bachelor’s degree under the tutelage of Dr Felix Andrievsky, Elizaveta enrolled in the Master of Arts programme at the Royal Academy of Music as a student of maestro Jack Liebeck, having been awarded an Academy entrance scholarship and supported by the Stephen Bell Charitable Trust.

Elizaveta has won First Prizes in several international competitions. In 2016, she won First Prize at the Grand Prize Virtuoso International Competition and was awarded a performance at the Royal Albert Hall. She has performed in many other prestigious venues across the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France and Italy. During her time in the UK, Elizaveta had the honour of performing for members of the Royal Family on multiple occasions and regularly appeared as a soloist with British orchestras.

 Elizaveta participated in both the London Symphony Orchestra String Experience Scheme and the BBC Symphony Orchestra Pathways Scheme. Since then, she has been frequently invited to perform in LSO and BBCSO concerts, as well as in performances by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and other leading ensembles across the UK.

Elizaveta plays on a violin by Lucas Fabro.

Romanian violinist Maria Gîlicel is an emerging performer recognized for her versatility and passion on stage. She has performed as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestra member in various venues including Het Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Berliner Philharmoniker, Musikverein Wien, Wigmore Hall, Barbican Centre and Kings Place to name a few. She was part of the Tillett Trust Young Artists Platform and has been awarded the Royal Philharmonic Society Emily Anderson Prize for soloists; she obtained her Artist Diploma, Masters and BMus (Hons) at the Royal College of Music London, and has worked with many acclaimed musicians including Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Maxim Vengerov and Gordan Nikolic. Future engagements include solo recitals, concerts with the Chloé Piano Trio, and regular guest work with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the Netherlands Chamber and Philharmonic Orchestras, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Concertgebouw Chamber, etc. She currently holds a sub-principal position at the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra. Maria plays on a Andrea Postacchini violin and a Sartory modern bow kindly on loan from the Nationaal Muziekinstrumenten Fonds, as well as a classical bow by Andreas Grütter.

Jacqui Miles won an Exhibition to Junior RCM at age 10, followed by a scholarship to the Purcell School. She gained her BMus at RAM, studying with Ralph Holmes (violin), Christopher Elton (piano) and Paul Patterson (composition) and was awarded the F. Ayling Prize for her outstanding work on the course. She continued her studies with David Takeno and became one of the youngest ever members of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. She subsequently joined English National Opera as a first violin, during which time she also played regularly with LPO, Philharmonia and RPO. In 2009 she took a sabbatical to complete her Master’s in Violin Performance on a full scholarship and as Teaching Assistant at Arizona State University. During this time she was Concertmaster of MusicaNova Orchestra in Phoenix and of the Lyric Opera at ASU and played with the Phoenix Symphony. Jacqui has played for some of the world’s finest conductors in concert halls and opera houses around the world and made recordings for TV, film, DVD and CD. Favourite moments include playing Valkyrie at Glastonbury, on-stage band in ENO’s Rigoletto, giving solo ‘Doorstep Concerts’ during lockdown and performing on the Tintagel cliffs! Jacqui plays with various chamber groups and recently performed at the Buxton Fringe Festival. She plays on a Nicolo Gagliano violin from 1740.

Polish violinist Mira Marton began her musical education at the age of six. After spending ten years in specialist music schools in Poland, she earned a place at The Yehudi Menuhin School, where she studied under Lutsia Ibragimova. She later won a full scholarship to the Royal College of Music, graduating with a First-Class BMus (Hons) degree, before continuing her studies at the same institution with Radu Blidar for a Master’s degree.

A recipient of Poland’s Minister of Culture and National Heritage Prize, the Royal College of Music Violin Prize, and the Munster Trust Award, Mira has performed in major venues worldwide, including the Warsaw Philharmonic Berliner Philharmonie, Vienna Musikverein, Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, and Wigmore Hall.

In 2024, her recording of Matthew Taylor’s Violin Concertino with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales was released to international acclaim. Her performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with Sinfonia Tamesa was described by Robert Matthew-Walker in Musical Opinion Magazine as ‘as fresh and life-enhancing as when it was first heard.’

As a soloist and chamber musician, Mira has benefited from masterclasses and lessons with Maxim Vengerov, Alina Ibragimova, Roman Simovic, Ning Feng, and Oliver Wille. As an orchestral musician, she has
performed under renowned conductors such as Sir Antonio Pappano, Sir Andrew Davis, Martyn Brabbins, and Vasily Petrenko.

In December 2023, Mira was selected for the Chamber Orchestra of Europe Academy and was subsequently invited to join them on their European tour.

Mira plays on a 1687 Antonio Stradivari violin generously loaned to her by the Royal College of Music.

Born in London, David Alberman received his LRAM diploma from the Royal Academy of Music at the age of sixteen. He studied the violin privately with Igor Ozim in Cologne, and then studied Classical Languages and Philosophy at Oxford University for four years. After playing with the Academy of St. Martin’s, and playing as guest concertmaster of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, a long-standing interest in contemporary music led him to join the internationally renowned Arditti Quartet, who specialise in new music. During his time with the Quartet, he played the world premieres of more than 200 works, and made a number of prize-winning recordings. Having left the quartet, he joined the London Symphony Orchestra as Principal Second Violin and later Chair of the Board where he remained until 2023. He has also been in demand as a teacher and coach (e.g. at the New World Symphony Academy in Miami Beach, the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, the Chamber Music Academy of the Aix-en-Provence festival, and in 2025 will coach among other places, at Domaine Forget in Quebec and at the Lucerne Festival). In 2025 he will also be playing chamber music recitals in Littlehampton, Galatina (Puglia) and Quebec.

Greta Papa is a Greek-Albanian award-winning violinist who has vast experience in solo, chamber and orchestral music performances, with extensive repertoire and expertise in both classical and contemporary styles. Her career took off when she became the youngest member of the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra, selected by Leonidas Kavakos. Greta took part in many festivals and concert series in Greece, including solo performances including Brahms Violin Concerto, Chausson Poeme, Vivaldi Seasons, Brahms Concerto for Violin and Cello, Sarasate Zigeunerweisen with both State Orchestras of Athens and Thessaloniki as well as soloist at Onassis Cultural Centre and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre.

Greta moved to London to study her Masters with Andrew Watkinson at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with full scholarship, obtaining her MPerf with distinction. While she was at the GSMD she worked with prominent string quartets such as the Endellion and Takacs.

She was also granted a full scholarship to study with Stephanie Gonley at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, for the Artist Diploma and Advanced Professional Diploma with distinction.
Greta has performed with orchestras such as the LSO, ECO, ACO, BBC NOW, working with conductors a such as Sir Simon Rattle, Marin Alsop, Michael Tilson Thomas and others.

In 2021, Greta formed the Waldstein Quartet performing in notable venues across England such as Wigmore Hall and Dartington Summer School. Following this, Greta formed the Waldstein Piano Trio with cellist Miguel Angel Villeda and pianist Christos Fountos. Since then, the trio has won several international chamber music competitions such as Vienna International Competiton in Musikverein, Medici International Competition in London, Amadeus International Music Awards in Mozarteum, Maurice Ravel International Competition in Paris, Grand Prix Virtuoso in Beethoven Haus as well as the Cavatina Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition at Wigmore Hall when they were the only group from the London colleges of music that won among others.
In 2023 the trio was invited in Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada, to work with acclaimed chamber music groups such as Gryphon Trio, Parker Quartet, Jack Quartet and Eybler Quartet.

Greta plays a Pressenda violin, generously loaned by Trinity Laban Conservatoire.

Derbyshire UK- born Lizzie Ball has been performing as a violinist and vocalist internationally in classical, jazz, improvisation for nearly two decades, and is in busy demand as a collaborator, solo artist, project leader and mentor. She holds an MA as an Instrumental Scholar (reading Music) from St John’s College, Cambridge University, and two postgraduate diplomas in solo performance from the Royal College of Music and the Guildhall School of Music in London. She is most known for her creation, in 2012, of Classical Kicks Productions, to bring classical music out of the concert hall to a wider audience, with diverse performers, and key concerts including at UK festival -Bestival and a residency at Soho’s famous Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club (both upstairs and main house). In 2020 was made Guest Director of Vilnius based dynamic young chamber orchestra, ‘Mikroórkestra’. She has worked regularly as soloist/orchestra leader for a variety of artists, projects and tours including Hugh Jackman (as leader of the orchestra for his acclaimed 2019 The Man, The Music, The Show European Stadium Tour), The Sixteen, Nigel Kennedy -as Leader of his Orchestra of Life for over 8 years, Ariana Grande and Liam Gallagher. 

Lizzie’s recent work as a ‘violinist composer’ with violin, a loop pedal, some basic software plugins, creates a one-woman orchestra approach. She scores creative productions which include a heavy interplay between immersive visuals and sound design. In 2018 she created with theatre producer and director, Emily Blacksell, ‘Corrido: A Ballad for the Brave’, about the life and times of artist Frida Kahlo, premiering at the V and A Museum alongside the historic Frida Kahlo exhibition ‘Making Herself Up’ in 2018, in which Frida’s own clothes and personal items were exhibited for the first time outside of Mexico. She has also recently collaborated on an audio-visual production about climate change called ‘All the Ends of the World’ with The Sixteen and videographer Heather Britton. Alongside her performing work, Lizzie is passionate about creating new ways of teaching and mentoring music professionals. 

Lizzie has over 2 decades of workshop/outreach projects experience, alongside her performing commitments. Lizzie used the extra time in the pandemic created by work cancellations to qualify as a Transformational Coach. Lizzie has since established her own creative business, Set Your Stage Coaching, to widen the possibilities of her teaching work in the area of creative mentor-coaching. In 2021, she was appointed as the Violin Professor for Britten-Pears Foundations acclaimed ‘Aldeburgh Young Musicians’ scheme, and was awarded an ‘Enterprise Award’ from the Royal Philharmonic Society of UK for her enterprising approach to creativity. In 2018 she was awarded an Honorary MA Degree from the University of Derby for her services to music, and is currently an Associate Artist for Lichfield Festival until 2025.