Talent Studio 2026:

The Cohort

20 countries. 8 instruments. 27 artists.

Selected through a rigorous process, the Talent Studio 2026 cohort brings together a wide range of artistic perspectives. The cohort marks the beginning of a new phase, fostering dialogue, professional development, and exchange within the programme.

Explore the participants below and learn more about their work and backgrounds.

  • Mia Mandineau

    Soprano

    Mia Mandineau is a French soprano and Resident Artist at Detroit Opera. Her recent roles include Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte and Micaëla in Carmen, alongside appearances in contemporary repertoire. Her work has developed through collaboration with leading figures of the opera world, among them Mané Galoyan and Alfred Walker.

  • Johannes Gray

    Cello

    American cellist Johannes Gray is a recipient of the Pablo Casals International Awardand a lauréat of the International JS Bach Competition Leipzig. He gives concerts at venues such as the Pierre Boulez Saal and at international festivals across Europe and beyond, performing both as a soloist and in chamber music.

  • Ruslan Talas

    Violin

    Violinist Ruslan Talas performs internationally in major concert halls across Europe, Asia, and the Americas, including a debut at the Elbphilharmonie. He is a laureate of the Queen Elisabeth Competition and has received prizes at the Rodolfo Lipizer and Stuttgart International Violin Competitions. He is currently Artist in Residence at Fondazione Nicola Bulgari.

  • Julian Kainrath

    Violin

    Italian-Austrian violinist Julian Kainrath is a prizewinner of the Ysaÿe International Music Competition and recipient of the ICMA Discovery Award. He made his orchestral debut at the age of 16 with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg under Adam Fischer at the Philharmonie Luxembourg and has since performed on many of Europe’s leading concert stages.

  • Chunyi Zhao

    Conductor

    Chunyi Zhao is a conductor and violinist. She was awarded Third Prize at the International Youth Conducting Competition Bucharest and is a recipient of the Deutschlandstipendium and the Forum Dirigieren scholarship. Chunyi Zhao has assisted George Benjamin, Kent Nagano, and Markus Stenz, worked with the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, Hamburg State Opera, and Theater für Niedersachsen, and been a guest conductor with the Bremen Philharmonic and the Xi’an Symphony Orchestra.

  • Dmytro Semykras

    Piano

    Ukrainian pianist Dmytro Semykras has received awards at the Santa Cecilia International Piano Competition, the International competition for young pianists in memory of Vladimir Horowitz, the Cantu International Piano Competition, the Ettlingen International Piano Competition, the International Competition for Young Pianists in memory of Vladimir Krainev, and the Île-de-France International Piano Competition. His work brings together solo repertoire and chamber music.

  • Wataru Hisasue

    Piano

    Wataru Hisasue has been recognised at the Queen Elisabeth Competition, the ARD International Music Competition, and the Concours Géza Anda. He performs as a soloist with orchestras including the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, the Belgian National Orchestra, the Brussels Philharmonic, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. His album Did it again, featuring works by Pascal Dusapin, was released by GENUIN Classics and the Bayerischer Rundfunk.

  • Kuan-Wei Chen

    Piano

    Taiwanese pianist Kuan-Wei Chen is a prizewinner of the Giovanni Colafemmina International Piano Competition, the Radovljica International Piano Competition, the Maria Canals International Piano Competition, and Les Étoiles du Piano. He performs internationally in recitals and with orchestras, including with the Orchestre de Picardie and the Orchestra da Camera del Friuli Venezia Giulia. He began piano studies at the age of four and made his orchestral debut in 2009 with the Taipei Century Symphony Orchestra.

  • Martina Consonni

    Piano

    Italian pianist Martina Consonni performs internationally, with appearances at the Berlin Philharmonie, Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall in London, Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, and collaborations with Gautier Capuçon and Steven Isserlis. Her orchestral engagements include the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the Dresden Philharmonic, and the Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich. She is a prizewinner of the International Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn and the Maria Canals International Music Competition, with recordings released by Warner Classics.

  • Mabelle Park

    Violin

    German-born South Korean violinist Mabelle Young-Eun Park is the First Prize winner of the Strings Section at the 2025 Royal Over-Seas League Annual Music Competition and a recipient of the Prince’s Prize and Audience Award. She is currently on the Artist Diploma programme at the Royal College of Music as a Sue Balston Scholar. Mabelle Young-Eun Park has performed at Wigmore Hall, Barbican Centre, and Carnegie Hall, has given recitals across Europe and Asia, and has appeared as a soloist with orchestra and as a chamber musician across Europe and beyond.

  • Xiaofu Ju

    Piano

    Chinese pianist Xiaofu Ju has appeared at the Wiener Musikverein, Lincoln Center, and the Salzburg Festspielhaus. He performs in recitals and at festivals, with a focus on contemporary repertoire and the premieres of new works. His debut album Waldeinsamkeit, released by NCPA Classics, presents a programme shaped by a strong narrative and poetic conception. He is a prizewinner of the Hong Kong International Piano Competition and recipient of the Tabor Piano Prize at the Verbier Festival Academy.

  • Liav Kerbel

    Cello

    Liav Kerbel has received awards at the Klaipėda David Geringas International Cello Competition and the Eisenberg-Fried Concerto Competition at the Manhattan School of Music, and has participated in programmes such as the Verbier Festival Academy. He has appeared with orchestras including the Belgian National Orchestra and the Flemish Symphony Orchestra, and made his debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. Since September 2022, he has served as a chamber music faculty member at the Musica Mundi School in Waterloo.

  • Eva Wetzel

    Violin

    Eva Wetzel is a German violinist and stipendiatin of the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben. She won First Prize and the Audience Award at the Rosen-Schaffel Competition and Second Prize at the Villa de Llanes International Competition. Her debut album with GENUIN unveils hidden treasures of the violin repertoire. She has appeared with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Eastern Music Festival Orchestra, and Vogtland Philharmonic.

  • Adrian Herpe

    Piano

    Eva Wetzel is a German violinist, she won First Prize and the Audience Award at the Rosen-Schaffel Competition and Second Prize at the Villa de Llanes International Competition. Her debut album with GENUIN unveils hidden treasures of the violin repertoire. She has appeared with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Eastern Music Festival Orchestra, and Vogtland Philharmonic.

  • Leonhard Kreutzmann

    Conductor

    German conductor Leonhard Kreutzmann is Chief Conductor of the KHG Orchestra Freiburg and a scholarship holder of Forum Dirigieren of the Deutscher Musikrat. He has worked as assistant to Dirk Kaftan with the Beethoven Orchester Bonn and has conducted the London Symphony Orchestra as part of the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition.

  • Carlos Giménez Martínez

    Saxophone

    Spanish saxophonist Carlos Giménez Martínez is a classical saxophonist focused on expanding the artistic and expressive possibilities of the instrument. By engaging with established musical traditions, he approaches the saxophone as an instrument in development, building a stronger artistic foundation for its future. His debut recording includes Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde (Vorspiel und Liebestod), presented through a radically different instrumental perspective.

  • Alisa Sadikova

    Harp

    Harpist Alisa Sadikova has received distinctions at the International Harp Competition in Israel and the Yuri Temirkanov Prize. She has performed at Carnegie Hall and the Tonhalle Zürich, and collaborated with the Moscow Virtuosi. Her work also includes original arrangements and projects that expand the harp repertoire.

  • Jiaxun Yao

    Cello

    Cellist Jiaxun Yao has received awards at the Irving Klein International String Competition and the Orchestra 914 Concerto Competition. She has performed as a soloist at Carnegie Hall and with the Qingdao Symphony Orchestra. She also performs on historical instruments, bringing a distinct perspective to her work.

  • Jonathan Roozeman

    Cello

    Finnish-Dutch cellist Jonathan Roozeman received distinction at the International Tchaikovsky Competition. He has performed with the Mariinsky Orchestra and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, working with conductors Valery Gergiev, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Sakari Oramo. He is active in both solo and chamber music.

  • Tom Zalmanov

    Piano

    Israeli pianist Tom Zalmanov is First Prize winner of the Aviv Competitions. He has performed as a soloist with the Jerusalem Symphony, the Israel Symphony, the Tbilisi Symphony, and the Bayer Philharmoniker Leverkusen. A fellow of the Ravinia Steans Music Institute, he is an avid chamber musician and collaborative pianist.

  • Giorgio Lazzari

    Piano

    Italian pianist Giorgio Lazzari is a prizewinner of the International Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn and the Robert Schumann Competition in Düsseldorf, and a laureate of the Honens International Piano Competition. His work includes solo recitals, orchestral performances, and chamber music, with appearances at venues and festivals such as Klavier-Festival Ruhr, the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, Beethovenfest Bonn, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, and the Società Filarmonica di Trento.

  • Anastasiya Magamedova

    Piano

    Praised as “a bundle of dynamite, combining quiet delicacy with thundering power”, Anastasiya Magamedova began playing piano in Tajikistan and is a graduate of the Juilliard School. She has performed in the Kammermusik Saal of the Berlin Philharmonic, Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Concert Hall, and Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin. She is a recent 2nd prize winner of the International Júlio Cardona Competition in Portugal, and the International ArsClassica Competition in Rome.

  • Bade Daştan

    Violin

    Turkish violinist Bade Daştan was awarded first prize at the International Grumiaux Competition and has received further recognition at the Andrea Postacchini and Young Virtuosos Competitions. Her work includes performances at venues such as BOZAR in Brussels and the Süreyya Opera House in Istanbul, together with orchestral collaborations including the İzmir State Symphony Orchestra and the Musica Mundi Orchestra.

  • Radu Rățoi

    Accordion

    Moldovan accordionist Radu Rățoi is a winner of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions and recipient of the Leonie Sonning Talent Prize. He has also been honoured with the “Master in Arts” Award by the President of Moldova. He has performed at the Berliner Philharmonie, Radio Concert House Copenhagen, and the Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall, and has been appointed soloist with the National Chamber Orchestra of Moldova. His programmes include his own arrangements of music by J.S. Bach, D. Scarlatti, and F. Liszt.

  • Elžbieta Liepa Dvarionaitė

    Piano

    Elžbieta Liepa Dvarionaitė is a Lithuanian pianist. In 2025 she won second prize at the Málaga International Piano Competition and in 2022 received first prize at the International S. Vainiūnas Piano Competition. She performs throughout Japan and Europe and has appeared with orchestras such as the Málaga Philharmonic, Baden-Baden Philharmonic, and the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra. She is a co-founder of Trio Kosmos, which performs both classical and contemporary repertoire, including premieres of works by living composers.

  • Vladimir Petrov

    Piano

    Pianist Vladimir Petrov is a laureate and Audience Prize winner of the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition. He performs internationally across Europe, Asia, and the Americas, including Carnegie Hall, the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, Salle Cortot in Paris, and the Great Hall of the Moscow State Conservatory. He has worked with conductors Valery Gergiev, Lanfranco Marcelletti, and Tito Muñoz, among others.

    © Kate Kondratieva

  • İlke Işı Tuncer

    Violin

    Turkish violinist İlke Işı Tuncer has been recognised at the Josef Micka International Violin Competition. She performs as a soloist with orchestras including the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra, the Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Symphony Orchestra, and the Hacettepe Symphony Orchestra, and gives recitals in Turkey and abroad, including in New York.