25th September - Meryon Trio

13th November - Chris Grist and David Wright (cello & harpsichord)

15th January 2011 - Armonico Consort

5th March 2011 - Soojin Han (violin)

In this exciting new ensemble, Jitka Vlasankova, cellist of the world renowned Martinu Quartet, joins prizewinning clarinettist Angus Meryon and pianist Richard Saxel. Individually they have performed at major festivals around the world, and have been the recipient of many prizes and awards.

13th November 2010

Chris Grist (Cello) and David Wright (Harpsichord)

CHRISTOPHER GRIST Chris is principal cellist of one of the UK’s leading chamber groups, London Concertante. He has performed throughout the soloist and chamber musician with major recitals in London, Bristol, Cheltenham, Ipswich and Manchester. In London, Christopher has performed concertos and recitals at the Barbican Centre, South Bank, St. James’ Piccadilly, St. Martin-in-the-Fields as well as throughout the UK. Chris' career has taken him to all corners of the globe and he has performed as a soloist in France, Spain, Finland, Germany, Croatia, Saudi Arabia, USA and Chile. Also a well respected record producer, he has been Producer and Executive Producer on an ever growing list of recordings that number more than 25 CD releases.

DAVID WRIGHT David works regularly with some of the world’s leading ensemble musicians. He is a regular guest artist at the Dartington International Summer School and his radio and television broadcasts include: performances as a finalist in the York Early Music Competition and soloist at the Handel House Museum London (both for BBC Radio 3); more recently, a recital as part of the Belfast Music Festival (broadcast on BBC Northern Ireland); and performances on BBC Radio 3 featuring the Goldberg Variations. As a soloist David, performs regularly with the London Concertante, and frequently with international superstar, Emma Kirkby, as well as his own baroque ensemble. He recorded Bach’s Goldberg Variations in 2007 and has since toured it extensively, including performances at London’s landmark venue, St. Martin-in-the-Fields.

15th January 2011

Armonico Consort

Armonico Consort is, at its heart, a highly talented vocal ensemble staging a wide range of programmes in atmospheric settings. From massive 16th century polyphony including 'Spem in Alium' (Found in the programme Supersize Polyphony) to the sonorous romantic music such as Rachmaninov's Vespers, and from the Bach Passions to Venetian Vespers with the English Cornett and Sackbut Ensemble, Armonico Consort brings each work to life, providing the audience with a fresh musical experience. These performances are often accompanied by their own orchestra, which features the finest period instrumentalists in the world. The choir also regularly works with other orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, The Philharmonia and The European Union Chamber Orchestra. Armonico Consort performs regularly at pretty much every major festival in the UK, and at venues across the world including forthcoming engagements in Italy, Ireland, the USA and Israel and regularly perform with some of the world's greatest artists including Nicola Benedetti, Natalie Clein, James Bowman, Jennifer Pike, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Crispian Steele-Perkins and Dame Emma Kirkby.

5th March 2011

Soojin Han (violin)

Soojin was born in Korea and moved to the UK when she was two. She began the violin at the age of eight and entered the Yehudi Menuhin School before moving to the Purcell School to study with Felix Andrievsky.  She studied at Oxford University and the Royal Academy of Music in London and from October 2009 joined the Kronberg Academy Further Masters Studies with Ana Chumachenco.

Soojin has performed as soloist with orchestras such as the London Symphony, Poznan Philharmonic, Tokyo Philharmonic, Seoul Philharmonic, Korean Symphony, London Soloists Chamber Orchestra, L'Ensemble Ricercata de Paris, and has given concerts throughout the UK, Europe and the Far East in venues including nearly all of the major London concert halls, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Suntory Hall, Operacity and Bunkamura Orchard Hall, Tokyo, Osaka Symphony Hall and the Sejong Arts Centre, Seoul.  She has broadcast on Polish, Dutch and Korean Radio.

Soojin won 2nd prize as the youngest competitor and the youngest ever top prize winner at the Wieniawski International Violin Competition 2001 in Poznan, Poland where she was also awarded 7 other special prizes including the Critics and Journalists Prize and the Polish Radio Listener’s Award.  She also won first prize at the Tunbridge Wells International Young Concert Artists Competition 2002 and the Bayreuth International Competition 2006.  Other awards include the Musicians Benevolent Fund’s Manoug Parikian Prize 2001, Royal Philharmonic Society's Emily Anderson Award 2002, the LSO Scholarship Competition 2002, Martin Music Scholarships, and Hattori Foundation Scholarships, an Allcard Award from the Worshipful Company of Musicians 2008 and a Countess of Munster award 2008.

Her love of chamber music has taken her on several occasions to participate in Open Chamber Music at IMS Prussia Cove, Cornwall.

Soojin plays on a 1666 Antonius Stradivarius kindly provided by an anonymous benefactor.