Riana Heath is an outstanding American-Javanese violinist who expresses herself passionately in both solo and chamber music. Born in the USA in 1998, she received her first violin lessons at the age of 6 with Moscow Conservatory Pavel Feldman. At 13, she moved to Europe to study in the precollege division of the prestigious Mozarteum University Salzburg with Wonji Kim-Ozim, as a member of the Leopold-Mozart-Institute for highly gifted students. Riana is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Arts degree in both violin and viola performance with Prof. Lily Francis and Prof. Thomas Riebl at the Mozarteum University Salzburg. As a recipient of the Erasmus+ scholarship in 2019-20, she had the opportunity to study for a year at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Danse et de Musique de Paris with Prof. Michaël Hentz.

Violinists such as Prof. Meesun Hong-Coleman, Johannes Dickbauer, Prof. Mark Welmanivich, Sergey Fatkulin, Jela Spitkova and Irina Goldstein have guided Riana Heath through her musical journey.

Riana has taken violin masterclasses with Maxim Vengerov, Pierre Amoyal, Vadim Repin, Ulf Wallin and Igor Ozim and was invited twice to take part in the chamber music festival "Mit Musik Miteinander" of the Kronberg Academy in Germany, where she played alongside Nikita Boriso-Glebsky, László Fenyö, Niklas Liepe, Tomoko Akasaka, Bonian Tian and Peijun Xu.

As an avid chamber musician, she has studied chamber music at Sándor Végh Institute of Chamber Music and has been coached by Louise Hopkins, Wolfgang Redik, members of the Minetti Quartett, Kuss Quartet, Quartour Mosaïques, and the Hagen Quartet. Together with her sisters Dhyani and Susila Heath, she has founder the "Eucharis Strings", an ensemble dedicated to performing works by composers from all around the world.

Riana has won numerous first prizes at various national youth competitions, and was awarded first prize at the international competition "Gran Prize Virtuoso", additionally selected to perform at the Metallener Saal Musikverein in Vienna. she has given public performances throughout Europe, and North America.

Described by Zubin Mehta as "an artist with unusual pianistic talent“ Irena Gulzarova is one of the outstanding representatives of her generation. Regularly praised for her warm sensitive interpretations and delicate intuition, she combines her virtuoso technique with great refinement and magnetic stage presence.  Gulzarova played on important international stages and festivals such as the Carnegie Hall, the Tonhalle Zurich, the Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, the Grafenegg Festival, the Oxford Festival, the Moscow Philharmonic. Among the conductors with whom she has enjoyed successful associations are Lawrence Foster, Vladimir Spivakov, Jürg Hennenberger, Constantine Orbelian, Dmitry Kitajenko, Aziz Shokhakimov. Gulzarova has worked with a number of renowned orchestras, including the Vienna Philharmonic, the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, the Tonkünstler Orchestra, the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, the Basel Symphony Orchestra or the Orchestra l’Opéra de Marseille. She shares her passion for chamber music on stage with musicians such as Rudolf Buchbinder, Mischa Maisky, Vadim Repin or Daniel Hope. Her schedule for the 19/20 season includes fresh invitation to play with the Orchestra l’Opéra de Marseille, as well as her début with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Irena Gulzarova was born in 1982 in Tashkent to a family of musicians. Her musical studies continued with Prof. Marat Gumarov at the state Uzbek Academy of music and then with Prof. Rudolf Buchbinder at the music Academy in Basel.

Irena Gulzarova has received many awards such as Presidential Prize of Uzbekistan (Tashkent 2005), "Golden Talent" from the Russian "Performing Arts" Foundation (Moscow 2005), Prize for the nomination "Best Newcomer 2004" from the Ministry of Culture, Uzbekistan (Tashkent 2005).   

Léandre is 12 years old and from Montreal, Canada. He has been playing the violin since he was 3 years old. He is passionate about music and performing for others. At the age of 10, he was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma, a type of brain cancer. On New Years Eve of 2019, doctors performed a 10 hour long surgery to remove the tumor. He then had weeks of radiation and months of chemotherapy. Three weeks after his surgery, he returned to his love of playing his violin and played every day during his treatment. Playing his violin became an important part of his recovery journey and led him to wish to meet Maxim, who is his favourite violinist. He is so excited to have been chosen for this amazing opportunity. 

Elizaveta Glazunova says,

“I was born into a family of musicians. My mother is a pianist, my grandmother is a musicologist, my grandfather is a conductor, so, one might say, fate decided that I would also be a musician. From the age of five, I began my studies in the class of Professor Olga Arkadyevna Gantvarg. In 2015, I worked with Chingiz Osmanov and currently, I am in 11th grade. 

I am currently studying at the St. Petersburg Conservatory named after N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov. My teacher is Professor Mikhail Khanonovich Gantvarg who is Head of the Violin and Viola Department. He is an excellent Professor ad has always worked with me. He is the last of the old guard in St. Petersburg, the one who preserves the traditions of the old school. Chingiz Osmanov is also one of the heirs of the Auer school, an excellent violinist and virtuoso. He has travelled all over the world and is known everywhere. In general, our world is very small. The fact that in our conservatory the founder of the violin school was Leopold Auer, a student of Joachim, I think it is fate. It so happened that Auer owed his name to his own disciples, but, of course, not everyone can bring up such a galaxy of the greatest performers. Our school does not stamp violinists. It educates individuals and performers."

Angelina Lobko is13 years old.  She was born and lives in Russia, Primorsky Territory, Ussuriisk. 

At the age of two and a half, she confidently announced she would play the violin and at the age of five, she entered the Children’s Art School in Ussuriysk to study with Professor Kopylova Galina Valerievna. 

At the age of six, Angelina started to actively take part in competitions including IV International Yuri Yankelevich Violin Competition 2018 Omsk, scholarship diploma, VI Open All-Russian Competition for Young Performers on Stringed Bowed Instruments Merzlyakovka Invites Friends, 2018 Moscow III prize, All-Russian Educational Center Sirius Sochi is a participant in the April session of 2019.

She also has participated in the XX International Television Competition for Young Musicians The Nutcracker (Special Prize of the Zakhar Bron Academy - masterclasses as part of the "Interlaken Classics 2020" festival, a personal scholarship of the Vladimir Spivakov International Charitable Foundation, a master bow from the House of Violin Scroll  Fine Instruments) Moscow, ll All-Russian Internet competition "Musical Talents of Russia", 1st degree laureate, June 2020 Moscow, lX International competition among musicians GRAND MUSIC ART 1st degree laureate most recently in July 2020 in Moscow.

In addition, Angelina has been successful in the XXI International Television Competition for Young Musicians “Nutcracker” in December 2020 in Moscow - diploma winner, special prize of the House of Violin Scroll Fine Instruments - violin (master Vladimir Yakimenko 1994, St. Petersburg), "Nouvelles Etoiles" First International Online Music Competition for Young Talents, Paris, between November 2020 and January 2021 at the Grand Prix, Special Prize for performance with an orchestra.  

Angelina is a regular performer and programmes of the Vladimir Spivakov International Charitable Foundation and in the XVII International Festival of V. Spivakov's ICF "Moscow meets friends" in 20-25 November 2020. 

She has received masterclasses from Professors ZN Bron, A.B. Trostyansky,  E.E., Revicha A.V., Propischan S.N., Chvertok A.K., Bushkova E.R. and Sokolova A.N.  (Associate Professor of Moscow Conservatory).  

Since September 2019, Angelina is a student of the Primorsky branch of the Central Music School, with Professor Kalman Felix Ginelevich.

Angelina is an active and charismatic young with a rich imagination as well as leadership qualities. She adores children and animals, and her hobbies include swimming, history, singing and listening to classics.  Her favorite performers are D. Oistrakh, V. Spivakov and M. Vengerov. 

Eric Charles Chen, born in Princeton New Jersey, began his violin studies at the age of 4 and currently studies with Donald Weilerstein at the New England Conservatory, USA.

At 9 years old, he had his first solo performance with the Livingston orchestra and was accepted to the Juilliard Pre-college where he began his studies with Naoko Tanaka and later also studied with Cho-Liang Lin. 

Eric has received first prize at the 2019 Cooper International Competition, the 2017 Juilliard Pre-college concerto competition, and the First Sylvia Lee Young Violinist Competition in Taipei.

The violin ensemble, Magic Strings, was created and originated at the Tallinn Old Town Music School in 2012 and consists of 28 youths, ages 3-17. Trio Magic Strings consists of Ingmar Kiviloo (17), Karoliina Kuppart (14), Ursula Melsas (14).

The repertoire allows Magic Strings to present in various music genres. They enjoy making music. The usual repertoire which they perform ranges from classical to pop, through fiddling to musicals.

Group members include several youths who, as soloists, won first places in the Young Instrumentalist  (Estonia)  string competitions. 

A trio consisting of Ingmar Kiviloo, Karoliina Kuppart, Ursula Melsas participated in a competition in 2018  which was dedicated to J. Sibelius in Finland. They won 1st place. At the same competition, Ingmar Kiviloo, as a soloist won (2nd place), Ursula Melsas (1st place), Karoliina Kuppart (3rd place).

In 2019 the trio participated in the Gnessin International String Instruments competition, held in Moscow Russia, coming in 3rd place.

In 2021 they won as a trio 1st prize at the  XII Savshinsky International Music Competition (Moscow) and also 1st prize at the International Youth Music competition Nouvelles Etoiles (France).

Magic Strings have given concerts and performed in a number of places, both in Estonia and locations around the globe. All the venues are listed on their website www.talendipesa.weebly.com. In addition, one can follow their activities on their official Facebook page called VolukeeledMagicStrings.

Most notable performance places, include the following: The West Coast Estonian Days, held in Whistler, Canada in 2015, concerts in Toronto and in Ontario, at the Pan-European Suzuki convention in Davos, Switzerland  and the global Suzuki Youth concert performed at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Mother’s Day concert in Tallinn Old Town Square, a Disney films Music Concert presented at the Nordea Concert Hall, an Estonian TV Charity Program, titled  Christmas tunnel, the Adelaide Australia XXVI Estonian Days in 2017, as well as concerts in Finland, 2018 participation in the Netherlands International Youth Festival in-Watergate, the 2018 Canada (Estonian Republic 100 Celebrations), in  2018 USA (Maryland-Washington-New York, which included a performance at the Lincoln Center Alice Tully hall) and San Francisco-Stanford University.

In 2019, Magic Strings toured in France and in Italy delivering 9 concerts during 5 different Youth Music Festivals (Prato Festival, Provençal Festival of Youth Orchestras, the International Festival of Youth Orchestras in Florence and in the Cremona Summer Festival).

In total in the year 2019, the ensemble in its various forms presented 70 concerts. The ensemble performs at the hospitals, homes for elderly, homes for orphaned children. They have also a programme to engage with toddlers.

The ensemble is directed by Tereza Šmerling, who in 2018 was recognised as the best violin teacher by the Culture Endowment of Estonia. She teaches violin at Tallinn Old Town Educational Collegium Music School where she has 28 students from preschool up to and including basic school age students. Tereza also directs the Tallinn Old Town Educational Collegium fourth-fifth graders string orchestra.

For the online masterclass lesson with Maxim Vengerov, the ensemble will be accompanied by concert master Susanna Liisa Onoper.