Michael Barenboïm
Violin

Following this celebrated debut, he has since performed the Schoenberg concerto with the Vienna Philharmonic under Daniel Barenboim, the Chicago Symphony under Asher Fisch, the Israel Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta, and the Berlin Philharmonic under Vasily Petrenko. Michael regularly gives solo recitals in the world’s most prestigious concert halls, such as Wigmore Hall in London, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the Sydney Opera House, and Teatro di San Carlo in Naples. He presented a program with works by Pierre Boulez in Carnegie Hall, the Berlin Philharmonie, the Opéra National de Paris, the Barbican Centre in London, the Dortmund Konzerthaus, and the Salzburg Festival.

As a member of the Boulez Ensemble, Michael has premiered numerous new works by composers such as Jörg Widmann, Kareem Rouston, and many others. He is a professor for violin and chamber music at the Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin, and has since 2020 been the academy’s Dean. In addition, he and seven other selected members of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra founded the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble in 2020 and were able to complete a 13-concert tour of the USA shortly before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Among Michael’s last solo performances before the lockdown were Alban Berg’s Violin Concerto with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic under Robert Trevino and Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel.

Michael Barenboim’s first solo album featured compositions by Bach and Bartók as well as Boulez’s Anthèmes 1 & 2. In 2018 there followed a CD with works by Tartini, Berio, Paganini, and Sciarrino. For Deutsche Grammophon, Michael has recorded the Mozart piano quartets and trios as well as the complete Beethoven piano trios – together with Kian Soltani and Daniel Barenboim.

Amihai Grosz
Viola

Amihai Grosz looks back on a very unusual career path: At first a quartet player (founding member of the Jerusalem Quartet), then and until today Principal Violist with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and also a renowned soloist.

Initially, Amihai Grosz learned to play the violin, before switching to the viola at age 11. In Jerusalem, he was taught by David Chen, later by Tabea Zimmermann in Frankfurt and Berlin as well as in Tel Aviv by Haim Taub, who had a formative influence on him. At a very early age, he received various grants and prizes and was a member of the “Young Musicians Group” of the Jerusalem Music Center, a program for outstanding young musical talents.

As a soloist, Grosz has collaborated with renowned conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Tugan Sokhiev, Klaus Mäkelä, Ariel Zukermann, Daniel Barenboim, Sir Simon Rattle, Alexander Vedernikov and Lionel Bringuier. He performs internationally with orchestras such as the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Zurich Chamber Orchestra.

In the world of chamber music, Amihai Grosz collaborates with artists such as Yefim Bronfman, Mitsuko Uchida, Daniel Hope & Friends, Eric le Sage, Janine Jansen & Friends, Julian Steckel, Daishin Kashimoto and David Geringas. Internationally, he can be heard regularly at the most prestigious concert halls such as the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Tonhalle Zurich, the Wigmore Hall in London and the Philharmonie Luxembourg, as well as at leading festivals including the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, the Evian, Verbier and Delft Festivals, the BBC Proms and the Utrecht International Chamber Music Festival.

The highlights of the season 22/23 are concerts with the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, performances with the Orchestra Del Teatro Massimo di Palermo & Omer Meir Wellber, the Filarmonica de Gran Canaria & Beatriz Fernandez and the Musikalische Akademie Mannheim & Ingo Metzmacher amongst others. In the winter of 2023 Amihai will be touring Japan extensively. Performances are planned with the NHK Symphony Orchestra & Tugan Sokhiev, play-lead with the Aichi Chamber Orchestra, as well as solo performances.

Under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle Amihai will perform the Martinu Viola Concerto with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. In the upcoming summer 2023 Amihai will perform at the Verbier Festival the Sinfonia Concertante together with Janine Jansen and be involved in the festivals chamber music concerts.

As part of an important round of chamber music projects Amihai will return to perform at the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Tonhalle Zurich, the Kammermusiksaal of the Berlin Philharmonic and the Concertgebouw Amsterdam. Collaborations and/or tours are planned together with with Emmanuel Pahud & Anneleen Lenaerts, the Modigliani Quartett & Nathalia Milstein and Made in Berlin.

The next recording to be released by Alpha Classic is the Bartok Viola Concerto together with the Orchestra National de Lille under the lead of Alexander Bloch. The release dates of this recording is to be announced at a later stage.

In the season of 21/22 Amihai Grosz has been appointed as Artistic Director of the International Chamber Music Festival Utrecht

Amihai Grosz plays a Gaspar-da-Salò viola from the year 1570, which is a lifelong loan made available to him by a private collection.

Zlatomir Fung
Viola

The first American in four decades and youngest musician ever to win First Prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition Cello Division, Zlatomir Fung is poised to become one of the preeminent cellists of our time. Astounding audiences with his boundless virtuosity and exquisite sensitivity, the 23-year-old has already proven himself to be a star among the next generation of world-class musicians. A recipient of the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship 2022 and a 2020 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Fung’s impeccable technique demonstrates mastery of the canon and exceptional insight into the depths of contemporary repertoire.

In the 2022-2023 season, Fung performs with orchestras and gives recitals in all corners of the world. Orchestral engagements include the BBC and Rochester Philharmonics, Milwaukee, Reading, Lincoln, Ridgefield and Sante Fe Symphonies, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, Sarasota Orchestra, and APEX Ensemble. He gives the world premiere of a new cello concerto by Katherine Balch with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. He plays recitals throughout North America with pianists Benjamin Hochman, Dina Vainshtein, and Janice Carissa, including stops in New York City, Chicago, IL, San Diego and Berkeley, CA, Los Alamos, NM, Rockville, MD, Melbourne, FL, Vancouver and Sechelt, BC, Northampton, MA, Province, RI, Burlington, VT, and Waterford, VA. Tours of Europe and Asia include a recital at Wigmore Hall and two performances at Cello Biënnale Amsterdam.

Recent summer festival appearances include Aspen Music Festival, Bravo! Vail with the New York Philharmonic and Leonard Slatkin, ChamberFest Cleveland, Chamber Music Northwest, La Jolla Chamber Music Society, Rockport Chamber Music Festival, and Verbier. As a soloist, Fung has appeared with the Detroit, Kansas City, Seattle, Utah, Greensboro, Ann Arbor, and Asheville Symphonies, among many others. Past recital highlights include his Carnegie Hall Weill Recital Hall debut with pianist Mishka Rushdie Momen and multiple tours throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. As a chamber musician, he has been presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Philharmonic Society of Orange County, IMS Prussia Cove, Syrinx Concerts in Toronto, The Embassy Series & The Phillips Collection in Washington DC, and Salon de Virtuosi and Bulgarian Concert Evenings in New York City.

A winner of the 2017 Young Concert Artists International Auditions and the 2017 Astral National Auditions, Fung has taken the top prizes at the 2018 Alice & Eleonore Schoenfeld International String Competition, 2016 George Enescu International Cello Competition, 2015 Johansen International Competition for Young String Players, 2014 Stulberg International String Competition, and 2014 Irving Klein International Competition. He was selected as a 2016 U.S. Presidential Scholar for the Arts and was awarded the 2016 Landgrave von Hesse Prize at the Kronberg Academy Cello Masterclasses.

Of Bulgarian-Chinese heritage, Zlatomir Fung began playing cello at age three. Fung studied at The Juilliard School under the tutelage of Richard Aaron and Timothy Eddy. Fung has been featured on NPR’s Performance Today and has appeared on From the Top six times. In addition to music, he enjoys cinema, reading, and blitz chess.

Behzod Abduraimov
Piano