Artists 2021

Sophie Maria Ochsner, Violoncello

Sophie Maria Ochsner was born on 09.07.2003. She has been taking cello lessons at the Winterthur Conservatory since 2009, first with Doris Maria Sigrist and then with David Lüthy. She also played in ensembles with Gabriela Ramsauer and later with Bettina Macher. At the beginning of 2015, she was accepted into the support programme and was allowed to take additional piano lessons after successfully completing four level tests.

In summer 2017, she made the step into the Winterthur Youth Symphony Orchestra. During the summer holidays, she took part in many chamber music projects as part of the music course weeks in Arosa. In March 2018, she ventured into a Swiss music competition for the first time and won 2nd prize in her category straight away. In the summer of 2019, she joined the art and sports class of the Kreuzlingen Gymnasium with the intention of studying music later on.

Her wish is to become a cellist and conductor and one of her biggest dreams is to be able to perform as a soloist at a concert.

Simone Kolb, Violin/Viola

Simone Kolb was born in 2002. She began playing the violin at the age of seven. She received her first violin lessons from Andrea Linsi at the Winterthur Conservatory and later at the Winterthur Youth Music School. She has been taking lessons with Annette Birkenmeier at the Winterthur Conservatory since 2015 and was accepted into the support programme in 2014.

From an early age, Simone played in various string ensembles at the conservatory and finally, since 2015, she has participated in the Winterthur Youth Symphony Orchestra WJSO, currently in the 1st violin. She also often takes part in chamber music courses and plays in various formations, for example with a duo partner on the piano for some time.

Simone currently attends the Atelierschule Zurich and performed her own concert as part of her Matura thesis, with contemporary and classical music.

Else Marije Baas, violin/viola

Else Marije Baas started playing the violin in 2010 at the age of five, following the so-called Suzuki method. In 2014 she entered the School for Young Talents, Royal Conservatory of The Hague, where she has since been attending classes with Mireille van der Wart.

Else has participated in various competitions and won the Florence Competition in 2013. In December 2017, she performed as a soloist with the Tollens Ensemble. She has also participated in various master classes and summer internships in the Netherlands or abroad.

Zoë Hirst, violin/viola

Zoë Hirst (18) lives in Aadorf in Thurgau, attends the Fachmittelschule in the music profile at the Kantonsschule Rychenberg in Winterthur and would like to study music after graduation.

She has been playing the violin for around 12 years and has been taking lessons with Annette Birkenmeier at the Winterthur Conservatory since 2016. Above all, she enjoys playing together with others. She is a member of the Thurgau Youth Orchestra, plays in the WJSO (Winterthur Youth Symphony Orchestra) and regularly takes part in chamber music weeks of the Winterthur Conservatory's support programme and various music camps. For the past 3 years she has played the first violin in a quartet with her brother on the cello. As a soloist, she regularly participates successfully in competitions.

She also takes piano lessons and has sung for a long time in the youth choir of the Stadtkirche Winterthur.

Claire Schuurmans, harp

Claire Schuurmans (2004) was born in Delft and started playing the harp at the age of five. She took private lessons with Jaike Bakker and has been studying at the School for Young Talents, Royal Conservatory The Hague with Ernestine Stoop since August 2017.

Since 2012, she has played the harp in the Hofstad Youth Orchestra The Hague. With this orchestra she was allowed to play solo in 2016 at the Noordeinde Nocturne, the Festival Classique and during a tour of Germany. Further solo performances took place at the Delft Chamber Music Festival and the Grachtenfestival in Amsterdam. She has been featured on the panel programme of NPO Radio 4 and on the Christmas programme on television.

Claire is a prize winner of various competitions. In February 2017 Claire received a 1st prize and the audience prize in the final of the Princess Christina Competition in Rotterdam. During the National Semi-Final in The Hague, she received an Honourable Mention. In addition, Claire won 1st prize and the prize for the best compulsory programme at the Rosa Spier Harp Competition in the pedal harp category up to 14 years (2018) and 15-17 years (2020). In the summer of 2018, she formed the DoC Trio together with Dominique Seelen and Douwe Eisses and took lessons at the Chamber Music Atelier in Delft. With this trio she won the stimulation prize of the Princess Christina Competition in 2019.

Claire attended master classes with Sivan Magen, Sylvain Blassel and Edward Witsenburg.

Valentin Lupp, Trumpet

Valentin Lupp, born in 2001, grew up in Winterthur. At the age of 10, he began playing the trumpet with André Meier at the Winterthur Conservatory. At the end of 2017, he was accepted into Prof. Laurent Tinguely's class at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK).

Valentin Lupp has been playing in the Winterthur Youth Symphony Orchestra since 2015 and has already played in various other orchestras as an additional member.

Valentin Lupp is also doing an apprenticeship as a trumpet maker at Musik Spiri and will graduate in summer 2020. After his apprenticeship, he plans to study trumpet.

Laima Minenko, horn

Laima Minenko (2004) was born in Germany to a Romanian mother and a Ukrainian father. When she was four years old, Laima moved to The Hague, where she still lives today. She started playing the horn at the age of ten with Caroline Bovee and Klaske de Haan. Since 2015 she has been studying at the School for Young Talents, Royal Conservatory of The Hague with Marielle van Pruijsen-Endepoel.

Laima has played with various youth orchestras in and around The Hague, such as Ensemble Viotta, where she also had a solo performance, or the Hofstad Youth Orchestra, The Hague.

Leonardo Costa, oboe

Leonardo Costa (Rome, 2003) started playing the oboe at the age of eight, after numerous courses and lessons in music theory, piano and percussion.

In 2012, at the age of nine, he began his studies as an internal student at the "Ottorino Respighi" Conservatory in Latina (Italy), where he continued his oboe studies under the direction of Paolo di Cioccio. During this time he was a member of the Conservatory's choir "Le Voci del Sole" (conducted by Nicolo 'Iucolano), performing at numerous festivals as well as at an international competition on Lake Garda.

In 2014, at the age of eleven, Leonardo was accepted as an internal student at the School for Young Talents, Royal Conservatory of The Hague. Here he continued his oboe studies under the guidance of Ali Groen and subsequently Jeroen Soors.

As an oboist, he is a member of the ensemble Viotta, with which he has performed at many festivals and toured Aix-en-Provence and Avignon, France, two years ago.

As a student at the Royal Conservatory, Leonardo is a member of the ABC (Atheneum Blazers Consort) and the AKO (Atheneum Chamber Orchestra). In doing so, he has participated in many projects, performed in annual Christmas concerts at the Nieuwe Kerk in The Hague and recently travelled to Winterthur for a concert tour.