Christophe Giovaninetti

Following musical studies in France, Romania and Germany (with the members of the Amadeus Quartet), Christophe Giovaninetti founded the YSAYE Quartet in 1984. After 11 successful years as first violinist, he left for a new challenge, creating, in 1995, the Elysée Quartet.

The two ensembles secured recordings with Decca, Harmonia Mundi, Philips, Zig-Zag Territories, Naxos… and enjoyed performances in such venues as Carnegie Hall (New York), the Musikverein (Vienna), the Mozarteum (Salzburg), Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall (London), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), the Théâtre des Champs Elysées à Paris.

Chamber music partners during that time included Augustin Dumay, Shlomo Mintz, Maria Joao Pires, Renaud Capucon, Frank Braley, and Michel Portal.

Since 2012, Giovaninetti toured widely in Japan performing with pianist / writer Izumiko Aoyagi. In 2016 he founded a piano trio in Paris with Michael Levins and Emmanuelle Bertrand. Outside of his performing activities, he also teaches at the Conservatoire National Supérieure de Paris.

The late Sir Yehudi Menuhin once remarked of Giovaninetti: “I am indebted to this angelic musician for one of the purest musical emotions of my life.”

Yibin Li

Yibin Li was born in a small city in China near the Gobi Desert called Jiuquan and began playing the violin under the guidance of her father at the age of six. Just six years later, she left home to study at the Shanghai Conservatory, where she remained through college. Upon her graduation, she was appointed to the violin faculty where she taught for six years as a young member of the tenured faculty. At 26, she felt the need to continue her studies in New York at Juilliard and Mannes where she earned 2 additional graduate degrees. Her teachers have included Lewis Kaplan, Seymour Lipkin, Earl Carlyss, Peiwen Yuan and Xiaolong Liu.

Ms. Li has performed as a soloist with major orchestras in China and the USA including the Beijing National Symphony Orchestra, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Taipei Symphony, the Gaoxiong Symphony Orchestra, and the San Diego and Syracuse Symphonies. Her New York recital debut at Weill Recital Hall took place in 2001, and she performed solo recitals, in various chamber music ensembles, and as first violinist of the Iris Quartet at venues throughout the world including at Alice Tully, Carnegie and Merkin Halls and in more than 20 cities in China, France, Italy and the USA.

Ms. Li performs and teaches regularly at summer music festivals including the Bowdoin International Music Festival and Bach Virtuoso Festival, ME., the LaSalle Music Festival, France, Sesto Rocchi Chamber Music Festival, Italy and the Lake Lugano Chamber Music Festival, Switzerland.

Yibin Li is currently on the faculties of the Mannes School of Music, Juilliard’s Pre-college Division and as visiting professor in China at the Xian Conservatory and Beijing Central University for Normal Studies.

Philippe Muller

Born in Alsace, Philippe Muller was raised in both the French and German musical traditions that characterize that province. His early experiences opened his mind to varying cultures and lead him to a multi-faceted career. He performs and has recorded a wide range of repertoire, from the Bach Suites, through the music of living composers.

In 1970, Mr. Muller founded a Piano Trio with pianist Jacques Rouvier and Jean- Jacques Kantorow, violin, which was widely known to be one of Europe’s most venerated chamber music ensembles. He worked closely with Pierre Boulez’ Ensemble Intercontemporain, for seven years, giving him an understanding of and an affinity for the music of our time. He continues to be active in commissioning new cello works and premiers of new music and performs frequently as soloist and in various chamber music ensembles at festivals in Europe, the United States, Canada, Latin America, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

Philippe Muller’s teaching career is legendary. He succeeded his mentor André Navarra as cello teacher at the Conservatoire de Paris in 1979, continues his teaching legacy today here in New York, at the Manhattan School of Music. Many cellists from his studio have gone on to major careers as soloists including Xavier Phillips and Gautier Capuçon. He travels often giving master-classes in the top conservatories across the globe and has spent twenty years teaching at the Academy of French Music in Kyoto, Japan.

Philippe Muller frequently serves on the juries of the major international cello competitions such as the Tchaikovsky in Moscow, Paulo in Helsinki and Rostropovitch in Paris.

Pierre-Henri Xuereb

At age 13, Pierre Xuereb won first prize in viola from the Conservatoire in Avignon; and he received first prize in viola again, at 16, from the CNSM in Paris. Mr. Xuereb studied at The Juilliard School and Boston University, where his teachers were Walter Trampler and Lillian Fuchs from the Juilliard Quartet. At 19, he went on to become  solo viola of the Ensemble Intercontemporain in Paris, conducted by Pierre Boulez. In the winter of 1981, he was one of the last students of William Primrose in Provo, Utah.

Since then his international career has brought him to many concert halls throughout the world: Lincoln Center, Wigmore Hall, Théatre des Champs Elysées, Teatro La Scala(Milano), Gulbenkian Foundation (Lisbon), Luzern Festival and others. He has performed as a soloist with the Ensemble Instrumental de France, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Ensemble Alternance, Ensemble Contrechamps, Orchestre Symphonique de Tel Aviv, Israel Sinfonietta, Orchestre OLRAP, Orchestre Paca, Caracas Chamber Orchestra, Victoria Symphony (Canada), Prussian Chamber Orchestra, and Dusan Skovran Orchestra (Belgrade). 

Mr. Xuereb has given numerous world premieres of work by composers K.Stockhausen, Klaus Huber, Philippe Hersant, Jean Michel Damase, Bruno Mantovani, Philippe Schoeller, Philippe Manoury, Heinz Holliger, Alessandro Solbiati, Joseph Vella and Edith Lejet. He has recorded over 70 records and has recently recorded, under the direction of the composer, Vladimir Cosma’s Concerto for viola, which was written for him. He is regularly invited to give master classes in Beijing, Kyoto, Gwangju (Korea), Tignes (Musicalp), Les Arcs, Fontainebleau, Berkshires (USA), Novisad, Malta, and Domaine Forget (Canada). As a chamber musician he has been regularly invited to Festivals, among them Prades, Cheltenham, Miami, Gex, Crans Montana, and Kuhmo.

Mr. Xuereb teaches viola in the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, Conservatoire Royal de Musique de Liège and the CRD in Gennevilliers. His viola is made by Friedrich Alber (Montpellier). He also plays the viola d’amore and appears regularly in concerts and recordings with his instrument built by Michiel de Hoog in 1995 (copy of a Stradivarius).

Chung-Hsi Hsieh

Pianist Chung-Hsi Hsieh is from Taiwan. He won top prizes in the Nena Wideman International Piano Competition, Taipei International Chopin Competition, Taiwan Concerto Competition, Corpus Christi Young Artists Competition, and Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. He has appeared in renowned recital halls such as Carnegie Weill Recital Hall, Merkin Hall, Klavierhaus, and Steinway Hall, in New York City, as well as the National Recital Hall in Taiwan. As a chamber musician he often collaborates with the principles of Boston Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Deutsches Symphonie Orchester, San Diego Symphony Orchestra, and A Far Cry Chamber Orchestra. Mr. Hsieh has performed recitals in Boston, Los Angeles, Beijing, Shanghai and Shenyang.  He was a young artist at the Irving Gilmore International Keyboard Festival in Kalamazoo, MI, as well as Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival.  

After winning the top prize from Taiwan National Music Competition in 1991, he was awarded the opportunity to continue his musical studies in USA where he obtained his high school diploma from Interlochen Arts Academy, BM and MM from The Juilliard School, and DMA from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. His principle teachers were Victoria Mushkatkol, Seymour Lipkin, and Susan Starr.  During this time he also worked with Lynn Harrell, Lewis Kaplan, Arnold Steinhardt, Jane Coop, and Douglas Lundeen.  

Mr. Hsieh started his musical training on the piano at age 4. He also learned violin, and Erhu, a traditional Chinese instrument when he entered the music training class at age 9. At a young age he already showed his musical talent, as he frequently won competitions on piano and violin, and he started performing as soloist and conductor, leading the school symphony orchestra, Chinese instrument orchestra and school choir to public performances. 

Currently he is a piano and music faculty at the Diller-Quaile School of Music.  Besides honing his craft and working with aspiring talents, Chung-Hsi also enjoys exploring culinary arts and fine wine around the world.