2025 PERFORMERS
Adam JEFFREY (percussion)
Australian percussionist Adam Jeffrey was appointed Co-Principal Timpani of ERSO in November 2023. He has regularly performed with EFO since 2016, and was previously Principal Timpanist of the Vanemuine Theatre and Estonian National Opera. From 2022-24 he was a trialist for Principal Timpani positions with the Royal Philharmonic (London) and the National Symphony Orchestra (Dublin), performing in a diverse array of projects and tours across the UK and Europe. Additionally, he has performed as a guest player with a variety of ensembles around the world, including the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Verbier Chamber Orchestra, Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich, Finnish Radio Symphony, Sydney Symphony, Melbourne Symphony and Opera Australia.
Alec FRANK-GEMMILL (horn)
Alec Frank-Gemmill has performed extensively as an orchestral player, chamber musician and also as a soloist, the latter most recently alongside Pekka Kuusisto and Allan Clayton with the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra. His 4th album, of Mozart’s horn concertos with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, was released in November 2024 and was one of Gramophone Magazine’s discs of the year. From 2023-2025 Alec studied conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music. He has conducted the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Lohja City Orchestra in Finland, International Symphony Orchestra Lviv, Ukraine, BBC Philharmonic and Manchester Camerata. Alec will act as cover conductor for English National Ballet in Season 25-26, while also retaining his position as principal horn of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra.
Amy HARMAN (bassoon)
A passionate advocate for the bassoon, Amy Harman is much sought after as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher. Harman was a professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 2013 to 2024. She was appointed professor of bassoon at the Robert Schumann Hochschule Düsseldorf in 2024, the first woman to hold such a position in Germany. Sought after as guest principal with leading orchestras in Europe including Paavo Järvi’s Estonian Festival Orchestra and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, she is currently principal of Aurora Orchestra. Solo highlights include premiering Roxanna Panufnik’s concerto for bassoon and string orchestra with the Royal Northern Sinfonia, Richard Strauss’s Concertino with the English Chamber Orchestra; Olav Berg, Héloïse Werner and others have written works for her.
Andres KALJUSTE (viola)
Andres Kaljuste is one of Estonia’s most versatile musicians, active as a conductor, violinist and violist. A regular guest conductor at the Estonian National Opera, he focuses on ballet repertoire and has led productions including Le Corsaire and Swan Lake. He appears with major Nordic orchestras and has collaborated with artists such as Arvo Pärt, Thomas Adès and Steven Isserlis. With pianist Sophia Rahman, he champions Estonian repertoire; their 2024 debut album of works by Heino Eller—Pärt’s teacher—received critical acclaim. As a violist, he features on Mingo Rajandi’s album Werewolves.
Benjamin NYFFENEGGER (cello)
Benjamin Nyffenegger has been assistant principal cellist of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich since 2008 and is a founding member of the Julia Fischer Quartet and the Oliver Schnyder Trio. He pursues an intensive international concert activity performing throughout Europe and Asia as well as at festivals such as Schwetzingen and Prague Spring. Chamber music partnerships have also brought him together with many first-class musicians. As a soloist, Nyffenegger performs with orchestras such as the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and Bern Symphony Orchestra. His CD recordings with the Oliver Schnyder Trio received highest praise in the international music press. Nyffenegger studied at the Zurich University of the Arts with Thomas Grossenbacher. He is artistic director of the SeetalClassics concert series in Seon/Switzerland and the Boswiler Sommer together with the violinist Julia Fischer.
Benjamin ROSKAMS (violin)
Benjamin Roskams studied with David Takeno at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and subsequently with Ilya Grubert at the Amsterdam University of the Arts. He has collaborated with many leading chamber ensembles including the Brodsky Quartet and the London Conchord Ensemble. He has also performed as concertmaster with the BBC Symphony Orchestra (London) and others. He regularly performs as guest principal viola with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra. He is a keen collector of violin bows, and he is indebted to the family of Albert Cooper for the generous loan of the c.1720 Joseph filius Andrea Guarneri violin on which he plays. His viola is attributed to Andrea Amati.
Emma YOON (violin)
Emma Yoon, a New Zealand violinist, is a member and substitute 2nd violin leader of the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, and the Estonian Festival Orchestra since 2018. She has also held a teaching position in Prof. Elisabeth Kufferath’s class at the Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media since 2024. Yoon has been successful in competitions as both a soloist and as a chamber musician, winning prizes at the National Concerto Competition (New Zealand) and receiving a ROSL scholarship. A passionate chamber musician, Yoon regularly collaborates with artists such as Florian Donderer and Tanja Tetzlaff. She has performed at festivals including the Rottweil Music Festival Sommersprossen, the Heidelberger Frühling and the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival.
Heigo ROSIN (percussion)
Heigo Rosin (b. 1989) is Estonia’s first percussionist to specialise in solo and chamber music. He has performed in renowned concert halls such as Carnegie Hall and the Leipzig Gewandhaus, both as a soloist and as a soloist with orchestras. He is an official artist of Malletech percussion and Sabian cymbals. Rosin studied at the Royal Conservatoire Antwerp, the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus (soloist diploma) and the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (doctorate), where he has been teaching since 2022. Over a decade of karate training inspired Heigo Rosin to combine martial arts movements with percussion techniques. This has resulted in a unique playing technique that is enjoyable to listen to but also visually appealing.
Kärt RUUBEL (piano)
Kärt Ruubel is a passionate chamber musician and has performed throughout Europe, including the Philharmonie Berlin, Konzerthaus Berlin, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Philharmonie Luxembourg and Konzerthaus Dortmund.
2018 Ruubel’s first solo album Auff die Mayerin (Genuin Classics) was released, featuring works by Baroque composers Bach, Handel, Fux and Froberger. She has recorded for Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR), Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), BBC and Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR Klassik). Ruubel has performed at prestigious festivals such as Usedom and Pärnu festivals, Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Rottweil Music Festival Sommersprossen and others.
An interest in contemporary music inspired the formation of the ensemble Neophon, which has worked with composers such as Jörg Widmann, Wolfgang Rihm and Peter Ruzicka. Since 2024, Ruubel is a member of the ensemble Ludens.
Lauri METSVAHI (percussion)
Lauri Metsvahi is one of the most valued percussionists in Estonia. He is working in the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra since 2019. Between 2011-2019 he lived in Stockholm where he won the position as principal percussionist of the Swedish Wind Ensemble and regularly worked in major orchestras like The Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and The Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. Lauri is the founding member of the Estonian Percussion Group. He has also played in chamber ensembles like YXUS and PaukenfEst. In 2020 he got awarded in two categories with the progressive rock band Põhja Konn on the Estonian Music Awards – Rock Album of the Year and Ensemble of the Year.
Māra BOTMANE (cello)
Since 2012, cellist Māra Botmane has been playing in the Latvian State chamber orchestra Sinfonietta Rīga. She also plays the Baroque cello and regularly performs under Māris Kupčs in the orchestra Collegium Musicum Riga. Botmane obtained the Bachelor’s degree (2013) at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music under Diana Ozoliņa and in 2020 the Master’s degree in Early Music. In 2018, she graduated from Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts (prof. Jan Ickert and Kristin von der Goltz). She also studied at Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest.
She has participated in several international festivals as a part of various chamber ensembles and orchestras. Especially actively she performs with Tempus Balticus. Time to time she leads a cello group in the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra and have performed together with Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and Kremerata Baltica during the past few years. 2020 she was nominated for the Grand Music Award for outstanding ensemble work.
Marta SPARNINA (violin)
Latvian violinist Marta Spārniņa studied in Riga, Vienna, and Berlin with Valdis Zariņš, Michael Schnitzler, and Ulf Wallin. After completing her studies in 2009, she became concertmaster of Sinfonietta Rīga, a position she held until 2023. She has appeared as guest concertmaster with the Royal Flemish Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta Filharmónica de Gran Canaria, Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Latvian National Opera Orchestra, Münchener Kammerorchester and as guest second violin leader with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. Marta is a member of O/Modernt Chamber Orchestra and the Sponte String Quartet. In 2025/2026, she will be concertmaster of ERSO and from 2026, a member of the Münchener Kammerorchester. Marta is also docent at Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music.
Marcel Johannes KITS (cello)
Marcel Johannes Kits is one of the most promising young cellists of his generation, having won the 3rd prize at the Queen Elisabeth Cello Competition and 1st prize at the George Enescu International Competition.
Recent concert highlights include tours in Belgium with the Belgian National Orchestra under Eivind Aadland and in South Korea with the Estonian Festival Orchestra under Paavo Järvi. He has also performed with orchestras such as Brussels Philharmonic, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Munich Chamber Orchestra and many others, working with renowned conductors. He studied with Laine Leichter, Mart Laas and Francis Gouton and is currently studying at the Berlin University of Arts with Jens Peter Maintz.
Kits plays an Italian cello made by Francesco Ruggeri (Cremona, 1674) and a bow made by Victor Fétique, both kindly on loan to him from the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben.
Mika CHANG (piano)
Aurelia Mika Chang, is Steinway Artist based in New York City. A chamber musician known for expressive interpretations, Mika has performed throughout the US, Asia, Austria, Germany, and Poland, in various venues spanning Lincoln Center, Suntory Hall, Princeton University, Seoul Arts Center, and Żelazowa Wola. She has appeared at the Aspen and Bowdoin Music Festivals, the GGAC Chamber Music Festival, and the Pärnu Music Festival. As a soloist, Mika has toured with the Tokyo City Philharmonic, Shanghai Theater Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, and the New York Symphonic Ensemble. She is a graduate of the Juilliard School. Mika performs with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, and the Vienna Philharmonic. She is the co-founder of the Melétē Ensemble, a chamber group of unique instrumentation presenting and commissioning dynamic music.
Signe SÕMER (clarinet)
Signe Sõmer started her clarinet studies as a student of Vahur Vurm at the Tallinn Music High School, received her Bachelors Degree from the Sibelius Academy where she studied with Harri Mäki And Master of Music at the Colburn Conservatory of Music with Yehuda Gilad. Since 2017 she was working as a principal clarinet for the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, from season 2019/20 started she working at Norwegian National Opera. In addition to previously mentioned, she has performed with the Helsinki Philharmonic,Tapiola Sinfonietta, Finnish National Opera, Estonian Festival Orchestra and Tallinn Chamber Orchestra. During a part of the 2016 season she was an acting principal clarinet of the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in New Zealand and has performed as a guest principal with Norwegian Radio Orchestra and Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. As an avid chamber musician Signe is a member of Oslo Kammerakademie.
Thomas RUGE (cello)
After studying at the Karajan Academy and playing for several years with the Berlin Philharmonic (several tours with Herbert von Karajan), Thomas Ruge has been principal of the cellos in the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra since 1991. Beside this he plays regularly as solo cellist with the Bavarian State Opera, Semperoper, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Rotterdam, Luxembourg and Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and many others. From 1989 to 1998 he played in various concerts and tours with the 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. As a soloist he played the cello concertos of Dvořák, Tchaikovsky and Brahms in the Philharmonie Berlin. Thomas Ruge is a founding member of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra (2003) and solo cellist of the Estonian Festival Orchestra since 2020.
Xavi CASTELLO (percussion)
Xavi Castelló has served as Principal Percussionist at the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra since 2013. Born in Spain, he received his diploma in 2008 from the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Canarias, Tenerife. Later he went on to study with Raúl Benavent and Esaú Borredá in Madrid, where he developed his passion for contemporary music and orchestral percussion.Castelló has been awarded the first prize in the ‘PerkuLlíria’ International Percussion Competition (2011) and the third prize in the ‘Ciudad del Paso’ marimba competition. He has been a regular guest teacher at the Sibelius Academy in Finland, at the Grieg Academy in Norway, and at the Progreso Musical in Spain. In 2018, he founded the Helsinki Chamber Soloists and is a member of the Helsinki Percussion Group.
