Sabine Grofmeier - Berg, Fromm-Michaels, Messiaen, Schumann & von Weber (2014)

Sabine Grofmeier, born in Marl, studied with Hans-Dietrich Klaus and Frits Hauser in Detmold, with Stefan Schilling in Graz and with Eduard Brunner in Saarbrücken. She received additional artistic inspiration from renowned soloists such as Sabine Meyer, Wolfgang Meyer, Ralph Manno, Ulf Rodenhäuser, Kjell Fageus and Thomas Friedli. The young clarinettist received the grant from the GWK in Münster, she was a scholarship holder from the Villa Musica Foundation of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate, the Richard Wagner Society, the Schwetzingen Festival and the German Academic Exchange Service, DAAD. As a solo clarinetist, Sabine Grofmeier played with the Young German Philharmonic, the Philharmonic of Nations and the Orchestra Academy of the Bavarian Radio under Hans Zender, Justus Frantz, Semyon Bychkov and Dimitri Kitajenko. For many years she was solo clarinetist with the Bonn Classical Philharmonic and the Cologne Chamber Orchestra, and is also a regular guest with the Saarbrücken Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Musikfabrik NRW Ensemble, the Cologne Gürzenich Orchestra and the Düsseldorf Philharmonic. Since 2007, Sabine Grofmeier has been artistic director of the International Music Festival Capdepera, Mallorca.

Tra Nguyen was born in Hanoi, Vietnam. She made her solo debut in her hometown at the age of ten and since then has been a frequent guest soloist with major Vietnamese orchestras. In 1987 she went to Moscow, first to the Gnessin Music College, then to the Moscow Conservatory, which she graduated with honors. She studied there with Irina Naumova and Lev Naumov. In 1997 she began her postgraduate studies with Christopher Elton at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Tra Nguyen has received numerous awards, including 1st prize at the Amy Brant International Piano Competition and the Walter MacFarren Prize from the Royal Academy of Music.