Marcus Willem Scholtes is currently Co-Artistic Director of the Toronto Concert Orchestra, as well as Associate Concertmaster of Sinfonia Toronto, a Juno-award-winning ensemble. He is an alumnus of the prestigious Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, where he graduated with a Doctor of Music degree in Violin Performance in the studio of renowned pedagogue Mimi Zweig.
A multi-talented artist, Marcus is an active soloist on both the violin and piano, at times even performing as a soloist on both instruments on the same concert program. As pianist, he has most recently performed Beethoven's 3rd Piano Concerto, and has performed solo piano programs in South Korea. He is currently working on a Grad. Diploma program at McGill in Piano Performance.
As Concertmaster, Marcus has led the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival orchestra in Germany, and has performed and toured much of Europe with this ensemble, including concerts in Spain, Turkey, Poland, Budapest, the Czech Republic, and Denmark. Marcus is also an original member of Aldeburgh Strings based in the UK, which has recently recorded two CDs, both released to critical acclaim in the UK and Germany. Outside of his musical interests, he is a driving and automotive enthusiast. Scholtes website
Miriam Stewart-Kroeker is a native of Hamilton, Ontario, where she began her studies at the age of 5. She studied with Paul Pulford and the Penderecki String Quartet at Wilfrid Laurier University, where she received an Honours Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance as well as a Diploma in Chamber Music Performance. She went on to complete a Master’s degree in Cello Performance at McGill University under the direction of Matt Haimovitz. She recently joined the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony cello section in January 2020.
On top of performing with various orchestras throughout Ontario, Miriam is an active chamber musician. She is a founding member of the Andromeda Piano Trio, who perform frequently for a number of chamber music series in the region, including the Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber Music Society, Guelph Connections Chamber Music Series, Conrad Grebel Noon Hour series, Toronto Chamber Players series and more. In 2013 Miriam completed a winter residency at the Banff Centre for the Arts in solo and chamber music, and her chamber ensembles have been the recipients of a number of awards. She has performed as a soloist with numerous orchestras and ensembles, including the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra, Da Capo Chamber Choir and the Georgian Bay Symphony.
Stewart-Kroeker's website
Heidi Fewster performs piano solo repertoire, chamber music, and concertos both locally and abroad. While studying with Anya Alexeyev at Wilfrid Laurier University for her Bachelor of Music in piano performance, Heidi placed first in the concerto competition, was awarded the gold medal for music and won two gold medals in the Canadian Music Competition. She then completed three residencies at the Banff Centre, one of which resulted in a recording of Schöenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire with the Gruppo Montebello which was released on the Etcetera label in Europe. Wall completed a Masters in Music in Performance and Literature at Western University with Stéphan Sylvestre in 2017. During that time, she placed first in the Maritsa Brookes Concerto Competition and was honoured with the prestigious Artistic Performance OGS Award.
Heidi is currently a DMA student at Western University. She coordinates the Kitchener-Waterloo Kiwanis Music Festival, is faculty pianist at National Music Camp of Canada, and teaches piano. Heidi Fewster website
