Born in Cologne in 1847, Agnes Zimmermann settled in London and was soon celebrated as a fine pianist, teacher, music editor and composer. As a performer, her partners included Clara Schumann, Joachim and Neruda. As a composer, the three violin sonatas from the 1860s and ’70s form the centre of her output. Dramatic, lyrical and beautifully crafted, these substantial contributions to the repertoire lie somewhere between Mendelssohn and Brahms in approach, and demonstrate an impressively personal musical voice.

Born in London in 1994, Mathilde Milwidsky was first violin of the Celan Quartet from 2011 to 2015. She was the sole British violinist to be selected for the 2019 Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition in Brussels and at the inaugural Aurora Music Competition 2018 (Sweden) the jury, chaired by Gordan Nikolic, unanimously awarded her First Prize, alongside the Audience Prize.

Mathilde has performed as a soloist at venues in the UK such as the Royal Festival Hall, the Wigmore Hall, Kings Place, St John's Smith Square, Cadogan Hall and the Royal Albert Hall as well as across Europe in Finland, Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, Greece, Spain, Ireland and Sweden. Recent live broadcasts include BBC Radio 3 ‘In Tune’, BBC Radio 4, Radio Swiss Classic, Classic FM and the BBC One Show.

Sam Haywood has had a duo partnership with Joshua Bell and often performs with Steven Isserlis. His recordings include two solo albums for Hyperion, with the piano music of Julius Isserlis (grandfather of Steven) and Charles Villiers Stanford’s preludes. Following his early success in the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition, the Royal Philharmonic Society awarded him the Julius Isserlis Scholarship. He was mentored by Paul Badura-Skoda, Maria Curcio and David Hartigan, and he studied both at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna and at the Royal Academy of Music in London, of which he is now an Associate.