Since her debut in 2014 with the Orquestra de València and Pascual Balaguer performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 in her hometown of València, Mar Valor has established a varied career as both a soloist and a chamber musician. Her solo appearances include concerti by Mozart, Beethoven, Grieg, Chopin and Liszt with orchestras such as Sinfonieorchester Basel, Orquestra de Valencia, Ruhrstadt Orchester conducted by maestros like Cristobal Soler, Roland Kluttig, Pascual Balaguer...

She regularly performs across Europe in prestigious venues such as Wigmore Hall, Stadtcasino Basel, Palau de la Música Valencia, Teatros del Canal Madrid, Palau de les Arts València, Schloss Namedy or Bad Iburg. She is also invited to perform at distinguished festivals such as Euregio Musik Festival, Tübingen Pianists Festival, Cambra al Palau, Rhein Klassik, Festival d'Estiu de Torreblanca, Schaffhausen Klassik, and the Swiss Chamber Music Festival.

A passionate and active chamber musician since her early days, Mar continues to explore and perform a wide range of chamber music and lied repertoire, as well as being a member of Trio Archai (Basel) and ALMA Trio (Cologne). She is the recipient of several awards and prizes including 1st prize at the 72nd Royal Overseas League with Trio Archai (2024), 3rd prize at the Orpheus Swiss Chamber Music Competition (2023), Stiftung LYRA Award (2022), Dörken-Stiftung’s Concert Scheme Award (2022) and several first prizes at the German national competition "Jugend Musiziert” (2018, 2017, 2014).

Born in Valencia, Mar received her piano training at the José Iturbi Conservatory under Juan Lago. In 2018, she moved to Cologne, where she completed her Bachelor of Music with honors at the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln, studying with Claudio Martínez-Mehner. Following her successful completion of her Master's in Musical Performance at the Musik-Akademie Basel with Zoltán Fejérvári in the summer of 2024, she is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Music Pedagogy at the same institution.

Over the years, she has received valuable artistic guidance from esteemed artists such as Ana Guijarro, Andreas Staier, Alexander Melnikov, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Alexander Lonquich, Robert McDonald, Nina Tichman, and Eugen Indjic. Her chamber music mentors include Anthony Spiri, Anton Kernjak, and Rainer Schmidt.

Mar is grateful to have been a DAAD scholarship holder throughout her bachelor studies and for the support from the MusikAkademie Basel, as well as the DOMS, Werner-Richard, Lang Lang, Hortensia Herrero and Conza foundations.

site — https://www.marvalor.com/

Born in Brighton, UK, German-Turkish violinist Ayla Şahin is active as a soloist, chamber musician, and artistic director across Europe and beyond.

She is a prizewinner of numerous national and international competitions, most recently winning Switzerland’s Kiefer Hablitzel|Göhner Musikpreis 2026, 1st Prize and the Beethoven Prize at the 2025 Schoenfeld International String Competition, and 1st Prize at the 72nd Royal Overseas League Competition (2024) with Trio Archai. In 2024, after graduating with the highest possible marks, she was awarded the Brambilla Prize for the most outstanding Master’s violin recital at the Musik-Akademie Basel. Additional distinctions include the Vontobel Bank Stiftung LYRA Award (2023, 2024), selection for the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme (2025/26) and the Countess of Munster Musical Trust Award (2022).

A sought-after performer, Ayla has appeared at major international venues and festivals including Wigmore Hall, Heidelberger Frühling, Tivoli Vredenburg, Kings Place, Stadtcasino Basel, St George’s Bristol, Yellow Barn, O/Modernt Winter Festival, Swiss Chamber Music, Schaffhausen Klassik, Schiermonnikoog, NUME, and the Dresdner Musikfestspiele. She has collaborated with artists such as Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Nicolas Alstaedt, Alena Baeva, Timothy Ridout, and Claudio Martinez-Mehner. With the Cassadó Ensemble (Sheku Kanneh-Mason & Friends), she toured extensively throughout the UK and recorded for Decca Classics, including Bloch’s Prelude (2019) and Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals (2021), the latter performed at the BBC Proms 2021 and broadcast on BBC Four and BBC Radio 3.

Driven by a belief that classical music should speak to contemporary audiences, Ayla is the co-founder and artistic director of VOLTA Kammermusikfest, an annual international chamber music festival in Basel. Through imaginative programming and an unconventional performance space, the festival creates intimate encounters between artists and audiences. Her musicianship reflects this same spirit, shaped by curiosity, collaboration, and a commitment to repertoire ranging from Baroque to the present day.

The eldest of three musical sisters, Ayla began studying violin and piano at the age of six, eventually focusing on the violin. She made her concerto debut in 2012 with the Brighton Youth Orchestra and has since performed across Europe, Asia, and North America.

At fourteen, she was admitted as a full-scholarship junior student to the Royal Academy of Music, London, graduating with First-Class Honours in 2021 under Jack Liebeck, where she won the Concerto Competition, performing Barber’s Violin Concerto under the baton of Gergely Madaras. She recently completed her Master’s degree at the Musik-Akademie Basel with Rainer Schmidt and Zoltán Fejérvári, and is currently completing her Chamber Music Master’s at the Musik-Akademie Basel, where Trio Archai is mentored by Claudio Martínez-Mehner, Rainer Schmidt, Anton Kernjak, and Anna Gebert.

Ayla has received further artistic guidance from Leonidas Kavakos, Miriam Fried, Donald Weilerstein, Alina Ibragimova, Ilya Gringolts, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, András Keller, Thomas Adès, and Robert Levin, at institutions including IMS Prussia Cove and the Accademia Chigiana.

She performs on a J.B. Vuillaume violin, generously loaned by Florian Leonhard Fine Violins, and is grateful for the support of the DOMS Stiftung, Stiftung Pirolo, Stiftung Melinda Esterházy de Galantha, and the Musik-Akademie Basel.

site — https://www.aylasahin.com/

Born into an Irish family and raised in Scotland, cellist Finn Mannion began playing at a young age through regular exposure to the folk tradition of his homelands. He now enjoys a colourful career as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician, performing all over Europe in major venues such as Wigmore Hall, TivoliVredenburg, Palau de la Música, Stadtcasino Basel, and Perth Concert Hall.

In 2026, Finn was named BBC Radio Scotland Young Classical Musician of the Year, following his solo debut with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Jonathan Bloxham, performing Dvorak Cello Concerto in B minor in Glasgow City Halls. Finn was also named a 'Rising Star' through Edinburgh International Festival’s emerging talent program. He is a Britten-Pears Young Artist 2025/26, a Countess of Munster Trust Scholar, and Associate Artist of the Aboyne Cello Festival. A founding member of Trio Archai, he won First Prize and Beethoven Prize at the 2025 Schoenfeld International String Competition in China, and First Prize at the 2024 Royal Over-Seas League Competition in London.

In recent years, Finn has also been a Cross Trust Artist, a Tunnell Trust Award winner, and a recipient of the Beatrice Huntington and Vontobel Bank LYRA Awards. Finn collaborates with pianist Ke Ma, and is regularly invited to give recitals at festivals including Swiss Chamber Music Festival, Brighton Festival, Volta Kammermusikfest, Edinburgh International Festival, Mendelssohn on Mull, Whittington Festival, and Schaffhausen-Klassik. Finn’s performances have been highlighted on BBC Radio Scotland ‘Classical Now’, and on BBC Radio 3 ‘In Tune’.

Named a Royal Philharmonic Society Isserlis Scholar in 2019, Finn studied at the National Music School in Edinburgh before moving to Switzerland to join the class of German/Japanese cellist Danjulo Ishizaka at the Musik-Akademie Basel. He also studies part-time at the International Institute for Chamber Music at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid, with his Trio Archai. Finn remains deeply grateful for the mentorship of Céline Flamen and for the dedication of his former teachers, Ruth Beauchamp, Alison Wells, and the late David Watkin. With a strong interest in Early Music, he studied Baroque cello with Petr Skalka at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. His musicianship has been influenced by working closely with Rainer Schmidt, Gordan Nikolic, Claudio Martinez Mehner, and Philip Higham. Further impulses stem from Alexander Lonquich, Nicolas Altstaedt, Steven Isserlis, and Thomas Adés at IMS Prussia Cove.

Finn has been generously supported by the Basler Orchester Gesellschaft, Caird Trust, Scandinavian Cello School, Cross Trust, and DOMS Stiftung. He plays a fine Italian cello by Giulio Cesare Gigli, c. 1788, kindly loaned by a private individual. Aside from music, Finn is an avid hillwalker, lover of dogs, and passionate street photographer.

site — https://finnmannioncello.com/