Sergey Ostrovsky is a solo violinist, conductor, founder and first violin of the Aviv String Quartet for 27 seasons, founder and Artistic Director of the ‘Ensemble Symphonique de Genève’ and has taught violin at the Haute Ecole de Musique de Genève and Neuchâtel since 2009. He was First Solo Violin of the ‘Orchestre de la Suisse Romande’ from 2007 to 2012. He was also First Solo Violin of the ‘Orquesta de la Communidad Valenciana’ from 2012 to 2015.

Sergey Ostrovsky won the Grand Prize at the 3rd Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition. He is a laureate of the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition, 2nd Prize winner of the ‘Schubert and Modernity’ International Competition in Graz (Schubert Prize), as well as a laureate of the ‘Prague Spring’ International Competition and the Rodolfo Lipitzer Prize.

As a soloist, Sergey Ostrovsky plays with prestigious orchestras such as the ‘Orchestre de la Suisse Romande’, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the Geneva Chamber Orchestra, the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra, the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra (Poland), the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, the ‘Orquesta de la Communidad Valenciana’, the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the ‘Luzerner Sinfonieorchester’ and the Israel Chamber Orchestra.

A passionate conductor, Sergey Ostrovsky is regularly invited to conduct in Switzerland, Spain, Russia, Estonia, Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia, Latvia and Israel.

In 2015, Sergey Ostrovsky created a string ensemble, the ‘Solistes de Neuchâtel’, and in 2023 the ‘Ensemble Symphonique de Genève’. Sergey Ostrovsky's role as artistic director of the’ Ensemble Symphonique de Genève’ is multifaceted, both as an ‘artistic manager’ and as a musician ‘involved’ in the performances. From the latter point of view, he will be able to conduct the orchestra from the podium but also conduct the violin as a soloist.

As a chamber musician, Sergey Ostrovsky has played in the world's most prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Louvre Auditorium, the ‘Théâtre du Châtelet’, London's Wigmore Hall and the Sydney Opera House. His ‘Aviv String Quartet’ has also made numerous recordings (Hoffmeister, Dohnanyi, Shostakovich, Schubert, Schulhoff, etc.), some of which have received critical acclaim.

Noémie Bialobroda has been the violist of the Aviv Quartet since 2014, leading an active international career with the ensemble. Their performance of Beethoven’s complete string quartets at the Ansermet Studio in Geneva in 2018-2019 was a great success and strengthened their presence in French-speaking Switzerland.

Noémie Bialobroda, passionate about teaching, is since 2025, viola professor at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Lyon. She is also Chamber Music Professor and Chamber Music Coordinator at the Haute École de Musique de Genève. Previously, she taught at the Conservatoire de Lausanne and the Conservatoire de Genève. During the summer, she teaches at the Flaine International Music Academy. Her students have won prizes in prestigious national and international competitions.

In recognition of her contributions to music, Noémie Bialobroda was awarded the Leenaards Foundation cultural grant in the music category in 2024.

As a performer, she is invited to renowned concert seasons and festivals, including Wigmore Hall (London), the IRCAM Manifeste Festival, and the Cité de la Musique (Paris), among others. She performs with artists such as Abdel Rahman El Bacha, Yovan Markovitch, Luis Claret, Boris Garlitsky, François Guye, Philippe Müller, Tedi Papavrami, Jean Sulem, Jean-Pierre Wallez, and the Rosamonde Quartet, giving concerts across Europe, Israel, and the United States.

Dedicated to contemporary music, Noémie has premiered two solo viola pieces at IRCAM: Caprice for Solo Viola and Electronics by Japanese composer Keita Matsumiya (2012) and Drifting by Pierre Stordeur (2013). She is also regularly invited to perform with the Ensemble Modern in Frankfurt and the Contrechamps ensemble in Geneva.

Noémie Bialobroda studied with Nobuko Imai and Miguel Da Silva at the Haute école de Musique de Genève and later at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, where she completed an Artist Diploma (third cycle) with Professor Jean Sulem.

Noémie Bialobroda is the co-founder and artistic director of the Geneva International String Academy.

Helene Freytag was born into a family of musicians in Leipzig (Germany) in 2005. She received her first violin lessons at the age of five. In 2013, she passed the entrance exam at the Dresden Carl Maria von Weber Academy of Music in the class of Prof. Uta-Maria Frenzel. Currently, she is in the class of Hellen Weiß. Since 2019, she has also been at the Julius-Stern-Institute of the Berlin University of the Arts. There she is taught by Prof. Latica Honda-Rosenberg.From the winter semester 2024/25, she will continue her Bachelor's degree at the MUK in Vienna with Julian Rachlin.

Helene attended master classes with Prof. Mihaela Martin, Prof. Natalia Prishepenko, Prof. Zakhar Bron, Prof. Pawel Vernikov and Prof. Boris Brovtsyn. In addition she is a scholarship holder at the "International Music Academy Liechtenstein" and takes part in the "Intensive Weeks" with Prof. Ana Chumachenco, Prof. Ingolf Turban and Marc Bouchkov.

Helene is multiple first prize winner in the national competition "Jugend musiziert” with highest number of points. In this connection, she received spezial prizes as as soloist, as well as a chamber musician, including a prize of the "Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben", the concert series "Freunde Junger Musiker" and the "WDR3-Klassik radio prize". Together with her sister at the piano she was awarded the 2nd prize at the "Carl-Bechstein-Wettbewerb" in Berlin (2021).

At international level Helene won the 3rd prize at the "International Kocian Competition" in Usti nad Orlici (2019) as well as at the "15th International Violin Competition in Honour of K. Lipinski and H. Wieniawski" in Lublin (2021).

As a soloist Helene performed with the "Staatskapelle Halle", the "Sion Festival Orchestra" and the "Elblandphilharmonie Sachsen", among others. In addition, Helene has a great passion for chamber music. Together with her siblings, she successfully plays piano trio, since 2023 in the class of Prof. Boris Kusnezov at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Leipzig. Additionally, Helene was a participant in the chamber music projects, such as "Meister von heute und morgen” in Dresden, the "China Youth Music Academy" in Dresden, "Mit Musik-Miteinander” of the Kronberg Academy and the "Geneva international String Academy". There she got inspiration from Prof. Marie-Elisabeth Hecker, Anastasia Kobekina, Prof. Walter Küssner and Sergey Ostrovsky. Since 2019 Helene is a member of the "National Youth Orchestra of Germany".

As a laureat of the 28th competition of "Deutscher Musikinstrumentenfond", she has the honour of playing an Italian violin by L. Ventapane (1806) and being additionally supported by a scholarship as well as concerts of the foundation "Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben". In September of 2022, she was also accepted into the "Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes" and the "Hans und Eugenia Jütting Stiftung".

GISA Ambassador: Contact Barbora Butvydaitė

Barbora Butvydaite has established herself as a dynamic violist, known for her expressive artistry and versatility. She is currently a member of the Ivan Fischer European Orchestra Academy and tours regularly with the Budapest Festival Orchestra.

Born in Vilnius, Lithuania in 1996, Barbora graduated from the National M. K. Ciurlionis School of Arts, where she won numerous prizes at national and international competitions. She then pursued her education abroad, earning her Bachelor's degree at the Universität Mozarteum in Salzburg under the tutelage of Thomas Riebl and her Master's degree with Veronika Hagen. She graduated with distinction in 2021.

During her studies, she was awarded scholarships from the “Rudens Turku and Friends” Foundation and in 2021, she won 3rd Prize at the Paul Hindemith Viola Competition in Salzburg.

Barbora gained valuable orchestral experience through the Academy Programme of the Tonkünstler Orchestra (2022-2023), her participation in the A. Prokopp Summer Academy of the Vienna Philharmonic (2022-2023) and Grafenegg Festival Orchestra. Since last season, she has been a member of the European Orchestra Academy of the Budapest Festival Orchestra. She has had the opportunity to work with renowned conductors such as Iván Fischer, Lorenzo Viotti, Jakub Hrůša, Yutaka Sado, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Robin Ticciati, Tugan Sokhiev and Ádám Fischer among others.

As a passionate chamber musician, Barbora has performed at the Salzburg Festival, Vienna Musikverein, and Grafenegg Festival, among other festivals. She is a member of the Oberton String Octet and of Haydn Philharmonie, Ensemble Esperanza Lichtenstein, and Vienna Ensemble, where she often takes the role of a principal violist.

She enjoys performing in various musical settings and has a strong interest in both Baroque and contemporary music. Her collaboration with Haydn Philharmonie, as well as working with Enrico Onofri, Nicolas Altstaedt and Hiro Kurosaki has further deepened her engagement with historically informed performance practice. Additionally, she has performed contemporary music, working with composers and ensembles dedicated to new music.

To foster her artistic growth, Barbora has participated in numerous masterclasses and festivals like Prussia Cove, Lichtenstein Musikakademie, Mendelssohn Festival, and Aurora Festival and gained insights from renowned artists like Thomas Riebl, Garth Knox, Ferenc Rados, Alexander Zemtsov, Barbara Westphal, Harmuth Rohde, Gabor Takasz-Nagy and Antje Weithaas.

Barbora performs on a viola made for her by luthier Jürgen Manthey.

Chiara Kaufman is an Italian-American cellist, born in New York in 2004. After moving to Italy, she began her musical studies at the G. Verdi Conservatory in Milan, where she graduated with honors. She attended the Pavia Cello Academy under the guidance of Maestro Enrico Dindo, with whom she is currently pursuing her Master’s degree at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano.

Chiara is also a student at the Stauffer Academy for Strings in Cremona, where she has worked with Antonio Meneses and is now part of the class of Frans Helmerson. Over the years, she has refined her skills through masterclasses with renowned musicians such as Jens Peter Maintz, Peter Bruns, Asier Polo, Enrico Bronzi, and Mischa Maisky. She also attended courses at Accademia Chigiana and Kronberg Academy.

Chiara has performed throughout Italy for prestigious festivals and concert societies such as Trame Sonore, Mito Settembre Musica, Milano Classica, Amici del Loggione del Teatro alla Scala, Società del Quartetto and Società dei Concerti. Notable appearances include performances at Accademia Filarmonica Romana and Milan’s Sala Verdi and Sala Puccini, where she held a recital after winning the “Young Talents Award” at the Milan Conservatory Prize, and more recently, first prize in the “String” section of the same competition.

She actively dedicates herself to chamber music experiences and forms, together with her brother and sister, the Kaufman Trio, with which she has performed across Italy, Germany, and Belgium. In November 2022, they gave the Italian premiere of Evgeny Kissin’s Trio, dedicated to Ukraine.

Chiara plays an instrument by French luthier Mathias Menanteau.