Gabrielle Lester focuses her musical energies into playing chamber music and leading many of the UK's distinguished orchestras. Since studying at the Menuhin School, the RCM and in Salzburg with Sandor Vegh, Gaby has participated regularly in the Open Chamber Music at Prussia Cove. A long association with Sir Simon Rattle included five years as principal second violin in the CBSO and leading the OAE in Das Rheingold at the Proms. She was the Associate Leader of the RPO for five years and before that played principal second violin with the SCO and COE. Gaby now directs the Ambache Chamber Ensemble with whom she has recorded chamber music for Chandos and Naxos. She recently recorded three albums leading the Michael Nyman Band and is frequently invited to guest-lead orchestras including the LPO, RPO and the BBCSO. Gaby works with students on the RCM's Postgraduate Orchestral Pathway programme and has been a mentor at Mendelssohn on Mull for the past seven years. She plays a violin made by Francesco Ruggieri dating from 1670.
 

Robert Max enjoys a colourful career as soloist, chamber-musician and conductor. He performs as a soloist throughout the UK, in Europe, Russia and the USA and has been the cellist of the Barbican Piano Trio since 1987. Robert is Musical Director of the Oxford Symphony Orchestra and conducts orchestras at Royal Holloway, University of London. As well as regular performances with the Covent Garden Chamber Orchestra and the Arad Philharmonic Orchestra in western Romania, Robert has conducted the Oradea and Kazakh State Philharmonic Orchestras. Robert studied with Florence Hooton at the RAM, Ralph Kirshbaum at the RNCM and Zara Nelsova at the Juilliard School. He teaches cello at the Junior Academy, coaches chamber music at MusicWorks and is principal cellist of the London Chamber Orchestra. In October 2002 he was named an Honorary Professor of the Rachmaninov Institute in Tambov, Russia. He plays a Stradivarius cello dating from 1726 known as the "Comte de Saveuse".
 

James Kirby gives recitals throughout the UK and has appeared at the Wigmore Hall, Edinburgh and Aldeburgh festivals and overseas in France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Holland and the Czech Republic. Since studying at the Moscow Conservatoire he has returned to perform in the former Soviet Union every year and has been invited to the Omsk Festival in 2006. James has given concerto performances with the English Chamber Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Moscow Symphony Orchestra and the Arad Philharmonic (Romania) in prestigious venues which include the Royal Albert Hall, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire. He has recently performed both Brahms Concertos in Russia and Romania. James has worked with the Vanburgh Quartet, BBC Singers, Lydia Mordkovitch and the mezzo- soprano Sarah Connolly and has made two recordings for Chandos. He teaches at Royal Holloway, University of London and is an Honorary Professor of the Rachmaninov Institute in Tambov, Russia.