The Artists at
the World’s Edge
A meeting of spectacular talent, a showcase of local and international musicians: our festival performers are the storytellers of the musical world, tracing the lines that connect us to one another, and sharing with us the most intimate moments of chamber music in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Festival Directors
Artistic Director Benjamin Baker and Festival Director Justine Cormack are the inspired hands and hearts behind AWE, shaping the festival as founders, directors and performers since its launch in 2021.
This year, they will again perform within the AWE Festival, playing alongside a host of internationally renowned musicians handpicked from around the globe.
Benjamin Baker
AWE Artistic Director, Violin
NZ | UK
Described by the New York Times as bringing ‘virtuosity, refinement, and youthful exuberance’ to his Merkin Concert Hall debut, Benjamin Baker has established a strong presence as a sought-after soloist and chamber musician both internationally and in New Zealand.
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Recent highlights include regular appearances at Wigmore Hall and on BBC Radio 3, and concerto debuts with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under Ryan Bancroft (Barber), Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra under Dame Jane Glover (Beethoven), London Philharmonic Orchestra (Mozart), and Scottish Chamber Orchestra at the East Neuk Festival. In New Zealand, he has appeared as soloist with the Auckland Philharmonia and Christchurch Symphony Orchestras, and Orchestra Wellington.
In 2026, Benjamin gives the world premiere of Matthew Kaner’s Violin Concerto, written for him and commissioned by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Amarillo Symphony. He also makes debut appearances with the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie and Romanian Radio Chamber Orchestra, following recent US debuts with the Mobile, Columbus, Summerville, and Newport Symphony Orchestras.
Also in 2026, he releases the complete Mozart Violin Concertos with conductor Jonathan Bloxham and the London Mozart Players on Delphian Records, following two critically acclaimed albums with pianist Daniel Lebhardt, 1942 and 1919: Coda.
Born in Aotearoa New Zealand, Benjamin studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal College of Music, where he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Rose Bowl by HRH Prince Charles. Key catalysts in his musical journey include prize-winning successes at the YCAT International Auditions in London, the Young Concert Artists Auditions in New York, the Michael Hill Violin Competition in New Zealand, and the Windsor International String Competition.
Benjamin plays a 1694 Giovanni Grancino violin, generously loaned by a Charitable Trust.
Artistic Director generously supported by Tony Trapp MBE
Justine Cormack
AWE Festival Director, Violin
NZ
Justine Cormack is a violinist, a collaborator, and a creative force. Director of AWE and Concertmaster of the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, she brings both artistic vision and the drive to build creative ventures that endure and resonate.
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From 2002 to mid-2017, as a founding member and violinist of NZTrio, Justine performed throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, Asia, South America, the USA, Europe and Scandinavia. The group's commitment to New Zealand music saw the commissioning, premiering and continued championing of close to 40 works from New Zealand composers during this period — a legacy the ensemble has continued to build significantly since. NZTrio were honoured with a KBB Music/CANZ citation in 2012 and the Lilburn Trust Citation in 2017 for outstanding services to New Zealand music, recognition that reflects an ongoing story of excellence and advocacy.
An active recording artist, Justine has released duo recordings with pianists Michael Houstoun and Sarah Watkins, in addition to a varied catalogue of award-winning releases with NZTrio. Their crossover album Vicissitudes, recorded with the Mike Nock Trio, was a finalist for Best Jazz Album at the 2017 Jazz Awards, while Sway won Classical Artist of the Year at the 2017 Vodafone Music Awards.
Other career highlights include her role as concertmaster with the Auckland Philharmonia from 2000–2004, and as lecturer in violin at The University of Auckland following the completion of her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University, NY, in 2001.
Justine plays an 1868 J.B. Vuillaume violin.
Festival Artists
Florian Donderer
Violin
Germany
Violinist Florian Donderer is praised by the press for playing with "exceptional beauty, breathtaking technique and shocking intensity." A versatile musician, he is highly valued as soloist, chamber musician, concertmaster and conductor, collaborating with distinguished artists such as Christian Tetzlaff, Viktoria Mullova, Tanja Tetzlaff, Julian Steckel, Kiveli Dörken and Paavo Järvi.
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He is a frequent guest at major festivals including Bergen Festspielen, Beethovenfest Bonn and Schwetzinger Festspiele, and is a core member of "Spannungen," the festival founded by the late pianist Lars Vogt. As artistic director of the Rottweil Musikfestival, one of Germany's longest-standing chamber music festivals, and co-curator of a chamber music series at Sendesaal Bremen with his wife Tanja Tetzlaff, he is deeply committed to the life of chamber music both on and off the stage.
Florian Donderer is first violin of the Signum Quartet, whose performances have taken him to the Boulez-Saal Berlin, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Wigmore Hall London and Concertgebouw Amsterdam. The quartet's 2023 Carnegie Hall debut was hailed as "one of the highlights of the season."
He is especially renowned as an artistic leader, directing orchestras from the concertmaster's desk. Long-standing concertmaster of Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, he is regularly invited as director and soloist by orchestras including the Irish Chamber Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Kammerorchester Basel and Camerata Bern. He has also conducted ensembles such as the Festival Strings Lucerne and Kammerakademie Neuss.
A dedicated educator, he gives masterclasses at institutions including the Royal Academy of Music Dublin and Zurich University of the Arts. He plays a violin by Peter Greiner (2003) with bows by Nico Plog.
Supported by AWE UK Music Foundation
Marike Kruup
AWE Education Leader, Violin
Estonia | UK
Marike Kruup is an accomplished Estonian violinist based in London, known for her captivating performances and dedication to music and music education. Her vibrant artistry and versatility have earned her recognition as a sought-after chamber musician in small and large ensembles around Europe, including as a founding member of the Estonian Festival Orchestra with conductor Paavo Järvi.
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Another key part of her musical identity is the Alkyona String Quartet, which Marike joined in 2020. As current String Quartet Fellows at the Royal College of Music in London, the Quartet performs regularly around the UK and the Netherlands. In 2023, the Alkyonas were one of the ensembles in residence at the ANAM Quartetthaus Festival in Melbourne, alongside the Australian and Marmen String Quartets.
Marike's musical journey began in Tallinn under the guidance of Mari Tampere-Bezrodny. Later, she moved to London to further her education at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the Royal College of Music, completing her studies with Krzysztof Smietana and Radu Blidar.
Beyond her performances, Marike is dedicated to pedagogy and carries on a family legacy of teaching. Since 2019, she has served as a faculty member at the Rachmaninov Music Academy in London, nurturing a talented class of violin students. She actively engages in educational projects to inspire and educate young musicians, including as Education Leader for the At the World’s Edge Festival.
Monique Lapins
Violin
Australia | NZ
Violinist Monique Lapins is Associate Concertmaster of the Auckland Philharmonia and one of Aotearoa New Zealand's most versatile and distinguished chamber musicians. As a member of the New Zealand String Quartet from 2016 to 2024, she collaborated with artists including members of the Takács and Jerusalem String Quartets, Pekka Kuusisto, Dénes Várjon and Anthony Marwood.
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While with the quartet, Monique recorded five albums, the most recent, Notes from a Journey II, winning Best Classical Album at the NZ Music Awards. With the NZSQ she performed the complete Beethoven Quartet Cycle both nationally and internationally.
She is also a member of the Ghost Piano Trio, and appears as a chamber musician at major festivals throughout France, the Czech Republic, Japan, Germany, Canada, Hong Kong, Australia and the USA, collaborating with artists including Henning Kraggerud, Olivier Charlier and the Penderecki String Quartet.
An active interpreter of contemporary music, she has premiered works by composers including Salina Fisher, Ross Harris, Martin Lodge and Jacob ter Veldhuis. As soloist and orchestral performer, she has appeared with the Auckland Philharmonia, Dunedin Symphony and the Hyogo Performing Arts Centre Orchestra.
Monique Lapins studied at the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Adelaide, the Australian National Academy of Music in Melbourne and the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore, and has held an academic position at the New Zealand School of Music – Te Kōkī at Victoria University.
She performs on an 1883 Gand violin on loan from the Rin Collection in Singapore.
Matthew Lipman
Viola
USA
American violist Matthew Lipman has been praised by the New York Times for his "rich tone and elegant phrasing" and by the Chicago Tribune for his "splendid technique and musical sensitivity." One of the most sought-after instrumentalists of his generation, he appears frequently as both soloist and chamber musician.
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He performs regularly with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and collaborates with artists including Itzhak Perlman, Tabea Zimmermann, Antoine Tamestit, Igor Levit, Sir András Schiff and Mitsuko Uchida. He is a frequent guest at festivals including Kronberg, Marlboro, Menlo and Ravinia, and in 2023 formed a string trio with violinist Stella Chen and cellist Brannon Cho.
As soloist, he has appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Minnesota Orchestra, working with conductors including Edward Gardner and Osmo Vänskä. Recital appearances have taken him to Carnegie Hall, the Wigmore Hall and Zürich Tonhalle.
A committed advocate for living composers, he has premiered works by Clarice Assad, Helen Grime and David Ludwig, and collaborated closely with Brett Dean, Gabriela Lena Frank and the late Kaija Saariaho. His recordings include a Billboard Classical chart-topping account of Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante on Avie Records, and his debut solo album Ascent on Cedille Records, celebrated as "most impressive" by The Strad.
Lipman studied at the Juilliard School with Heidi Castleman and was further mentored by Tabea Zimmermann at the Kronberg Academy. He is on faculty at Stony Brook University in New York and performs on a viola made for him in 2021 by Samuel Zygmuntowicz.
Supported by AWE Music Foundation
Julia Joyce
Viola
NZ
Julia Joyce has been Principal Viola of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra since 2011, having previously served as a member of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, to which she returned as Guest Principal in 2023 for performances and tours across the UK and Europe. She has also performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra and London Philharmonic Orchestra.
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Chamber music is central to her artistic life. A founding member of the Puertas Quartet, formed in 2009 with Andrew Joyce, Tom Norris and Ellie Norris, she toured widely throughout the United Kingdom and Aotearoa New Zealand with the ensemble, recorded two albums for Atoll Music, and reached the semi-finals of the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition. She also enjoys regular chamber music collaborations with colleagues from the NZSO.
She has appeared as Guest Principal Viola with both the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and is committed to the development of young musicians, working with viola students across New Zealand and coaching the National Youth Orchestra viola section.
Julia Joyce studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating with a Master of Music in 2008.
Tanja Tetzlaff
Cello
Germany
Tanja Tetzlaff is recognised as one of the most influential cellists of her generation, distinguished by a uniquely refined, powerful and nuanced tone and deep musicality. Equally dedicated to artistic innovation and social engagement, she explores concert formats that integrate other art forms and address ecological issues. In 2021 she became a lifetime ambassador of "Orchester des Wandels," and received the Duisburg Music Prize in 2024 in recognition of both her artistry and climate advocacy.
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Her film Suites for a Suffering World (2021), supported by the Glenn Gould Bach Fellowship of the City of Weimar, frames Bach's Cello Suites as a reflection on nature's beauty and vulnerability. Screened at the Vienna Rathaus Film Festival, Beethovenfest Bonn and Kronberg Festival, and broadcast on 3sat and NHK Japan, it received the Opus Klassik Innovation Award for Sustainability in October 2023.
While core classical and romantic works remain central to her programming, her repertoire extends deep into 20th and 21st-century music, including recent world premieres of concertos by Olga Neuwirth and Tõnu Kõrvits. She appears with leading orchestras across Europe, Asia and North America, working with conductors such as Alan Gilbert, Daniel Harding, Karina Canellakis and Paavo Järvi.
A founding member of the Tetzlaff Quartett since 1994, she is also a member of the Tetzlaff Trio with her brother Christian Tetzlaff and pianist Kiveli Dörken, whose recordings have received international acclaim including an ICMA award.
Since April 2024, Tetzlaff has been Professor of Cello at the University of the Arts Bremen. She plays a Giovanni Battista Guadagnini cello dated 1776.
Matthias Balzat
Cello
NZ
Matthias Balzat has gained recognition as one of the most promising soloists and chamber musicians of his generation. A laureate of numerous international competitions, among them the Schoenfeld International Cello Competition, the ROSL Annual Music Competition and the Accordi Musicali International Cello Competition, he has established himself on major stages across Europe, Asia and the Pacific.
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As the newest member of NZTrio, he performs alongside violinist Amalia Hall and pianist Somi Kim on major stages across Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond. Festival appearances have taken him to the Aspen Music Festival, Classiche Forme and the Edinburgh Fringe. He has worked with renowned musicians including Daniel Müller-Schott, Johannes Moser and Wolfgang Schmidt.
He has performed with leading orchestras including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Harbin Symphony Orchestra and Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, working with conductors such as Jindong Chi, Guy Noble, Benjamin Northey and Rüdiger Bohn. Highlights of the 2026/27 season include solo debuts with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Athens Philharmonia Orchestra, alongside performances of the Brahms Double, Beethoven Triple and Gareth Farr Triple Concertos with orchestras in New Zealand.
Balzat began his undergraduate studies at the University of Waikato at the age of 14, and subsequently completed postgraduate studies at the Robert Schumann Hochschule Düsseldorf under Pieter Wispelwey, where he earned both a Master's degree and Konzertexamen. He performs on a 2024 Beilharz cello.
David Fung
Piano
Australia | USA
Praised for his "ravishing and simply gorgeous" performances in The Washington Post, pianist David Fung is widely recognised for interpretations that are elegant and refined, yet intensely poetic and uncommonly expressive.
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Chamber music is a vital part of his artistic life, reflected in his longstanding collaborations with leading ensembles including the Israel, Los Angeles, Orpheus and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestras, and his work as curator at the Chan Center for the Performing Arts in Vancouver.
With a repertoire of over sixty concertos, he appears regularly with the world's leading orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Israel Philharmonic and the major Australian orchestras in Melbourne, Queensland and Sydney, working with conductors such as Marin Alsop, Gustavo Dudamel, Stanislav Kochanovsky and Christian Zacharias. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, the Louvre, Gewandhaus and Zürich Tonhalle, as well as major halls across Asia, and appeared at festivals including Aspen, Edinburgh, Caramoor and Ravinia.
Fung garnered international attention as a laureate of the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in Brussels and the Arthur Rubinstein Piano Masters Competition in Tel Aviv, where he was further distinguished by the Chamber Music and Mozart Prizes. The first piano graduate of the Colburn Conservatory in Los Angeles, where he studied with John Perry, he later worked with Peter Frankl, Claude Frank and Arie Vardi at Yale University and the Hannover Hochschule. He serves on the faculties of the Manhattan School of Music and the University of British Columbia. David Fung is a Steinway Artist.
Supported by Lesa Scholl
AWE Fellows &
2026 AWE Pettman Scholars
An extension of our AWE Emerging Artist Mentoring Pathway, AWE Fellows return to perform as Festival Artists within the programme. Our 2026 Fellows have been awarded AWE Pettman Scholarships, an opportunity designed to assist future study and career opportunities for young New Zealand musicians showing exceptional career promise. Find out more about the scholarship here.
Christine Jeon
AWE Pettman Scholar, Cello
NZ
Christchurch cellist Christine Jeon is currently in her third year of studies at the University of Auckland under James Tennant. A prize-winner at competitions across Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, and the USA, she is one of two recipients of the AWE Pettman Scholarship for Emerging NZ Musicians this year. As part of her award, Christine will undertake a fully-funded development trip to the UK and Europe prior to this year's festival.
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Christine's competition record speaks for itself - as part of the piano trio Vich Perfect, she won the Judith Clark National First Place award at the 2021 NZCT Chamber Music Contest. In 2022 she was named National Finalist of the National String Competition, gaining third prize and the People's Choice Award, before winning First Prize at the International Melbourne Strings Festival Competition. In 2023 she received Second Prize at the American Virtuoso International Music Competition, and made her orchestral debut performing the Elgar Cello Concerto with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. That same year she gained First Prize at the National Young Performer Awards.
She performs on the Hewitt cello, generously loaned by the Michael Hill Foundation for Art and Music.
We are delighted to welcome Christine back to AWE for a third year.
Matthew Seinafo
AWE Pettman Scholar, Piano
NZ
From Christchurch, Matthew Seinafo began his piano studies in 2017 and by 2022 had achieved his ATCL diploma with Distinction. He is now in his second year of a Bachelor of Music at the University of Auckland, studying with Stephen De Pledge, Rae de Lisle and the late Katherine Austin. This year he joins Christine as a recipient of the AWE Pettman Scholarship for Emerging NZ Musicians, and will likewise undertake a fully-funded development trip to the UK and Europe prior to this year's festival.
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Matthew's love of chamber music has been a thread throughout his musical life, from reaching the regional finals of the NZCT Chamber Music Contest three times during high school — performing piano quintets by Schumann, Brahms, and Elgar — to frequently performing in a cello and piano duo at the University of Auckland, presenting works by Beethoven, Franck, Schubert, Shostakovich, and Britten.
Matthew won joint first place in the University of Auckland Concerto Competition, earning the opportunity to perform with the Auckland Philharmonia, and is a 2026 Haydn Staples Auckland Philharmonia Piano Scholarship recipient. In early 2026, he performed Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue with the New Zealand Secondary Schools Orchestra. He has participated in masterclasses with distinguished artists including Paul Lewis and Inon Barnatan, as well as leading New Zealand musicians, and also plays viola with the University of Auckland Orchestra.
We are delighted to welcome him back to AWE as an AWE Pettman Scholar in 2026.
Composer in Residence
Michael Norris
Composer in Residence, AWE Festival 2026
NZ
Michael Norris is AWE 2026's composer in residence, and one of Aotearoa New Zealand's most distinctive and wide-ranging musical voices. No artist could be more naturally at home within a festival exploring lines as boundaries and bridges: his music is woven through every programme, spanning ancient and contemporary, acoustic and electronic, the intimate and the vast. He is currently at work on two new compositions receiving their world premieres at AWE 2026: a new work for two violins, and a commission created in dialogue with sculptor Ed Cruickshank.
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A composer, software developer and music theorist, he teaches composition at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington and directs Stroma New Music Ensemble, one of the country's foremost champions of contemporary music.
His compositions have been performed by leading ensembles and soloists across Europe, Asia, and Aotearoa, and his work spans an extraordinary range of territory: from intimate chamber music to large-scale performance installation. His most recent work, SoundCathedral, a 76-minute performance installation involving over 50 musicians, was presented at the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts 2026. In 2023, Waipounamu for solo violin and electronics was performed by all 16 semifinalists of the Michael Hill International Violin Competition, and in 2025 his piano trio The Spaces In Between received its world premiere in Tokyo.
Beyond composition, Norris has developed audio software used worldwide in both industry and academia, by artists as diverse as Aphex Twin and Brian Eno. He is a four-time winner of the SOUNZ Contemporary Award, and the recipient of the Mozart Fellowship, the Douglas Lilburn Prize, and the CANZ Trust Fund Award.
Deeply committed to nurturing the musical life of Aotearoa, he is co-founder and co-director of Stroma, serves on the board of SOUNZ Centre for New Zealand Music, and is Editor of Wai-te-ata Music Press.
