Leonid Kerbel (violin)
Born in 1962, Leonid Kerbel began his violin studies at the age of 4, in Kharkov (Ukraine), his native city. At age 6 he entered the Central Music school of Moscow under Prof. Yankilevich. He continued his studies in Israel at Tel-Aviv University (Rubin Academy) with Prof. Yair Kless and completed his education in Belgium and Germany with Prof. Philip Hirshhorn and Prof. Rosa Fain. Leonid Kerbel received master classes from artists such as Joseph Gingold, Janos Starker, William Pleath and chamber music ensembles like the Beaux-Arts Trio and Borodin Trio. His chamber music experience varies from duos to nonets. He was a leader of the Gertler quartet, Horta quartet, Contrast quartet, the Arpeggione Trio and the Nuove Musiche String quartet and chamber orchestra. He founded the Trio Sonnetto in 2005 and his partners in 2010 are the Belgian pianist Eliane Reyes and the Byelorussian cellist Aleksandr Khramouchin. The Trio Sonnetto enjoys the support of the illustrious pianist Paul Badura-Skoda. He is a winner of the Rubin Academy solo and chamber-music competition as well as the Clairmont competition. Leonid Kerbel teaches and performs on a regular basis in the “Sewannee Summer Music Festival” in the USA, and takes part in festivals such as: Festival de minimes, Festival de l’été Mosan, Festival de Mozart and Festival van Vlaanderen. He performs regularly as soloist and concertmaster around Europe, Israel and the USA and has recorded for Israeli Radio, BRTN, RTBF and USA National Radio. In 1998, with the collaboration of his wife, Hagit Hassid Kerbel, he founded the “Musica Mundi Chamber Music course and festival”. He is invited in 2011 to conduct Master classes at the “Royal College of Music” in London. Leonid Kerbel is the official representative in Belgium of the International Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition and was a member of the Competition’s jury in 2011. From 2011 till 2015, Leonid Kerbel was appointed violin professor at the Brussels Conservatory of Music. Since September 2014 is also appointed violon professor at the «Royal College of Music» in London. In 2018, he founded, together with his wife, Hagit Hassid-Kerbel, the Musica Mundi School
Jan Vanderwegen (viola)
Jan Vanderwegen was born in 1963 in Mechelen, Belgium. He started his violin studies at the age of 9, was accepted to the Antwerp conservatory in 1981, and there received his first prize as a student of V.Lenaerts. At the Brussels conservatory he studied viola with Ervin Schiffer and also obtained a first prize for this instrument. He concluded his viola studies between 1993-1994 in New-York under Emannuel Vardi. In 1992 he became principal violist in the Nieuw Vlaams Symfonisch Orkest and remained there until 1994, the year he became principal violist in the Collegium Instrumentale Brugense. Jan Vanderwegen has participated in different chamber music ensembles such as SPECTRA (specialising in contemporary music), FUGA-in Paris, and many other trios, quartets, quintets etc. From 1994-1999 he participated in the Sewannee Summer Music Festival (U.S.A.) as a teacher, soloist and chamber music player.
Hagit Hassid-Kerbel (piano)
Hagit Hassid-Kerbel was born in Israel in 1966. She began her piano studies with Iren Kogan and then continued them at Tel Aviv University (Rubin Music Academy) with Prof. Alexander Volkov and Victor Derevianko. She completed her studies in the Basel Musikhochschule with Mr Rudolf Buchbinder. She has received a large number of master classes from different pianists such as: Menahem Presler, Rozalyn Turek, Hans Leygraf, Karl-Heinz Kämmerling, etc. She participated in the “Sewannee Summer Music festival” as a student between 1984 and 1987 and then became a faculty member of the same course. She has performed in many concerts in Israel, the USA and Europe. Since 1988 she has lived in Belgium where she dedicates most of her time to teaching and playing chamber music. In 1998, with the collaboration of her husband Leonid Kerbel, she founded the “Musica Mundi Chamber Music course and festival”. In 2018, she founded, together with her husband, Leonid Kerbel, the Musica Mundi School.
Iren Kogan (piano)
Born in Moscow. At the age of 7 started her musical education in Riga (Latvia), with the famous teachers Rachel Zingarenko and later with Ella Strazdin. Later on was accepted to the Riga National Conservatory into the soloist’s class of the famous pedagogue Prof. Valdis Yancis. Immigrated to Israel in 1970, and continued her studies with Prof. Arie Vardi and Alexander Volkov in Tel-Aviv. During the years, gave a large number of concerts as a soloist and chamber musician. Teaching young students had always been a passion in Mrs. Kogan’s life. This same passion made her join the Musica Mundi faculty since its existence in 1999.
Mikhail Radunski (cello)
Mikhail Radunski began studying the cello in 2000 under Honored Artist of the Republic of Belarus Vladimir Perlin. Currently he is a student of the Academy of Music. Mikhail Participated in many festivals, master classes and open concerts in Russia, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Italy, etc. In addition to foreign tours, Mikhail takes an active part in the musical life of Belarus. He is the prize winner of the III Republic Open Competition of string bow instruments named after Glebov (Grodno, 2011), the XIV International Competition of Chamber Ensembles named after M.Yudina (St. Petersburg, Russia, 2013), the III Elsky International Competition of string bow instruments Performers (Minsk, 2013). Mikhail is the Laureate and a scholarship holder of the Special Fund of the President of the Republic of Belarus on support of talented youth. He participated in the “Musica Mundi” Chamber Music Course and Festival since 2005.
Alexandra Ivanova (viola)
Aliaksandra Ivanova graduated from the Belarussian State Academy of Music in 2015 as a Master student under Professor Lucia Lastovka. Currently Aliaksandra is a teacher of the Belarus Academy of music. She is a Laureate of the Special Fund of the President of the Republic of Belarus on support of talented youth. She’s also a Laureate of three International Competitions and an active participant of many international festivals and master-classes all over the world such as “Bashmet Academy of talents”, the festival of chamber ensembles “Musica Mundi (participated since 2008). Aliaksandra often tour as a soloist and as an ensemble member. She is the first performer of a number of compositions by modern Belarusian composers. Repeatedly she performed as a soloist with the Youth Symphony Orchestra of the Belarusian State Academy of Music and the Symphony Orchestra of Belarussian radio and TV company.
Emile Daems (violin)
Violinist Emile Daems discovered his passion for music as a child, when at the age of six he took his first violin lessons at the music academy in Anderlecht. In 2012, this talented young musician was admitted to Léonid Kerbel’s class at the Royal Conservatoire in Brussels. It was there that he also studied Musical Theory and Writing from 2013 until 2018, graduating summa cum laude. He is currently studying composition with the composer Annelies Van Parys. Emile’s passion is chamber music. He has already taken several masterclasses with famous teachers such as Walter Grimmer, Dejan Bogdanovic, Miriam Fried, Menahem Pressler... Emile regularly performs with his piano trio FCM. He also receives valuable support from the Robus Foundation. For several years running, Emile has taken part in the Musica Mundi workshops and festival as a young talented musician. This enabled him to develop his experience in chamber music and work with some outstanding artists such as Maxim Vengerov, Ivry Gitlis, etc.