Registration starts the 15th January 2026.
Early bird discount until 15th April 2026
oboe
Washington Barella works at the academy from 12/09 - 21/09/2026
Washington Barella studied with Ingo Goritzki at the University of Music and Drama in Hanover from 1984 to 1986 and continued his training with Humbert Lucarelli at the Hartt School of Music in Hartford (USA) from 1988 to 1990.
From 1981 to 1983 and from 1987 to 1988, he was principal oboist in the Campinas Symphony Orchestra, Brazil, and from 1990 to 1992, he was also principal oboist in the Atlantic Sinfonietta orchestra in New York (USA).
In 1991, he won third prize at the ARD Music Competition. Since then, Washington Barella has performed solo concerts with Bayerischer Rundfunk, the SWR Symphony Orchestra, the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn, the Savannah Symphony and the Annapolis Symphony in the United States, and with numerous orchestras in Brazil.
In 2010, he was appointed to a teaching position at the Cologne University of Music and Dance. Since 1992, Washington Barella has been principal oboist with the SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg. He has been a professor at the Berlin University of the Arts since 2012.
Bassoon
Marc Engelhardt works at the academy from 12/09 - 21/09/2026
He studied in Cologne and in Hanover with K. Thunemann. In 1986 he became 1st solo bassoonist of the RSO Saarbrücken and has also played in this position with the BR, NDR, WDR, SWR and HR, the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and the Hamburg State Opera. He has close chamber music ties with the Stuttgart Academy, trumpeter Matthias Höfs, saxophonist Daniel Schnyder and Fagottissimo Stuttgart. Masterclasses and work as a juror at international competitions have taken him to France, Russia and Poland, Canada, Japan, China and Korea as well as Switzerland and the USA. His students hold leading positions in many European, Asian and South American orchestras.
Violin
Eberhard Feltz works at the academy from 12/09/ - 21/09/2026
He studied in Berlin with Werner Scholz and in St. Petersburg with Michael Waiman. Since 1963 he teaches chamber music at the University of Music Hanns Eisler Berlin. Additionally, he has an excellent reputation as a teacher for masterclasses in Europe and in the USA. He was longtime mentor of string quartets like Vogler, Kuss, Faust, Atrium, Calder, Ebène and soloists like the cellist Nicolas Altstaedt.
Cello
Konstantin Heidrich works at the academy from 12/09/ - 21/09/2026 and is together with Norbert Kaiser artistic director in 2026
He is the cellist of the Faure Quartet and studied with M. Ostertag and F. Helmerson. As a soloist he played with renown orchestras. The Fauré Quartet, one of the leading chambermusic ensembles since 20 years with concerts all over the world, is one of his main musical activities. He is professor at the University of Arts in Berlin and since 2017 artistic director of the festival “crescendo”.
bassoon
Ulrich Hermann works at the academy from 03/09 - 12/09/2026
He began his studies at the conservatory in his home town of Stuttgart in 1990 and was principal bassoon in the Stuttgart State Orchestra from 1995 to 2022. As a competition prizewinner, soloist and member of renowned chamber music ensembles, he has performed throughout Europe, the USA and Asia and has recorded several CDs and radio programmes. He is also a regular guest with internationally renowned opera, symphony and chamber orchestras. Ulrich Hermann enjoys an excellent reputation worldwide as a teacher; he has established a bassoon class whose members regularly win prizes at national and international music competitions. He gives masterclasses for bassoon and wind chamber music and acts as a juror at competitions in Europe and Japan. Many of his students are now members of leading orchestras and teach as professors at universities
Clarinet
Norbert Kaiser works at the academy from 03/09/ - 12/09/2026. In 2026 he is together with Konstantin Heidrich the artistic director of the academy.
Norbert studied at the University of Music in Detmold with Jost Michaels and Hans Klaus. He was a clarinetist in the Radio Symphony Orchestra in Frankfurt and hereafter employed as solo clarinet for twelve years in the Staatsoper Stuttgart. There he worked with many of the renowned conductors. He studied conducting at the University of Music in Weimar and he has worked as assistant conductor at the Staatsoper Stuttgart and at the opera in Ulm and he was chief conductor of the youth orchestra in Thüringen. Since 2000 he is professor for clarinet and chamber music at the University of music in Stuttgart and guest-professor in Shenyang. He regularly teaches numerous masterclasses such as the “Oberstdorfer Musiksommer”. He works as a juror at international competitions such as the Marktneukirchen competition or at the Deutscher Musikwettbewerb. Many of his students are in famous orchestras or are teachers or professors at Universities around the world.
piano
Boris Kuszenow works at the academy from 13/09 - 21/09/2026
Born in Moscow, Boris Kuznetsov began his musical training at the renowned Gnessin Academy. He has lived in Germany since the age of eight and completed his studies with Prof. Bernd Goetzke in Hanover. Since 2020, he has been professor of piano chamber music at the University of Music in Leipzig. Boris Kuznetsov is one of the most sought-after piano accompanists of his generation. He performs with outstanding instrumentalists and singers worldwide. His performances have taken him to concert halls such as Carnegie Hall in New York, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Wigmore Hall in London and the Berlin Philharmonic. Seventeen CD recordings in various ensembles and radio recordings document his artistic work. He is the official piano partner for string instruments and voice at the most important international competitions: the ARD Competition in Munich, the Joseph Joachim Competition in Hanover, the International Violin Competition in Stuttgart and the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels. Boris Kusnezow is the founder of the Chamber Lab piano chamber music academy in Montecastelli, Italy, artistic director of the International Music Academy for Soloists (IMAS) and the Schaumburg Castle Concerts at Bückeburg Castle.
Piano
Angelika Merkle works at the academy from 03/09 - 08/09/2026
She studied with Klaus Schilde, Leonard Hokanson (Indiana University) and lied interpretation with Helmut Deutsch and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. She has won many first prizes in international and national competitions and is a much demanded chamber music pianist and teacher. Her CD recordings have received top honours from both Fanfare and Fono Forum. Angelika Merkle has been Professor of Piano Chamber Music at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts since 2003. She is also the artistic director of numerous projects such as the renowned chamber music series "Festeburgkonzerte", the International Schumann Chamber Music Prize and the music education format "COMM!T". Her students have won prizes in international and national competitions.
Piano
Dirk Mommertz works at the academy from 03/09/ - 11/09/2026
He is the pianist of the Fauré Quartet. He studied with André Boainain and Lev Natochenny and had concerts as a soloist i.a. with the Philharmonic Orchestra Hamburg and the MDR Symphony Orchestra. After teaching activities at the University of Music Karlsruhe, the Folkwang University of Arts Essen and the University of Music Nuremberg, he started being professor for chamber music at the University of Music and Theatre Munich in 2015. Until now he has concerts with the well known Fauré Quartet.
Violine
Alexander Pavlovsky works at the academy from 08/09 - 12/09/2026
Alexander Pavlovsky is the founder and first violinist of the world famous The Jerusalem Quartet, has established a reputation as a highly accomplished chamber musician, soloist and pedagogue. He is a graduate of the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance in the class of Prof. Matvei Lieberman, and of the Young Musicians Group of the Jerusalem Music Centre, founded by Isaac Stern. As the leader of The Jerusalem Quartet Alexander Pavlovsky is a regular and beloved guest around the globe. Since 2022 he holds a professor of string chamber music position at the University of Music and performing Arts in Graz. Since 2008 he is Artistic Director of the “Zeist Music Days” International Chamber Music Festival in The Netherlands, and regularly gives master classes in Europe, North America and Asia.
Violine
Jonathan Schwarz works at the academy from 12/09 - 21/09/2026
Jonathan Schwarz is first violinist of the Leonkoro Quartet. Founded in Berlin in 2019,
the ensemble has received numerous awards up to 2025 (including first prize
Prize and 9 Special Prizes at the Wigmore Hall International Competition / 1st Prize at the
Concours International de Quatuor à Bordeaux / Music Prize of the
Jürgen Ponto Foundation / Young Talent Award of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam) and is now one of the
most acclaimed quartets in Europe.
Jonathan was a junior student at the
Lübeck University of Music in Heime Müller's class and then moved to
Berlin to study with Nora Chastain. He gained orchestral experience in the festival orchestra
of the Pacific Music Festival, with Eroica Berlin, Anima Eterna Brugge, the
Kammerakademie Potsdam and as a member of the Karajan Academy with the Berlin
Philharmonic Orchestra.
Viola
Piotr Szumiel works at the academy from 03/09 - 12/09/2026
Piotr Szumieł studied at the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music in his hometown of Warsaw with Prof. Stefan Kamas, later with Prof. Wolfgang Klos and Prof. Johannes Meissl in Vienna. In addition to his solo and teaching activities, he devotes himself intensively to the Apollon Musagète Quartet, which was founded in 2006. After winning international music competitions in Vienna and Florence, the quartet quickly established itself as a fixture on the European music scene, winning first prize and almost all special prizes at the 57th ARD International Music Competition. From 2002 to 2008, he was a member and principal violist of the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra and the Dresden Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra. In addition, he has been very active in teaching for many years – he is a lecturer in viola and chamber music at the Carl Maria von Weber University of Music in Dresden (since 2005), from 2013 to 2018 he was a lecturer at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, and since October 2019 Piotr Szumieł has been professor of viola and head of the string department at the Rostock University of Music and Drama.
Violine
Oliver Wille works at the academy from 04/09 - 08/09/2026
He studied at the conservatories in Berlin and Cologne, Indiana University Bloomington and the NEC Boston, among others. Together with Jana Kuss, the then 14-year-old was one of the founding members of the Kuss Quartet. Since 2002, the ensemble has performed on all major concert stages and festivals worldwide. Since 2011, he has been a professor of chamber music at the Hanover University of Music, where he teaches an internationally successful quartet class. In 2021, he took over the position of Artistic Vice President there. Since 2015, he has been International Chair at the Royal Conservatory Birmingham, Visiting Professor at the Accademia Perosi in Italy and Director of the ‘Sommerliche Musiktage’ Hitzacker. Since 2019, he has co-directed the Joseph Joachim International Violin Competition in Hanover with Antje Weithaas.
The International Summer Academy for Chamber Music in Lower Saxony sets an antipole in the diverse, rather fast-moving masterclass landscape. The focus is on a well-founded and detailed examination of chamber music works. At Frenswegen Monastery, students and teachers can take the time to develop a work intensively and in detail and then to present it.
The modernised monastery offers an optimal infrastructure under one roof: sufficient rooms for lessons, rehearsals and practice, a modern cafeteria with full catering and modernised rooms in a historical ambience. A unique feature of the academy is the international team of lecturers, who cover the fields of strings, wind instruments and piano chamber music and can therefore provide optimum input for every chamber music ensemble - from piano trio to string quartet to mixed ensembles. Each ensemble receives daily lessons from several teachers. Situated in an idyllic rural setting, without the distractions of everyday life, Frenswegen Monastery offers ideal conditions for intensive dialogue, inspiration, exchange with students from all over the world and the experience of a lively musical community.
The academy is particularly suitable for preparing for competitions, offers the best conditions for working on new repertoire and is ideal for growing together as an ensemble or forming a new ensemble. For students from abroad, it offers an excellent insight into music study opportunities in Germany. Applications for the academy are possible starting from an ensemble size of 3 musicians or more (then also for half of the academy period) or as an individual participant for the entire academy period.
Application to the International Summer Academy for Chamber Music is open to ensembles of 3 members or more. Ensembles can apply for the entire academy period as well as for one half of the academy (4 - 13 September or 13 - 22 September 2025). It is also possible to apply as an individual participant for the entire academy period.
Each ensemble, each participant can specify a desired repertoire (2-3 pieces should be worked on in the academy). The repertoire to be worked on will be determined in consultation with the artistic advisory board 8 weeks before the start of the academy. It is assumed that the pieces will be prepared in such a way that they can be worked on directly as chamber music. There will be 1-3 lessons per day. The schedule will be agreed daily with the teachers so that lessons can be flexibly adapted to the individual needs.
The academy organises numerous concerts in which participants can present themselves: Workshop concerts, welcome concert in the monastery's own chapel, sponsor concert in Oldenburg theatre, various concerts within the academy festival at the end of the academy.