Maayan Licht

Anton Baba is an Australian-born Baroque cellist and viola da gamba specialist celebrated for his rich, expressive playing in historically informed performance. He began his classical cello training at the Eastman School of Music in the USA, then completed postgraduate studies in Baroque cello and viola da gamba at the Royal Conservatorium in The Hague, immersing himself in early music traditions.
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Anton has performed with some of Europe’s most respected period ensembles, including the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and The Gabrieli Consort, bringing deep stylistic understanding and sensitivity to music of the 17th and 18th centuries.
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Since returning to Australia, he has been a regular member of ensembles such as Orchestra of the Antipodes, the Australian Romantic and Classical Orchestra, and the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra. His work with The Muffat Collective showcases his mastery of Baroque repertoire on both cello and viola da gamba.
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Beyond performance, Anton is a passionate educator and a founding member of the ACO Foundations team, where he fosters musical development and creativity in young learners.

Anna McMichael is violinist, previous festival director and artistic researcher with a national and international performance career over the last 30 years. Anna is Classical Convenor and Head of Strings at the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music, Monash University. She lived in Europe for 17 years, performing with the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and London Sinfonietta and with ensembles including the ASKO/Schonberg Ensemble and Ensemble Modern. She has toured numerous major European festivals and given premieres by many leading international composers.

In Australia, Anna has performed regularly with Australian groups, including Australian Chamber Orchestra, Pinchgut Opera, Ensemble Offspring, Omega Ensemble, guest concertmaster of Auckland Philharmonia, member of Australian World Orchestra, Australian Haydn Ensemble and Sydney Chamber Opera.

Anna was Co-artistic Director of the Tyalgum Music Festival between 2014 and 2019, when APRA/AMC awarded it prizes for regional excellence. Anna has a large solo, duo and ensemble discography on many international labels.

 
Anna has recorded duo cds for the Tall Poppies label and a solo violin and electronics cd for the Dutch label, Unsounds. Anna has appeared regularly at Mona Foma festival, Melbourne Metropolis Festival, Sydney’s Vivid, Adelaide and Sydney Festivals.

Prize-winning violinist Yuuki Wong has established an international reputation as a performer of exceptional artistry and versatility. Described by The Strad as a musician “with imagination and insight… a crowd-pleaser”, he was awarded the Prix de la Ville de Lausanne in 2011 and has appeared as a soloist, chamber musician and recitalist across five continents.

Born in Singapore, Wong began studying piano at the age of four and violin two years later. His remarkable talent was recognised early when he was admitted to the prestigious Yehudi Menuhin School in England after only three years of violin study. He subsequently pursued advanced studies at the Oberlin Conservatory, the Vienna Conservatory, the Haute École de Musique de Lausanne and the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste, working with distinguished teachers including Yehudi Menuhin, Boris Kuschnir, Pierre Amoyal and Ilya Gringolts.

An accomplished competition laureate, Wong's awards include prizes at the Michael Hill International Violin Competition, the Jean Sibelius International Violin Competition and the Abbado International Violin Competition. His performances have taken him to leading festivals and concert halls throughout Europe, North America, Asia and Australasia, including appearances at Carnegie Hall, the Verbier Festival Academy and the Menuhin Festival Gstaad.

Career highlights include performances for Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace and collaborations with orchestras such as the Helsinki Philharmonic, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Auckland Philharmonia. As Concertmaster of the Morphing Chamber Orchestra, he has also appeared in acclaimed international broadcasts and recordings, including the Metropolitan Opera's Met Stars Live in Concert series.

Neal Peres Da Costa is an Australian harpsichordist, fortepianist, and organist, internationally recognised for his expertise in historical keyboard performance. His work focuses on bringing early music to life through informed, stylistically authentic interpretation.

As a performer, he appears regularly as a soloist and continuo player, collaborating with leading early music ensembles and orchestras. His performances are known for their clarity, expressive depth, and close attention to historical sources.

Alongside his performance career, he is a prominent scholar in historical performance practice. His research explores notation, improvisation, and expressive techniques used by composers and performers of the 18th and 19th centuries, shaping modern approaches to early keyboard music.

Neal Peres Da Costa is also a dedicated educator and professor at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where he mentors emerging musicians and contributes significantly to the study and performance of early music worldwide.