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adjudicators

Adjudicators 1

AUSTRALIA 

Michelle Walsh

Chair of Adjudication Panel

Associate Professor and Head of Strings Griffith University, QLD, Brisbane, Australia 

Michelle currently serves as Associate Professor and Head of Strings at the Queensland Conservatorium, where she plays a central role in developing the next generation of Australian musicians. Her career encompasses extensive performance, teaching, and adjudicating engagements across Australia and internationally, including work in London and major cultural centres around the world.

Her depth of experience, artistic insight, and commitment to musical excellence make her an invaluable member of the BIYMF 2026 adjudication panel.

Adjudicators 2
USA

Eugene Cherkasov

Assistant Concertmaster
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra

Eugene Cherkasov has been a member of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra for over 20 years. He was born and trained in Baku, USSR, and started his career after winning a National Competition at the age of eighteen. Eugene received international acclaim after performing as a soloist and first violinist with the Quartet of Modern Music at the Frankfurt Feste-89 and at Beethovenhaus in Bonn, Germany. At that time he traveled extensively promoting new composers for wide audiences throughout the USSR and abroad. He later served as the concertmaster of several orchestras in Moscow. In 1990 Eugene and his family moved to Mexico, where he performed with the Mexico State Orchestra. Winning the position of first violinist with the Thouvenel String Quartet brought him to the United States in 1991.

Eugene has served as concertmaster and appeared as a soloist with numerous orchestras. He has also performed in festivals in Michigan, Colorado, Texas, Washington, Vermont, Canada and Germany, was a faculty member of the Wintergreen festival in Virginia. Eugene has participated in various summer festivals in Italy, including Geminiani and Nei Suoni dei Luoghi, where he performed violin-piano recitals with his wife, Larissa. In 2004 Eugene was a soloist with the renowned Ensemble Archi Della Scala di Milano, performing Bach and Haydn concertos in France.

Eugene graduated with honors from the Baku State Conservatory with a Master’s Degree in Violin Performance and Pedagogy. He also obtains an Artistic Diploma and a Doctorate from the Moscow State Conservatory, where he studied with professor S. Kravchenko.

Currently Eugene is Assistant Concertmaster of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and dedicates much of his time to teaching and performing chamber music.

Adjudicators 3

AUSTRALIA

Francesca

Francesca began violin lessons at the age of four at the Stoliarsky School of Music in Brisbane. Here she studied with Mark Lakirovich and, later, Emin Tagiev. At the age of nine, she travelled as a soloist and ensemble member to the USA, performing for Paul Kantor, Kurt Sassmanshaus and the late Dorothy DeLay of the Juilliard School in New York. After completing a Bachelor of Music under the supervision of violinist Michele Walsh at the Queensland Conservatorium, Francesca continued her studies with William Hennessy at the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM). 
 
During her studies at both the Queensland Conservatorium and ANAM, Francesca won every chamber music competition available, twice, each time with a different ensemble. In 2012 she completed an ANAM Fellowship focussing on chamber music for various string ensembles. That same year she co-founded the Auric Quartet, who were finalists for the Asia-Pacific Chamber Music Competition and Trondheim International Chamber Music Competition and performed at the Perth International Arts Festival, Melbourne Festival, Four Winds Festival and Dunkeld Festival of Music. 
 
Francesca has appeared as soloist with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria and as a member of a solo quartet with Orchestra Victoria in the Australian Ballet’s production of Brett Dean’s “Fire Music”. After winning a full-time position in the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 2014, Francesca joined the ASQ in 2016.
 
Francesca plays a 1748-49 Guadagnini Violin, Piacenza
Adjudicators 4

AUSTRALIA 

Tania Frazer

BIYMF / Presto 2026 is delighted to welcome internationally acclaimed oboist and artistic director Tania Frazer OAM as our Woodwind Adjudicator.

Recognised as one of Australia’s leading classical musicians, Tania has performed with major orchestras and artists across Australia, Europe and the Middle East, including collaborations with Zubin Mehta, Leonard Bernstein, Mstislav Rostropovich and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa. She is the founder and Artistic Director of Collectivo and former Artistic Director of Southern Cross Soloists and the Bangalow Music Festival.

A graduate of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London, Tania has held principal oboe positions with both the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Israel Opera. In 2024 she was awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for services to music and the arts. 

We are honoured to have Tania join our distinguished adjudicating panel for 2026 and look forward to the insight, inspiration and musical excellence she will bring to our young performers.

Adjudicators 5

Germany, Berlin 

Dmitry Pavlov

Dmitry Pavlov — Composer, Pianist & Music Educator

Dmitry Pavlov graduated from the St. Petersburg Conservatory with a diploma in Composition and Music Theory. Since 1997, he has lived and worked in Berlin, building an international career as a composer, pianist, and music educator.

His film scores have been featured at major international festivals, including Cannes, Moscow, and San Francisco. He is a recipient of the State Prize of the Russian Federation for his score to the film The Cuckoo, and was also honoured at the International Competition of Electroacoustic Music in Bourges, France for his work in electroacoustic composition.

Dmitry serves as the Musical Director of both the Brandenburg Monastery Summer Festival (Brandenburger Klostersommer) and the Ribbeck Castle Festival (Schlossfestspiele Ribbeck). His collaborations span leading production companies, broadcasters, and orchestras such as EuroArts, Accentus Music, Columbia Pictures, ORT, ORF, Sony Music, the Deutsches Symphonie‑Orchester Berlin, Bern Symphony Orchestra, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, Bratislava Symphony Orchestra, Jena Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Alte Oper Frankfurt.

Since 2018, Dmitry has been a faculty member at the Joseph Schmidt Music School, where he teaches contemporary piano performance. His students explore a wide range of musical styles — from classical and jazz to film music — and those interested receive additional instruction in arranging and improvisation.

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Adjudicators 6

Germany, Berlin 

Anrea Chudak

Conductor, Educator, Violinist

Andrea Chudak is an acclaimed Berlin‑based soprano known for her versatility, expressive artistry, and international performance career. A graduate of the Hanns Eisler Academy of Music and the Karlsruhe University of Music, she has won multiple competitions, including the International Emmy Destinn Singing Competition.

Andrea has performed at major opera houses such as the Berlin State Opera, Theater an der Wien, and Staatstheater Karlsruhe, and has appeared at leading festivals across Europe. Her concert work includes collaborations with the Kunming Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonie der Nationen, Baden‑Baden Philharmonic, and the Malmö Symphony Orchestra.

With over 20 internationally released CDs, numerous world‑premiere recordings, and several OPUS KLASSIK and ICMA nominations, Andrea is also active as an author and editor of rediscovered works by Giacomo Meyerbeer. She brings her rich experience and passion for young musicians to the BIYMF 2026 adjudication panel.

Adjudicators 7

Germany, Berlin 

Stefan Kelber

Conductor, Educator, Violinist

The Musical Journey of Stefan Kelber: A Biography
Early Years in Rio de Janeiro
Stefan Kelber, born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, entered the fascinating world of music at the age of 7. His musical journey began with violin lessons taught by the renowned Prof. José Alves da Silva.
 
 
The Path to Germany
In 1995, Stefan continued his musical education at the prestigious Escola Superior de Música de Colônia, in the department of Wuppertal, Germany. There, he received guidance from Prof. Johannes Prelle in the art of the violin. But that was just the beginning.
 
The Breadth of Musical Knowledge
Stefan Kelber didn’t limit himself to playing the violin. He deepened his understanding of music through studies in music pedagogy under the guidance of Prof. Karl-Heinz Zarius.
 
Expanding the Repertoire
The year 2004 marked a pivotal moment in his musical evolution when he began to study the viola. Under the tutelage of Susanne Scholz at the Escola Superior de Música de Colônia, in the department of Wuppertal, he graduated in 2006 with top honors.
 
The Versatility of Musical Talent
In parallel with his efforts on string instruments, Stefan Kelber expanded his skills as a conductor. He studied with Frank Doolan, GMD Stefan Fraas, Prof. Andreas Weiss, Lothar Seyfarth, and Prof. Manfred Fabricius. This made him a complete musician, shining both as a soloist and as a conductor.
 
Successes and Engagement
Before assuming his current position as the director of the prestigious Musikschule “Joseph-Schmidt” in Treptow-Köpenick, Berlin, Stefan Kelber held prominent roles. He led the string department and oversaw orchestra work at the “Paul Hindemith” Music School in Berlin-Neukölln. Additionally, he was a sought-after soloist and a member of various groups, including the Orquestra Jovem do Rio de Janeiro, the Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira, and many other internationally renowned orchestras.
 
The Continuing Journey
Currently, Stefan Kelber also serves as the Artistic Director of the Youth Orchestra of the City of Schwerin, continuing to inspire and shape the musical landscape with his passion and mastery.
Adjudicators 8

Australia, Brisbane

Oliver Scott

Cellist, Conductor & Music Educator

Oliver Scott is an Australian cellist, conductor and music educator. A former Brisbane
International Youth Music Competition prizewinner, Oliver went on to receive a full
scholarship to the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in Singapore, where he studied
cello with Li-Wei Qin.
As a cellist, Oliver has performed with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne
Symphony Orchestra and Singapore Symphony Orchestra, and has appeared
internationally as a recitalist and concerto soloist. He was formerly Principal Cellist of the
Queensland Youth Symphony and performed Saint-Saens’ Cello Concerto No. 1 as
soloist during its European tour.
Oliver completed a Master of Music specialising in Orchestral Conducting at the
University of Adelaide, including conducting the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. More
recently, he has conducted Brisbane Symphony in concerto performances featuring
emerging young soloists as part of its Future Forte program.
Oliver currently combines his work as a cellist and conductor with an active private
teaching studio in Brisbane