Conductors 2010
“It broadened my horizons by exposing me to challenging music and a world-class conductor. It deepened my appreciation for orchestral music immensely. It means a lot for me to be part of what is quite close to a professional group of musicians.” Willie (cello)
As any alumnus can testify, Nationals is a place where new friendships are forged, old friends are reunited, and where young musicians can interact with with music professionals from South Africa and abroad.
During Nationals some of our best young musicians will be taking part in wonderfully intense and rewarding rehearsals, be tutored by some of SA’s best, as well as international tutors, and give concert performances conducted by internationally acclaimed conducters.
In June/July the National Youth Orchestra: Strings will be conducted by Fredrik Burstedt (Sweden)
Fredrik Burstedt picture by Heidemarie Meyer
After a very successful session in Stellenbosch with the National Youth Orchestra, Fredrik Burstedt joins us again for the National Youth Orchestra: Strings programme in June/July at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown.
The young Swedish conductor and violinist Fredrik Burstedt has in recent times established himself as a musician with an unique ability to capture an audience and intrigue the individual listener. He is in the initial stages of a promising career as a conductor and has already been the guest conductor in a number of professional orchestras in Sweden and abroad.
Fredrik received in first musical instruction from his father, a well-known violinist and pedagogue and he later continued his violin studies with Leo Berlin at the Royal University College of Music in Stockholm and later with David Takeno. He made his solo-debut with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 1996 and was subsequently invited as soloist in orchestras all over Europe. Fredrik’s pronounced interest in contemporary music has resulted in the commissioning of many new pieces, some of which he has recorded for the CD “Cordes sur bois” – a Swedish Grammy Award Nominee in 2005.
Fredrik Burstedt is considered one of Scandinavia’s leading concert masters, and has been invited in this function to most Swedish orchestras. Since 2002 he is First Concert Master in the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra.
Since 1999 he works regularly with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, and as concert master and principal player he has worked closely with renowned conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Gustavo Dudamel and Daniel Harding. In 2005 he played for the first time in the Luzern Festival Orchestra, the hand picked orchestra consisting of the absolute elite of international orchestra musicians.
Fredrik Burstedt commenced his conducting studies in 2005 and was after just one year admitted to Professor Jorma Panula’s Diploma class at the Royal University College of Music in Stockholm. After participating in the Svenska Dirigentpriset (Swedish Conducting Prize)-competition in 2006, Fredrik Burstedt was awarded the first Sixten Ehrling Prize for Young Conductors.
Fredrik enjoys accompanying singers and instrumentalists alike, and has worked with prominent soloists, such as pianists Per Tengstrand and Hans Leygraf and Copenhagen Opera’s first soprano, Gitta-Maria Sjöberg. During the season 07/08 he conducted the symphony orchestras of Helsingborg, Gävle and Norrköping as well as Italy’s I Pomeriggi Musicali and the Norrlands Operan Symphony Orchestra in Umeå. He also led a concert performance of Mozart’s The Magic Flute in Luleå’s new House of Culture and the chamber version of Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde in Stockholm and Helsingborg. In the calendar for the current season we find the conducting debuts with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Malmö Symphony Orchestra and the Nordic Chamber Orchestra as well as returning engagements with the Jönköping Sinfonietta a.o.
Fredrik’s participation in the NYO:Strings programme is generously supported by the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra.
In August, the National Youth Orchestra:Strings will be conducted by Nikke Isomöttönen (Finland)
Nikke Isomöttönen
Finnish conductor Nikke Isomöttönen (b. 1976) is a graduate of the Conservatory of Central Finland, Jyväskylä, where he studied orchestral conducting and choral conducting. He has participated in master classes by conductors Jorma Panula, Atso Almila, Pertti Pekkanen, Tonu Kaljuste and Paul Niemisto.
Isomöttönen was co-winner of the first prize in the Finnish National Choral Conducting Competition at the Choral Espoo Festival, Finland in 2002. In October 2006 he was selected to participate in the Third International Jorma Panula Conducting Competition as one of 20 contestants among 70 applicants from all over the world.
Isomöttönen maintains an active conducting schedule in the central Finnish city of Jyväskylä. He is the conducting instructor at the Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences, School of Music, where he founded and currently conducts its string orchestra called JAMKin jouset. The first CD recording of the orchestra contains contemporary Finnish music and was released on spring 2007.
Isomöttönen also serves as artistic director of the Jyväskylä Wind Orchestra, the Male Choir Sirkat, the Jyväskylä War Veterans Choir, and is frequent guest conductor of the Finnish Air Force Military Band. In addition he serves as assistant conductor and chorus master for productions of the Jyväskylä Opera. In 2004 he was assistant conductor to Mr. Patrick Gallois, Musical Director of the Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä (the Jyväskylä Municipal Symphony Orchestra), in the production of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro. Isomöttönen was subsequently invited to guest conduct the the Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä, with which he made his debut in November 2005. After his debut Isomöttönen has guest conducted the orchestra several times. In 2006 he made his North American debut conducting The Adirondack Wind Ensemble in New York.
Nikke Isomöttönen has been working among others with baritone Jorma Hynninen, soprano Mari Palo, soprano Johanna Rusanen, pianist Risto-Matti Marin, and clarinetist Mikko Raasakka and has been assistant conductor to Jorma Panula, Atso Almila, Markus Lehtinen, Patrick Gallois, Dmitri Slobodeniuk and Tibor Boganyi.
In December the National Youth Orchestra will be conducted by Ewa Strusińska (Poland)
Ewa Strusinska photo by Mateusz Nasternak
Ewa Strusińska, a finalist of the Gustav Mahler International Conducting Competition in Bamberg, was appointed Assistant Conductor of the Hallé Orchestra and Music Director of the Hallé Youth Orchestra in 2008.
Ewa has conducted orchestras including the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Bamberger Symphoniker, Sinfonietta Baden, Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, National Polish Radio Orchestra, Czestochowa Philharmonic Orchestra and Koszalin Philharmonic Orchestra. Future engagements include National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Northern Sinfonia and Rzeszów Philharmonic Orchestra.
In 2005 Ewa worked as assistant conductor of the Czestochowa Symphony Orchestra before moving to Manchester to begin a two-year Junior Fellowship in Conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music. She has also studied with conductors including Valery Gergiev, Antoni Wit, Bruno Weil and Kurt Masur.
Ewa Strusińska made her opera debut with Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen at the Royal Northern College of Music in 2006 and in 2007 conducted four performances of The Marriage of Figaro. She conducts Bennett’s All the King’s Men at the Buxton Festival in 2010.
From 1998 to 2006 Ewa was conductor and artistic director of the Polish choir Jeunesses Musicales.
In 2000 the choir was nominated for one of Poland’s most prestigious music awards, a Fryderyk Award. She won the Grand Prix in Saint Petersburg in Russia with the choir Tutti Cantamus.
Ewa was born in Poland and studied at the Frederic Chopin Music Academy in Warsaw.
“I would love to become a conductress. 
” Freya (violin)
