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Praised for her “ferocious” and “lithe” playing (ClevelandClassical) with “soaring tone and precision of the highest order” (South Florida Classical Review), violinist Beatrice Hsieh (pronounced ‘Shay’) is passionate about music as a force for social change. An accomplished performer in solo, chamber, and orchestral mediums, she is also sought after for her experience in historically-informed performance and new music. 

Recent highlights include serving as concertmaster of the New World Symphony in Strauss’ “Ein Heldenleben” under Stéphane Denève, concertmaster of the Spoleto Festival Orchestra in Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring,” collaborating with pianist Orion Weiss in chamber music, performing new works with Tyshawn Sorey, Thomas Adès, and Anne-Sophie Mutter at the Lucerne Festival, and soloing with the New World Symphony on Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins with Jeannette Sorrell of Apollo’s Fire. She also served as concertmaster in the world-premiere run of Rhiannon Giddens’ and Michael Abels’ Pulitzer Prize-winning opera, “Omar” — acclaimed by the New York Times as “one of the best performances of 2022.”

Beatrice holds a Master of Music and a Master of Musical Arts from the Yale School of Music as Gilmore Graduate Fellow, studying under Syoko Aki, and a Bachelor of Music with valedictory and musical honors from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with Joel Smirnoff and Joan Kwuon. Currently, Hsieh resides in Miami Beach as a fellow of the New World Symphony.

Emma Richman, violin
Sahana Shravan, violin
Cameren Anai Williams, viola
Wangshu Xiang, cello

The Marian String Quartet, formed in 2021, comprises violinists Sahana Shravan and Emma Richman, violist Cameren Anai Williams, and cellist Wangshu Xiang. Formed at The Juilliard School, the Marian Quartet was one of two quartets to be accepted into the school’s distinguished  Honors Chamber Music Program in October, 2021. 

The quartet is mentored by the Juilliard String Quartet—most notably Areta Zhulla and Roger Tapping—and their principal coaches include Natasha Brofsky and Joseph Lin. The Marian Quartet has performed at Juilliard as a part of honors chamber music recitals, as well as ChamberFest 2022, and 2023 with Misha Amory and the Ivalas Quartet playing Enescu’s Octet. The quartet has performed around New York City at venues such as the Tenri Cultural Center for Music for Food (invited by Juilliard faculty member Carol Rodland), the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center, and at Alice Tully Hall for their recital debut. In April 2022, the group was honored to receive first Gold Prize at the 17th annual St. Paul String Quartet Competition in Minnesota, judged by the Catalyst Quartet.

The quartet chose their name in honor of renowned African American contralto Marian Anderson. Anderson was regarded as one of the finest voices of her time—overcoming countless instances of racial discrimination, she carved her place on some of the most renowned stages in the world and established herself as an iconic voice in the Civil Rights Movement. The Marian Quartet admires and honors her artistic versatility—from operatic standards to African American spirituals—her perseverance in the face of hardship, and hope to continue her legacy and use their voice for good.

British violinist Andrew Samarasekara attends the school of music at Yale University, where he received his Master of Music degree in 2023 and will also begin his Master of Musical Arts degree this fall under the continued tutelage of Prof. Ani Kavafian. Andrew has received several awards at Yale, including the Raymond M. Plank student prize that granted him a two-week artist residency at the renowned UCROSS foundation in Wyoming. An avid performer and collaborator, his solo and chamber concerts have taken him to a number of prestigious venues across Europe and North America, including Sprague Hall at Yale, Berlin Konzerthaus, Wigmore Hall, NEC Jordan Hall, Kaufman Centre, Menuhin Hall, Schloss Nymphenburg Munich and the Royal Albert Hall.

During the summer months, Andrew regularly performs at international music festivals that have included the Yale Norfolk Festival, Gstaad Menuhin Festival, Mendelssohn on Mull, and Crans Montana Classics. This summer he will be attending a number of festivals across Europe as well as attending the Colorado Music Festival through their fellowship program.

Andrew was recently a semi-finalist ARS Classica competition prize winner at the Gisborne International Music Competition, International Salzburg Competition and Eastbourne Young Soloist Competition. In 2022 he was also selected as a contestant for the 8th Sendai Violin Competition. 

Andrew plays on a 1731 Nicolo Gagliano violin and W. Hill bow, on loan from a private benefactor.

Mario Rivera is a Honduran-born second-year Viola Fellow at the New World Symphony. Prior to joining NWS, Mr. Rivera was a founding member of the Ajax Quartet, which held a residency at the University of Colorado Boulder to study extensively with the Grammy Award-winning Takacs Quartet. Mr. Rivera has collaborated with renowned musicians such as Alexander Kobrin, William Preucil, Sergiu Schwartz, Wendy Warner, Klaus Stoll, and has worked with the Jupiter, Escher, American and Pacifica string quartets.

A native of Philadelphia, cellist Eliana Razzino Yang has performed solo recitals in London, Paris, Rome, Brussels, Frankfurt, New York, Helsinki, Boston, and Philadelphia and concertos with orchestras Italy, across the US, and England. She has also performed as part of Harrisburg’s Market Square rising star series and the Taos Chamber Music Group, and has received top prizes in the All City Orchestra, YCVT, Caprio, and Vivace competitions. Eliana has collaborated with members of the Emerson, Tokyo, Borromeo, Vermeer, Audubon, Aizuri, and Momenta string quartets, Ensemble Epomeo, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE). Recital partners include pianists Ieva Jokubaviciute, Amy Yang, and Clare Hammond. In 2015 she traveled to Budapest, Hungary, to play for composer György Kurtág and cellist Miklós Perényi and in 2016 she played for composer George Crumb. Eliana will be a participant in Denmark’s Thy Chamber Music Festival for the summer of 2023. Past programs include Yale’s Norfolk Music Festival, Sarasota Music Festival, IMS Prussia Cove, Kneisel Hall, the Perlman Music Program, Heifetz Institute, Castleman Quartet Program, Meadowmount School of Music, and Carnegie Hall’s New York String Orchestra Seminar. Eliana plays on a Joseph Panormo cello from 1810 on generous loan from Mr. Harold and Holly Glass of Philadelphia, PA. Eliana received her bachelor’s degree from Juilliard in May 2022 under the tutelage of Natasha Brofsky and Richard Aaron, and will continue for her master’s degree in the fall of 2023 with Clara Minhye Kim.