Sponsors
KAYAMI SATOMI – Cello
Brazilian cellist Kayami Satomi began his musical studies at the age of four with his mother, Alice Lumi Satomi, and later earned his Bachelor’s degree from the Federal University of Paraíba and a Master’s degree with highest honors from the Hochschule für Musik Münster, Germany, as a Yehudi Menuhin Foundation scholar. His principal teachers include Nelson Campos, Felipe Aquino, and Matias de Oliveira Pinto, with further studies in masterclasses with Antonio Meneses, Colin Carr, and Matt Haimowitz.
A prizewinner of major Brazilian competitions — including Jovens Instrumentistas do Brasil, Paulo Bosísio, Francisco Mignone, and the Nelson Freire Competition for New Brazilian Talents — Satomi has performed in concert halls across Latin America, Europe, and the United States, under conductors such as Kurt Masur, Christoph Eschenbach, and Roberto Minczuk. He has appeared as soloist in works by Dvořák, Elgar, Tchaikovsky, Boccherini, Saint-Saëns, and Haydn with orchestras in Brazil, Chile, Germany, and Paraguay, including the Latin American premiere of Diego Haase’s Concertino para Violoncelo y Orquesta.
Equally active as a chamber musician and educator, Satomi is a member of Trio Portato and has collaborated in contemporary, Brazilian, and crossover projects. He is founder and artistic director of Violoncelada (Triângulo Mineiro) and faculty at the Ouro Branco Cello Festival. After fifteen years as Professor of Cello at the Federal University of Uberlândia, he now teaches cello and chamber music at the Instituto Villa-Lobos, UNIRIO, in Rio de Janeiro.
The Viennese cellist Rudolf Leopold is one of the most versatile musicians of his generation. He completed his studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, studying cello with Richard Krotschak and Tobias Kühne, and, in addition, piano and composition. As a teenager Rudolf became a member of the Franz Schubert Quartet, which subsequently won the first prize at the European Broadcasting Union competition, resulting in the birth of a career, which included concerts and tours throughout Europe, Australia and the USA.
His passion for baroque music led him early on to Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Concentus Musicus, where he recorded, among many other works, the Brandenburg Concertos of Bach. Rudolf was solo cellist for 25 years and he continues his collaboration with Concentus Musicus to the present day. He is also the founder of Il Concerto Viennese, which performed his reconstruction of Bach´s St. Mark´s Passion in 2013 at the festival Osterklang in Vienna, with further performances in Innsbruck and Graz.
As a founding member of the renowned Vienna String Sextet, Rudolf enjoyed an international career spanning 25 years. With this ensemble he recorded the bulk of the string sextet literature for EMI and Pan Classics and wrote numerous arrangements for the sextet. His reconstruction of the first version of the Metamorphosen of Richard Strauss was published by Boosey and Hawkes and is performed around the world.
Throughout his career Rudolf has collaborated with prominent artists such as Sabine Meyer, Juliane Banse, Angelika Kirchschlager, Markus Schirmer, Paul Gulda, Benjamin Schmid and Andrea Jonasson and played many recitals and chamber music concerts with his wife, the pianist Teresa Turner-Jones. He was invited by the legendary Alban Berg Quartet to perform Schubert’s famous string quintet, and he continues this tradition, performing the Schubert with the younger quartets of today’s generation.
As a soloist, Rudolf has performed the cello concerto repertoire with orchestra (Dvorak’s Concerto in the Berliner Philharmonie and Tschaikowsky’s Rococo Variations in the Konzerthaus in Vienna) and has revived rarities such as Dohnányi, Enescu and Pfitzner with great success. He was honored to play the premiere performance of Ivan Eröd’s cello concerto at the Styriarte Festival in Graz.
Rudolf Leopold taught chamber music at the University of Music in Vienna and was Professor of Violoncello at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz from 1990 to 2019.
Durval Cesetti, piano
“A pianist of rare musicality” (La Presse, Montreal), Durval Cesetti is Professor of Solo and Collaborative Piano at the "Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte” (Natal, Brazil). He completed his Doctor of Music degree at McGill University (Montreal), where he also did his Master's and Bachelor's degrees, being awarded the prestigious SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship from the Government of Canada during his studies. Recent performances include recitals at Carnegie Hall, Beijing’s National Centre for the Performing Arts, Tianjin Conservatory of Music (China), University of Limerick (Ireland), SUNY-Fredonia, Maureen Forrester Hall (Waterloo, ON), Von Kuster Hall (London, ON), Teatro Nacional (Brasília), Fundação Oscar Americano (São Paulo), and Sala Cecília Meireles (Rio de Janeiro). He has appeared as soloist with several orchestras in Brazil and Canada, under conductors André Muniz (Brazil), Elena Herrera (Cuba), Jean-Michaël Lavoie (Canada), Juan Paulo Gómez (Spain), and Kirk Trevor (England). An avid chamber musician, Durval Cesetti has collaborated with several renowned artists, such as clarinetists D. Ray McClellan, António Saiote, oboists Thomas Indermühle, Demetrios Karamintzas, violinists Yehonatan Berick, David Colwell, Annette-Barbara Vogel, violists Richard Young, Kate Hamilton, cellists Darrett Adkins, Kim Bak Dinitzen, Natasha Farny, Alexander Hülshoff, and tenor Stefano Algieri, among many others. His articles have been published in several journals, such as The Musical Times, Latin American Music Review, and Musica Hodie. In 2015-16, he was a Visiting Fellow at McGill University, and, in 2016, during one of his several visits to China, he received the title of Honorary Visiting Professor from the Tianjin Conservatory of Music.
Vladimir Rufino, violin
Vladimir Rufino is a Brazilian-Canadian violinist known for his passionate artistry and stylistic versatility. He holds a Doctor of Music from the University of Alberta, a Master of Music and Artist Certificate from Azusa Pacific University (USA), and a Bachelor of Music from the Universidade Federal da Paraíba (Brazil).
Dr. Rufino has performed extensively across Brazil, North America, and Europe, with appearances at prestigious venues such as Disney Hall, Symphony Space, and the Juilliard School’s Starling-Delay Symposium. As an experienced orchestral musician and leader, he has served as soloist, concertmaster, and assistant concertmaster with ensembles in Brazil, the United States, and Canada.
A dedicated chamber musician, Dr. Rufino has performed with ensembles including Quarta Dimensão, Camerata Brasílica, the Villa-Lobos String Quartet, and currently serves as first violinist of the Vaughan String Quartet. His chamber music career spans from duo work—particularly in collaboration with violist Fabiola Amorim—to leadership in ensembles that promote both musical excellence and community engagement. He is also a passionate advocate for Brazilian music, with recordings such as From Brazilian Northeast (Azul Music, 2022) highlighting works by composers from his home country.
In addition to his performance career, Dr. Rufino is a committed educator and mentor. He teaches violin at the Winspear Centre’s Conservatory of Music and Mount Royal University Conservatory in Alberta, adjudicates at festivals and competitions, and brings to his students a wealth of experience from both the concert stage and the classroom.
Fabiola Amorim, viola
Violist Fabiola Amorim holds a Doctor of Music degree from the University of Alberta (Canada), a Master of Music degree from Azusa Pacific University (USA), an Artist Certificate from Azusa Pacific University (USA), and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Universidade Federal da Paraíba (Brazil). Since the publication of her 2018 doctoral thesis Echoes of the Brazilian Nationalism Movement in Four Works for Viola and Piano (1950-82), Amorim’s work has served as a reference for other researchers on Brazilian music for viola. She studied with Mr. Yerko Tabilo, Mr. Charles Stegeman, and Mr. Robert Becker, is the recipient of numerous scholarships and awards, and participated in a number of music festivals and symposia in Brazil and United States including the Starling-Delay Symposium at The Juilliard School.
Amorim has performed as principal viola and soloist with orchestras in Brazil, the United States, and Canada. As a chamber musician she was a member of the Camerata Brasílica (Brazil) and the Villa-Lobos String Quartet (USA). She is also a founding member of the Vaughan String Quartet, which has performed in Canada, USA, France and Italy, and made its debut recording in 2018.
