Professor Ellen Müller-Preis

Starting out from a fencing career that spanned decades and earned her several Olympic medals (Gold, Silver, Bronze) and four world champion titles, she developed a breathing and movement technique that maximizes energy, frees the body of tensions and lets the voice float freely.

Now retired, she is still very active as Prof. Emeritus of the Universität fur Musik and darstellende Kunst in Vienna and has been a coach at the Openstudio of the Vienna Staatsoper and the Burgtheater, working together with directors like Franco Zefirelli and Otto Schenk and many famous singers and actors.

She has also worked amongst others, with Leonard Bernstein and Herbert von Karajan at the Salzburger Festspiele and the Royal Shakespeare Company and countless string, wind and keyboard players.

Her master courses and lectures brought her to England, the US, Australia, Japan, Germany, France and the Netherlands.

Igor Machlak

Born in Russia, he received his early music training at the Music School for Exceptionally Talented Children in Minsk, Belarus. He was awarded his degree at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatorium with first class honours and is recipient of many prizes and awards.

Together with his wife Olga Kharitonova they undertook postgraduate work as a Piano Duo at the Conservatorium and started a successful international career. The Duo was a prize-winner of several major competitions, including victories in the All-Russian 'Balakirev' competition in 1990, the International 'Musica da Camera' competition in Italy in 1991 and the International Piano Duo competition in Japan in 1994. Olga and Igor were also finalists in competitions in USA in 1993 and Italy in 1991l. These successes led to concert invitations in Europe and Asia. The Kharitonova-Machlak team enjoyed numerous tours in different parts of Russia, participated in various festivals and premiered more than twenty new compositions. Igor managed to combine extensive concert engagements of the Piano-Duo together with solo recitals and with teaching duties at the Moscow Scriabin College of Music.

Since arriving in Australia in 1995, Igor Machlak has given a series of solo, duo and chamber music recitals in all major venues in Melbourne and Victoria, has released a CD and has made several recordings for ABC and SBS radio. Currently he is a member of the piano staff at the Faculty of Music, University of Melbourne.

Julia Nafisi

Born in Munich, Germany, she studied at the Richard Strauss Konservatorium in Munich and the Hochschule fur Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna, Austria, with amongst others, Kammerangerin Prof. Hilde Rossel-Majdan and Kammersanger Prof. Walter Berry.

She has performed extensively in Opera, Oratorio, Early Music and Lied.

Having worked with Prof. Ellen Muller-Preis for many years as a student, she took the chance to study her very specialised breathing and movement technique in depth through assisting the Professor in many of her master courses around the world (eg. the Internationalo Summer Academy at the Mozarteum, Salzburg, 1995-98).

Besides her singing career she worked as a voice teacher at one of Vienna's leading performing arts schools (1994-98), and has given many master classes and courses in Austria, Germany and Australia (eg. at he 1997/98 Mozart on the Mountain Festival, Mt. Buller, Victoria).

She currently lectures voice at the Faculty of Music, University of Melbourne and the Australian Catholic University.

Merlyn Quaife

A performer of great versatility, Merlyn Quaife's regular performances include opera, oratorio, chamber music, lieder and contemporary music. In 1979, she was awarded a DAAD Scholarship by the German Government to study with Professor Hanno Blaschke at the Munich Hochschule. This was followed by further study in London with Mme Celia Bizony, a Baroque Music specialist.

Since her return to Australia, Merlyn has appeared with each of the state opera companies. Her operatic roles include a Flowermaiden in SOSA’s production of Parsifal, Marzelline (Fidelio), Leila (Pearl Fishers), Rosalinda (Die Fledermaus), Lucia (Lucia di Lammermoor), Pamina (Magic Flute), Donna Anna (Don Giovanni) and Denise in the Australian premiere of Tippet's opera The Knot Garden for Spoleto Festival, Melbourne. In 2003 Merlyn performed Woglinde in Götterdämmerung for Perth International Festival of the Arts, Pierrot Lunaire and Vivier’s Lonely Child for the Sydney Symphony, Konstanze in Seraglio for West Australian Opera, and the role of Kitty Hart in SOSA’s Australian premiere of Dead Man Walking.

Merlyn has performed with all the major symphony orchestras in Australia. Works include: Shostokovich's Symphony No. 14, Penderecki's Te Deum conducted by the composer, Handel's Messiah, Ligeti's Le grand macabre, Tippet's Symphony No. 3, Orff's Carmina Burana, Mozart's Requiem and many new Australian works. She has also performed with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, the Voronesz Philharmonic (Russia) and the Berliner Capella. Merlyn has performed and recorded extensively in Germany, Austria, Holland, Belgium and Spain.

Merlyn was guest soloist with Lipizzaners With The Stars.

Other premieres have included Mrs Samsa in Brian Howard's Metamorphosis (VSO), the title role in Gillian Whitehead's A Bride of Fortune (WAOC) and Chiang Ch'ing in John Adam's Nixon in China (SOSA) for the 1992 Adelaide Festival. In 1993 she premiered the title role in Gordon Kerry's Medea with ChamberMade Opera (Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra). It was with this role that she made her American debut at the Kennedy Center, Washington DC in 1994. In 1998 she repeated the role in a new production for the Berliner Kammeroper to critical acclaim. There was a further performance in Düsseldorf for the Festival '8 Tage Oper'. In 1997, she performed Mrs Nordstrom in the highly acclaimed MTC production of Sondheim's A Little Night Music.

Performance highlights in recent years have included Poulenc's La voix humaine, a selection of Canteloube’s Songs of the Auvergne and a new Gordon Kerry work, Kindled Skies with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra; Lutoslavski’s Chantifleurs et Chantifables for the Sydney Symphony; Britten’s Les Illuminations with the Melbourne Symphony; Dimitri Yanov-Yanovsky’s Lachrymosa and Christopher Willcock’s Akmatova Stanzas with Orchestra Victoria as part of the Melbourne International Festival of the Arts; Berio’s Sequenza for Melbourne Symphony’s Metropolitan Festival and the Sydney Symphony’s presentation of the complete set of ‘Sequenzas’; Schoenberg’s Quartet No. 4 with the Arditti Quartet for the Melbourne International Festival; Shostakovich’s Alexander Blok Songs with the Melbourne Trio at the Domaine Chandon Festival; tours as soprano soloist with King’s College Choir, Cambridge (East Coast tour), Prague Chamber Soloists (East Coast tour) and with the Goldner Quartet at the Adelaide and Domain Chandon Festivals for Musica Viva; and engagements with The Australia Ensemble, the Lieder Society, ASTRA, Melbourne Chorale, Port Fairy Music Festival, and the Geminiani Chamber for the Melbourne International Festival. Overseas, Merlyn performed War Requiem in Berlin with the Berlin Philharmonie and the Berlina Capella and gave recitals and concerts in Berlin and Cologne with the Kammerorchester der Berliner Cappella and organist Peter Schwarz.

In 1989 Merlyn was awarded a 'Sounds Australia' award for her performance of Aria for John Edward Eyre by David Lumsdaine, with the Seymour Group. This has been released on CD (VAST011-2). She also features on a CD with guitarist Jochen Schubert, titled Night and Dreams, which features songs by Schubert and Mozart, as well as Spanish Folksongs. (MOVE 3115). Other recordings include: Solitudo Alone in Darkness with the State Orchestra of Victoria and Richard Mills, released 2001; Recital with Michael Kieran Harvey on Tall Poppies; Bright Tracks (music of Brenton Broadstock: MOVE MD 3204) and De Falla (NAXOS 8.554366) with the Schirmer Ensemble.

Along with her busy performance career, Merlyn is Co-ordinator of Voice at the Faculty of Music, University of Melbourne.

Rene Gasser

With a background in classical and renaissance horsemanship, Rene Gasser has taken his passion for horses and combined it with his love of entertainment to produce Lipizzaners With The Stars. Rene has been working tirelessly with his magnificent Lipizzaners to produce this musical spectacular.

"I have been around horses all my life, and now they are my life. I wanted to produce a show that not only entertained but also left people in awe of the horses' natural beauty and grace."
- Rene Gasser

Mario Folena

Mario is flautist with Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto.
This is Mario's sketch of Thomas during a visit to Australia.

About Mario Folena

Phyllis McDuff

Phyllis McDuff is an author and equestrian expert. Her book, "A Story Dreamt Long Ago", published by Random House Australia is now selling.