Keith Lipson, clarinet Former principal clarinet of the Verbier Festival Orchestra, guest principal clarinet with the Symphony Orchestra of the State of Mexico, and guest with the Hong Kong Philharmonic. In the summer of 2006, he was featured in a chamber music series at Barge Music in New York with members of the Silk Road Ensemble, and is a member of the Knights Chamber Orchestra, with whom he has recorded for SONY Classical.

Gao Can, violin Gao Can won the Second Prize of the 15th Naples “Alberto Curci” International Violin Competition in Italy 2008 and the First Prize of China 8th National Competition 2006. He is the soloist on award‐winning soundtrack to “Balzac and The Little Chinese Seamstress”. He is a frequent participant to Salzburg Festival and Verbier Music Festival. He holds the concertmaster and violin faculty of the EOS Orchestra Academy in Central Conservatory of Music and exchange professor at the College-Conservatory of Music in University of Cincinnati.

Zhu Mu, cello A graduate from Hochschule fuer Musik "Hanns Eisler" Berlin, Zhu currently is member of Cello Faculty at Central Conservatory of Music. A prizewinner the 2006 Bayreuther International Music Competition, he participated in the 2003 and 2004 Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and the principal cellist of Pacific Music Festival Orchestra from 2001-03. Zhu performs often in the Berlin Symphony Orchestra and the Nordica Chamber Orchestra.  He premiered American composer Lowell Liebermann’s piano quintet in Japan and was featured in contemporary music festival of University of Memphis.

Michelle Yip, piano A 2005-2006 Fulbright Fellow, Michelle Yip champions contemporary composers, last year giving the world premiere of a solo work of Gao Weijie and numerous China premieres of other composers. In great demand as a chamber musician, she has been on the piano faculty at the Hartwick College Music Festival since 2006, won a fellowship to the Banff Chamber Music Program, and completed a duo tour of South Africa in 2008. She received a doctoral degree from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music.

Eli Marshall, artistic director

Winner of the 2007 Leo Kaplan Award, the top prize for young composers of the American Society for Composers, Authors, and Publishers, Eli Marshall is recognized as a leading composer of his generation. He is a former Fulbright Fellow and guest professor of the Central Conservatory of Music. His works are regularly performed around the world. He contributed to the film score of Wong Kar-wai’s Ashes of Time – Redux.