Trial game won!

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Hannah Ruschepaul (BA) and Rafael Menges (BA until 2019), both students from Prof. Sebastian Klinger's cello class, have won the audition for the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra Academy

Hannah Ruschepaul was born on 23.01.1997 and grew up in the Hanover region. She received her first cello lessons at the age of six at the Isernhagen music school. From 2010 to 2013, Hannah was an early student at the Institut für Frühförderung musikalisch Hochbegabter (IFF) at the HMTM Hanover with main subject lessons from Prof. Aydintan. At the age of 16, she moved to Prof. Stolzenburg at the Franz Liszt University of Music Weimar's Center for the Gifted and Talented and completed her Abitur at the Schloss Belvedere music high school there. Hannah now lives in Hamburg and studies at the HfMT Hamburg in Prof. Sebastian Klinger's class.

From 2007 to 2016, Hannah took part in the Jugend Musiziert competition in various formations and won several national prizes. She was a winner of the Lions Music Prize of Lower Saxony and won first prize in the Novissima Award of the Syker Vorwerk, Center for Contemporary Music, as well as the Elise Meyer Competition. Hannah is a scholarship holder of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Yehudi Menuhin organization Live Musik Now.

Hannah made her solo debut at the age of 13 with Joseph Haydn's C major Cello Concerto accompanied by the Elizabeth Concort Chamber Orchestra. This was followed by numerous other solo performances, including Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations.

As a member of various ensembles, such as the German National Youth Orchestra, she has given numerous concerts in Germany, EU countries, China and Israel. These include multiple performances in the Berlin Philharmonie and the Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem.

Rafael Menges received his first cello lessons from Rafael Menges at the age of six at the Peter Cornelius Conservatory in Mainz with Ulrike Schaeffer. From 2013 to 2015, he was a junior student at the Mainz University of Music with Daniel Geiss. From 2015 to 2018, he studied at the Hamburg University of Music and Drama in the class of Professor Sebastian Klinger. He is currently completing his Master of Music with Professor Troels Svane in Lübeck.
In addition, he completed his training at the International Cello Academy Rutesheim, where he was taught by Prof. Laszlo Fenyö, Prof. Wen- Sinn Yang and Prof. Sebastian Klinger. He received further impulses at festivals and master classes from Prof. Danjulo Ishizaka, Prof. Sung-Won Yang, Prof. Wolfgang Boettcher, Prof. Troels Svane, Prof. Maria Kliegel and Prof. David Geringas.
From 2006 to 2010, Rafael Menges was supported by the Fritz Straub Foundation and in 2013 as a scholarship holder of the 'Jeunes Virtuoses de New York'. The young cellist gained further performance experience in the International Young Orchestra Academy Bayreuth and as a member of various ensembles, including the Mainz Virtuosi. Rafael Menges was awarded first prize in the 'Violoncello solo' category at the national 'Jugend musiziert' competition in 2013.
In 2017, Rafael Menges became a scholarship holder of 'Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now Hamburg' and the following year he was awarded the main scholarship of the 'Zukunftsinitiative Rheinland-Pfalz'.
In 2020, Rafael won 2nd prize in the 'Best Prokofiev Performance' category at the 'Great Composers International Music Competition'. No first prize was awarded. He also won 3rd prize at the 'Rising Stars Grand Prix Berlin' in the same year. Rafael is an Academy member of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra for the 2020/2021 season.