About Emma
Emma is a violinist, teacher, founder of the HearAndNow Foundation, and Artistic Director of the HearAndNow Chamber Music Festival.
Her musical career includes solo performances, international chamber music festivals, and leadership roles in various orchestras and ensembles. By founding HearAndNow, she created a new chamber music festival in Amsterdam where she makes her love for contemporary and adventurous music accessible to a diverse and large audience.
Biography
Emma has been awarded several prizes. At the 2022 Oskar Back Competition, she won second prize, the audience prize, and the prize for the best performance of a modern work. She won first prize at the “Luigi Zanuccoli” International Competition in Italy, third prize at the Emmanuel Durlet International Competition in Belgium, the ‘Laberté Hoedemaker’ Prize in 2013, and received several awards at the Princess Christina Competition. Emma was nominated for the Grachtenfestival Prize in 2023. In 2024, Emma and Florian Verweij were invited by the AVROTROS VIRTUOOS program to record her debut CD featuring works by Grief, Prokofiev, Wantenaar, and Szymanowski.
In 2022, Emma performed as a soloist in Alban Berg’s Violin Concerto with the Residentie Orkest at Tivoli Vredenburg. In 2025, she made her debut with the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in the Main Hall of the Concertgebouw. Emma has also performed as a soloist with the Netherlands Youth String Orchestra, the Soundwave Collective, the Bushey Symphony Orchestra, and the Jersey Symphony Orchestra, among others, in concerts featuring works by Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Dvořák, Vivaldi, Hartmann, and Prokofiev.
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Emma is regularly invited to perform at international chamber music festivals such as the Schiermonnikoog Festival, the Malta International Arts Festival, the Presteigne Festival in Wales, the Romsey Chamber Music Festival, the Emmey Verhey Festival, the Rhinegold Festival, the Cervo Chamber Music Festival, and the Delft Chamber Music Festival.
In 2022, Emma founded the HearAndNow Chamber Music Festival in Amsterdam. The festival now takes place at the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, the Concertgebouw, Felix Meritis, and Orgelpark. New collaborations have also emerged with film theaters and the FOAM Photography Museum. During the festival, the HearAndNow Collective was formed, consisting of the festival’s core group of musicians. Throughout the year, they give chamber music concerts, perform at various festivals, and collaborate with composers from around the world.
Emma began her violin lessons with Evert Sillem and later studied in the Young Talents program at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam under Prof. Lex Korff de Gidts. She continued her studies with Prof. Ilya Grubert at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam and graduated with the highest possible grade, a “10.” Emma received full funding from Dutch foundations to continue her studies with Lukas Hagen, where she completed her postgraduate diploma in 2020.
Further inspiration comes from lessons and master classes given by renowned violinists and musicians such as Leonidas Kavakos, Jaap van Zweden, Christoph Poppen, Gerhard Schultz, Schlomo Mintz, Schmuel Ashkenasi, Zakhar Bron, and Ray Chen.
Emma plays a violin built by Giovanni Grancino (1700–1705, Milan), provided by an anonymous benefactor. She also uses a bow made by C. Peccatte, which she was able to purchase with the help of the Stichting Eigen Muziekinstrumentenfonds.
HearAndNow is a new chamber music festival in Amsterdam where you can experience music up close. In the atmospheric settings of the festival venues—Het Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, Felix Meritis, Het Orgelpark, and Het Concertgebouw in Amsterdam—we invite you to listen and discover.
During the festival, new compositions and familiar repertoire are performed side by side. Contemporary classical music takes center stage, without requiring any prior knowledge. The musicians share their enthusiasm and draw you into what you’re hearing. This creates an open, inviting atmosphere where attention and curiosity take center stage.
HearAndNow is both adventurous and accessible. In addition to concerts featuring new music and premieres, there’s room for familiarity and connection, thanks to a program that includes a variety of concert formats for all ages—for those who are regular listeners as well as for first-time attendees.
HearAndNow Collective
The HearAndNow Collective forms the artistic core of the HearAndNow Foundation. The collective was founded in 2022 in Amsterdam and consists of young professional musicians from the Netherlands, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The musicians of the collective perform worldwide at venues such as the Concertgebouw, Carnegie Hall, and the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ. They perform both as soloists and in chamber music ensembles and have won prizes at various international competitions.
Within HearAndNow, they come together to explore a diverse repertoire, discover new music, and shed new light on existing works. The collective performs in various formations, including duos, trios, quartets, quintets, and string quartets.
Since its inception, the collective has built a strong reputation in the Netherlands and internationally. They have been invited to international festivals such as the Presteigne Festival in Wales and the International Arts Festival in Malta. They also work with composers from around the world and collaborate with ensembles that specialize in new music.
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Teaching
Emma’Her teaching experience ranges from beginners to advanced students. In that sense, age doesn't matter. Everyone aged five and up is welcome at her teaching practice!
Emma developed her own teaching methods while studying at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. She now offers high-level lessons in a stimulating environment. Emma primarily teaches at her home in Amsterdam-East.
Interested in a free trial lesson? Feel free to contact us!