Talia
Bachir-Loopuyt
Head of the Ethnomusicology Program - Professor of Ethnomusicology
Talia Bachir-Loopuyt is an ethnomusicologist and anthropologist specialising in the music of the Maghreb and the Middle East (in particular Turkey), and studying its dissemination and transmission in Europe (Germany, France, Switzerland). She trained in Germanic Studies at the École Normale Supérieure in Lyon (leading to the Agrégation, 2004), while also studying oriental music (oud, kementche, modal improvisation) at the École Nationale de Musique in Villeurbanne and in Turkey.
Her dissertation, written under the joint supervision of EHESS Paris and Humboldt University (Berlin), focused on world music festivals and the ideal of a plural society in Germany. As a post-doctoral researcher (University of Saint-Etienne, University of Lausanne), she worked on the dissemination of Turkish music in France and on the visibility of Islam, while pursuing work on the history of ethnomusicology, child musicians and music in plural societies.
Since 2016, she has been a senior lecturer at Tours, where she contributed in particular to the creation of the Master Music and Human Sciences (with the University of Poitiers). Involved in several academic organisations (SFE, IMS, ICTM) and journal committees, she is also co-director of the Haizebegi festival in Bayonne and a member of the scientific board of the CMTRA - Ethnopôle Musique, territoires, interculturalité.
Hélène
Clément
Professeure d'alto
Hélène Clément joins the HEM as viola professor for the 2026–2027 academic year
Born in 1988, Hélène Clément studied under Jean Sulem at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris, then under Hariolf Schlichtig at the Musikhochschule in Munich, and finally under Tabea Zimmermann at the Musikhochschule Hanns Eisler in Berlin.
Her fierce enthusiasm for chamber music and the viola repertoire has led her to constantly broaden her musical horizons by performing in a wide variety of collaborations, playing in the most prestigious concert halls in Europe and around the world.
Pursuing her passion as a chamber musician, she has performed on international stages such as the Musikverein in Vienna, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Alte Oper in Frankfurt, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall in New York, the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia and the Cité de la Musique in Paris. She has performed chamber music with Mitsuko Uchida, Elisabeth Leonskaja, Brett Dean, Nicolas Altstaedt, Benjamin Grosvenor, Alexander Melnikov, Peter Wispelwey, the Brentano String Quartet, the Quatuor Ébène and the Nash Ensemble.
Hélène Clément was the violist of the Doric Quartet for twelve years, with whom she nurtured her appetite for in-depth exploration of the string quartet repertoire, from Haydn's quartets to commissions of contemporary pieces.
She has recorded Benjamin Britten and Frank Bridge's works for viola with pianist Alasdair Beatson and singer Dame Sarah Connolly for Chandos Records. This recording was played on an Italian viola from 1843 that belonged to Britten and Bridge. The viola is generously loaned to her by the Britten Pears Arts Foundation. She is Professor of Viola and Chamber Music at the Royal Academy of Music in London until the end of the 2025–2026 academic year and will join the HEM in September 2026.
Lambert
Colson
Professor of Cornetto
Lambert Colson studied with Françoise Defours, Pedro Memelsdorff, Bart Coen, Marleen Leicher, Bruce Dickey, and Gebhard David at institutions including the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel, ESMUC in Barcelona, the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, and the HFK in Bremen.
His collaborations include working with ensembles and conductors such as Scherzi Musicali, Le Poème Harmonique (Vincent Dumestre), Holland Baroque, La Fenice (Jean Tubéry), Pygmalion (Raphaël Pichon), B’rock, Collegium Vocale (Philippe Herreweghe), Correspondances (Sébastien Daucé), Cappella Mediterranea (Leonardo Garcia Alarcon), and Continuum.
He leads his own musical projects, directly derived from research undertaken in recent years with his ensemble InAlto. InAlto's most recent recordings have been critically acclaimed by the European press: Diapason d’Or & Diapason d’Or of the Year 2017, Choc de Classica, 5 stars Rondo Magazin, Joker Crescendo, Clé d’Or Res Musica, and selections of the year for Libération and Le Monde.
He currently teaches cornetto, ensemble music, and ornamentation at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel and the Haute école de musique de Genève.
In his continuous exploration of his instrument, he is pursuing a doctoral program focused on the mute cornett and its use in 17th-century Germany, in a joint project between the Koninklijk Conservatorium and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. The thesis will be publicly presented in 2024.
He has had several pieces dedicated to him by contemporary composers such as Zad Moultaka, Fabrice Fitch, and Bernard Foccroulle.
Eager for unusual collaborations, he works with choreographer Catherine Contour and explores the practice of hypnosis. He increasingly explores the possibilities offered by his instruments in contemporary music, collaborating with artists like Liesa van der Aa, Shara Nova (My Brightest Diamond), Petur Ben, Mugison, and Efterklang. He is also involved in several jazz and improvisation projects with artists such as Emmanuel Baily, Xavier Rogé, Franck Vagané, Adam Woolf, Jon Birdsong, and Eric Vloeimans.
Learn more about Lambert Colson.
Stefan
Legee
Professor of Sackbut
Stefan Legée began studying trombone in Reims with Amédé Grivillers before entering the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, where he obtained a first prize in trombone unanimously. He received the Certificate of Aptitude in trombone in 1985 and won third prize at the International Competition in Prague in 1987. A member of the brass quintet Magnifica from 1985 to 1990, he won several international prizes with this ensemble (Baltimore and Narbonne). In 1996, he obtained a certificate of advanced studies in sackbut with high honors at the CNSM of Lyon.
From 1985 to 2006, Stefan Legée was the solo trombone of the Orchestre Colonne. He regularly performs with the Concerto Vocale conducted by René Jacobs, Hespérion XXI led by Jordi Savall, Europa Galante under Fabio Biondi, La Fenice by Jean Tubéry, the Sacqueboutiers de Toulouse, and the Concert Brisé led by William Dongois. He is also actively involved in contemporary music, playing with ensembles such as Erwartung (Bernard Desgraupes), Sine Qua Non (Nicolas Brochot), and Ars Nova (Philippe Nahon). In 1996, he premiered Dominique Probst's concerto for trombone and string orchestra, which was dedicated to him. He participated in concerts with Ensemble 2e2m from 2002 to 2005.
Numerous recordings document his work. These include Ex Libris with La Fenice on Opus 111, L’âge d’or du cornet with the Concert Brisé and William Dongois on K 617, the Passione di Jesù by Caldara with Fabio Biondi for Virgin Veritas, and a monograph on Philippe Hersant with Ensemble Ader for Musique Française d’Aujourd’hui.
Stefan Legée has given numerous masterclasses in sackbut. He teaches trombone and sackbut at the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Saint Maur and sackbut at the Haute école de musique de Genève.
Learn more about Stefan Legée.
Ricardo
Castro
Head of the Keyboard Instruments Department - Professor of Piano
Born in Vitória da Conquista, a small town in northeastern Brazil, Ricardo Castro began playing the piano at the age of three. At five, he entered the School of Music and Arts at the University of Bahia, and three years later, he made his debut giving recitals. At the age of ten, Ricardo Castro performed Haydn's Piano Concerto in D major as a soloist. Several orchestral concerts and national prizes followed immediately.
In 1984, he moved to Europe to study piano and conducting at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève with Maria Tipo and Arpad Gerecz, respectively. He also studied with Dominique Merlet in Paris. Castro won First Prize at the Rahn Competition in 1985 and the Josef Pembaur Competition in 1986. He graduated from the Conservatoire de Genève in 1987, receiving the First Prize of Virtuosity with distinction and congratulations from the jury. That same year, he became co-winner of the ARD International Music Competition in Munich and in 1988, he won Third Prize at the Géza Anda Competition. In 1993, he received First Prize at the Leeds International Piano Competition, becoming the only South American winner to date.
In 2003, he formed a piano duo with Maria João Pires. They performed a series of recitals in major European venues and released a CD of Schubert's works on Deutsche Grammophon. Ricardo Castro has recorded several other CDs with BMG/Arte Nova, both in recital and with orchestra.
As a soloist, he has performed with orchestras such as the Leipzig Gewandhaus, Zurich Tonhalle, BBC Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Tokyo Philharmonic, and Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg. He has played and conducted in prestigious concert halls, including the Barbican Centre and Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, Santa Cecilia in Rome, Philharmonie de Paris, and Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. His partners have included Sir Simon Rattle, Midori, Leif Segerstam, Martha Argerich, Antonio Meneses, Yakov Kreizberg, Kazimierz Kord, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Maria João Pires, and Shlomo Mintz.
In 2007, Ricardo Castro, invited by the government of the State of Bahia, founded NEOJIBA (Centers of Youth and Children's Orchestras of the State of Bahia), a pioneering program in Brazil. He serves as the general director of this program, which in 2020, involved around 6,000 young people and children throughout the State of Bahia. With the program's main orchestra, the NEOJIBA Orchestra, Ricardo Castro has conducted seven international tours, performing in some of the world's most important concert halls.
In 2013, Ricardo Castro became the first Brazilian to be named an Honorary Member of the Royal Philharmonic Society, joining the ranks of the greatest names in Western music. Highly committed to social causes, Ricardo Castro has dedicated a significant portion of his time to educational activities over the years. He is the founding director of the NEOJIBA Orchestra and a professor of advanced piano classes at the Haute école de musique de Genève and the Haute école de musique de Lausanne, as well as at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole in Italy.
Judicaël
Perroy
Professor of Guitar - Chamber Music for Guitar
Judicaël Perroy was born on July 21, 1973, in Paris.
He began playing the guitar at the age of 7 at the Conservatoire Municipal Inter-arrondissements de Paris. From 1983 to 1988, he studied with Délia Estrada, then with Raymond Gratien at the École Nationale d'Aulnay-sous-Bois, where he obtained a First Prize with unanimous honors from the jury in June 1988.
At the age of 11, Judicaël Perroy began performing concerts, notably as a soloist in two Vivaldi concertos with the Ensemble Instrumental du Mans under the direction of André Girard. He continued his musical studies with Roberto Aussel and Daniel Lavialle. In 1994, he obtained the Concert License from the École Normale de Musique de Paris in the class of Alberto Ponce, and in 1996, he earned the First Prize from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP).
In 1997, he received the First Prize at the 15th GFA (Guitar Foundation of America) Competition in San Diego, USA. Since then, he has performed in the most prestigious halls and festivals (Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, National Concert Hall in Taipei, Teatro de la Republica in Mexico…).
In 1998, he recorded his first CD in France with Quantum, which received the "5 Diapasons" award from Diapason magazine. In 2002, a second CD titled "Aspen Suite" was released in the USA. In 2007, he released a double album "La magie de la guitare" published by Bayard Musique.
More recently, he recorded two new CDs for the Bayard Presse Méditation collection: the first with flute (Florence Bellon), the second with harp (Joanna Kozielska).
In January 2012, a CD dedicated to Johann Sebastian Bach was released by Naxos. In December 2014, a new Naxos CD featuring the works of Mexican composer Manuel Maria Ponce was released. His latest CD, released in 2017 for Contrastes, is a recital of works composed in Paris (Fernando Sor, Manuel Maria Ponce, Heitor Villa-Lobos...). His teaching is also highly sought after, as he regularly gives classes at major American universities and European and Asian festivals.
For the past fifteen years, his students have consistently entered the CNSMDP and other top schools and have won major international competitions. He teaches at the École Supérieure Musique et Danse Nord de France and was a professor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, USA, from 2017 to 2020, succeeding guitarist-composer Sergio Assad.
Finally, in September 2020, he was appointed as a guitar instructor at the Haute école de musique de Genève, succeeding guitarist-composer Dusan Bogdanovic.
Learn more about Judicaël Perroy
Andrea
Bandini
Professor of Trombone
Andrea Bandini began his music studies in 1973 at the Music School of Siena in Italy and obtained his trombone diploma in 1980 at the Luigi Cherubini Conservatory of Music in Florence. In 1978 he joined the Italian Youth Orchestra under the direction of Franco Ferrara.
In 1981, he decided to perfect his skills at the Geneva Conservatory of Music in the class of Roland Schnorhk, where he obtained the 1st prize for virtuosity with distinction in 1985. The same year, he won the 1st prize at the Riddes Competition, the 3rd prize at the Markneuenkirchen Competition and the following year the bronze medal at the Bordeaux International Festival of Young Soloists.
Since 1986, Andrea Bandini has been a member of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and has been appointed solo trombone until 2011. From 1984 to 2008 he was a member of the contemporary music ensemble, Contrechamps, an ensemble with which he was fortunate enough to rub shoulders with the greatest contemporary music composers of the 20th and 21st centuries. Invited as a jury member in the most important international trombone competitions, Andrea Bandini has been teaching at the Haute école de musique de Genève since 1999. Andrea Bandini is also regularly invited to participate in masterclasses and brass festivals throughout the world. He is also a consultant for the " Free-flow Valve " system for trombone, invented by Rene Hagmann, owner of the " Servette-Musique " shop in Geneva.
Andrea Bandini bought his first slide trombone and his first classical music record in Florence in 1976. It was a recording of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande by Ernest Ansermet. After having listened to it many times, Andrea Bandini announced to his father that he would one day perform with this orchestra.... 10 years later, he joins the OSR.
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Pablo Ernesto
Cernik
Professor of Keyboard Harmony and Jaques-Dalcroze Writing - Instrumental Improvisation - Physical and Mental Preparation: Bodily Approach to Music through Jaques-Dalcroze Eurhythmics - Jaques-Dalcroze Eurhythmics - Jaques-Dalcroze Solfège
Pablo Cernik is currently employed as an adjunct professor, teaching in the Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree, and CAS programs in the Music and Movement Department at the Haute école de musique de Genève (HEM). He collaborates with the department's administration on tasks related to the visibility of the programs and also with the Institut Jaques-Dalcroze in coordinating the Diplôme Supérieur.
He is the director of the Dalcroze Certificate programs in Italy, Spain, Chile, and Argentina. He has significantly contributed to the dissemination of the method by conducting workshops and conferences in various regions and countries across Europe, Asia, and Latin America. As an opera, chamber music, and dance pianist, his presentations have placed particular emphasis on multidisciplinary creation. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Arts at the Universidad Nacional de las Artes (UNA) in Buenos Aires. He is a member of the Jaques-Dalcroze College and the central committee of the International Federation of Eurhythmics Teachers (FIER). He is also the president of the Dalcroze Association of Argentina.
Heidi
Brunner
Professor of Singing - Audition and Competition Preparation
Native of Lucerne (CH), Heidi Brunner studied singing, organ, and conducting in Lucerne, Basel, and Zurich.
At the age of 17, she was already an organist and choir director before beginning her singing career at the age of 28.
Her first engagements as an opera singer led her to Biel, where she debuted in the title role in Rossini's "La Cenerentola." She then took engagements in Basel, Innsbruck, and Dessau. She performed at the Komische Oper in Berlin (La Cenerentola and Charlotte in Werther, among others) before being engaged as a resident artist at the Staatsoper and the Volksoper and Theater an der Wien in Vienna from 1996 to 2008 (where she performed roles such as La Cenerentola, Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Dorabella in Così fan tutte, Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro, Idamante in Idomeneo, Die Sekretärin in Der Konsul by G.C. Menotti, Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus, Second Lady in Die Zauberflöte, Zerlina and Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Nicklausse in Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Sesto, Anio and Vitellia in La Clemenza di Tito, Adalgisa in Norma, and the title role in La Périchole).
In 1998, she made her debut in Monteverdi's "L'Orfeo" at the Opernfestspiele in Munich and the Wiener Festwochen. She reprised the role of Idamante at the Klangbogen Festival at the Theater an der Wien and performed at venues such as the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin, the Bayerische Staatsoper, the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, and the Salzburg Festival.
She has appeared in recitals and concerts at venues such as the Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna, Berlin, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Santiago de Compostela, Milan, Pesaro, Lyon, Paris, Lucerne, Zurich, Basel, Bern, Lisbon, Frankfurt, Bergen, Helsingborg, Turin, and Munich.
Her repertoire expanded with roles in Schreker's "Irrelohe" and Schmidt's "Notre Dame" at the Volksoper in Vienna, Hindemith's "Mathis der Maler" at the Konzerthaus in Vienna, Schoenberg's "Erwartung" at the Komische Oper Berlin and at the Musikverein in Vienna.
She made her debut in the roles of Brangäne in "Tristan und Isolde" at the Amsterdam Opera and the Liceu in Barcelona, Marie (Wozzeck) at the Staatsoper Hamburg, Vitellia (La Clemenza di Tito) and Marta (Tiefland) in Vienna, Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) and Madame Lidoine (Dialogues des Carmélites) at the Theater an der Wien, Kundry (Parsifal) at the Teatro Regio Turin, Giulietta (Les Contes d'Hoffmann) and the Mother in "Kullervo" by Aulis Sallinen at the Frankfurt Opera, and Sieglinde (Die Walküre) at the Staatsoper Hamburg. In 2015, she made her debut as Mère Marie (Dialogues des Carmélites). That same year, she sang the mezzo-soprano part in Verdi's Requiem in Vienna and performed "The Seven Deadly Sins" by Kurt Weill in the Forbidden City in Beijing.
She has worked with renowned conductors such as Marco Armiliato, Ivor Bolton, Thüring Bräm, Bertrand de Billy, Alfred Eschwé, Lawrence Foster, Gabriele Ferro, Leopold Hager, Friedrich Haider, Thomas Hengelbrock, René Jacobs, Philippe Jordan, Alois Koch, Ingo Metzmacher, Franz Welser-Möst, Hervé Niquet, Arnold Oestmann, Kirill Petrenko, Markus Poschner, Helmuth Rilling, Peter Schneider, Marcello Viotti, Sebastian Weigle, Simone Young, and Alberto Zedda.
Heidi Brunner has recorded numerous CDs, including "Jubilate Deo," "Te Deum" by De Lalande (ERATO), "Così fan tutte," "Don Giovanni," and "Le Nozze di Figaro" (SONY/BMG), excerpts from "Tristan und Isolde," and a solo album with the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra.
Since 2020, Heidi Brunner has been a Professor of Singing at the Haute école de musique de Genève, where she regularly gives masterclasses.
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Laura Monica
Pustilnik
Professor of Lute - Basso Continuo on the Instrument (for Lutenists)
After studying guitar and piano at the Conservatorio Nacional Lopez Buchardo in Argentina, Mónica Pustilnik completed her training in 2010 with a Master of Arts at the Schola Cantorum in Basel under Hopkinson Smith. She specializes in the baroque and renaissance repertoire for lute and completed her training with Jesper Christensen for basso continuo on the lute and harpsichord, Rolf Lislevand at the Musikhochschule in Trossingen, Germany, Michel Corboz in choral conducting at the Conservatoire Supérieur de Musique de Genève, and Jordi Mora in orchestral conducting in Barcelona.
Mónica Pustilnik is very active as a soloist, chamber musician, and in opera or oratorio productions. She regularly performs and records with renowned ensembles such as Le Concert d’Astrée (dir. Emmanuelle Haïm), La Cappella Mediterranea (dir. Leonardo García Alarcón), Les Musiciens du Louvre (dir. Marc Minkowski), Les Talens Lyriques (dir. Christophe Rousset), Concerto Vocale (dir. René Jacobs), Ensemble Elyma (dir. Gabriel Garrido), Les Arts Florissants (W. Christie), and many others.
Mónica Pustilnik has assisted in the musical direction of Cavalli’s Eliogabalo at the Opéra Garnier in Paris, Cavalli’s Elena at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo at the Opéra de Lille, Cavalli’s Hipermestra at the Utrecht Early Music Festival, and L’Incoronazione di Poppea at the Haute école de musique de Genève. She has performed in recitals at the Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Poznan Festival (Poland), Ravello (Italy), Freunde Alter Musik Basel, and has developed numerous chamber music programs at the Opéra de Lille. In 2014, she directed performances of Cavalli’s Elena at the Opéra de Nantes and Angers.
Mónica Pustilnik records for the labels Harmonia Mundi, Naïve, Virgin, Arcana, Glossa, and K617. Her solo recording, featuring works by Alessandro Piccinini for the Accent label in 2014, was highly praised by critics.
Her pedagogical activities have led her to teach lute, basso continuo, and chamber music at the Escuela Superior de Música de Cataluña in Barcelona, the Conservatorio A. Scontrino in Trapani (Italy), and the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. Mónica Pustilnik has been teaching lute at the Haute école de musique de Genève since September 2017.
Learn more about Laura Monica Pustilnik
