Klaus Eberle, violin 1
Austria
Our man of contrasts; correct and quirky. Lives on music and energy drinks. Among many other things, sound engineer, videographer, editor, tune arrangeur, rehearsal manager, ideas man, lighting technician, chauffeur, percussion setter, melodica tuner, set designer, script writer, moderator, sounding board, chief commiserator, cat whisperer… and, of course, violinist extraordinaire.
Barbara Upelj, violin 2
Slovenia
STOP! Do not make her laugh, or rehearsal will be delayed by 20 minutes, minimum!
Our laugh-a-holic, bongo specialist and coffee addict.
An expert on presence, she is our costume and makeup artist with intense attention to detail. She finds humor in both music and life and loves making people laugh. Barbara can under no circumstances stand still and not even a broken foot can stop her from dancing away a night or two. She is usually the one to bring crazy ideas to Irmtraud, and, determined as she is, won’t stop until they are realized.
Irma Servatius, viola
United States of America
Still waters run deep and Irma has the ability of saying it all just with her eyes. A very talented hand-held natural-light photographer and out-of-the-box thinker, always offering another perspective and bringing creative ideas to the table. Has an eye for finding those special hidden moments that the rest of us miss and capturing them with her camera. Irma has a huge knowledge of old and new movies, books, music and viola jokes, which she delivers perfectly.
Olena Mishchii, cello
Ukraine
The romantic soul of the quintet and a stern rhythm machine, Olena is always up for a new challenge. From playing and teaching multiple instruments, to taking on the role of a simultaneous interpreter to Russian, she is always up for a challenge. Honest and direct, she always searches for the good in people and has an unwavering belief in love. She is a big fan of romantic movies and music and absolutely loves sunny days at sea. Not a fan of coffee though, so she is hanging out in the tea drinking corner with Klaus at rehearsal breaks…
Irmtraud Eberle-Härtl, double bass
Austria
Her secret superpower is the ability to sing one melody while playing something completely different. Our chief diplomat, visionary heart and an expert multi-tasker. Direct and clear, she leaves no musical stone unturned and is the bass-is of the quintet as well as the rhythmic driver. Irmtraud intuitively knows how people around her are feeling and is always ready to offer a sympathetic ear, a shoulder to cry on and has an infinite supply of remedies in the form of coffee, champagne or chocolate on hand. But do not come to her with any crazy ideas, because she WILL bring them to life! She understands how to add the right spices in the right amount to life and to her perfect cooking.
