Galimir Award for Excellence in Chamber Music

PROGRAM

String Quartet in c minor No.8, Op 110

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975)

Largo
Allegro molto
Allegretto
Largo
Largo

String Quartet in D major No.1, Op 11

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893)

Moderato e semplice (D major) 
Andante cantabile (B♭ major) 
Scherzo. Allegro non tanto e con fuoco – Trio (D minor) 
Finale. Allegro giusto – Allegro vivace (D major)

NexilIs String Quartet

Maya Budinski, violin 

Marija Ivicevic, violin 

Ji-A Choi, viola 

Mario Rodriguez McMillan, cello

BIOGRAPHIES

The Nexilis Quartet 

The Nexilis Quartet is a Toronto based string quartet consisting of violinists Maja Budzinski and Marija Ivicevic, violist Ji-A Choi, and cellist Mario Rodriguez McMillan. The Nexilis Quartet was formed in 2022 at the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto and has performed in masterclasses for the Quartetto di Cremona and Miró Quartet. Members of the quartet have respectively participated in festivals such as: the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, Heifetz Institute, Tuckamore Festival, Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute, the National Academy Orchestra (Brott Music Festival), and Centre Stage Strings. The Nexilis Quartet has foremostly been coached under violinists Mark Fewer and Roan Ma and will be taking part in an exchange with the Conservatoire National Supérieur Musqiue et Danse Lyon in March 2025. 

Maya Budzinski- Violin 

Maya Budzinski has been engaging audiences in performance since her debut recital at age eleven. She had obtained a number of provincial and national awards at a young age, including the Canadian Music Competition Grand Prize in 2018, where she was granted to opportunity to perform the Sibelius Violin Concerto with the Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal under the baton of Nicolas Ellis. In 2023, Maya was given the opportunity to perform the Bartok Violin Concerto No. 2 with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. Maya has been a part of numerous internationally distinguished music festivals, such as the Morningside Music Bridge program, Meadowmount Summer Music program, and the Heifetz International Music Festival. She had the pleasure of performing for and working with artists such as Pinchas Zukerman, Ani Kavafian, Andres Cardenes, Ilya Kaler, James Ehnes, Grigory Kalinovsky and the Kronos Quartet. Maya is an undergraduate student of TSO concertmaster Jonathan Crow at the University of Toronto Faculty of Music.

Marija Ivicevic- Violin 

Marija Ivicevic is a 20-year-old violinist and violist from Toronto, Ontario. Marija is entering her third year of studies with Mark Fewer at the University of Toronto where she is earning her Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance. Music has always played an important role in her life. Her orchestral experience began at the Kingsway Conservatory of Music, where she had the privilege of playing alongside members of such acclaimed Baroque Chamber ensembles as Aradia and Tafelmusik. She attended high school at Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts and continued her music education at the Regent Park School of Music where she studied with Tanya Charles. One of her favourite experiences as a musician was performing and spending a day with Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble. Marija has been a member of various orchestras including the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, the National Academy Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. Her orchestral experiences have taken her across Canada where she has worked with various prestigious conductors such as; Simon Rivard, Trevor Wilson, Tania Miller, Gustavo Gimeno and Satcha Goetzel. Over the past two years, she has appeared as a soloist with the Corktown Chamber Orchestra performing the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto and Saint-Saens Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso. Marija has been selected to perform alongside her professor and quartet mates at the New Music Festival in Lyon, France this coming March.

Ji-A Choi- Viola 

Ji-A Choi is a Toronto based violist currently studying under Theresa Rudolph at the University of Toronto Faculty of Music. She has been a prize winner in the Kiwanis Festival and a finalist in the Canadian Music Competition. Ji-A has been conducted under the baton of Maestros Sir Andrew Davis, Gustavo Gimeno, Uri Mayer, Simon Rivard, Trevor Wilson, Tania Miller; and has performed in Masterclasses for the likes of Rivka Golani, Pinchas Zukerman, and percussionist Beverley Johnston. In addition, she has taken part in the National Academy Orchestra, Centre Stage Strings, Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute, and Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival. Ji-A is currently a member of the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra and was formerly a member of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra. In addition, she occasionally subs with the Hamilton Philharmonic and Mandle Phil. Ji-A likes to spend her free time baking, rock climbing, running, and playing video games. 

Mario Rodriguez McMillan- Cello 

Cellist Mario Rodriguez McMillan was born in Mexico City. He grew up surrounded by music and began his own musical studies at the age of seven. He studied classical guitar at Escuela Superior de Música del Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura, an acclaimed conservatory in Mexico. His love for music inspired him to reach proficiency at various instruments, including piano, drums, percussion, and trumpet. He eventually chose the cello because of its incredibly expressive qualities. Mario was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada in 2022 and was an award of excellence recipient and principal cellist during the 2023 session. He studied with renowned faculty including Sascha Goetzel, Blake Pouliot, David Hetherington, and Bryan Epperson. He was also principal cellist of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra for two seasons, and section cello for two seasons. Mario was also a winner of the 2024 Hnatyshyn Foundation Developing Artist Runner-up Grant. In 2022, Mario had his solo debut with the first movement of the Schumann Cello Concerto after winning the North York Concert Orchestra concerto competition. He has performed in masterclasses for world-class cellists Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Jean-Guihen Queyras, and Johannes Moser. Mario is currently in his third year of undergrad studying cello performance with Paul Widner, and previously with Joseph Johnson at the University of Toronto.