Leo Appel, violin

Violinist Leo Appel performs as a soloist and chamber musician across Europe and the US. Winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Julius Isserlis prize in 2021, he has since been awarded the Prix de Festival Ravel and the audience prize at Schiermonnikoog Festival, as well as the Countess of Munster’s Peter Cropper award for most outstanding string player in the 2025 auditions. 

Since 2023, Leo has enjoyed regular appearances with the Esbjerg Ensemble, a Danish Chamber Collective. He was a 2022–23 Akademist with Kammerorchester Basel and holds a position as a New Ensemblist with London-based baroque ensemble Arcangelo for the 2024-26 seasons, seeing him collaborate with artists such as Vilde Frang and Nicolas Altstaedt. As a keen chamber musician, he is a member of the Talos Quartet, a recipient of a Tunnell Trust Award and member of Le Dimore Del Quartetto network. 

Leo’s busy concerto schedule includes recent engagements with conductor Jac van Steen, Kammerorchester Basel, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, and Sinfonieorchester Basel, the latter winning him the award of Best Soloist at the Musik-Akademie Basel for his performance of Berg’s violin concerto. Leo is also invited to guest-lead orchestras, most recently with Orquestra Vigo430 in Spain.  

As someone who loves to bring big ideas to life, Leo directed a performance of Bach’s St Matthew Passion from the violin in Trinity College, Cambridge. In 2019, he founded an ensemble with countertenor Hugh Cutting and cellist Laura van der Heijden specialising in Judeo-Spanish and Judeo-Arabic music, alongside historically informed performance of baroque and earlier works. In 2019-2020, he conceived and directed two sold-out concert series of this music at Kettle’s Yard, and he is looking forward to directing upcoming concerts featuring his own arrangements in Switzerland later this year. 

Leo is a graduate of St John’s College, University of Cambridge. He studied violin with David Takeno and continued his studies on the Soloist Masters course at the Musik-Akademie Basel with Barbara Doll and baroque violin with Amandine Beyer.  

Leo has given recitals at Wigmore Hall and Kings Place, with broadcasts live on BBC Radio 3. He has also collaborated with composers on a series of performances of contemporary music on Jewish themes. Leo has current and future festival engagements at IMS Prussia Cove (UK), Marlboro (US), Yellow Barn (US), Schiermonnikoog (Netherlands), and Chalosse (France). He has participated in masterclasses with musicians including Maxim Vengerov, Leonidas Kavakos, Steven Isserlis, Alina Ibragimova, Tabea Zimmermann, Andreas Staier, and Robert Levin.

He is generously supported by Rahn Kulturfonds, Stiftung Lyra, and Stiftung Melinda Esterházy de Galantha.