Martin WELZEL, organist, has performed extensively throughout the United States and Europe, and worked with various specialist ensembles. As an organist, Mr. Welzel is particularly known for his performances of large-scale romantic and twentieth century repertoire. He has made solo appearances at Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas, Texas, and St. Sulpice in Paris, France. Mr. Welzel has made numerous broadcast recordings and has also been featured on Minnesota Public Radio's "Pipedreams." His recent CD recording at Trier Cathedral, Germany, featuring organ works by Max Reger, will be released in 2005 by Naxos International. Future engagements include concerts in the Pacific Northwest and at Washington National Cathedral. Further focus of his work as an organist is the art of organ improvisation, as well as the French composer Jeanne Demessieux, whose complete organ works he will record in 2005 for Naxos.

During his musical training in Germany, Mr. Welzel has worked with widely renowned artists and scholars such as Jean Guillou, Daniel Roth, and Wolfgang Rübsam. After receiving highest degrees in sacred music, choral conducting, and organ performance, Mr. Welzel moved to the United States to pursue both his career as a concert artist and doctoral studies in organ performance at the University of Washington under the direction of Dr. Carole Terry. He will graduate in 2005 with the dissertation "Improvisation: The Illusionist's Art - Towards a New Approach of Teaching Organ Improvisation in the United States." Mr. Welzel is the recipient of a Brechemin Scholarship, and was also awarded the distinguished Ambassadorial Scholarship by Rotary International.

Dr. Alexandra KERTZ-WELZEL, Ph.D., pianist, has appeared extensively as soloist, chamber musician and piano accompanist and made numerous broadcast recordings in the United States and Europe.

She completed her studies at the Saarland University and School of Music, Saarbruecken, Germany, where she earned Masters Degrees in Music Education, Germanics, Philosophy, Piano Performance, and Harpsichord Performance. Her teachers include Kristin Merscher, Gerald Hambitzer, and Jean Micault, student and assistant of the legendary Alfred Cortot. In 2000, she obtained a Ph.D. degree in Musicology, with a comparative study on aesthetics in literature and music during the early romanticism in the 19th century.

As a pianist, Dr. Kertz-Welzel has been specializing in early keyboard performance practice and piano repertory of the 19th century. In 2002, Dr. Kertz-Welzel became visiting scholar at the University of Washington, where she is currently working on a comparative research project, examining music education in the United States and Germany.

In 1985 and 1987, respectively, Dr. Kertz-Welzel won the German National Competition in Piano Accompanying as the best pianist in her age group. She made her first LP recording at age 16, featuring solo works by Ludwig van Beethoven and Claude Debussy. In 1994, she gave her debut performance in the United States in Columbus, OH, as the piano accompanist for Markus Finkler, now solo trumpetist at the Magdeburg Philharmonic Orchestra.

In summer 2004, Dr. Kertz-Welzel and her husband, Martin Welzel, formed a duo, specializing in the European and American duo repertory for piano and organ of the 19th and 20th century.