Natalia Kotarba is a Polish violinist born in Kraków and currently based in Brussels. She is a founding member of the Polish-Belgian Karski Quartet where she shares her deep passion for chamber music. Natalia’s education includes studies at the Academy of Music in Kraków, the Royal Northern College of Music, and the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, where she completed her Artist Diploma under Philippe Graffin. From 2019 to 2022, she refined her string quartet artistry at the Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Belgium, earning an Artist Diploma and continuing as an associated artist.
Natalia’s love for music spans a wide range of styles and collaborations. She has had the privilege of working with artists such as Jeff Neve, Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden, Philippe Graffin, Lorenzo Gatto, Krzysztof Penderecki, and the Oxalys Ensemble among others. Her performances have taken her to festivals such as the Montreal Jazz Festival, Utrecht Kamermuziek Festival, Midis-Minimes, Music Chapel Festival, Festival Résonances, Festival Pablo Casals (France), and the Istanbul Music Festival (Turkey). A memorable highlight was her 2018 performance at Bozar during the celebration of the 60th anniversary of Benelux, attended by the Belgian and Dutch monarchs.
Over the years, Natalia has been grateful to receive recognition for her work. She is a laureate of the Chopin Foundation’s Prize for Outstanding Students (2017) and, with the Karski Quartet, received the Grand Prix at the International Chamber Music Competition Triomphe de l’Art (2018). The quartet was also honored with the Christine and David Anderson Career Development Prize at the 2022 Banff International String Quartet Competition. Most recently, in October 2024, a recording she made with Canadian neoclassical pianist Alexandra Stréliski was recognized with the prestigious Opus Klassik Award in Germany.
The Karski Quartet’s first CD, recorded in 2023 with cellist Raphaël Feye, features rarely performed string quintets by Boccherini. It received enthusiastic reviews from international music publications, including Gramophone, Diapason, BBC Radio 3, and De Standaard. The album was also named “Album of the Week” by Klara Radio and was nominated for the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. Their next CD, featuring Grażyna Bacewicz’s Fourth String Quartet and Piano Quintet with pianist Jâms Coleman, is set for release in May 2025. The quartet remains active in several international platforms, including Le Dimore del Quartetto, the Merita Platform, and the Amsterdam String Quartet Biennale.
Natalia is also a core member of the string ensemble Karavan, directed by the outstanding Belgian violinist Lorenzo Gatto. She has performed at significant events, such as the Conference on the Future of Europe, attended by Emmanuel Macron and Ursula von der Leyen, and a concert for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Brussels.
Her musical outlook is shaped by diverse experiences, including jazz improvisation classes with the late Polish jazzman Jarosław Śmietana, which inspire her to explore music with openness and creativity. She also finds great joy in teaching and introducing young people to music, including her work at the Summer Masterclasses in Oslo.
Natalia currently plays a violin crafted in 2020 by Nicolas Gilles (France), generously lent by Strings for Talent, a fund under the patronage of the King Baudouin Foundation.
Nicolas Gilles was born in 1977 in Montpellier where he set up his workshop after a training course resulting from a musical sensitivity since his youth.
Instrumental training (classical guitar) since 1986 (Clermont l’Hérault school, Montpellier, Nancy and Mirecourt Conservatories): graduation with honours.
In 1988 he participated in the television programme “L’école des Fans”, a classical guitar special presented by Jacques Martin with Pedro Ibanez as guest. The same year he won first prize at the international classical guitar competition in Romans (Isère).
French school of lutherie in Mirecourt from 1993 to 1996: diploma in instrument making for the quartet.
English School of Violinmaking, Newark, 1996-1998: final diploma with “upper merit” distinction.
Assistant to Charles Luc Hommel in Marseille from 1998 to 2000 (mainly in restoration in one of the oldest workshops in France).
Assistant to Frédéric Chaudière in Montpellier from 2000 to 2002 (manufacturing).
Settled in 2001 in Montpellier, making instruments for the quartet.
In 2016 Nicolas set up his workshop in the former Royal Manufacture of Villeneuvette, 40 km from Montpellier.
This 17th century village, classified as a historical monument, is a precious setting where history and nature are preserved, and where the instruments of the quartet are made in a beautiful way.