South-African born Zoë Beyers has established herself as one of the UK’s most versatile violinists and performs as soloist, chamber musician, director and orchestral leader across the world. She also has a passionate interest in education, teaching at the Birmingham Conservatoire but also coaching ensembles and violinists at the start of their careers. 

Since her solo debut aged eleven with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra under Paavo Järvi, she has performed with many distinguished conductors throughout Europe and Africa.  Recent highlights include Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ A Spell for Green Corn,Sibelius and Korngold concerti with the Norwich Philharmonic Orchestra, Prokofiev’s 2nd Violin concerto and the Walton concerto with the Corinthian Chamber Orchestra and Michael Seal, and Milhaud ‘Cinema Fantaise on Le Boef sur le Toit’ with the English Symphony Orchestra. In 2016 she recorded and filmed Vaughan Williams’s ‘The Lark Ascending’ with the CBSO for Sky Arts. 

Zoë performs with the internationally renowned Hebrides Ensemble, and also performs, broadcasts and records with the Nash Ensemble, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group the Scottish Ensemble, and I Musicanti.  She has collaborated with Francois Leleux, Stephen Osborne, Lars Vogt, Elisabeth Leonskaja and Alexander Janiczek, and composers Helen Grime, Oliver Knussen, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Sir James Macmillan.  Her 2017 recording of Maxwell Davies’s late chamber works with the Hebrides Ensemble, entitled ‘The Last Island’(for Delphian), has been featured on BBC Radio 3 and attracted top ranking reviews in The Times, The Guardian and BBC Music Magazine.  In 2018 Zoë will tour Israel with the Nash Ensembleand record a disc of Scottish composer Nigel Osborne’s chamber works with the Hebrides Ensemble. 

The 2017/2018 season sees Zoë performing with the English Symphony Orchestra both as their newly appointed concertmaster and as a director and soloist.  Zoërelishes the challenge of directing from the violin: her recording of early Mendelssohn concerti with the University of Stellenbosch Camerata was nominated for a SAMA award in 2011; her 2013 recording of Wassenaer concerti armonici (directing the Innovation Chamber Ensemble for Somm Records) was Classic FM’s CD of the week, and their 2014 disc of rare Elgar works was received with critical acclaim.  

As an orchestral leader, Zoë performs regularly with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, theBBC Philharmonicand Symphony Orchestras, the Philharmonia, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Aurora Orchestra.  She has played as leader on several highly regarded recordings with Andris Nelsons, Juano Mena and John Storgards, most recently on discs of de Falla and Ginastera with Mena and the BBC Philharmonic for Chandos.  She is dedicated to performing the music of contemporary composers and is involved in the commissioning and premiering of several new works.