Simone van der Giessen

Simone van der Giessen, born in Amsterdam, completed her studies at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, where she studied violin with Jan Repko and viola with Predrag Katanic. In Manchester, chamber music became the core of her musical life as a founding member of the Navarra String Quartet. After graduating with honors, she obtained a master's degree with David Takeno at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Her years with the quartet saw many highlights, including performances at the Sydney Opera House, a concert at Esterházy Castle, and studies with Ferenc Rados. The quartet received the MIDEM Classique Young Artist Award, a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship, a tour with Musica Viva, and prizes at the international string quartet competitions in Melbourne, Florence, and Banff. Simone is now a member of the Elias Quartet. This quartet is steadily building a discography that has been widely praised by critics.
Simone joined the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra as principal violist in September 2025.