Awarded titles such as “Under 18 – Musician of the Year 2018” and “Best Guitarist in Europe (age 18–23),” Özberk Miraç Sarıgül was accepted into the Preparatory School of the Bilkent University Faculty of Music and Performing Arts in 2012, where he continued his studies through to his undergraduate graduation.

He has won more than 15 first prizes in international guitar competitions, including Lions – Thomas Kuti European Classical Guitar Competition, 2020 Florida Guitar Foundation Virtual Competition (Intermediate Division), Sarajevo International Guitar Competition 2020, Esteve International Guitar Competition 65th Anniversary 2022, VIII Gandia Guitar Competition, Granada Guitar Festival – X Angel Piñero Competition, Concurso de Guitarra “Ciudad de Mula” 2023 (Professional Category), 23rd Concurso José Tomás Villa de Petrer, III Emili Pujol International Guitar Competition, and 27th Linares Andrés Segovia Competition.

Sarıgül has performed concertos by Rodrigo, Castelnuovo-Tedesco, and Vivaldi with orchestras such as the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, Bilkent Youth Symphony Orchestra, and Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Symphony Orchestra.

In the 2021–2022 season, he became the first and only Turkish guitarist selected as a EuroStrings Artist and embarked on a European tour.

He has been invited to give concerts, masterclasses, and serve on juries at prestigious guitar festivals, including Zagreb Guitar Festival, International Guitar Festival Rust, Twents Gitaarfestival, Paris International Guitar Festival, Sarajevo International Guitar Festival, GuitarArt ASEG, Gandia Guitar Festival, Esteve Guitar Competition, Festival Arroyo de la Luz, FIGUE, Granada Guitar Festival, and José Tomás Petrer Guitar Festival, among others.

In addition to his active performance career, Sarıgül graduated as the highest-ranking student in 2023 from Bilkent University Faculty of Music and Performing Arts, where he studied with Prof. Kağan Korad.

In 2024, Sarıgül played Cemal Reşit Rey – Guitar Concerto as the world premiere of whole perfomance of first guitar concerto of Republic of Türkiye for the first time since it was composed in 1975.

In 2025, Sarıgül recorded his debut CD as part of the prize from the 23rd Concurso José Tomás Villa de Petrer. The album was produced by Javier Salvador – JSM Records.

He is studying his master’s degree at Hacettepe University Ankara State Conservatory with Prof. Dr. Ahmet Kanneci.

Özberk Miraç Sarıgül performs on a Catedral X Aniversario guitar by Manuel Adalid.

Raphaella Smits plays worldwide in her unique way on eight-string guitars and historical instruments. She has been praised as ‘an uncommonly musical guitarist’ (Tim Page, New York Times), ‘Une Grande Musicienne’ and ‘one of the most sensitive and cultured performers of our time’ (Jean Bernard, Diapason, FR).
In 2019, she received a unique award “Por su aporte a la Guitarra y la Cultura” in Argentina at the Festival Guitarras del Mundo.

In addition to stage-work, Raphaella Smits has realized 25 albums, many of which are listed as indispensable to refined music lovers. To this day, she continues to produce new, valuable recordings.

Raphaella Smits is widely acclaimed as an inspiring pedagogue for both guitar and chamber music. She taught at the Lemmens Institute / LUCA School of Arts in Leuven, Belgium, from 1986 to 2022. Now, she continues to give regular masterclasses in Europe, in North and South America, and in Japan.

Organizers of international music competitions request Raphaella as a member or as president of the jury because of her exceptional and unbiased judgment and her empathetic afterthoughts with the candidates.

Raphaella studied classical music at the Royal Conservatories of Antwerp and Brussels. Simultaneously she went to José Tomàs to perfect her playing at the “Catedra Andrès Segovia” in Spain. At that time she already gave her first concerts and became a convincing advocate for the eight-string guitar.

In 1986 Raphaella Smits was the first woman to win the first prize of the “XX Certamen Internacional de Guitarra Francisco Tarrega”, the famous international guitar competition in Benicasim, Spain. That victory confirmed the progression of a successfully started career, after previous prizes in competitions in Granada and Palma de Mallorca.
The jury presidents, Segovia and Narciso Yepes, both expressed their admiration for Raphaella’s musicality and prophetically espressed confidence in her future achievements.

Since winning First Price at Fundación Guerrero Guitar Competition and the Musical Youths of Spain Competition, his concert career has quickly developed in more than forty countries performing in some of the most prestigious international halls, including the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Radio France Auditorium in Paris, Auditorio Nacional (Madrid), Palau de la Música Catalana (Barcelona) or the Lutowslasky Auditorium (Warsaw).

As a result of his interest for modern creation and contemporary music Àlex Garrobé has established frequent associations with many composers and premiered several unknown works. Among his many collaborations as a soloist with orchestra are the premieres of the Mare Nostrum Concerto, by Salvador Brotons, …di un soffio d’aura, by Agustín Charles and the Concierto de Petrer by Simone Iannarelli among others.

Alex Garrobe received a doctorate in art history and musicology from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and has been professor at Centro Superior de Música del País Vasco (MUSIKENE) and the Catalan Music College (ESMUC) where he currently holds the professorship in guitar and chamber music. His teaching has produced several first- prize winners in international competitions. He has presented master classes in Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, Norway, México, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, United Kingdom and United States.

He has released eight CDs on the labels Harmonia Mundi, Naxos, Opera Tres, Columna Música and JSM Guitar Records. After listening to his CD dedicated to British composers, Sir Malcolm Arnold expressed the opinion that it was: “A masterly interpretation”, to which he added “It is gratifying to hear one’s music played so superbly”.