My name is Myvanwy Ella Penny. I am a German-British concert violinist and experienced violin teacher.
I founded my violin school, The Penny Violin Academy, in 2010 in Berlin and have been continuing it in my hometown of Freiburg since 2016. Teaching is my passion. True to the principle “While we teach, we learn”, I learn something new in every single lesson – and I am deeply grateful for that. It has shaped me into the violinist, musician, and teacher I am today.
My teaching experience goes back to my youth. As a scholarship recipient of the Pflüger Foundation for gifted violinists, my teacher, Prof. Wolfgang Marschner, encouraged me early on to support younger students and accompany them on their professional path.
My musical journey took me to Berlin, where I studied with the renowned professor Nora Chastain at the University of the Arts (UdK). I completed my violin studies there with the Konzertexamen, graduating with top honors. During this time, I also worked as an assistant to Prof. Wolfgang Marschner, my long-standing mentor. From 2009 to 2016, I was a teaching assistant at the UdK Berlin in Prof. Chastain’s class and taught my own group of highly talented young students at the Julius Stern Institute for the Promotion of Young Musicians.
My experience as a soloist plays an important role in my teaching, and my students benefit greatly from it. My repertoire is broad, and I draw on my own concert and competition experience – and of course, I can demonstrate everything myself.
I am especially passionate about chamber music. It encourages musical spontaneity and flexibility, improves intonation and listening skills – and above all, making music with others is simply a joy.
Performing in concerts is also a wonderful way to showcase one’s skills and work toward a goal; public performances are therefore a regular and important part of the training.
Myvanwy Ella Penny has been a brilliant and sensitive violinist firmly rooted in the classical music world for many years, using her musicality to inspire both audiences and young musicians alike.
A special focus of hers is working on and presenting rarely performed works alongside the standard concert repertoire. Recognized as an exceptional talent, she is a sought-after soloist, performing with orchestras both nationally and internationally, and is a regular guest at international festivals (including the Marschner Festival Hinterzarten and the Beethoven Festival Sutri in Italy).
Her artistic achievements have been documented through numerous radio broadcasts, CD recordings, and a portrait feature on SWR television.
From the age of six, Myvanwy Ella Penny gave her first public concerts and was soon after awarded a scholarship by the Pflüger Foundation for young gifted violinists in Freiburg.
The inspiring work with Prof. Wolfgang Marschner and Ariane Mathäus laid the foundation for her success as a musician.
During this time, she won several national and international competitions (including multiple first prizes at Jugend Musiziert, first prize at the international Max Reger Chamber Music Competition in Sondershausen, and the WDR3 Classical Music Award of the city of Münster).
Following her violin studies at the University of the Arts Berlin with Prof. Nora Chastain, which she completed with top marks, she earned her concert exam with distinction, performing Edward Elgar’s Violin Concerto. As a prizewinner of the Ibolyka Gyarfas Competition in Berlin, she gained wider public recognition.
Additionally, she refined her playing with Sir Yfrah Neaman, Prof. Rainer Kussmaul, the jazz accordionist Klaus Bruder—highly esteemed by Yehudi Menuhin—and the Artemis Quartet, shaping her distinctive style as both a soloist and chamber musician.
Today, her concert career is complemented by her own teaching activities and the intensive mentoring of young talents at her own violin school—a focus especially close to her heart.
Through her inspiring approach, she motivated young musicians during her teaching assignment at the Julius Stern Institute for the Promotion of Young Musicians at the University of the Arts Berlin and at international masterclasses. She also served as assistant for five years in the class of Prof. Nora Chastain.
Myvanwy Ella Penny’s broad repertoire spans more than 400 years of music. She has developed a particular passion for contemporary works, performing premieres by well-known composers, including the critically and publicly acclaimed Sonata for Violin and Viola for One Player by Wolfgang Marschner.