We are Paradiso Strings

We’re a string quartet based around South East Queensland, playing at concerts, galas, weddings, recordings, and all sorts of other events. Check us out on Facebook or Instagram, or head over to our concerts page to see what show you can catch us at next!

Our Players

  • picture of Grace, our violinist

    Grace Choi

    VIOLINIST

    Grace Choi is a graduate of Griffith University Conservatorium of Music majoring in Violin Performance. She has worked with Opera Australia, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Beijing Symphony Orchestra, and with artists like Ricky Lee and Delta Goodrem, Michael Buble, Ed Sheeran.
    She has toured all over Europe , Australia and Asia with Symphony Orchestras. Grace performed a concerto at the opera house at the age of 10 and has been awarded many awards since then during her performance career.

  • picture of Iris, our 2nd violinist/violist

    Iris Doo

    VIOLINIST/VIOLIST

    Iris graduated from Griffith Conservatorium in 2014, after studying violin and viola with John Curro AM MBE.

    She has played in and recorded with orchestras while in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Germany, and now performs with ensembles across the South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales regions.

    Iris plays on a 1977 viola by Neapolitan maker Giovanni Fichera.

  • picture of Nara, our violist

    Nara Dennis

    VIOLIST

    Nara studied viola and piano in Adelaide, Sydney and Vienna.
    She has performed, recorded and toured extensively with orchestras in Australia and overseas, including the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Netherlands Philharmonic, Auckland Philharmonic, and the Australian Strings National Orchestra as Soloist and Principal during their European Tours in 2016 and 2019.

  • picture of Deborah, our cellist

    Deborah Davis

    CELLIST

    Deborah began her studies at the University of Queensland and furthered her development through the Queensland Youth Symphony and the ABC Sinfonia. Studies followed in Germany, including tours throughout Europe and China.

    She has since played professionally in Australia and Germany with such orchestras as the Baden-Baden Philharmonie, the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.

Our Team

Picture of Li-Ping playing viola

Li-Ping

Li-Ping is a graduate of the Queensland Conservatorium and the Royal College of Music majoring in Viola performance and currently works with Queensland Symphony Orchestra.
Although classically trained, Li-Ping enjoys many other music genres including Jazz, rock and anything K-Pop related.
Li-Ping believes that music is a gift from God and seeks to share that gift with others both in performance and through teaching.


Viola
Evan with his violin

Evan

Evan is a professional violinist, teacher, composer, and multi-instrumentalist who performs regularly with the Gold Coast Chamber Orchestra and DeepBlue Orchestra, and collaborates as a guest artist with a wide range of music ensembles and groups. With over 15 years of teaching experience, he has led string workshops for thousands of students across Australia and internationally. Evan has also recorded for film soundtracks and worked with leading Australian artists including Dami Im, Kate Miller-Heidke, and John Butler Trio.

Violin

Picture of Alys 
Violin/Viola

Alys

Alys started learning violin in Albury Wodonga before studying in Canberra with Barbara Jane Gilby. She was recipient of awards including the Matilda Jane Aplin prize during her Bachelor of Music with Michelle Walsh at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music. She has performed with Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Australian Session Orchestra and has toured Australia, Europe and Asia with the Australian Youth Orchestra. 

Alys is now a Brisbane-based violinist, violist, chamber musician, teacher and composer fascinated by the intersections of music and literature.  

Kyle playing viola in orchestra

Kyle

Gold Coast based viola player Kyle Brady realized his passion for the Viola performing with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra as a successful Prodigy Project candidate. He then went on to study at the Queensland Conservatorium under the guidance of John Curro & Graeme Jennings. While studying Kyle enjoyed masterclasses with the Australian String Quartet, Sophie Rowell & Kathryn Lockwood. He has performed widely across Australia with the Southern Cross Soloists, Orava Quartet, Ensemble Q, Australian Youth Orchestra, Queensland Youth Orchestra.

Viola
Maggie headshot

Margaret

Violin

Violinist Margaret Louise Blades has performed as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral leader nationally and internationally throughout her distinguished career. Highlights of her career include playing Concertmaster for the Australian premiere of Wagner’s Ring Cycle, conducted by Sir Jeffrey Tate, and performing with orchestras including the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Sydney Symphony and Australian World Orchestra in some of the world's most prestigious concert halls

Sally-Ann playing violin 
Violin

Sally-Ann

Sally-Ann is a Scottish violinist and pianist who studied at the Royal Scottish Conservatoire, Royal Academy of Music, and the Queensland Conservatorium. Career highlights include playing violin with the European Community Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, a touring season of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie with the National Theatre and 5 years as 2nd violinist with the Bingham Quartet (London). Since 2009 she has been an Artistic Associate of Camerata, Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra.

Alex playing cello

Alex

Alex McPherson is one of Brisbane's busiest cello teachers and performers. He began playing cello at the age of five, completed a Bachelor of Music from the University of Queensland, then a Masters in Music Performance from the University of Tasmania. Alex has toured both in Australia and overseas, and has played in orchestras and string quartets from Hobart to Cairns. Although he adores playing in Symphony Orchestras (such as the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and the Queensland Pops Orchestra) String Quartet playing always holds first place in his heart. 

Cello

David

Cello

David is a Brisbane-based freelance Cellist. He completed his Bachelor of Music under the tutelage of Performance Fellow Patrick Murphy at the University of Queensland. Recent performances include concertos with local orchestras such as Chorda Spiritus, Orchestra Concertino, Redlands Sinfonia, and the Armidale Sinfonia. Outside of the Classical sphere, David has performed alongside headline acts Lee Kernaghan, Il Divo, and Hansen.

Mike playing on stage 
Violin

Mike

Michael Patterson is a violinist and violist with extensive and varied experience as a performer. He is a casual violinist and violist with The Queensland Symphony Orchestra and with Camerata, Queenslands Chamber Orchestra. He is a core member of the Black Square String Quartet. He has also played extensively in jazz and folk music ensembles, including at all the major world-music festivals in Australia and New Zealand. Michael enjoys a broad variety of musical engagement including performing, teaching, composing and conducting.

Chen headshot

Chen

Violinist Chen Yang is an active musician performing regularly as concert master and conductor with Brisbane Community Ensembles including the Corda Spiritus Orchestra of Brisbane and the Sinfonia of St Andrews. He was a member of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and started his career as the concertmaster of the Queensland Theatre Orchestra. A passionate advocate for music education he is a teacher, conductor and life member with the Queensland Youth Orchestra organisation working with talented young string students with their Junior String Ensemble.

Violin
Hyewon with her cello

Hyewon

Cello

Hyewon Chang is a South Korean–born cellist who trained in Korea and the United States, graduating early with a Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. She has performed as a soloist and ensemble musician at international festivals in Texas and Miami and with professional orchestras, earning multiple competition awards in the US. Now based in Brisbane, she is an active performing cellist in chamber groups and orchestras, while also teaching strings with the Queensland Government Department of Education and private schools.

Viola

Tuuli

A former member of the Australian and Queensland Youth Orchestras, Tuuli plays regularly with The Queensland Symphony Orchestra and has performed with many internationally renowned artists, including The Academy of St Martin in The Fields, Nigel Kennedy, Gil Shaham, Andrea Bocelli, William Barton, Tina Arena, Kenny Rogers, Chrissy Amphlett, Archie Roach, Sir Thomas Allen, Yvonne Kenny and Julian Lloyd-Webber. She is a founding member of the Doch Gypsy Orchestra. She has performed or recorded locally for contemporary and classical groups, including Topology, Strut and Fret Productions, The View from Madeleine's Couch, Rhubarb, Doch, Deep Blue and Zen Zen Zo.