Who We Are

A Collective of Versatile and Dynamic String Musicians

Our Players

Sagar Nagaraj

“The violin brings to life my innermost emotions and ideas”

Sagar is the Artistic Director of Rosemont Strings and has over 20 years’ experience performing violin. He has performed with the prestigious Australian World Orchestra and Australian Youth Orchestras and is Concertmaster of the Macquarie Chamber Orchestra.

He has performed internationally with orchestras in Germany, France, Spain, and India. Sagar is a passionate Violin Teacher for both child and adult students and firmly believes the Violin and the Arts are for everybody. He teaches and performs music across different genres like Bollywood, Jazz, and Pop.

Sagar performs on a 1957 Franco-Belgian Violin.

Suraj Nagaraj

“The violin is the perfect instrument to combine different styles and make new music”

Suraj started playing the violin from the age of 4 and received his AmusA Diploma with Distinction at the age of 15. He is the Concertmaster of the Sydney Youth Orchestra and performed in the Sydney Opera House with world-class conductor Sir Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra to over 5,000 people. He has also performed with the Australian Youth Orchestra, Willoughby Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Project, and 1st Violin in a Sydney Opera House masterclass with renowned Parisian String Quartet - ‘Quatour Van Kujik’.

Suraj is well known in the Indian community for performing violin covers of popular Bollywood songs. He performs Electric Violin frequently with Indian bands, mixing Indian and Western instruments to create new music.

Suraj is also a sought-after composer, arranging both Pop and Bollywood music for Symphony Orchestras, String Orchestra, String Quartets, and Electric Violin. In 2022, the Rosemont Chamber Orchestra Performed Suraj’s composition “Indian String Sensations" which received international praise. His arrangement of the Formula 1 Theme Song for String Quartet garnered over 50,000 views and played by musicians all over the world. Suraj is interested in developing a new style of music, combining Australian and Indian cultures through Classical Music.

Suraj performs on a 1978 Parisian Violin

Nazli Sendurgut

“The cello is my voice and my best friend. Everyone loves the cello”

From the churches of New Zealand to the slums of Bogotá Colombia, Nazli has performed across the world in all types of venues. Holding a Masters in Cello Performance from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, she has performed with the Vienna Chamber Opera and in Masterclasses throughout Europe. Nazli currently performs in orchestras throughout Sydney, and in solo and chamber music concerts on cruise ships, weddings, and events.

Nazli believes music is a powerful tool to help others and raise awareness for important causes. For this reason, she has performed for projects outside of traditional concert halls, such as in schools, cancer clinics, remote areas, detention centres, and the most poverty-stricken parts of Colombia. Through playing cello, she has helped raise funds for the Australian Bushfires and ANZAC Day.

Nazli plays a modern Italian Cello by Stefano Marzi

Lauren Olofsson

“Playing Cello can connect me with people that don’t necessarily listen to Classical Music and change how they feel and see the world.”

Lauren has been playing the cello for over 20 years and is passionate about the psychological, sociological, and educational impacts of music. She regularly performs in concerts throughout Sydney, playing different genres like Tango, Folk, and Scandinavian music. Lauren is featured on Triple J’s “Like a Version” performing a cover of “I Will Follow You Into The Dark” with 14 million views.

Lauren believes in the power of music to galvanise people for social causes, performing in orchestras raising funds for Mental Health, Cancer Research, the Ukraine War Relief, and the Australian Bushfires. Outside of music she is a volunteer for the Rural Fire Service and regularly travels to rural areas to conduct training and fight fires.

Having studied cello for 10 years with daughter of eminent music educator Richard Gill, Lauren is a passionate music educator herself. Lauren maintains a busy schedule of conducting string programs at several public schools, passing her knowledge onto future generations of cellists and symphony orchestras.

Lauren plays a modern Australian Cello by Adele Beardsmore.

Lu Guo

“The violin is a beautiful instrument that conveys a wide range of emotions”

Lu started violin at the age of 4 with the Concertmaster of Fujian Symphony Orchestra, Professor Liao Zhongwei. Before coming to Sydney, Lu received her Bachelor of Violin Performance from Xinghai Conservatory of Music and performed as Concertmaster of Xinghai Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra.

In 2017, she earned her Master’s degree and won the Ted and Susan Meller Memorial Scholarship after studying with Professor Goetz Richter in Sydney Conservatorium. As a violinist, Lu performs in professional orchestras such as the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra, Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra and Fujian Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of acclaimed international conductors like David Robertson, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Jessica Cottis, Christain Edwald and Franz A. Krager.

She currently performs with Willoughby Symphony Orchestra, Macquarie Chamber Orchestra, Southern Cross Symphony and The Metropolitan Orchestra.

Outside the classical realm Lu has collaborates with artists like Australia’s Got Talent Winner Mark Vincent and the George Ellis Orchestra.

Lu is a passionate violin teacher for students of all ages. As a violin teacher, she teaches across Sydney Public and Catholic Schools. She also teaches alongside Sydney Symphony Associate Concertmaster Mr. Sun Yi, with her students achieving top results in examinations and prestigious competitions throughout Sydney.

Vicky Vukovich

“The Viola allows me to sit back in the sound and enjoy the music”

Viktoria was born and raised in the capital of classical music, Vienna.
During her studying years at the University of Music in Vienna she was a member of The Vienna Jeunesse Orchestra, The International Festival Orchestra of Murcia (Spain), Junge Philharmonie Wien, Innviertler Sinfonie Orchestra, Principal Violist with the Pro Arte Orchester Wien and the Vienna Royal Chamber Orchestra.

From 2008 she held the position of full-time viola player at Cairo Symphony Orchestra in Egypt before she moved to Canada two years later, performing in several chamber music engagements.

Viktoria has a love for animals, particularly the tortoise, and is passionate about the environment. She combines her love of travel and music by touring on cruise ships with cellist Nazli Sendurgut as part of the Sydney Viola Cello Duo.

Viktoria plays a 1912 German copy of a Stradivari.

Our Story

Rosemont String was formed in 2016 by four friends making music in a living room on Rosemont Avenue in Sydney, Australia. We played in competitions, performed for patrons of the Arts at the University of Sydney, and recorded String Quartets by notable composers like Dimitri Shostakovich, Franz Joseph Haydn, and Maurice Ravel.

With the aim of bringing the elite art-form of the String Quartet closer to the general public, we took to the streets of Sydney - busking at Hyde Park, Pitt St Mall, and Bondi Junction. Instantly we were met with enthusiasm and appreciation from our audiences. As word got around, we were invited to play concerts at homes, perform at birthday parties, bring weddings to life, and add the touch of opulence to corporate functions.

Playing for audiences in an intimate setting brought a greater sense of connection to the music and satisfaction for us. It quickly became clear that these performances were what we wanted to do - and so Rosemont Strings was created to incorporate a greater variety of ensembles like the String Trio and Duo, and instruments like the Guitar and Harp. We are privileged to perform not only for Australian audiences, but also Indian, Chinese, and Middle-Eastern ones too!

Browse through our website, listen to our sound, see our photos. We hope you find the right sound for your special occasion.

- Sagar

Talent

Our musicians are virtuosic, energetic, and experienced. They have played with major symphony orchestras like the Australian World Orchestra, Australian and Sydney Youth Orchestras, and the Sydney Conservatorium Orchestra, in venues locally like the Sydney Opera House, and City Recital Hall, to venues internationally like the Berlin Philharmonie and the Concertgebouw in the Netherlands.

Versatility

Our repertoire is vast - ranging from 17th century Baroque music to the Top 100 charts and everything in between! Rosemont players have also played in different cultural atmospheres, providing ethnically diverse music for cultural events.

Elegance

The very sounds of our instruments exude elegance and finesse. The deep sonority of the cello, warmth of the viola, and sweet clarity of the violin envelopes the atmosphere with opulence and sophistication.