Christelle Engelbrecht

Christelle Engelbrecht is an accomplished pianist, chamber musician, and arts administrator, with a background in collaborative piano performance. She has held positions as a collaborative pianist, accompanist, concert series organiser, and arts administrator at the North West University School of Music and Conservatory, where she pursued her academic career as a chamber pianist and researcher. Her research explores meaningful chamber music concert experiences as well as parental motivation in choral settings. Currently in the final phase of her Doctorate in Piano Performance at NWU under Dr Truida van der Walt and Prof Liesl van der Merwe, Christelle has received masterclasses from esteemed pianists such as Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Nicolas Philips, Mūza Rubackytè, Carolina Oltmans, Robert Auler, and Petronel Malan amongst others.

In addition to her piano expertise, Christelle is an experienced choral conductor, having conducted the North West Children's Choir and currently conducting various choirs in and around Johannesburg including the Cantare Children’s Choir and the Voces Libres Chamber Choir. She regularly presents workshops for conductors and choristers. Christelle is the programme director for the Summa Cum Laude on Tour international choir and orchestra competition as well as the CCNF Prestige Concert Series, a platform aimed at providing professional performance opportunities for youth orchestras in South Africa, fostering collaboration with international ensembles, and inspiring young musicians to achieve excellence.

Through these roles, Christelle continues to expand musical opportunities and build a foundation for high-calibre performance experiences among young musicians.