Extended Biography

Yasmine Urquhart is a Swiss-Australian clarinettist currently residing in Switzerland.

In summer 2026, she began an internship with Musikkollegium Winterthur, and was recently awarded the Werner Reinhart Scholarship of the Lyra Stiftung. Yasmine has been a substitute at the Orchester der Oper Zürich since 2024, performing in multiple philharmonic and operatic productions under the direction of Tugan Sokhiev and Giacomo Noseda on both Bb and Eb clarinet. This was preceded by the completion of her internship there as part of her Specialised Master’s in Orchestra at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste. She was also an invitee and participant of the Zermatt Music Festival Orchestra & Academy in 2024 and 2025, where she collaborated with members of the Scharoun Ensemble Berlin (Berliner Philharmoniker) and worked with musicians such as Heinz Holliger and Radek Baborák.

Earlier this year, she appeared as a soloist with the Kammerorchester Bülach and partook in concerts with the Zuger Kammerensemble. Preceding this, she was a joint recipient of the ‘Sonderpreis’ (Special Prize) at the 2025 Orpheus Competition as a member of Ensemble Brisae. Yasmine is also an active member of the Swiss Youth Symphony Orchestra and has participated in orchestral tours and projects with ensembles such as the Jugendsinfonieorchester Zürich, Jugendsinfonieorchester Thurgau, and the Peace Orchestra Project founded by pianist Federico Gad Crema.

Since moving to Switzerland in 2021, Yasmine has collaborated and performed under conductors including Lorenzo Viotti, Johannes Schläfli, Christoph-Mathias Müller, and Markus Stenz, and pianists Martha Argerich, Benjamin Engeli, and Marc-André Hamelin. She has performed on multiple occasions at venues such as the Tonhalle Zürich, Victoria Hall in Geneva, Casino Bern, Basel Stadtcasino, and Musikkollegium Winterthur.

Yasmine has also participated in masterclasses with clarinettists such as Alberto Culmone, Sergio Pires, Nicolai Pfeffer, Jérôme Comte, Philippe Cuper, Filipa Nunes, Shirley Brill, Bjørn Nyman, Roman Widaszek, Bernhard Röthlisberger, and composer John Adams. She has received regular lessons from professors including Florian Walser, Felix Genner, Rita Meyer, and Matthias Müller.

Since the age of 7 Yasmine has been playing both the Clarinet and Cello. Her love for music grew through involvement in extensive musical studies and orchestral projects. During her time in Sydney, she was involved in programs with the NSW Schools Spectacular, the Sydney Youth Orchestra, and the Sydney Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra. In 2019 she was accepted into the Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra National Winter Academy and was invited to the Australian Festival of Chamber Music’s Masterclass Program with her Sydney-based wind quintet. Additionally, she was invited to the Sydney Government House to perform for the Governor of NSW, as well as in venues such as the Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney Town Hall, International Towers in Barangaroo, and the Australian Museum, Sydney.

Yasmine initially undertook studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music with Francesco Celata (Sydney Symphony Orchestra). In 2020 she achieved her LMusA with Distinction (Licentiate in Music, Australia) after having completed the Higher School Certificate at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music High School in 2019. She then successfully completed her Bachelor of Music at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste in June 2023. Since having completed a Specialised Master in Orchestra at the same university, she currently understakes a second master’s degree at the Hochschule Luzern under the professorship of Robert Pickup, alongside her work at the music store Notenpunkt Zürich.

Yasmine’s extensive exposure to orchestral and chamber music projects has sharpened her focus and deepened her commitment to pursuing an orchestral career. She is passionate about ensemble playing, and her ambition is to build a career as an orchestral musician.