In November 2024, the Dora Piano Trio was awarded First Prize at the ORPHEUS Chamber Music Competition, enabling them to perform at some of Switzerland’s most prestigious chamber music festivals, including the Swiss Chamber Music Festival in Adelboden, Musikdorf Ernen, Zunftkonzerte Zürich, and Piano Trio Fest in Bern.
In May 2025, the trio was also a finalist at the Brahms International Chamber Music Competition in Gdańsk.

The Dora Piano Trio is composed of violinist Sofia De Falco, cellist Axelle Richez, and pianist Rocco Michela. They met during their studies, first in Lausanne, then in Basel at the Hochschule für Musik, and after performing for years in various formations — duo, trio, and string quartet — they officially founded the Dora Piano Trio in 2024 in Basel.

Over the years, the trio has studied with renowned professors such as Anton Kernjak, Raphaël Oleg, and Claudio Martínez Mehner in Basel, as well as Cobus Swanepoel at Zürcher Hochschule der Künste.

The trio performs regularly in Switzerland and abroad, with recent appearances at Festival Musique et Vie, the Concerts au Lignon, and the concert season of the Swiss Foundation for Young Musicians.

They have participated in masterclasses with Jonathan Brown, Alexander Lonquich and Benjamin Engeli and are currently continuing their studies at the Musik Akademie Basel with Anton Kernjak, Rainer Schmidt, and Anna Gebert.

The Dora Piano Trio is particularly interested in researching and discovering lesser-known repertoire from diverse genres and cultural backgrounds, and in combining these works with more well-known pieces to create thoughtful and inclusive programs that engage and broaden audiences. One of the composers they are especially passionate about is Dora Pejačević, whose piano trios and broader chamber music output have deeply inspired their artistic vision. The ensemble chose to name itself in homage to her.

Sofia De Falco

VIOLIN
Born in Rome in 1999, Sofia began studying violin under the guidance of Maestro Marco Fornaciari and graduated with honors from the Conservatorio "Girolamo Frescobaldi" in Ferrara at just 16 years old. In 2018 she moved to Switzerland to pursue her studies where she completed both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees with Raphaël Oleg, and then continued with postgraduate studies with Rainer Schmidt and Anton Kernjak.
Passionate about chamber music and chamber orchestra, Sofia won in 2021 the academy position at Kammerorchester Basel, which enabled her to perform throughout Europe in some of the most renowned concert halls and further develop her skills as a chamber musician. She has been a member of arte frizzante since 2022, a collective ensemble based in Bern, where she will take over the position of principal second violin from the 2025 season.
Her musical interests span across various styles, including Baroque, Classical, Jazz and improvisation. This diversity led her in 2022 to become also the violinist of the jazz chamber music group Flo and the Murmurs.
In March 2025, she won the scholarship from Rahn Kulturfonds.
She is currently studying at the Musik Akademie Basel with Rainer Schmidt, Anna Gebert and Anton Kernjak.
Axelle Richez

CELLO
Born in Geneva in 2000, Axelle began her cello studies with Martin Müller-Weiffenbach and later with Martin Reetz at the Conservatories of Geneva and Lausanne. She studied with Rafael Rosenfeld, Thomas Grossenbacher, Thomas Demenga and Anton Kernjak at the Hochschule für Musik in Basel and the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste.
A member of the Verbier Festival Orchestra and Junior Orchestra for many years, Axelle is also a scholarship recipient from the Fondation Marescotti. In 2023, she won a special prize at the Kiwanis competition in Zurich and second prize at the Concours d'Interprétation Musicale de Lausanne. In 2024, she was honored with the Guy Fallot Prize by the Swiss Cello Association.
Also interested in early music, Axelle participates in masterclasses with Christoph Dangel, Maurice Steger and Leila Schayegh at the Baroque Gstaad Academy and the Balthasar Neumann Academy alongside her lessons with Martin Zeller at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste.
During the 2024/25 season, she was an intern with the Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich and will begin in August 2025 as a tutti cellist with the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra.
Rocco Michela

PIANO
Born in Sierre in 1998, Rocco began his piano studies with Barbara Borse at the Conservatoire Cantonal de Sion, in Valais. In 2015, he won the Grand Prix Bach at the Conservatoire Cantonal and continued his studies at the Conservatoire de Lausanne with Magali Bourquin.
He has been awarded several first prizes in national competitions as a soloist as well as in piano duo with his twin sister, pianist Roberta Michela, and in duo with cellist Axelle Richez.
Rocco is a recipient of various scholarships from esteemed Swiss foundations, such as the Fondation Dénéréaz in 2018 and the Friedl Wald Foundation in 2021.
He has worked with distinguished pianists such as Edith Fischer, Pascal Godart, Marc Pantillon, Louis Schwizgebel, Juliana Yablonskaya, Benedek Horváth, Aleksandar Madžar and Elisabeth Leonskaja.
After having completed his Bachelor's degree with honours, he is currently continuing his studies with Claudio Martínez Mehner, Tobias Schabenberger and Anton Kernjak, and is regularly performing as a soloist and in various chamber music ensembles.