News Archive

French violinist Renaud Capuçon is firmly established internationally as a major soloist, recitalist and chamber musician. He is known and loved for his poise, depth of tone and virtuosity, and he works with the world’s most prestigious orchestras, artists, venues and festivals. Born in Chambéry in 1976, Renaud Capuçon began his studies at the Conservatoire […]

Ivry Gitlis is one of the most popular violinists of his time. He has succeeded in combing the integrity of a demanding musical career with original and renewed artistic experiences. Originally from Ukraine, Ivry Gitlis’ parents settled in Israel in 1921. Ivry Gitlis was born a year later in Haifa. His parents were not musicians […]

The first mandolin soloist to be nominated for a classical Grammy, Avi Avital has been compared to Andres Segovia for his championship of his instrument and to Jascha Heifitz for his incredible virtuosity. Passionate and “explosively charismatic” (New York Times) in live performance, he is a driving force behind the reinvigoration of the mandolin repertory. […]

Sophie Ellen Frank is the creator of the educational concept and artistic director of the Opera Academy. Born in 1963 in Osaka, Japan, Sophie Ellen Frank made her debut at the age of four in the role of the child in Madame Butterfly at the Grand Théâtre de Genève in the arms of Dame Gwyneth […]

Paul Hess is the President of the Académie de l’opera Association (Geneva), its conductor and musical director. He is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Academia Chigiana in Siena, Italy. He is a laureate of the Besançon International Conducting Competition and a recipient of […]

Roby Lakatos is not only a virtuoso on the violin, but also an extremely versatile musician who is equally adept to performing classical music, jazz and the folk idiom of his home country of Hungary. He is hard to define: most often, he is described as a Gypsy violinist, a devil’s fiddler, classical master, jazz […]

Born in Siberia in 1971, Vadim Repin was eleven when he won the gold medal in all age categories in the Wienawski Competition and gave his recital debuts in Moscow and St Petersburg.  At 14 he made his debuts in Tokyo, Munich, Berlin, Helsinki;  a year later in Carnegie Hall.  At 17 he was the […]

Composing music that both embraces and challenges western classical traditions, Gabriel Prokofiev has emerged as a significant voice in new approaches to classical music at the beginning of the 21st century. After completing his musical studies at Birmingham and York Universities, and dissatisfied with the seemingly insular world of contemporary classical music, he developed a […]

Violinist Pierre Colombet is a founding member of Quatuor Ébène. The quartet began its rise to fame in 2004 as winner of the ARD Music Competition, following studies with the Quatuor Ysaÿe in Paris, and also Gábor Takács, Eberhard Feltz and György Kurtág. Today it is internationally fêted for its distinctive, charismatic playing, and the […]

Joshua Bell is a GRAMMY®-winning American violinist and one of the most celebrated artists of his generation. His career spans nearly four decades, during which he has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, conductor, and Music Director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields since 2011, succeeding Sir Neville Marriner. He performs with […]