Latest news – Page 259
-
Article
US violinist Marié Rossano triumphs in Salt Lake City junior contest
American Marié Rossano has won the top prize at the Stradivarius International Violin Competition. The contest, for players aged 11 to 17, took place in Salt Lake City, Utah. Sixteen-year-old Rossano, who studies with Simon James and Brian Lewis, received $7,500 for her first prize. Andi Zhang of China won ...
-
Article
Restorer is robbed of two violins in central London
The thief who stole a double violin case in London's Carnaby Street last week might have had a shock when they examined their haul. Inside were two violins but both were being restored: one was in three pieces (with noticeable woodworm damage to the back), and the other was just ...
-
Article
Database of 115 years of BBC Proms performances goes online
The BBC Proms has launched an online archive of every performance in its 115-year history. The database features 7,168 concerts and users can search by composer, work, soloist, conductor, ensemble or date. The archive can be accessed at bbc.co.uk/proms/archive
-
Article
Order of Canada for violinist James Ehnes
Violinist James Ehnes has been named a Member of the Order of Canada. The honour is given to recognise outstanding achievement and service to the nation. Ehnes, who was born in Brandon, Manitoba, in 1976, now lives in Bradenton, Florida. His previous Canadian awards include the 1997 Virginia Parker Prize ...
-
Article
Violinist Nick Eanet to leave Juilliard Quartet
The Juilliard Quartet's first violinist Nick Eanet is to leave the group because of health problems. Eanet, who made his debut with the quartet last September, is suffering from an acute but not life-threatening digestive ailment that makes extended touring too difficult. He will remain with the group next season ...
-
Article
Violinist and conductor Jaime Laredo nets 1723 Montagnana
A Montagnana violin of 1723 has sold at auction in London for £612,000. The figure, which includes 20 per cent buyer's premium, is a world record price for the maker, according to auctioneers Brompton's. The violin, which had been given an estimate of £250,000–£350,000, attracted serious bids from several musicians ...
-
Article
Russian Artem Chirkov wins Bradetich solo double bass competition
Artem Chirkov from Russia has won the first Bradetich Foundation International Double Bass Solo Competition held in Denton, Texas. Chirkov, 30, from St Petersburg, received $10,000 as well as a CD recording contract and performance engagements. The $5,000 second prize went to Namgyun Kim from South Korea. Rex Surany of ...
-
Article
Nearly 400 players set record for largest string ensemble
Officials from Guinness World Records have officially certified a new world record for the largest string ensemble under one roof. The ensemble comprised 392 violinists, violists, cellists and double bassists, who performed Pachelbel's Canon in D major as part of the String Jam '10 event at Juanita High School in ...
-
Article
Violinist Alexandre Da Costa wins $25,000 Virginia Parker Prize
Violinist Alexandre Da Costa has been awarded this year's Virginia Parker Prize by the Canada Council for the Arts. The $25,000 prize is given to Canadian classical performers under the age of 32. Da Costa, 31, studied with Zakhar Bron in Madrid and plays the 1727 'Di Barbaro' Stradivari.
-
Article
Del Sol and JACK quartets win grants for new work
The Del Sol and JACK quartets are among the recipients of Chamber Music America's $170,700 classical commissioning programme for 2010. The Del Sol Quartet from San Francisco will use its award to commission a new work for string quartet and electronica by Mason Bates. New York composer Jason Eckhardt is ...
-
Article
Borusan Quartet scoops top prize in New York chamber competition
The Borusan Quartet from Turkey won the gold medal at the International Chamber Music Ensemble Competition in New York. The Borusan players performed the String Quartet op.29 by their compatriot Fazil Say in the final round at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall. The quartet, all of whose members play in ...
-
Article
Mirecourt to hold contest for young violinists
A new violin contest will take place later this year in Mirecourt, one of the main historical centres of French violin making. The Mirecourt International Violin Competition runs from 9 to 14 November and is open to violinists aged 25 and under. Jean-Jacques Kantorow is the president of the jury, ...
-
Article
Titanic violinist gets entry in biographical dictionary
Wallace Hartley, the violinist who led the Titanic's eight-man orchestra, is one of the latest entrants in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Hartley, who was born in Colne, Lancashire, in 1878, famously played as the Titanic sank in April 1912. He and his fellow musicians were reported to have ...
-
Article
American violinist Benjamin Beilman wins Montreal competition
Benjamin Beilman has won the Montreal International Music Competition, which this year was for violinists. The 20-year-old American, who studies with Ida Kavafian at the Curtis Institute of Music, was awarded CAD30,000 (£20,000) for his first prize. He played the Sibelius Violin Concerto in the final. Second prize went to ...
-
Article
European violin makers dominate prize board at Mittenwald competition
The winners of the sixth Mittenwald International Violin Making Competition have been announced. The leading maker in the violin category was Haiko Seifert from Germany, although no first prize was awarded, so he took second place. The viola first place went to French maker Philippe Mahu. Peter Goodfellow from the ...
-
Article
RPS and BBC Radio 3 launch hunt for unjustly neglected British music
The UK's Royal Philharmonic Society is searching for British chamber music pieces that deserve a second hearing. Its new Encore project will select twelve works to be performed and broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in 2011 and 2012. The pieces must have been written by a living British composer, have ...
-
Article
Cellist Martin Lovett to receive lifetime achievement award from London Cello Society
Cellist Martin Lovett will receive a lifetime achievement award at the Royal Academy of Music on 10 October. The presentation is part of a day of concerts and workshops organised by the London Cello Society. The evening concert honouring Lovett features Guy Johnston and the Sacconi Quartet in a programme ...
-
Article
Violinist and pedagogue Eric Rosenblith dies
Violinist and teacher Eric Rosenblith has died at the age of 90. Formerly the head of strings at Boston's New England Conservatory, he had most recently taught at the Longy School. Born in Vienna, Rosenblith studied with Jacques Thibaud in Paris and Carl Flesch in London. After fleeing Paris ...
-
Article
Violin artwork pushes boundaries of taste and smell
An Ethiopian artist whose works explore themes of death and decay has put a violin at the centre of his latest installation. Mack Eshete's The Shepherd with the Violin is being exhibited at the Goethe-Institut in Addis Ababa, and features a figure with a violin surrounded by skinned sheep. According ...
-
Article
Violinist Jack Liebeck named young British classical performer of the year
London-born violinist Jack Liebeck won the award for best young British classical performer at the Classical BRITs. Liebeck's first CD for Sony Classical - a recording of Dvorak's Violin Concerto, Violin Sonata and Sonatina - was released last year.