EarlyMusicNews.Org

"Terence Charlston is a specialist performer on early keyboard instruments and widely acknowledged for his engaging and expressive performances. He has been described as one of Britain’s leading early keyboard players and his sympathetic command of original instruments has made him a frequent performer at collections of early keyboard instruments all over the world.

Terence Charlston was born in Blackpool, Lancashire. From an early age, he was drawn to the sound and repertoire of old instruments, especially the harpsichord, which he first experienced through recordings and BBC Radio 3 broadcasts. He studied piano and organ from childhood and later took degrees in Oxford and London, specialising in early keyboard performance. As a solo harpsichordist and chamber musician he has toured extensively within Europe, as well as to Japan and the USA. He is well known to chamber music audiences, especially for his work with the quartet London Baroque with whom he gave over 400 concerts worldwide between 1995 and 2007. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 395

"Pawel Siwczak, harpsichordist & early keyboard specialist, winner of the 8th Broadwood Harpsichord Competition (2007) and the Sir Anthony Lewis Memorial Prize (2006, founded by Musica Britannica Trust for the performance of early English music).

Pawel performs actively as a soloist and with chamber ensembles. He has played in orchestras conducted by Trevor Pinnock, William Christie, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Laurence Cummings and Simon Standage, and his touring activities took him to countries such as France, Holland, Sweden, Malta, Russia, England and Poland.

Pawel’s ensemble, Four Temperaments (previously known as Donum Musicum), has been awarded a prestigious Leverhulme Fellowship at the Royal Academy of Music for 2007/2008. The group will act as an ensemble-in-residence at the Academy, working alongside current students in various areas of performance. Pawel’s other group, Triologue, has been offered a place on the Early Music Live! scheme being part of the Brighton Early Music Festival. Both groups won Early Music Prizes at the Academy, in 2006 & 2007 respectively. Pawel has also started The King’s Private Musick, an ensemble aiming at popularising some little known repertoire of early vocal-instrumental music. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 429

"Mrs. ELŻBIETA STEFAŃSKA was born in Cracow, Poland, on September 7, 1943. Her extraordinary musical talent having become aparent already at an early age, she received her first piano lessons from her father Ludwik Stefański, professor at the Music Academy Cracow.

In 19.. she graduated from the National Music University Cracow in the harpsichord class. Her teacher was the famous German Professor Hans Pischner from Berlin. In the following years she improved her musical proficiency at various international master classes in Siena and Weimar, under the guidance of eminent European harpsichord player - such as Zuzanna Ruzickova or Ruggiero Gerlin. Her first two prizes were awarded to her at the Ancient Music Competition, Łódź, for her piano and harpsichord performance of baroque works. 1965 she won the First Prize at the International Music Competition in Geneva, where she was also honoured with the special Henri Ghez reward as the best harpsichard player. Among her awards and prizes are also the City of Cracow Prize for actistic achievements, awarded to the Baroque Trio of which she was a member and "LAUREL OF CBACOW MUSIC LOVERS" granted to her "in testimony of their gratitude and appreciation for having made classic music widely known".

Elżbieta Stefańska is a Professor at the Music University of Cracow where she leads the harpsichord class and where, from 1981-1990, she was Head of the Department of Clavecin and Ancient Instruments. Since 1990 she has frequently been invited to give concerts and to play for TV and radio recording in Japan, South Corea and Taiwan. In the Mozart Year she played 18 Mozart sonatas (6 CDs) using an ancient Mozart piano for the Pony Canyon sonographic company in Tokio. For the same company she also recorded numerous works by J.S. Bach composed for clavecin. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 356

"Marieke Spaans (b. 1972) strives for the maximum in musical expression and dialogue, combined with a thorough knowledge of early music practice. The result is a sparkling performance, full of spontaneity and deep emotions, driven by a boundless passion for the music of the 17th and 18th century.

Last student of Gustav Leonhardt, in 1997 she received her Concert and Teaching diplomas, after five years of study with this grand master of the harpsichord. Coming from this school of harpsichord playing, the keys to her performances are a refined and dynamic touch, historical awareness and respect for the composer and his intensions. Besides her harpsichord studies she studied organ and church music with Hans van Nieuwkoop and Wolfgang Zerer. She attended many master-classes, and received important impulses from musicians such as Lars-Ulrik Mortensen and Jesper Christensen. Currently she is also concentrating on fortepiano.

She was prizewinner at several renowned competitions, in 1997 at the harpsichord competition of NDR Hamburg, in 2000 at the Musica Antiqua Competition of the Flanders Festival in Bruges and at the Competition “Premio Bonporti” in Rovereto.

Marieke Spaans performs in Europe as soloist and as partner of the outstanding violinists John Holloway and Anton Steck. Her recording of W.A.Mozart's opus 1 together with Anton Steck received many rewards of the press (f.ex. "an absolute discografical highlight!" – www.klassik.com)

Marieke Spaans is Professor for Historical Keyboard Instruments at the Institute for Early Music of the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Trossingen (Germany). Before her appointment in Germany she taught at the Conservatories of Amsterdam (1994-2000) and Rotterdam (1997-2000). She teaches regularly at courses all over Europe."

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 1021

"Edoardo Torbianelli, born 1970 in Trieste (Italy), obtained his diploma for piano and harpsichord at the conservatory of his town. He continued his studies at the "Scuola di alto Perfezionamento Musicale dei Filarmonici di Torino" with Prof. Jean Fassina, at the Royal college of Music at Antwerpen (Belgium), and at the Catholic University of Brabant (Netherlands), where he obtained concert degrees for piano, harpsichord and chamber music.

He developed a keen interest in historical performance practice through partecipation in several specialized seminars and courses and by intensive research of historical sources, concentrating especially on the classical and romantic periods. At the same time he continued university studies in literature and languages.

Torbianelli was a prize winner at the Emmanuel Durlet International Piano Competition in 1993 and 1996 and at the international fortepiano competition in Bruges in 1995. Since then he has performed with critical acclaim in Italy, Belgium, Netherland, Germany, Switzerland, Slovenja and Denmark at many international festivals including: Festival van Vlaanderen, Festival de Wallonie, Flamish Opera, Royal Philarmonic of Flanders, Schubert Society Roskilde, Gesellschaft Freunde Alter Musik Basel, Musica Franconia and Musica Antiqua Konzerte Nurnberg, Beethoven-Haus Bonn, Festival di Musica Antica Urbino, Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna.

He has performed on the historical instruments in the collections of: Deutsches Museum Muenchen, Germanisches Nationalmuseum Nurnberg, Beethoven-Haus Museum Bonn, Museum Vleeshuis Antwerpen. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 400

"Professor, music theory, harpsichord: B.A., M.A. in Music Education, University of Northern Iowa, Ph.D. in Music Theory, University of Iowa; seven years public school music teaching in Iowa; first played harpsichord under Robert Donington in the University of Iowa collegium musicum, studied in master classes with the French harpsichordist Kenneth Gilbert; performed throughout South Carolina in solo recitals and as a continuo player in many chamber groups, including the South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra; author of freshman theory text, "Introduction to the Study of Counterpoint" Affiliations: Society for Music Theory, Southeastern Historical Keyboard Society. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 380

"Organist-Choir Director, St. Peter's-on-the-Canal Episcopal Church, Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts Pianist and Harpsichordist -- all-Ravel recital in Fall River in the spring, upcoming programs of Pachelbel's domestic music and the astonishing keyboard music of Baroque Valencia. Piano and harpsichord tuner and technician -- specialising in historical tunings Founder-Director of the Fall River Fipple Fluters, an amateur recorder-playing group, and the Delight Consort, a professional Renaissance and Early Baroque ensemble. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 289

"Born in Sardinia, Paola Erdas was awarded her diploma in harpsichord at the Conservatory of Venice in 1991. From 1992 to 1996, thanks to a five-year scholarship, she studied under Kenneth Gilbert at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. Since 1996 she has been a member of the ensemble L'Apothéose, recording for the Stradivarius label.

In the same year, together with recorder virtuoso Lorenzo Cavasanti, she founded the JANAS ensemble. The group, which collaborates with the theatre and historical dance specialist Deda Colonna, soon became multi-instrumental, with the sound of the harpsichord augmented by voice,winds,strings and percussion , in performances combining poetry, dance and music of the late Renaissance and Baroque periods in the Mediterranean area.

Particularly interested in the early harpsichord repertoire she combines her intense performing activity with her wide musicological interests. For Ut Orpheus Edizioni she has published the first modern edition of the "Pièces de Luth en Musique pour jouer sur le Luth et le Clavessin" by Perrine (Paris 1680), which she has also recorded, for the Stradivarius label, on the Delin harpsichord (Tournai 1768) from the collection of K.Gilbert. Always fascinated by the Spanish repertoire, she has studied this topic in depth with careful research into ancient sources and treatises. In 1997, she recorded the solo CD "Libro de Cifra Nueva" by Luys Venegas de Henestrosa on another harpsichord in K.Gilbert's collection, the Italian F. A. 1677. ...

She is presently working on a critical edition of the "Pièces de Clavessin" by N. A. Lebègue, the first volume of which has been already been published by Ut Orpheus Edizioni and recently recorded by her on the Stradivarius label.

Paola Erdas teaches thorough-bass at the Conservatory of Trieste. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 22, 2008 | Hits: 351

"Philippe Grisvard was born in Nancy in 1980. There he studied piano and oboe before entering the harpsichord class of Anne-Catherine Bücher. In 1999 he got into the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, where he studied harpsichord and basso continuo with Jesper Christensen, and pianoforte with Edoardo Torbianelli. From 2002 he's called to join La Cetra (Barockorchester Basel) where he has played under the direction of René Jacobs, Jordi Savall, and participated as continuist and répétiteur to Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea and Rameau's Les Paladins with Konrad Junghänel. After getting his diploma in 2003, he becomes the regular harpsichordist of the ensemble Harmonie Universelle, leaded by Florian Deuter; with this group he plays as continuist and soliste threw Europe and US and made two recordings for eloquentia - Telemann and Fasch quartets and quintets (EL 0502) and Pachelbel's works for strings (EL 0606). Now Philippe lives in Paris and plays regulary with Vincent Dumestre's Le Poème Harmonique, with whom he participated since 2006, among other projects, to Molière and Lully's "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme", staged by Benjamin Lazar, and plays with Le Concert d'Astrée (Emmanuelle Haim) and The Chamber Orchestra of Europe. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 18, 2008 | Hits: 1445

"Johan Hofmann studied the harpsichord with Jacques Ogg and Siebe Henstra . His repertoire encloses works from the 16th, 17th, and 18th century as well as contemporary, although he specializes in music from the early and mid baroque period. His interpretations are grounded in thorough theoretical and organological knowledge and are at the same time renowned for their spontaneity and purity of style. He gave concerts in Austria , Denmark , France , Germany , Italy , Scotland , Spain , The Tsjech Republic, The United States and Sweden . In the Netherlands he regularly plays with ensembles and orchestras like The Northern Consort, Cappella Groningen, the Brabants Kamerkoor, Ensemble Occhio di Falcone (with Judith van Wanroij, Susanne Braumann and Bert Honig), the Combattimento Consort and cappella Frisae. Johan Hofmann also performed with distinguished players like Michael Chance, the Egidius Quartet, Emma Kirkby, Paul Leenhouts, Xenia Meijer, Robert Muuse and Marc Pantus. ...

Johan Hofmann teaches an international harpsichord class at the Prins Claus Conservatoire in Groningen. At the same institute he teaches thoroughbass and chambermusic. At the Conservatorium van Amsterdam Johan Hofmann teaches harpsichord and thoroughbass as minor subjects, and lectures the course “Harmony in Performance Practice”. He is also regularly invited by the conservatories in Tilburg, Zwolle, Arnhem and Enschede and gives courses in the Netherlands as well as abroad. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 16, 2008 | Hits: 988

"Siebe Henstra studied the harpsichord with Gustav Leonhardt and Ton Koopman at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam. He has won prizes at competitions in Edinburgh (1982) and Amsterdam (1987). Since then, he has played with many ensembles; the best known are the Leonhardt Consort, Tokyo Baroque, La Petite Bande, the Ricercar Consort, and the Royal Concertgebouwr Orchestra. He worked with several famous directors - e.g. Frans Brüggen and Gustav Leonhardt - with whom he co-operated for recordings and opera-productions (for Ricercar, Denon, Philips, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Sony and Telefunken), in most of the European countries, Japan and the United States. He is continuo player (organ and harpsichord) of the Dutch Bach Society. Siebe Henstra has given a number of masterclasses in Finland, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, the USA, Catalunya, and the Czech Republic. At this moment, he teaches harpsichord at the Utrecht conservatory. He made several solo Cd's. One entirely devoted to 17th century italian music for harpsichord solo and another one with the complete keyboard works of Matthias Weckmann, both released by Ricercar. A CD with clavichord works for the MIM in Brussels and he contributed to the complete recording of Sweelinck which got an Edison award (2003) as well as an award of the 'Deutsche Schallplatten Kritik Preis (2003). " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 16, 2008 | Hits: 346

Dutch Harpsichord Society. Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 16, 2008 | Hits: 417

"Pieter Dirksen performs as soloist on both harpsichord and organ and as continuo player with diverse chamber ensembles. He completed his musicological studies with honours in 1987 and since then published widely about baroque keyboard music. In 1996 he received his doctorate ‘cum laude’ with a dissertation on the keyboard music of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, which was awarded the Dutch Praemium Erasmianum. Further books have been devoted to Bach's Art of Fugue (1994), Sweelinck (essays, 2002) and Scheidemann (2007), and critical editions appeared with music by Bull, Sweelinck, Cornet, Scheidemann, Düben, Buxtehude, Reincken, Lübeck and Bach.

Pieter Dirksen is a member of Combattimento Consort Amsterdam and the Netherlands Bach Society as well as the chamber music group La Suave Melodia. He appeared in most European countries, the United States and Canada, and regularly gives masterclasses in chamber music and keyboard playing. He teached at the Organ Summer Academies in Haarlem, Göteborg and Smarano and is affiliated with the organ research at the Göteborg Organ Art Center. As a soloist he specializes in the rich seventeenth-century North-European repertoire as well as in the music of J.S. Bach. Among his numerous recordings the one devoted to the reconstruction of the earliest version of Bach's Art of Fugue and the complete recording of Sweelinck's keyboard music, in which he participated both as a player and musicologist, stand out in particular. The latter was awarded the highest Dutch prize, the Edison. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 16, 2008 | Hits: 422

"Well known as an organist and harpsichordist, Douglas Hollick studied with Peter Hurford whilst organ scholar at Hull University, and subsequently with Marie-Claire Alain in Paris and Gustav Leonhardt in Amsterdam. He has played widely both here and abroad, including the 1991 Prague Early Music Festival, and in Melbourne, Sydney, and the 1992 Fremantle Bach Festival in Australia. Visits to the Czech Republic have continued, with teaching and concerts in Prague, Brno and Ostrava, a member of the jury of the 1996 Organ Competition in Opava, and a Czech Radio recording. In 1999 he played in the Dolní Lukavice Haydn Festival in Bohemia. In visits to Germany he has played concerts on the Silbermann organs in Dresden and Pfaffroda, and in 2004 and 2005 on the restored 17th century organ of St Johannis, Hamburg-Neuengamme. Elsewhere in Europe have been organ recitals in Stuttgart, Roskilde Cathedral and Helsingør in Denmark, and Helsingborg in Sweden. 2003 saw a return to Sydney in Australia, and four concerts. Other concert venues have included Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral and St John’s Smith Square in London, Winchester, Ely, Carlisle and Chester Cathedrals, Southwell Minster, Trinity, Clare, Wolfson and St Catharine’s Colleges Cambridge, and in the Edinburgh, King's Lynn, and Finchcocks Festivals, together with Hull, Southampton, Nottingham, Warwick and Edinburgh Universities. He teaches both organ and harpsichord at Cambridge University and the Birmingham Conservatoire. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 16, 2008 | Hits: 363

"Gary Cooper is one of the foremost ambassadors of the harpsichord and fortepiano - in particular, as an interpreter of Bach’s & Mozart’s keyboard music. Also a concert and opera conductor, he performs with Arion (Montreal), the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, the Irish Baroque Orchestra, the new Belgian period instrument ensemble, B’Rock, and opera with English Touring Opera and at Sadler’s Wells. Gary’s recordings include, with Rachel Podger, the complete Sonatas for Keyboard & Violin by Mozart (Channel Classics), “rightly been showered with critical acclaim and awards”. His Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier was the Sunday Times Classical Record of the Year. Recitals across Europe, including Beethoven’s Diabelli, Scarlatti Sonatas, Bach & music from the London Piano School. He is setting up a new period instrument ensemble; and releasing a recording of Mozart's Variations with Beethoven’s Diabelli, Haydn, Brahms and the Goldberg Variations to follow. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 15, 2008 | Hits: 466

"Maggie Cole enjoys a richly varied musical life with performances on harpsichord, fortepiano and piano. Born in the USA, she began playing the piano from an early age. A keen interest in early keyboards led her to England where she now makes her home. Maggie's teachers were Jill Severs and Kenneth Gilbert and she is pleased to be part of this "family tree" which began with Wanda Landowska. Best known in Britain through numerous recitals on BBC Radio 3 and appearances at leading festivals, abroad she has performed in venues from Seattle to Moscow, and from Finland to India. In addition to solo recitals - with Bach's 'Goldberg Variations' a speciality, given in London, Paris, Cologne, Basel, Mallorca and Chicago - she frequently performs in duos with partners including Nancy Argenta soprano, Michael Chance counter tenor, Philippa Davies flute, Catherine Mackintosh violin and Steven Isserlis cello. She is also particularly devoted to the Classical chamber music repertoire and explores this with her recently formed "Trio Goya" with Kati Debretzeni violin and Sebastian Comberti cello. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 12, 2008 | Hits: 406

"Kathryn Cok pursues a varied career as a harpsichordist, fortepianist and academic on both sides of the Atlantic. She is well sought after both as a soloist as well as a continuo player. Born in the city of New York, USA, Kathryn now lives in The Hague, Holland where she completed a Masters degree at the Royal Conservatory as a student of Ton Koopman and Tini Mathot on the harpsichord, and Bart van Oort on the fortepiano. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 08, 2008 | Hits: 323

"Nancy Metzger pursued musical studies at Syracuse University, the University of Oregon, and California State University, Sacramento. Her organ teachers include David N. Johnson, Arthur Poister, John Hamilton and Richard Purvis. She studied harpsichord in Berkeley, CA with Laurette Goldberg. She has also studied at the North German Summer Organ Academy and the Trio Sonnerie Chamber Music Course in England.

She holds a master's degree in music history, and was for several years a church musician, independent studio teacher and college music professor.

Mrs. Metzger has performed public recitals on both harpsichord and organ throughout the USA and abroad.

Mrs. Metzger is widely known as the author of Harpsichord Technique: A Guide to Expressivity. First published in 1989, the 2nd edition of this manual of baroque performance practice became available in 1998. This useful guide for all keyboardists is now used by individuals, libraries and teachers throughout the U. S. and in other English speaking countries. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 06, 2008 | Hits: 412

"JungHae Kim holds a Bachelors Degree in Harpsichord Performance from the Peabody Conservatory, and a Masters Degree in Historical performance in Harpsichord from the Oberlin Conservatory. She completed her studies with Gustav Leonhardt in Amsterdam on a Haskell Scholarship, and holds an Advanced Degree in Harpsichord Performance from AmsterdamÕs Sweelinck Conservatorium. Ms. Kim has performed in concert throughout United States, Europe and in Asia as a soloist and with numerous historical instruments ensembles including Southern California Chamber Orchestra, Pierce Baroque Dance Company, the Oberlin Baroque Orchestra, the Indiana Baroque Orchestra, the Los Angeles Baroque Orchestra, San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival Period Ensemble, Brandywine Baroque, Musica Angelica, and Music's ReCreation. She performed with American Baroque at the Library of Congress and has performed with Mirable on the Bloomington Early Music Festival and San Francisco Early Music Society Series. She soloed with the San Francisco Symphony in 2005 in a series of performances of BachÕs Fifth Brandenburg Concerto and performed VivaldiÕs Four Seasons at the 2006 Britt Festival with Sarah Chang. She has been a soloist at the Assisi Music Festival in Italy. In 2007, Ms. Kim has performed with the New Century Chamber Orchestra & Nadja Salerno Sonnenberg, and in May she performed with Brandywine Baroque, Davitt Moroney, Arthur Haas, Adam Perl, and Karen Flint in a series of concerts presenting the complete Bach Harpsichord Concertos on Antique Instruments (A series of recordings is now in process from this event). During the summer, Ms. Kim performed at the Music In The Vineyards Summer Festival in Napa, CA and taught at the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival where she is on faculty. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 06, 2008 | Hits: 457

"Krzysztof Czerwinski was born in Poznan, Poland and began his early musical training at the age of 7, as a private piano student of Prof. Irena Wyrzykowska-Mondelska, from the Academy of Music in Poznan. He received his first degree from the Wieniawski School of Music (Poznan), where he studied organ and piano. In 1997 he gained the Wieniawski School of Music Award for both best music interpretation and best organ performance. He won First Prize in the 1998 National Organ Competition in Czestochowa (Poland). In 2000 he graduated from Prof. Jozef Serafin’s organ class, receiving the High School of Music Diploma in Organ Performance.

As an organist, Krzysztof Czerwinski won several top prizes in national and international competitions and has played in many of the major venues in Poland; has broadcast and recorded for Polish radio and television, and has performed abroad, in Russia, France, Holland, Austria, Germany, England and the USA. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 27, 2008 | Hits: 306

"Undoubtedly one of the most prominent harpsichord and forte piano performers in the world, Andreas Staier embarked upon a solo career in 1986 and, since then, his indisputable musical mastery has made its mark on the interpretation of baroque, classical and romantic repertoire.

Born in Göttingen, Andreas studied modern piano and harpsichord in Hannover and Amsterdam. For three years, he was the harpsichordist of Musica Antiqua Köln with whom he toured and recorded extensively.

As a soloist, Andreas Staier performs throughout Europe, the United States and Japan with orchestras such as Concerto Köln, Freiburger Barockorchester, the Akademie für alte Musik Berlin and the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées Paris.

Andreas has been invited to leading international festivals including the Festival de La Roque d’Anthéron, Festival de Saintes, Festival de Montreux, Styriarte Graz, Schubertiade Schwarzenberg, Schlweswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Bach-Fest Leipzig, Bachtage Berlin, Bachwoche Ansbach and Kissinger Sommer. He has also performed in all the major venues in Europe, America and Japan, including Konzerthaus, Wien; Konzerthaus, Philharmonie, Berlin; Kölner Philharmonie; Gewandhaus Leipzig; Alte Oper Frankfurt; Tonhalle Düsseldorf; Wigmore Hall, Royal Festival Hall, London; De Singel Antwerp; Concertgebouw Amsterdam ; Palais des Beaux Arts, Brussels ; Tonhalle Zürich ; Cité de la Musique, Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord, Ircam, Théâtre des Champs Elysées, Paris ; Teatro della Pergola, Florence ; Sala Filarmonica, Roma ; Toppan Hall, Suntory Hall, Tokyo ; Carnegie Hall, New York. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 24, 2008 | Hits: 453

"Viviana Sofronitski began her music studies in the family, following in the footsteps of her father, Vladimir Sofronitsky, who was a distinguished Russian pianist. After earning a DMA from the Moscow Conservatory she came to study Early Music in Oberlin, US. In 1990 she moved to Canada, where she performed with many musicians from the Toronto "Tafelmusik orchestra". In 1999 Viviana Sofronitzki received historical fortepiano and harpsichord performance degrees from the Royal Conservatory in Den Haag.

Viviana Sofronitski was awarded the First Prize at the "Bach Tage Berlin" competition, as well as main prizes at the "Musica Antiqua" competition in Brugge. Since then she has performed at many festivals, including "Printemps des Arts" in Nantes, Leipzig Bach Festival, "Flanders festival" and "Handelsbeurs" in Belgium, and with the "Oude Muziek Netwerk" (Utrecht Festival producer) in the Netherlands.

Viviana Sofronitski recorded with "Suoni e colori", "Pro Musica Camerata" and "Globe" labels. She gives masterclasses and has been widely broadcast in Europe and America. Her current projects include recording Schubert on early romantitic fortepiano. She released a complete recording of all Mozart's keyboard concertos with Musicae Antiquae Collegium Varsoviense orchestra on original 18th century instruments. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 24, 2008 | Hits: 412

"JACQUES OGG is a performer on both harpsichord and fortepiano; he teaches at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague; he conducts and he makes recordings, either solo or with friends and colleagues.

He was born in Maastricht (the Netherlands) and studied harpsichord in the city of his birth with Anneke Uittenbosch. In 1970 he went to study with Gustav Leonhardt at the Amsterdam Conservatory from which he graduated in 1974.

Jacques Ogg’s current activities include soloconcerts on harpsichord or on fortepiano, concerts with flautist Wilbert Hazelzet as a duo as well as in a trio-formation either with gambaplayer Jaap ter Linden or with ‘cellist Christiaan Norde. He is a member of the Orchestra of the 18th Century and performs regularly with Concerto Palatino. He is frequently invited for masterclasses, for instance in Juiz de Fora (Brazil) and Buenos Aires, in Mateus (Portugal), Salamanca (Spain) as well as in Cracow (Poland), Prague and Budapest. He was invited as a juror in competitions such as “Bach Wettbewerb” (Leipzig) and “Prague Spring”.

Jacques Ogg is artistic director of the Lyra Baroque Orchestra in Minneapolis/Saint Paul (Minnesota, VS). " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 24, 2008 | Hits: 358

"Mark Kroll has been acclaimed as one of the world's leading harpsichordists and fortepianists. During a career spanning more than three decades, he has performed throughout North and South America, Europe and the Middle East, winning critical praise for his expressive playing and virtuosity.

Mark Kroll's concert tours have included appearances as the official guest of the city of Barcelona, as featured soloist in Germany's Regensburg Early Music Festival, France's Festival Ambronay, Lisbon's Gulbenkian Foundation, Rome's Conservatorio St. Caecilia and Associazione Musicale Romana, Poland's Dni Bachowski, Slovenijas's Radovljica Festival and, in this country, the Aston Magna, Tanglewood, Saratoga, Northwest Bach, and Mostly Mozart Festivals. He has been the first American harpsichordist to appear in numerous countries, including Abu Dhabi and Dubai of the United Arab Emirates. His recent tours to Israel included concerts, lectures and masterclasses in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Kroll has appeared as concerto soloist with some of the world's major orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Boston Symphony, the Montreal Symphony, the Belgrade Chamber Orchestra and I Solisti di Zagreb.

Kroll's extensive list of recordings includes solo harpsichord works of J.S. Bach, Handel, D. Scarlatti, F. Couperin, Duphly and Balbastre; the complete sonatas for violin and harpsichord and for flute and harpsichord of J.S. Bach; violin sonatas of C.P.E. Bach and S. LeDuc; Schubert's three Sonatinas for fortepiano and violin; a world-premiere recording of Mozart's "Haffner" and "Linz" symphonies as transcribed by J. N. Hummel for fortepiano and instruments; Biber's Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord; and two CDs of contemporary American harpsichord music. He has made numerous radio and TV appearances, including Radio Nacional Espaqa, Radio Yugoslavia, Radio Catalunya, National Public Radio, Westdeutscherrundfunk Köln, Mitteldeutscherrundfunk, Bayerische Rundfunk, France Musique, the B.B.C., the C.B.C., and Radio Smithsonian.

A noted authority on performance practice and period instruments, Kroll has contributed to scholarly publications and written articles on a wide range of topics for general readership magazines and journals. These include chapters on French harpsichord music; 17th-century performance practice; the piano techniques of Beethoven and his contemporaries; and two editions of Hummel’s transcriptions of opera overtures and Mozart's symphonies. Kroll has recently published three books: Playing the Harpsichord Expressively (Scarecrow Press); The Beethoven Violin Sonatas (co-edited with Lewis Lockwood, University of Illinois Press); and Johann Nepomuk Hummel: A Musician and His World (Scarecrow Press). " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 24, 2008 | Hits: 489

"Anikó Horváth was born in Győr, Hungary, and prepared for a pianist career ever since her childhood. She graduated as a pianist from the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in 1972; her professor was István Antal. Simultaneously with studying the piano, she started to play the harpsichord with János Sebestyén. She won the second Grand Prix of the Harpsichord Competition of Paris in 1973 but continued studying with Zuzana Ru�ičková. The harpsichord master course of Kenneth Gilbert given in Vleeshuis, Antwerp in 1978 exerted a great influence on her artistic development.

She has appeared as a soloist and member of chamber ensembles in several European countries: Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Turkey. She has conducted harpsichord courses in Germany and within the Early Music Days of Sopron for several years.

Anikó Horváth is harpsichord professor at the Liszt Ferenc University of Music, Budapest. In 2001 she took her DLA doctoral degree. Beside giving concerts regularly, she publishes articles in musical journals and gives lectures for professionals. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 24, 2008 | Hits: 338