Thank you
Ivry & Menahem
In Memoriam
Tribute to our dear friends
Ivry Gitlis and Menahem Pressler were not only guest artists in Musica Mundi. From their first performances more than 20 years ago, they dedicated their wide knowledge and experience as performers and most of all, as human beings, to the young generation. Musica Mundi became a home for Ivry and Menahem and they became an integral part of the Musica Mundi family. They were, and still are, our mentors, philosophers, teachers but above all, our friends. Friends to all of us. Thank you Ivry and Menahem! We will carry on your messages to the generations to come… !!!
Maxim Vengerov (violin)
At just 47 years of age, Maxim Vengerov is recognised as one of the world’s most exciting violinists and recently he started a promising conducting career, as well. In May 2000 Vengerov signed an exclusive recording contract with EMI Classics, with whom he made his debut in April 2000. In 1996 he received two Grammy nominations for Classical album of the Year and Best Instrumental Solist with Orchestra. Vengerov received the Edison Award in 1997 in the Best Concerto Recording category, for his Shostakovich and Prokofiev concertos N° 2 recording. In 1997, at the age of twenty-three, Vengerov was appointed Envoy for Music by the United Nations’ Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the first classical musician to be appointed in this role. He says: “I understood what miracles you can bring back to children with music; this is a universal language that everyone understands, it goes from heart to heart”. Another passion of Vengerov’s musical and personal life is his involvement with young people through giving Masterclasses to aspiring musicians. One such event was recorded by Channel Four Television in the UK as part of a documentary about Vengerov, called ‘Playing by Heart’ shown at the Cannes Television Festival in 1999. Maxim Vengerov performs regularly with all the major orchestras and the most eminent conductors. He is a professor of violin at the University of Music Saarland, Germany and was appointed visiting professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London during 2005. Mr Vengerov wishes to express his gratitude to Mrs Yoko Nagac Ceschina for all her continued support, advice and great help, which made possible the purchase of his unique ‘Ex-Kreutzer’ Stradivarius violin.
Vladimir Perlin (cello)
Vladimir Perlin, started his cello studies at the age of 7 in the music school of Minsk, Belarus. In 1960 he was accepted to the conservatory into the class of the exceptional cellist and musician- Alexander Stogorsky, with whom he finished his cello and chamber music studies. Since 1971 Mr. Perlin dedicates his time for teaching and developing young talents. He is touring regularly with his students and giving master classes in Germany, Belgium, Holland, France, England, Poland, the Vatican, Spain and the U.S.A. His students occupy places in some of the world’s major orchestras and music schools . Two full length documentary films were made about Vladimir Perlin and his class and were broadcasted in different countries. In order to award his life achievements in education, the French government granted him with the title of “Officier de l’Ordre des Palmes Academiques”.
Jacques Rouvier (piano)
Born in Marseille in a musicians family, Jacques Rouvier studied with Vlado Perlemuter, Pierre Sancan and Jean Hubeau at the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music, where he obtained first prizes in Piano and Chamber Music. He also completed his education with harmony and orchestra conducting. He owes Pierre Barbizet and Jean Fassina a great pedagogic and human enrichment. Prize winner of several competitions including the Viotti, Maria Canals, European Union of Radios and Long-Thibaud, he created in 1970 the Rouvier-Kantorow-Muller piano trio with whom he performed during 35 years. He participated as a soloist or chamber musician in many festivals and academies (Prades,Spoleto, Aix- en- Provence, Kuhmo, Holland Music Sessions... ) and was invited to do master-classes all around the world. His recordings of complete works for piano by Maurice Ravel and sonatas for violin and piano by Ravel and Debussy were awarded „Grand Prix du Disque“. He also recorded the complete works by Claude Debussy (DENON) and more than 30 other CDs. Invited to participate in the juries of many prestigious international competitions (Tschaikowsky, Montreal, Marguerite-Long, Dublin, Leeds, Hamamatsu, Santander, Seoul, Geneve...) he has been teaching at CNSM de Paris since 1979 and also at UdK Berlin since 2006. He is now professor at Mozarteum-Salzburg and in the Musica Mundi School in Waterloo, Belgium.
Andreas Frölich (piano)
German pianist Andreas Frölich studied with Stefan Askenase , Vitaly Margulis in Freiburg and Pavel Gililov in Cologne . He was prizewinner of several international piano competitions , as in Senigallia , Finale Ligure, Milano ,Vienna....He concertises in the most famous venues in Europe, South America, Asia, South Africa and Australia like Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Musikverein Wien, Solitär Salzburg, Teatro Colón Buenos Aires, Cologne Philharmonie, Munich Philharmonie "Gasteig",Konzerthaus Berlin, Hamburg Musikhalle, Bielefeld Oetkerhalle, Stuttgart Liederhalle, Wiesbaden Kurhaus, Teatro municipal Rio de Janeiro, Teatro Alfa y Cultura artistica Sao Paolo, de Doelen Rotterdam , Vredenburg Utrecht, Salle Gaveau Paris,Caroussel de Louvre Paris, Mozarteum Salzburg and many others as well as in the most important music fertivals , such as Rheingau Musikfestival, Schleswig Holstein Musikfestival, Salzburg, Emilia Romagna Festival, Schubertiade Roskilde and many other Festivals worldwide. As a soloist Andreas Frölich appeared with many famous orchestras , among them Salzburg Chamber Soloists, Wiener Kammerphilharmonie, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss, Münchener Kammerorchester, Colegium instrumentale Halle, Beethoven Orchester Bonn, Rheinische Philharmonie Koblenz ,Klassische Philharmonie Bonn, Würtembergisches Kammerorchester , Suk Chamber orchestra Prag ,orquesta sinfonica de Monterrey /Mexico , Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Johannesburg Philharmonic, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Russian Philharmonic Moskau, Radio Symphonique Luxembourg and many others Andreas Frölich is pianist of the Mendelssohn Trio Berlin and he often performed with Ensemble Wien led by the concertmaster of the Vienna Philharmonic. He is professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln -Aachen He is often inivited as jury member in many international piano competitions (Madrid, Beethoven competition Bonn, Valencia, Ferrol, Granada , Enschede/NL, Brussels , Japan piano open / Tokyo ,Campillos/ Spain, Larnaca/Cyprus, Gorizia/ Italy , Skrjabin, Grosseto, Hongkong /Guanghzhou, La Rioja/Spain, Russian Int.piano Competition)Andreas Frölich is an official Steinway Artist.
Emanuele Silvestri (cello)
German pianist Andreas Frölich studied with Stefan Askenase , Vitaly Margulis in Freiburg and Pavel Gililov in Cologne . He was prizewinner of several international piano competitions , as in Senigallia , Finale Ligure, Milano ,Vienna....He concertises in the most famous venues in Europe, South America, Asia, South Africa and Australia like Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Musikverein Wien, Solitär Salzburg, Teatro Colón Buenos Aires, Cologne Philharmonie, Munich Philharmonie "Gasteig",Konzerthaus Berlin, Hamburg Musikhalle, Bielefeld Oetkerhalle, Stuttgart Liederhalle, Wiesbaden Kurhaus, Teatro municipal Rio de Janeiro, Teatro Alfa y Cultura artistica Sao Paolo, de Doelen Rotterdam , Vredenburg Utrecht, Salle Gaveau Paris,Caroussel de Louvre Paris, Mozarteum Salzburg and many others as well as in the most important music fertivals , such as Rheingau Musikfestival, Schleswig Holstein Musikfestival, Salzburg, Emilia Romagna Festival, Schubertiade Roskilde and many other Festivals worldwide. As a soloist Andreas Frölich appeared with many famous orchestras , among them Salzburg Chamber Soloists, Wiener Kammerphilharmonie, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss, Münchener Kammerorchester, Colegium instrumentale Halle, Beethoven Orchester Bonn, Rheinische Philharmonie Koblenz ,Klassische Philharmonie Bonn, Würtembergisches Kammerorchester , Suk Chamber orchestra Prag ,orquesta sinfonica de Monterrey /Mexico , Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Johannesburg Philharmonic, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Russian Philharmonic Moskau, Radio Symphonique Luxembourg and many others Andreas Frölich is pianist of the Mendelssohn Trio Berlin and he often performed with Ensemble Wien led by the concertmaster of the Vienna Philharmonic. He is professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln -Aachen He is often inivited as jury member in many international piano competitions (Madrid, Beethoven competition Bonn, Valencia, Ferrol, Granada , Enschede/NL, Brussels , Japan piano open / Tokyo ,Campillos/ Spain, Larnaca/Cyprus, Gorizia/ Italy , Skrjabin, Grosseto, Hongkong /Guanghzhou, La Rioja/Spain, Russian Int.piano Competition)Andreas Frölich is an official Steinway Artist.
Zvi Carmeli (viola)
Born 1965 in Jerusalem, Israel, Zvi Carmeli is internationally renowned as a violist and teacher. A graduate of the Curtis Institute, Zvi served as Principal Violist of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, and acted as guest Principal Violist of the Santa Cecilia Orchestra Roma, WDR Köln, Germany, Camerata Salzburg Austria, among others. As soloist he has appeared with the Israel Camerata Jerusalem, the European Community Orchestra, the Gorzow and Lodz Philharmonics in Poland, Kuopio Symphony in Finland, Klaipeda chamber orchestra in Lithuania, Salzburg Chamber Soloists and more. He participated in Chamber Music festivals such as the Emila Romagna and Brescia festivals in Italy, Prussia Cove and Ulverston festivals in England, the Israel Festival and the Galil Elion Festival in Israel and more. He has collaborated with renowned artists such as Vadim Repin, Homero Francesch and the Fine Arts Quartet, and was the founding member of the SoLaRe String Trio, winner of the Netherlands Impresaariat National Competition, touring throughout Europe, USA and Israel, including recordings for national radio stations in Holland, Spain and USA.
Zvi has recorded Chamber Music CDs for leading labels such as Ottavo, Divox, Ars Nova, Edel Berlin
Classics and Kontrpunkt. Zvi Carmeli is a Senior Lecturer of Viola and Chamber Music at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, where he also is head of the Nazarian Program of Excellence in Chamber Music.
Michael Gurfinkel (clarinet)
Director of Arts Production Management, Michael Gurfinkel was born in 1960 in Russia. He has learned to play the clarinet by his father, a wonderful musician and teacher. In 1979-1984 Michael Gurfinkel studied in Gnesins Musical Institute in Moscow with Professor Fedotov. He performed with numerous renowned musicians, such as the Borodin Quartet, "The Moscow Virtuosi" under Vladimir Spivakov, and others. In 1990 Mr. Gurfinkel immigrated to Israel. From 1991, he became Principal clarinetist of the New Israeli Opera Orchestra. In 1995 Maestro Zubin Mehta invited Mr. Gurfinkel to tour in Japan with the Orchestra teatro del Maggio Musicale Florentino. Since then, Michael Gurfinkel has played under numerous conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Loren Maazel, Ricardo Muti, Kurt Mazur, Valery Gergiev, Daniel Oren, and others. As of 2022, Mr. Gurfinkel has taken the position of the Artistic Director of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra.
Aleksei Kiseliov (Cello)
Musica Mundi Alumni
Aleksei Kiseliov was born in Minsk, Belarus in 1985, he began his musical studies when he was only 5 years old at the Republican Music College with Vladimir Perlin. At the age of 12, Aleksei was a prize-winner at the Tchaikovsky International Youth Competition in St Petersburg. In 2003, he moved to London to study with Jerome Pernoo at the Royal College of Music. Aleksei was a prize-winner of several competitions and awards including Leverhulme Trust Award, Richard Carne Award, Lillian Sutton Award, Orpheus Sinfonia Trust Award, The Worshipful Company of Musicians’ Lambert Fellowship Award. In 2008 and 2009 Aleksei directed his own International Music Festival ‘Melodrama’ in London and Minsk. Since 2011, Aleksei combines his solo career with his orchestral role as a Principal Cellist of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and a teaching post at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. In January 2022 Aleksei became a solo cellist of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Stockholm. Aleksei plays the 1740 Don Nicolo Amati cello, kindly lent by the Swedish Järnåker Foundation.
Artiom Shishkov (violin)
Musica Mundi Alumni
Born in Minsk in 1984 Artiom started to study the violin at the age of five with Janna Kutchinsky and debuted as a soloist with the Chamber Orchestra of the Belarus State Philharmony when he was eight. From 1994 till 2002 he studied at the Republican Music College, and later at the Belarus State Academy of Music with Eduard Kutchinsky, and in 2010-2012 as a postgraduate student at the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts with Dora Schwarzberg. Since 1994 Artiom Shishkov became the laureate of 19 International Competitions. Among those is the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in 2012. In 2018 Artiom recorded an album released on Backlash Music with works for violin solo of J.S.Bach: Sonata No.2 in A minor and Partita No.2 in D minor. Artiom Shishkov performs both as soloist and chamber musician and combining his concert life with teaching and giving master-classes.