ROMAN FEDCHUK / VIOLIN
Born in Ukraine, Roman Fedchuk made his solo debut at the age of 11 with the Lviv Philharmonic performing Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. He is the winner of several international competitions – Jan Kocian International Competition (Czechoslovakia, 1985), “Vianna da Motta” (Lisbon, 1991), Prague Spring (1992), V. Hummel (1993), and the Gernbach International Music Competition (1996).
He has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the Moscow Soloists with Yuri Bashmet (concertmaster & soloist), Sicilian Philharmonic, Munich Chamber Philharmonic, Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra ND, Symphony Orchestra at the National Philharmonic of Republic of Moldova, Kislovodsk Philharmonic, Briansk Philharmonic, Zagreb Philharmonic, West Bohemian Symphonic Orchestra, Virtuosi Pragensis, Kursk Chamber Philharnic, Lviv Philharmonic and others orchestras. He has played in the most prominent concert halls in the world, including Prince Albert Hall, Kioi Hall, and Gewandhaus, and served as guest concertmaster with the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, Churaschsische Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, and the Quintetto da Camera Berlin.
He is a frequent guest of European music festivals including Iserlohn (Germany), Tour (France), Chursachsische Sommer (Germany), the 9th International Festival of Music and Dance in Ubeda (Spain), the 2nd Music Festival in Moscow (Russia), the Bohemia Festival (Czech Republic), International Festival of Vaclav Jirovec (Czech Republic), and Furth (Germany), Summer Music Festival (Prague, Czech Republic), Festival of Contemporary music (Moldova), Olympus Musicus Music Festival (Prague, CzechRepublic) and others.
Additionally, he has recorded a CD of the violin concertos by J. S. Bach, and has toured Japan twice. He studied conducting at the National University of Music in Bucharest under Professor D. Goya and performs internationally as a conductor in countries such as the Czech Republic, Romania and Germany.
Roman Fedchuk studied at the Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory under Professor Z. Shihmurzaieva, as well as with D. Tzyganov and Isaac Stern.
He has lived in Prague since 1994 and founded the international ensemble of soloists “Concertino,” which performed successfully in the Czech Republic, France, Spain and Germany. He is a founding member of the Ludwig Piano Quartet, which recorded a CD of the Brahms and Dvorak Piano Quartets (2003). He is also a professor at the State Conservatory in Pilsen (Czech Republic) and member of jury in different Czech and International Violin Competitions, like Competition of all Czech Conservatory, Arthur Grumiaux International Competition Brussel, Belgie,, Chistmas International Competition S. Petersburg, Russia and others.
RAMUTE KALNENAITE / CELLO
Ramutė Kalnėnaitė studied cello with Romanas Armonas at the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art. In her school years she won the first international and several national competitions. 1975-1980 she studied in Moscow State Conservatory. There she qualified as a performer, pedagogue, chamber musician, and concerto-soloist. 1980-1982 she furthered her cello studies in Moscow State Conservatory. She spent all seven years in Moscow studying with prof. Stefan Kaljanov.
Since 1983 Kalnenaitė has been teaching the cello class at the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art. Since 2012 she has been holding classes in Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre.
In 1984 Kalnenaitė won the first place in the International music competition. She has held her performances in the most prestigious halls of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Latvia, Estonia, France, Switzerland, Belorusia, Uzabekistan, the USA, and Russia. She performed as a solo cellist with the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra,, Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, Klaipėda Chamber Orchestra, The String Orchestra of the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art, Chamber Orchestra o Tashkent State Conservatoire. Kalnenaite took part in numerous international and national music festivals both in France and Lithuania (Th. Mann „Alternative“, „Kristupa‘s Summers, „Summers in Druskininkai with M. K. Čiurlionis and etc). As a chamber musician she performed with renown Lithuanian and foreign musicians.
IAKOV ZATS / VIOLA
Career followed the typical path for a musician coming from the Russian school. He frequented the prestigious institute for child-prodigies into the renowned Moscow Conservatoire, where he graduated, and so beginning immediately a demanding career that brought him to perform in his home land and abroad. In 1992 he was appointed artistic director of the well known chamber music ensemble “New Chamber Orchestra of Moscow”. In 1993 he joins the “Moscow Soloists” as viola solo. In 1994 he decides to leave Russia and settle in Western Europe, where he has the chance to grow musica lly playing under the baton of conductors like C. Abbado, B. Haitink, R. Muti, G. Pretre, keeping alive the main issues of the Russian school. His performances are so distinguished for the warmth and expressivity of sound, a spontaneity linked at a strict logic of phrasing. From 1996 to 1998 he had been holding the position of viola solo in the “G. Verdi Orchestra” in Milan. In 2001 he’s invited by C. Abbado to play in the “Mahler Chamber Orchestra”. He’s thus played in the most important concert-halls worldwide: Moscow, London, Paris, Milan. He’s also performed recitals in festivals and concert seasons in Milan, Fabriano, Chioggia, Modica, Verona, Camerino and Stresa.
From 2006 he’s viola solo in the Orchestra of “Fondazione Arena di Verona”, and holds the same position in the “Orchestra Filarmonica of Fondazione Toscanini”. He’s recently recorded and revised the edition of the Sonata opus 28 by E. Ysaye for the “White Prince Edition”. Since 2008 he has been teaching in Conservatory of Reggio Calabria (Italy).
SOFIA ASTAKHOV/CLARINET
Sofija Astakhov, born 1987, comes from a Ukranian musical family. She developed her enthusiasm for music when she was only a small child. At first she received piano lessons; at the age of eight years the begann to play the clarinet. She was educated at the special music school of Kotor in Montenegro. After her degree in 2003, she studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich, Germany, in the class of professor Ulf Rodenhäuser and at the Staatliche Musikhochschule Freiburg, Germany, in the class of professor Jörg Widmann.
The main focus of her musical career lies on working with contemporary composers. In 1999 Dejan Despic, one of the most significant composers of former Yugoslavia, already dedicated a piece for clarinet, piano and orchestra to her. „Music for Sonja“ was premiered the same year at the Lviv Philharmonic and later on at Kolarac concert hall in Belgrade.
During her studies she was a member of the ensemble for contemporary music „Oktopus“ in Munich for five years. The ensemble was led by the composer professor Konstantia Gourzi. At the same time Sofija Molchanova also regularly performed as a soloist and chamber musician at various festivals, she played at Kissinger Sommer, Schleswig-Holstein Musikfestival, the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, at the Münchener Biennale, the Max-Reger-Tage Weiden and at the Max Reger-Forum Leipzig, in Kloster Seeon, at the Mozartiade-Schwäbischer Musiksommer, at the Pavarotti Music Center Mostar as well as at the Luxembourg Philharmonic, the Nish Philharmonic (Serbia), the Lviv Philharmonic (Ukraine) and Kolarac in Belgrade.
The young musician acquired extensive orchestra experience through her engagement in different sound bodies, she regularly plays with the Jewish Chamber Orchestra Munich, the Georgisches Kammerorchester Ingolstadt, the Junge Philharmonie Köln and the Russian Chamber Philharmonic St. Petersburg. In 2012 Sofija Molchanova won the price of the Oscar und Vera Ritter-Stiftung and was finalist at the second international clarinet competition in Freiburg, Germany. Currently Sofija Molchanova is solo clarinettist at the Jewish Chamber Orchestra Munich and clarinettist at the Filarmonia Frankfurt and Festival Orchestra Westfalen. She teaches currently at the music school Neuenstadt and Moeckmuehl as clarinet and Saxophon teacher and conducts Musikverein Siegelsbach (Wind Orchestra).
She was born in 1985 in Karlovy Vary. In 1994 she won the prize at the Kocián Violin Competition in Ústí nad Orlicí. She graduated from the Pilsen Conservatory under Professor Roman Fedchuk. Since 1995 she has been performing as a soloist in Germany, Holland and the Czech Republic. In 2008-2010 she attended master classes with Roberto Cani (concertmaster of the L.A. Symphony, USA) and Prof. Solomia Soroka (Detroit University). In August 2009 she won the audition for concertmaster of the International Student Orchestra – Italy – Trento. In June 2010 she made her debut with Wieniawski’s Concerto No.2 accompanied by the symphony orchestra at the Mestanska Beseda in Pilsen and in the autumn of the same year she represented the Czech Republic at the International Violin Festival 2010. in Chisinau (Moldova), where she performed Antonín Dvořák’s Romance, Tschaikovsky’s Melody and Piazzola’s Winter from the cycle of seasons accompanied by the Moldavian Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Steven Huang (USA) and Maestro Dimitru Goji (Romania). In the festival concerts she co-performed with Alexander Vinnitsky, professor of the Moscow Conservatory and Academy in Helsinki. In 2011 she performed as a member of the European Prague Quartet on a concert tour in Japan. She is a member of various chamber ensembles such as the Baroque Consortium Prague, Soloist of the International Soloist Ensemble Concertino. She has also performed regularly with chamber ensembles and as a soloist at the Olympus Musicus International Music Festival in Prague from 2012 – 2018. Since 2012 she has been a member of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Yucatán in Mexico. From 2014 until now, she has given numerous chamber recitals in Italy (Palermo, Milano, Como), Mexico (Mexico City), Germany ( Halle), Lithuania (Vilnius) and the Czech Republic. In 2015 she recorded a solo CD with the Moldovan Philharmonic Orchestra in Chisinau in collaboration with contemporary composer Özcan Sönmez (Turkey). Since 2016 she has been studying at the Conservatorio Giuseppe Verdi in Milan. In 2018 she is the laureate of the St. Petersburg Competition, 2nd prize for solo performance and 1st prize with the international trio Bohemiae. From 2020 – 2022 she completed her Master’s degree at VD Universitetas Muzikos Akademija, Kaunas, Lithuania. She regularly performs as a soloist in Berlin, most recently in 2022 with the L.v.Beethoven Violin Concerto.
VSEVOLOD DVORKIN/PIANO
Vsevolod Dvorkin was born in 1972 in Moscow (Russia). He was 5 years old when he began to play piano. He attended the Music School for Children (where he has taught afterwards for three years) under the guide of prof. N. A. Petrova and later the Special Music School “Gnessins” of Moscow under the guide of prof. E. V. Tolkunova. He continued his studies at the Conservatory “P. Ciaikovskij” of Moscow where he graduated in 1995 with prof. V. V. Gornostaeva and prof. N. V. Troull. He participated in the master classes of K.-H. Kämmerling and S. Perticaroli. He took part in several competitions: “Premio Dino Ciani” in 1993 and 1996 (Diploma), “Klara Schumann Wettbewerb” in 1994 in Düsseldorf (Diploma), “Robert Schumann Wettbewerb” in 2000 in Zwickau (Diploma); he was finalist in the “Concorso Internazionale Pianistico F. Busoni” of Bolzano in 1999; semifinalist in the following competitions: “Concorso Internazionale di Musica da Camera” of Trapani (1994) and “Umberto Micheli” of Milan (1994) obtaining a scholarship offered by M. Pollini and Dr. F. Micheli, that permitted him to study in Italy under the guide of L. Berman at the “Accademia Pianistica Incontri col Maestro” in Imola and V. Balzani at the Conservatory “G. Verdi” of Milan, where he graduated in 2000 with full marks and special mention, and where he won the 1st Prize in the inner Competition “Premio A. Bocchi 1999”. In 1996 he won the First Prize at “IIº Concorso Internazionale Città di Pavia”, the First Prize at “XIIº Concorso Internazionale Viotti-Valsesia” of Varallo, Second Prize (first not awarded) at “IIº Concorso Pianistico Internazionale Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli” of Desenzano del Garda, Second Prize (first not awarded) at “VIºConcorso Internazionale per pianoforte e orchestra Città di Cantù” in the romantic section, playing the 1st Concerto of Tchaikovsky obtaining also the prize of the public and the press. In 1999 he obtained the 3rd Prize at “1º Concorso Internazionale Gran Prize Ecomusic” in Monopoli. In 2000 he won the 1st Prize in the Chamber music section of “IIº Concorso nazionale “F. Feroci – Città di San Giovanni Valdarno”. He played concerts in Russia: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Ekaterinburg, Ulianovsk, Kostroma, Kaliningrad; Germany: Düsseldorf, Osnabrück, Kerken, Essen and Krefeld; South Korea: Seoul; Japan: Tokyo, Kurashiki, Toyama and Naha; Hungary: Miscolc; Mexico: Mexico City; Italy: Milan, Como, Pavia, Turin, Verbania, Stresa, Latina, Civitanova M., Desenzano, Bologna, Imola, Venice, Bergamo…, playing both in solo and chamber music recitals and with various orchestras like: “Ulianovsk Symphony Orchestra” (Russia) conducted by V. Vanteev, “Moscow Symphony Orchestra” (Russia) conducted by D. Orlov, “Orchestra Filarmonica Oltenia di Craiova” (Rumania) conducted by P. Gelmini, “l’Orchestra Filarmonica di Udine” (Italy) conducted by N. Matoševic, “l’Orchestra Filarmonica di Iasi” (Rumania) conducted by A. Nanut, “Debrecen Symphony Orchestra” (Hungary) conducted by G. Kisellyak, “l’Orchestra Stabile di Bergamo” (Italy) conducted by R. Zollman, “Moscow State Symphony Orchestra” (Russia) conducted by V. Ziva, “Orquesta Filarmonica De La UNAM” (Mexico) conducted by A. Fagen etc. As a chamber music player he also played with Cristiano Rossi, Pavel Berman, Enrico Dindo, Sonia Bergamasco, M. Bedetti, G. Gallotta, Yong Su Min, Shuku Iwasaki, Seizo Azuma, Ryosuke Hori, Nabuko Yamazaki, Hiroshi Yamagishi, “Gaudeamus”quintet, Francesco Defronzo, “Nuove Vie” quartet, Luca De Muro, “Mozart” quartet, “Rimsky-Korsakov” quartet, He has participated at the “New Names” International program, at several festivals such as “Prokofiev Festival” (Rostov on Don), “Pianoforum Festival” (Kazan‘), “Eurofestival” of Camerino, “Rencontre internationale des Jeunes Pianistes” (Paris), “Okinawa International Music Festival” (Naha/Okinawa/Giappone), “Valsassina Festival” (Barzio), “International Festival of San Gimignano” (San Gimignano), “Autunno musicale” (Como). He has recorded for Croatian radio HRT some works of the chamber music repertory with the violist N. Anikeeva. He took part in the jury of the International Competition of Music of Verbania, the “International Competition Città di Pavia” in the categories of Pianoforte and Chamber Music and of the “Valsesia Musica” International Competition, Liszt International Competition (Parma). On the 2nd of December 1998 he made his debut in Sala Verdi of the Conservatory G. Verdi of Milan in the concert season of the “Società dei Concerti” (Emerald Series), performing the 3rd concerto for piano and orchestra of L. van Beethoven and the rare “Slavic Fantasia” of O. Respighi with “l’Orchestra Filarmonica di Udine” conducted by N. Matoševic. On the 6th of December 1999 he made his debut at “Kioi Hall” of Tokyo in the prestigious series “Music in Style”. On the 2nd of june 2001 he made his debut at the “Nezahualcoyotl Hall” in Mexico City.
DONALDAS RAČYS /PIANO
Donaldas Račys was born in Šiauliai, where he started playing piano. He continued his studies at Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis Art School (under E. M. Šernienė and A. Jurgelionis). As a pupil he became a laureate of numerous national and international piano competitions. Among the most notable: Usti nad Labem (1982, 1st prize), Jaunųjų atlikėjų konkursas in Vilnius (1987, 1st prize), the Piano Competition in Riga (1987, 3rd prize). Mr. Račys studied at the Moscow State P. Tchaikovsky Conservatory under Prof. V. Kastelski and Prof. L. Dedova. The pianist gave solo concerts in Germany, Italy, The United States of America, Denmark, Poland and China. He had made recordings with the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra at the Lithuanian Radio, played a recital on an occasion of diplomatic relations’ restoration between Lithuania and Poland. Mr. Račys has twice received a scholarship from the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania for his concert activities. Besides his solo music activities, Donaldas is sough-after pedagogue, whose students have been awarded in many international piano competitions, such as Roma Piano Competition, Malta Valletta Piano Competition, The Magnus Competition etc. Donaldas is much in demand as a jury member in national and international competitions. Moreover, he gives frequent masterclasses in Lithuania, Poland, Italy, and China.
Mr. Račys is the head of the piano department at the Vytautas Magnus University Music Academy and a teacher at the national M. K. Čiurlionis Art School. Every year Donaldas, alongside his students, prepares a concert project for special anniversary: in 2017 his students performed concerts in Lithuania and Poland playing all the S. Rachmaninoff Etudes-tableaux, in 2018 they performed all C. Debussy Preludes, and in 2021 – lesser-known F. Liszt pieces.
MIGLE KRISTINA SAKAVICIUTE / HARP
graduated the National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Arts, where she was studying harp in the class of teacher Vilija Grencevičiūtė. Later, she completed her bachelor’s studies in performing arts at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater in Joana Daunytė’s class.
Miglė is a participant and laureate of various national and international competitions. She has played in various not only Lithuanian but also international orchestras, she also plays as a soloist and in various chamber ensembles. Currently, she is a harpist in the symphony orchestra of the Klaipėda State Musical Theater.
MARIUS SAKAVICIUS / CELLO
was born in 1994. He graduated The National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Arts, majoring in cello, in the class of teacher Romanas Armonas. He also completed his bachelor’s and master’s studies in performing arts (cello) at VMU Music Academy, doc. In Ramutė Kalnėnaitė’s class.
Young cellist is a laureate of various national and international competitions and has played as a soloist with various orchestras.
The young cellist is also a member of the newly formed Piano Trio “Vytautas Magnus Trio”, and on the contemporary art scene he actively participates in various projects in collaboration with the team of contemporary dance performers and creators “Seiko Dance Company”.
He performed not only in Lithuania, but also in Poland, the Czech Republic, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Portugal, Denmark, Israel and Great Britain.