Musicians of the Festival
Roel Dieltiens - cello
The
Belgian musician Roel Dieltiens, born in 1957, plays both Baroque
and modern cello. As the son of a teacher of music theory and harmony,
he was more or less obliged to learn piano initially. At the age
of fifteen, encouraged by his elder brother who played the flute
in René Jacob’s Concerto Vocale, he tried the cello just as he was
on the point of giving up music. He immediately fell in love with
the instrument. Having obtained his First Prize at the Antwerp Royal
Conservatory three years later, he then became a pupil at the Chapelle
musicale Reine Elisabeth in Brussels. He went on to further study
with André Navarra in Detmold (Germany) and Pierre Fournier in Geneva
(Switzerland). He was awarded the diploma of the Akademie für Solisten,
Wolfenbüttel (Germany) and the Diploma d’Onore of the celebrated
Accademia Chigiana of Siena (Italy).
By that time Roel Dieltiens
had already begun working with the violonist André Gertler, the
klarinettist Walter Boeykens and the countertenor and conductor
René Jacobs. He became the latter’s regular continuo cellist whilst
also holding the post of first cello of the Orchestra of the 18th
Century under Frans Brüggen for many years. Several contemporary
composers, amongst them Luc Van Hove and William Bolcom, have asked
him to give first performances of their works.
Since 1995 Roel
Dieltiens, who is also a notable interpreter of chamber music, has
appeared with such partners as Frank Braley (piano), Christine Busch
(violin), and many others for the pleasure of playing together:
thus the Ensemble Explorations was born.
With this ensemble he
has recorded several CD’s (highly acclaimed by both press and audiences
wereldwijde) and performed in numerous concert halls and festivals
worldwide.
Along with the choreographer Alain Platel and Les
Ballets C de la B he created ‘Iets op Bach’, which won the ‘Time
Out Live Award’ in London (United Kingdom) in 1998 and the ‘Masque
d’Or’ in Montreal (Canada) in 1999.
Roel Dieltiens currently
teaches at the Hochschule für Musick und Theater in Zürich (Switzerland),
and is frequently asked as a jury member in prestigious competitions
such as Bach Wettbewerb Leipzig (Germany), Tchaikowski Competition
Moscow (Russia).
Evgueni
Grach - violin
Born in Russia to a
famous family of musicians, Evgueni Grach studied at the Moscow
Conservatory with Leonid Kogan, Igor Bezrodny and Valeri Klimov. He also
worked with David Oistrakh and Henryk Szering.
He won the first prize
at the "International Wienlawsku Competition" in 1981, second prize at the
"Music Competition of the Russian Federation" in 1984 and in 1985
he
graduated from Moscow Conservatory with "Summa cum Laude". He was later
made a professor of that conservatory.
He has performed with many of
the leading orchestras of Russia including the "Symphony Orchestra of
Moscow" with which he toured Europe and Asia under the direction of Pavel
Kogan.
As a soloist, he has performed in all the major halls of Moscow
and St. Petersburg as well as at the festivals of Merano (Italy), Taiwan,
Hongkong and Perelada(Spain).
From 1991 until 1994, he was
concertmaster of the "Orquesta Sinfónica Ciudad de Barcelona", during
which period he recorded works of Lluís Benejam.
In 1992, he performed
at the Royal Palace of Pedralbes playing the famous Stradivarius from the
Royal Palatina Collection.
In1994, he became the principal violinst of
the "London Symphony Orchestra", and since the 1997 season, he has
frequently been invited to play as a concertmaster
of the "Orquesta
Sinfónica del Gran Teatro del Liceo", the opera house in
Barcelona.
As a dedicated chamber music player, Evgueni Grach is also a
member of the "London Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players" and the Trio
Myong/Grach/Thiemann.
His recording of Prokofiev´s double sonata
is part of the "Russian Revelations" series.
Mr. Grach teaches violin
in London, Moscow, Barcelona and Tarragona.
Da
Hyun Chung - Piano accompanist
Da-Hyun Chung was
born in Seoul, Korea, in 1990.
She began to play the piano at the age
of five and soon succeeded to win various piano competitions in her home
town Seoul.
In 2004 she was granted with a scholarship to participate
at the "Viena Music Summer Academy" in the piano class of Sontraud
Speidel.
In 2005 she
won first price at the " in Viena and also first price at the "Chopin
Piano Competition in Asia", Japan.
She is
currently studying at " Ye-won Arts School " and as a young student
at the " Korean National University of Arts " in the piano class of
professor Yoo-Kyung Han.
Mrs.
Chung’s memorable solo recital at the AIMS festival 2005
represented her European debut.
Toni
Hougham - Double Bass
Tony Hougham studied
at Trinity College of Music with Frederick Wigston. Whilst at Trinity he
won the Cruft Prize for Double Bass and the Kantrovitch Prize for Solo
Strings.
In 1986 Tony was appointed Principal Double Bass player with
the Orchestra of The Royal Opera House.
Whilst maintaining this
position Tony works with symphony and chamber orchestras in London and has
been invited to play as guest Principal with the London Symphony
Orchestra, The London Philharmonic Orchestra, The Philharmonia and The
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Tony is also a founder member of The
Soloists, a chamber group formed by mostly Principal players of the
Orchestra of The Royal Opera House which has been invited to play at many
prestigious festivals at home and abroad.
In May 1994 Tony was invited
by the International Tenor Giuseppe Sabbatini to perform the virtuosic
Obligato part of Mozart`s Per Questa Bella Mano at St. Johns Smith
Square as part of his debut recital in London.
Tony teaches extensively
and has examined and adjudicated at The Royal Academy of Music, The Royal
College of Music and Trinity College of Music, and coaches many youth
orchestras in Kent, Essex and Herts. He is also actively involved in the
education work of The Royal Opera House.
Tony has recently been
appointed as Double Bass Professor at the Royal College of Music, London.
Liviu
Morna
- violin
Born
in Romania to a family of musicians, Liviu Morna initiated his violin
studies with his father. Later he graduated from the “Music Academy
Ciprian Porumbescu” of Bucharest where he studied with Stefan Gheorghiu.
He
won prizes at various music competitions of his country and joined
the National Radio Orchestra of Bucharest as invited concertmaster.
As a member of the “Quartet Alla Breve” and other groups he
performed in Germany, Italy and Spain.
Liviu Morna was member
of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of Galicia.
Since 2006 he
is associate concertmaster of the Symphonic Orchestra of the Gran
Teatre del Liceu (opera house of Barcelona). This year's performance represents Liviu Morna's third appearance
in AIMS Festival.
Seon-hee
Myong - piano
Born
in Seoul, Korea, she began her studies at the age of four. At nine,
she made her debut in a public recital dedicated to Ludwig van Beethoven
sonatas. When she was thirteen, she made her debut as soloist with
the Korean National Symphony Orchestra playing the 1st Tchaikovsky
concerto.
At fifteen, she moved to the United States to study
at the North Carolina School of the Performing Arts with Joseph
Kalichstein.
From 1981 to 1985 she attended Indiana University
- Bloomington studying with Edward Auer and Zadel Skolovsky, graduating
with a Bachelor of Music degree and the Performer's Certificate,
the highest qualification at this university.
In 1985 a scholarship
took her to Julliard School in New York where she studied with Joseph
Kalichstein and obtained her Masters Degree.
From 1988 to 1990,
Seon-hee Myong was a piano professor at the State University of
New York.
In her career Seon-hee Myong has been given numerous
prizes and awards such as the Helena Rubinstein Award and the William
Patscheck Award.
She has frequently performed both as soloist
and in chamber-music in the United States, Asia, Europe and South
America.
Seon-hee recorded a CD with cellist Lluís Claret
titled Homenage a Pau Casals. She has also recorded for the German,
Swiss and Korean radios.
Dedicated intensively to chamber music
Seon-hee Myong has formed the duo Myong/Thiemann and the trio Myong/Grach/Thiemann.
Recently, the pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim commissioned
her to join the team of teachers who provide free musical education
for children and adolescents in Palestine. Seon-Hee Myong will be
teaching piano in Ramallah and other regions of Palestine as part
of the musical peace project of the Barenboim-Said Foundation.
Luis
Parés - pianista
accompanyist
Luis Pares, born in Venezuela, is an undergraduate
student at the Royal College of Music in London, studying with Gordon
Fergus-Thompson. He holds a scholarship
supported by an Elsa & Leonard Cross Memorial Award. He started his musical studies at the age of
9 with Juan Antunez, and has also studied with Sergio Cimarosti and the Trio di
Trieste in Italy and with Igor Lavrov in Caracas.
He has been awarded the Order "Jose Felix Ribas" in
its third class (Venezuela 1997), special mention at the Stefano Marizza Piano
Competition (Italy 1998) and First Prize at the Silvia Eisenstein National
Piano Competition (Venezuela 2001).
Chamber Music prizes include the RCM Kathleen Turner Piano Chamber Music
Prize, the RCM Wind Ensemble Competition, the Beethoven Piano Society of Europe
Gwyneth George Prize and the XIV Paper de Musica Competition in Catalonia,
Spain. He has also performed in many
masterclasses including those by Christian Blackshaw (RCM), Alberto Portugheis
(Steinway Hall) and Stephen Kovacevich (Dartington International Summer
School).
Luis is an active solo and chamber music recitalist
and has performed in Venezuela, Italy, Spain and England. He regularly performs in London in venues
such as St James Piccadilly, St Martin-in-the-Fields and the Bolivar Hall. He has played in Venezuela with the Orquesta
Sinfonica Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho and the Orquesta Sinfonica de
Maracaibo. Forthcoming engagements
include recitals in London, a concert tour in Spain with violinist Katia Novell
Leruth and he will make his debut with the Orquesta Sinfonica Municipal de
Caracas in Venezuela in 2004.
Paul
Silverthorne - viola
Paul
Silverthorne's busy schedule as a soloist is combined with his work
as Principal Viola of both the London Symphony Orchestra and the
London Sinfonietta. As a soloist he has performed with such conductors
as Sir Colin Davis, André Previn, Kent Nagano, Oliver Knussen
and John Adams, and with major orchestras in the UK, USA, and throughout
Europe.
Many of the leading composers of our time have been inspired
to write for him, his performance of Robert Saxton's Viola Concerto
at London's Royal Albert Hall prompted the Times to describe him
as a "virtuoso in sensitivity as well as technique". The
world premières in 1995 and 1996 of the Viola Concertos of
John Woolrich and Michael Berkeley (at the Cheltenham Festival)
received similarly enthusiastic reviews.
His solo engagements
take him regularly to most parts of the world; recent seasons have
seen tours of Russia and Ukraine, visits to Prague and Zagreb, and
frequent appearances in the United States including a period as
'Artist in Residence' at New York University in May 1999 and a performance
Martinu's Rhapsody Concerto at Lincoln Center in April 2001 with
the LSO and Sir Colin Davis.
He has recorded for EMI, NMC, ASV,
Albany and Meridian, and his most recent CD, 'Invocations' from
Black Box released in June this year, has received outstanding acclaim.
Paul
Silverthorne is much in demand as a teacher, he regularly gives
masterclasses around the world and is a Professor at the Royal Academy
of Music to whom he is indebted for the loan, from their collection,
of the Amati viola of 1620 on which he plays.
Lothar
Strauss – violin
Mr. Strauss is one of the leading German concertmasters. Since the young age of 23 years he is first concertmaster of the “Staatskapelle Berlín” (the Symphonic Orchestra of the “Staatsoper Unter den Linden”, Berlin). As a child he studied at the “Special School for Music” and became later student of Professor W. Scholz. During theses year Mr. Strauss was prize winner of various international violin competitions. In 1984 he began his career as a concertmaster as well as professor of violin at the Music School “Hans Eisler” of Berlin. Dedicated to chamber music Mr. Strauss is first violinist of the “String Quartet of the “Deutsche Staatsoper” since 1989. Throughout years he also performed important part of the piano trio repertoire. Since1990 Mr. Strauss is regularly invited as concertmaster of the leading orchestras of Berlin and of the orchestras of Hamburg, Dresden, Cologne, Frankfurt, Leipzig, Geneva, Barcelona, and Caracas among others.He toured a soloist or as concertmaster throughout Europe, Middle East, North-, Middle- and South America and Asia. Lothar Strauß is mentor of the Orchestral Academy of the “Staatskapelle” (the Symphonic Orchestra of the “Staatsoper Unter den Linden”, Berlin). Since 2001 he is professor of violin of the Music School „Felix Mendelsson Bartholdy“of Leipzig. In more than 1500 performances of opera, ballet and concerts Mr. Strauss worked with most outstanding musicians and artists as Claudio Abbado, Cecilia Bartoli, Alfred Brendel, Graham Clark, Elisabeth Connell, Placido Domingo, Bruno Leonardo Gelber, Michael Gielen, Carl Maria Giulini, Günther von Kannen, Lang Lang, Yo Yo Ma, Vladimir Malakhov, Kurt Masur, Oliver Matz, Zubin Mehta, Waltraud Meier, Anna Netrebko, Rudolf Nurejew, Deborah Polaski, Thomas Quasthoff, Dorothea Röschmann, Mstislav Rostropowitsch, Peter Schreier, Peter Seiffert, Polina Semionova, Juri Temirkanow, John Tomlinson, José de Udaeta, Rolando Villazon, Kwangchul Youn, Pinkas Zukerman. As a concertmaster Mr. Strauss is working intensively with Daniel Barenboim, musical director of the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, Berlin.
Peter
Thiemann - cello
Peter
Thiemann is founder and artistic director of AIMS.
He studied
the cello with Agnes Buntrock, Ferenc Míhaly, Martin Ostertag, Janos
Starker and Maurice Gendron.
Since 1987 he is principal cellist
of the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the Opera House of Barcelona and professor
of cello at the Conservatori Superior de Música del Liceu, Barcelona.
As
a soloist, chamber musician and guest professor he worked in Europe,
North- and South America, Asia and the Middle East.
Among
other pedagogical publications he is author of a scale method for
cello, published in 1989 in the Edición Ibérica of the Boileau publishers
in Barcelona.
In 2005 Mr. Thiemann also joined the faculty of
the Barenboim-Said Foundation, a joint endeavour of the world reknowned
pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim and the late Palestinian
intellectual Edward Said. Its aim is to promote educational and
formative activities in the field of music, as well as a spirit
of peace, dialogue, and reconciliation through music and music education.
The 2007/2008 activities furthermore include concerts, master
classes and performances of world premiers in Europe, USA and the
Middle East.
Andriy
Viytovych - viola
Born in Ukraine, Andriy Viytovych studied at the
Lviv Conservatory (Ukraine) and the International Menuhin Music Academy
(Switzerland). His main influences were Alberto Lysy and Johannes Eskaer,
his teachers and colleagues in concerto and chamber music recordings. Also
with Camerata Lysy Mr. Viytovych has performed concerts in Switzerland,
Germany, Italy, Spain, Ukraine, France and Argentina.
In 1996 Mr.
Viytovych came to London and joined the London Symphony Orchestra as
co-principal viola. He has also played principal viola with many
orchestras including the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Scottish Chamber
Orchestra, the English Sinfonia, the London Sinfonietta, the London
Symphony Orchestra, working with Mstislav Rostropovich, Pierre Boulez, Sir
Georg Solti, Sir Colin Davis, Bernard Haitink.
Mr. Viytovych´s
enthusiasm for chamber music has led to collaboration with different
chamber groups including Camerata Lysy, the London Symphony Chamber
Players, Razumovsky Ensemble and Covent Garden Soloists.
In 2000 Mr.
Viytovych became principal viola with the Symphony Orchestra of the Royal
Opera House Covent Garden.
He is also professor of viola at the Royal
College of Music, London