Bach Piano Concerto BWV 1055 A major

Meet Our Artists

Saya Sangidorj

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Saya Sangidorj - ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Sayá (Sayantsetseg) Sangidorj was born in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia in a family deeply involved in music and art, and took her first piano lessons at the age of five from her father and mother. From early ages, Sayá has been performing at every official and prestigious festivals and concerts in Mongolia. At the age of 14, Sayá was the sole nation’s winner “Honored Student Gold Medal” in Music from the Mongolian Children Fund. After graduating from the Music College in Ulaanbaatar, Sayá continued her piano studies at Tchaikovsky Academic Music College and later at Tchaikovsky State Conservatory in Moscow, where she immersed herself in the tradition of Russian pianism under the tutorial of Nina Emilyanova (S. Feinberg’s Disciple), Margarita Fyodorova (H. Neuhaus Disciple) and Post-graduate studies at Madrid’s Royal Conservatory under Guillermo González (V. Perlemuter Disciple) introduced her to Spanish music. These varied influences have shaped her international career as soloist, performing at prestigious concert halls as Tchaikovsky Conservatory Hall and Richter’s Hall Museum in Moscow, Sofia Opera House in Bulgaria, Blas Galindo Auditorium in Mexico, Juan March Hall in Madrid, Carnegie Hall in New York, Kannai Hall in Yokohama City (Japan)... She gives Master-Classes more than 20 years. 40 her students won prizes at International Piano Competitions. In 2000, Sayá’s outstanding young career, great support and interest in young artists earned her the distinguished title of “Honored Art Worker of Culture” from the Ministry of Culture of Mongolia. Today in Spain, Sayá organizes the “Ciudad de Huesca” International Piano Competition , in which Sayá serves as a Founder and President of the Jury since 1999. In 2010 year, Sayá was performed in France, Russia, Ucraine, Spain and Mongolia where she played Schumann piano concert with the Mongolian Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Terje Mikkelsen form Norway. She was also the Artistic Directress of I International Master- Classes & Chamber Music Festival “Beyond Music” in Benasque City. (Pyrénées Mountains in the North of Spain). Recently, the President of Mongolia gave her the Polar Star, a prestigious state award for promoting and representing Mongolian musical development around the world. Sayá Sangidorj is, certainly, best Ambassador Mongolian Art of Music.

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Alexander Volpov - CELLO

Alexander (Sasha), born in Sverdlovsk, Russia, studied at the Sverdlovsk School for Musically Gifted Children and later at the Rachmaninov Conservatoire under Yakov Slobodkin. He taught at the Rostov Conservatoire for 16 years and studied at the Gnessin Russian Academy with Yaroslav Alexanderov of the Borodin Quartet.

As a member of the award-winning Rostov String Quartet, he toured the Soviet Union, recorded CDs, and premiered works by contemporary Russian composers. Since moving to the UK, he has been in high demand as a soloist, chamber musician, and guest principal cellist for orchestras including the BBC Scottish Symphony and Scottish Opera. He has performed at Wigmore Hall with The Rachmaninov Trio and toured extensively with the Classic Trio.

His recordings include Complete Chamber Music Volume One of Charles O’Brien (2018) with Yuri Kalnits and Oleg Poliansky. A member of the Razumovsky String Quartet, he has performed across Europe and Russia. He is an Honorary Professor of Cello at Nanjing University and has taught at the Beyond The Music Festival in Spain. Currently, Sasha is principal cellist with the Northern Ballet Sinfonia and an active soloist and chamber musician.

Yuri Kalnits - VIOLIN

Yuri Kalnits, a recipient of two Diapason d’Or awards for his recording of Weinberg's Violin Sonatas, is acclaimed as "an interpreter of the highest order." He has performed at major festivals worldwide, including the Festival Musicales Internationales Guil-Durance (France), Festival Cziffra (France), Waterford International Music Festival (Ireland), and the Ljubljana International Festival, among others. His concert engagements have taken him to prestigious venues such as The Purcell Room, Kings Place, St. John’s Smith Square, Lincoln Center, and Suntory Hall, with tours across Russia, Europe, the USA, and Asia.

As a concerto soloist, Yuri has collaborated with renowned orchestras including the London Festival Orchestra, Novosibirsk Symphony Orchestra, and the Minsk Symphony Orchestra, and his performances have been broadcast on BBC Radio 3, ABC Radio Australia, and New Zealand National Radio.

A passionate chamber musician, Yuri has performed with distinguished artists like Ivry Gitlis, Eduard Brunner, and Emanuel Abbühl. He co-directs ChamberMusicBox, a London concert series bringing together leading British and European musicians.

Born in Moscow into a musical family, Yuri began violin studies with his father before attending Moscow’s Central Music School and the Gnessin Music School. At 16, he moved to London to study at the Royal College of Music with Professor Itzhak Rashkovsky, where he won several top prizes. He later completed his postgraduate studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Trinity College of Music, receiving guidance from luminaries like Yfrah Neaman, Shlomo Mintz, and Sergei Fatkulline.

Matthew Nelson - CLARINET

Hailed for his “astounding range and virtuosity” (CD HotList), Matthew Nelson is Associate Professor of Clarinet at the University of Louisville, where he performs with the Louisville Winds woodwind quintet and the Grawemeyer Players contemporary music ensemble. He maintains an international profile as both performer and pedagogue, with engagements as invited professor on the faculties of the Beyond the Music International Chamber Music Festival, the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Castilla-La Mancha, and the Curso Internacional “Eduardo Ocón” in Spain. He performed recently at prestigious venues in Russia and Mongolia, also presenting master classes at the Rostov State Conservatory in Rostov and at the Mongolian State Conservatory in Ulaanbaatar. He has performed as guest principal clarinet with the Virginia and Utah Symphonies, and his performances throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia include international competitions and premieres.

Nelson recently released a CD of lesser-known Romantic works for clarinet and piano on the Soundset label with Utah Symphony pianist Jason Hardink. Their interpretation of Felix Draeseke’s Sonata garnered rave reviews from the Internationale Draeseke Gesellschaft, who will promote the recording in their upcoming annual publication, while critics describe the album in its entirety as a “superb exposition” (Colin Clarke) and praise the performers’ “great virtuosity and excellent style” (Maria Nockin). Nelson’s debut solo CD release, Meditations and Tributes, was lauded as “an unreserved success” (Fanfare), demonstrating a “staggering command of the instrument” (textura). He has recorded as a soloist or chamber musician for the Soundset, Centaur, Parma, and Albany labels.

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