Sevak Avanesyan - Cellist

"Sevak Avanesyan's technical skills - including his cello sound, his rhythmic control, his perfect intonation, his natural sense of tempi - are obvious to anyone who hears him play, but he impressed me above all by his deep musicality and by his constant willingness to search and find the real meaning of the music behind the notes." - Andrey Boreyko, Music Director of Artis - Naples

Sevak Avanesyan is described as "a musician of extraordinary virtuosity and a remarkable range of sound capacities" (Bernard Greenhouse) and "undoubtedly, one of the most gifted musicians of his generation” (Janos Starker).

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Born in Armenia in 1989 into a musical family, Sevak began studying cello at the age of five with the well-known Armenian cellist Medea Abrahamyan, a pupil of the legendary Mstislav Rostropovitsch. He continued studying at the Tchaikovsky Specialised Secondary and Music School in Yerevan until 2003. That year his whole family moved to Brussels (Belgium) where he joined the class of Ms Viviane Spanoghe at the Royal Conservatory. He graduated with the highest distinction in 2010 and was admitted to the class of the well-known cellist Claudio Bohorquez at the "Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler" in Berlin.

Photo : Evgeny Evtyukhov

In addition to his regular studies, Sevak Avanesyan has received valuable advice from world-renowned artists such as Janos Starker, Bernard Greenhouse, Steven Isserlis, Mischa Maisky, Maria Kliegel, Lluis Claret, Peter Bruns, Garry Hoffman, Wolfgang Boettcher, Igor Oistrakh, Artemis Quartet, Gerhard Schulz and many others.

Since his youngest age, Sevak has travelled the world as a member of the "Young Virtuosos" of AMAA (Armenian Missionary Association of America). He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in venues such as the Berlin Philharmonic, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Salle Gaveau in Paris, Ford Hall in Toronto, Sidney Opera House, Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Recent concert seasons have brought him to such festivals as the Festival de Radio France Montpellier, the Festival of Menton and the Brahms Festival (Brussels).

Sevak is a laureate of many international competitions, including the “Concours International de Violon, Alto et Violoncelle de Gérardmer-Kichompré” (France), the European Competition for Young Soloists in Luxembourg (first prize), the "Lions Club" European competition (first prize), and the "Golden Label" prize of the Belgian Music Press Association, and winner of the first prize of the promotion "Belgische Stichting Roeping" (Belgian Foundation Vocation) and many more.

Sevak has worked with highly respected conductors such as Hans Graf, Hugh Wolff, Andrey Boreyko and George Pehlivanian. As an avid chamber musician, Sevak Avanesyan also performed with many well-known musicians such as Augustin Dumay, Philippe Graffin, Pascal Devoyon, Pavel Gililov, Maxime Vengerov, Alexei Moshkov, and musicians of the younger generation: Aleksandr Khramouchin, Lily Maisky, Julien Libeer, Alissa Margulis, his brother Hrachya Avanesyan and many others.

Since March 2013, Sevak has been solo cellist of the National Orchestra of Belgium for 4 years.

At the end of 2016, the documentary "Rhythm & Intervals" by Comes Chahbazian premiered. This documentary is about the life of Sevak Avanesyan in Berlin in the period 2011-2013. The documentary has already won awards at various festivals and was broadcast on ARTR TV.

Sevak plays on the very first Mateo Goffriller cello from 1689, made available by Mischa Maisky.

Alon Sariel - mandolinist, lutenist, conductor

Alon Sariel is one of todayʼs most versatile plucked-string performers, inspiring critics and audiences alike with his contagious musicianship and flawless technique, which earns him growing recognition as a multi-instrumentalist and a captivating Bach interpreter.

With a record of far over a thousand concerts in more than 35 countries, including performances in Amsterdamʼs Royal Concertgebouw, Hamburgʼs Elbphilharmonie, Brazilʼs Sala São Pauloor Mexicoʻs Palacio de Bellas Artes,he maintains a multifaceted career as a soloist,chamber player and artistic director in diverse productions.

In his acclaimed Plucked Bach recording series for the PENTATONE label, Alon reimagines Bachʼs music through compelling new arrangements for a rich palette of plucked instruments, including various lutes and mandolins, baroque guitar, oud, and bağlama. The latest instalment of the trilogy was selected as an Editorʼs Choice by Gramophone and awarded five-star reviews in Concerti and De Volkskrant, alongside feature portraits on Radio France and The Violin Channel, among many other international accolades.

"This is the kind of moment that can change your day... as pretty and heaven-sent as a soft spring shower... youʼllfind it hard not to be enchanted by Sarielʼs profound artistry... This is Bach-playing for the ages." Lindsey Kemp - Gramophone Magazine

Recent engagements include Alonʻs debut with the Swedish Västerås Sinfonietta alongside conductor Bar Avni and his return to the Thüringen Philharmonie (play/direct). An 8 concert residency at Early Music Vancouver's summer festival, A five-city tour through Poland and a return Japan as special guest of the Schubertiade in Tamba, as well as a concerto recording together with the English Chamber Orchestra under the baton of composer Nimrod Borenstein.

His Plucked Bach recitals were presented at the festivals Romanischer Sommer (WDR Cologne), the Baroque festivals of Copenhagen and Valletta, the Thüringer Bachwochen, Frankfurtʼs Alte Oper, Potsdamʼs Nikolaisaal,St. Magnus and Ryedale Festivals (UK) and the Jerusalem Music Center.

 Alon Sariel is a winner of many prizes and awards including the OPUS Klassik. He has recently been appointed Early Music Curator for the Styriarte in Graz and for ʼt Huis te Poort in Schiedam, he serves as a member of the Foundation Committee at Göttingenʼs International Handel Festival and as a goodwill ambassador for the animal welfare organization Pro Animale.

© Juliana Farinha

Header photo Alon Sariel © Gregor Hohenberg

Kurt Bertels - Saxophone

Enriching his performances with in-depth artistic research, Kurt Bertels (°1989) brings the Belgian repertoire for saxophone into the limelight.  As a soloist and chamber music performer this classical saxophonist was already invited to play concerts in Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Italy, Portugal, Great-Britain and Norway.

He is a member of the Kugoni Trio and the Anemos Saxophone Quartet and he works with pianist Bert Koch. As an artistic researcher Kurt Bertels is is currently preparing a doctorate in arts at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels (Flemish part). His research focuses on the concept of historically informed performance practice in the field of the early saxophone. More practically, he aims to study the cultural-historical context and the historical performance practice of the Brussels saxophone class between 1867 and 1903. He has given lectures in Belgium (Free University Brussels, Université de Liège) and in Portugal (2nd European saxophone Congress (Porto), 5th International conference on musical research (Evora).

As a soloist, Kurt Bertels obtained prizes at national and international competitions such as the Dexia Classics (2007), the International World Music Concours (2008), the Princess Christina Concours (2009), Forte Limburg (2009) and New Tenuto (2012). The Anemos Saxophone Quartet won the first prize at the International Chamber Music Competition (LU) as well as at the 8th National Adolphe Sax Competition (BE). With the Kugoni Trio he became a laureate of Supernova (2013) and was the first prize winner at the Forte-competition (2015). 

Festa

Kurt Bertels

Orman (from: Two Turkish songs)

Kurt Bertels

Parilti (from: Two Turkish songs)

Kurt Bertels

Kurt Bertels was awarded with the Medal of the Union of the Belgian Composers for his interpretation of the second saxophone concerto by the Belgian composer Paul Gilson. In addition, he was a guest soloist with the Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Guides and the Orchestra of the Low Countries. In Belgium he performed in the Centre for Fine Arts Brussels, Flagey, Amuz, Concertgebouw Brugge and Kursaal Oostende. He participated in national and international music festivals as Klarafestival (BE), Festival Musiq3 (BE), Klara in de Singel (BE), Buma Classical (NL), Wonderfeel (NL), Is Arti (LT), Muziekfestival Middelburg (NL), Saxperience (RS), Festival van Vlaanderen (BE), B-Major (BE), Festival Consonances (FR), Orlando Festival (NL) en Norwegian Academy of Music (NO) and La Festa della Musica Roma (IT).

Kurt's discography includes the CD Mockingbird (2015) with music by Wilfried Westerlinck, the CD Fingerprints#2 (2016), released in collaboration with ComAV and Radio Klara and the CD Timelapse (2016), recorded with the Kugoni Trio. With the Anemos Saxophone Quartet he released Through Time (2013) and Klapzoen (2017). He made several recordings for the Belgian radios Musiq3 and Klara and for the Dutch Radio 4 and appeared on Belgian national television Canvas and Cultuur 7.

Kurt Bertels is a fervent defender of the Belgian both historical and contemporary saxophone music. He commissioned a large number of pieces and collaborated with composers as Filip Ceunen, Jan Hendrik Van Damme, Paul Steegmans, Jeroen D'Hoe, Benjamien Lycke, Erik Desimpelaere, Wilfried Westerlinck, Jan Van Landeghem, Kris De Baerdemacker, Hanne Deneire en Annelies Van Parys. 

In 2012, Kurt Bertels earned his Master’s Degree in music at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels (Flemish part) under the tutelage of saxophonist Norbert Nozy. He has followed masterclasses with  Jean-Marie Londeix (FR), Lars Mlekusch (AUS), Joseph Wytko (USA), Arno Bornkamp (NL), Jan Schulte-Bunert (DE), Naomi Sullivan (GB) en Vincent David (FR). 

Kurt Bertels is an endorsed artist of Légère Reeds (www.legere.com) and is a member of the Flemish
 

Keiko Shichijo - Piano & pianoforte

Pianist & fortepianist Keiko Shichijo is a special voice in both the Classical and new music worlds. Her traditional Japanese sensibilities have combined with her knowledge of European historical performance practices to shape her unique vision, and this is reflected in her feeling for the music, the instruments and the story behind them. 

©Michel Marang

Hailing from Japan and residing in the Netherlands for more than a decade, she is active around the world playing both solo and chamber music. She is a prizewinner in many international competitions, including twice the International Early Music Competition (solo and duo) in Brugge, Belgium, the International Early Music Competition "A Tre" in Trossingen in Germany and the Minkoff Prize from the music publisher, Edition Minkoff, and has performed in many international festivals such as the festivals Printemps Des Arts (France), Utrecht Oude Muziek Festival (Holland), MA Festival (Belgium), La Folle Journée Tokyo (Japan). In 2012, the Hamamatsu Museum of Musical Instruments in Japan released her first fortepiano solo CD of works by Schubert.

Her second solo CD “6 Dances by Komitas Vardapet”, released in 2016, earned unanimous praise in the international press and was featured on the national Dutch TV program Vrije Geluiden.

Keiko Shichijo has a violin/fortepiano duo with renowned violinist Cecilia Bernardini which performs regularly throughout Europe.

As a specialist in contemporary music Keiko has worked with many composers, including Helmut Lachenmann, Tom Johnson, Johannes Kalitzke, Jürg Frey, Roscoe Mitchell en Bernhard Lang. Recently she premiered a concerto with the Janacek Philharmonic.

“..purity of sounds-breathtaking…”

“..Her sound filled the hall as one huge warm blanket…”

Since September 2017 she teaches piano and fortepiano at the Fontys Academy for Music and Performing Arts in Tilburg. She is appointed as one of the juries in International Competition Musica Antiqua pianoforte category in 2019.

Keiko Shichijo studied fortepiano with Stanley Hoogland and organ with Pieter van Dijk at the Conservatory of Amsterdam, and specialized contemporary music with Daan Vandewalle in Royal Conservatory of Ghent in Belgium.

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Keiko Shichijo
presented her
album
"W.A. Mozart Solo Keyboard Works"
in 2021!

More info

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Keiko Shichijo
presented her
album
"Beethoven 1802"
in 2019!

More info

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Keiko Shichijo - Komitas Vardapet - from Six Dances - Shushiki

Keiko Shichijo - C.P.E. Bach - Fantasia in A-dur, wq 58-7

Keiko Shichijo - Tom Johnson - Spaces

Vitaly Pisarenko - Piano

NEW YORK TIMES - Vitaly Pisarenko is an "...Immensely gifted pianist...with prodigious technique, myriad shadings and scrupulous accuracy..."

After winning some of the most important international awards including the First Prize at the 8th International Franz Liszt Piano Competition in Utrecht and the Third Prize at the Leeds International Piano Competition (2015), London-based Russian pianist Vitaly Pisarenko has been steadily gaining worldwide recognition.

Critically acclaimed as a pianist of unusually soft touch, prodigious technique and captivating expressiveness, Vitaly has performed in over 30 countries, including solo recitals at Wigmore Hall, Musikverein in Vienna, Bozar in Brussels, Moscow Philharmonic Recital Hall, National Center for Performing Arts in Beijing, Shanghai Concert Hall, Mozarteum in Salzburg, de Singel in Antwerp, Toyota Concert Hall in Japan, Hong Kong City Hall, Salle Cortot in Paris and Palace of Arts in Budapest.

He has also played with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, National Philharmonic Orchestra in Warsaw, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, London Mozart Players, Noord Nederlands Orchestra, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra on tour in Japan, KBS Symphony Orchestra, Het Gelders Orchestra, the YMSO and others performing at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Cadogan Hall in London, Big Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire,Tokyo Opera City, Seoul Arts Center, Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Sala San Paulo in Brazil and De Doelen in Rotterdam among others.

The Association of Music Critics of Argentina recently presented Vitaly with the '2018 Revelation Award'.

Since January 2020 Vitaly teaches at the Purcell School of Music and in September 2021 he has been appointed as Assistant Professor at the Royal College of Music in London.

Concerti

W.A. Mozart               Concerto No.23 K. 488 in A Major
                                 Concerto No.27 K. 595 in B Flat Minor

L.V. Beethoven         Concerto No.2 in B Flat Major
                                 Concerto No.3 in C Minor
                                 Concerto No.4 in G Major

J. Haydn                   Concerto in D Major

F. Mendelssohn        Concerto No.1 in G Minor

F. Liszt                      Concerto No.1 in E Flat Major
                                 Concerto No.2 in A Major
                                 Totentanz
                                 Malédiction S121

C. Saint-Saëns          Concerto No. 2 in G Minor

J. Brahms                 Concerto No. 1 in D Minor

P. Tchaikovsky          Concerto No.1 in B Flat Minor

S. Rachmaninov       Concerto No.2 in C Minor
                                 Concerto No.3 in D minor
                                 Concerto No.4 in G Minor
                                 Paganini Rhapsody

S. Prokofiev              Concerto No.2 in G Minor

R. Strauss                 Burleske