Lavard Skou Larsen

Lavard Skou Larsen was born in Porto Alegre / Brazil as son of the violist Perly, and the conductor Gunnar Skou-Larsen from Roskilde / Denmark.

He first received violin lessons at the age of four from his father, Gunnar, and had  extra tuition from Professor Ernst Moravec in Vienna.

He was admitted to the Academy of Music and Performing Arts, Mozarteum in Salzburg aged fourteen to study with Prof. Dr. Helmut Zehetmair, and gained a performance diploma with distinction.

He later completed a postgraduate diploma under Sandor Végh.

Lavard Skou Larsen has won prizes both as soloist and as chamber musician, including the “Concertino Prague” and the “Sergio Lorenzi” in Triest. He was member of the Camerata Academica under Sandor Végh from 1983-86. He has been teaching violin at the Mozarteum/Salzburg since 1991. First as assistant of Prof. Dr. Helmut Zehetmair and from 2002 his own violinclass. 1991 he also founded the Salzburg Chamber Soloists. 

From 1996 to 2002 he takes the charge of leading the European Union Chamber Orchestra. 

As a soloist he appeard in such important concert-halls like the Konzerthaus / Vienna, Grosser Saal des Mozarteums / Salzburg, Champs Elysee / Paris, Beethovenhalle / Bonn, Philharmonie / Köln, Alte Oper / Frankfurt, Tonhalle / Zürich, Victoria Hall / Geneva, Elizabethzaal / Anvers, Concertgebouw / Amsterdam, Teatro Colon / Buenos Aires, Concert-hall / Birmingham, Opera / Kairo, Katchaturian-hall / Yerewan, etc. 

In 1997, he and the pianist Alexander Müllenbach released the first ever recordings of the Brazilian composer, Camargo M. Guarnieris complete violin sonatas for Marco Polo.

Introduced by his father Gunnar and inspired by Sergio Celibidache Lavard Skou Larsen started his conducting activities. 

1978 he won, conducting a local orchestra, the first price at austrias music-competition “Jugend musiziert”.

Since than Lavard Skou Larsen has been invited to conduct leading symphony and chamber orchestras in Europe and South- and Northamerica, , including the European Union Chamber Orchestra, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Deutsche Kammerakademe Neuss, Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, Düsseldorf Sinfonic Orchestra, North-West Philharmony Herford, Rheinische Philharmonie Koblenz, Folkwang Kammerorchester Essen, Bern Sinfony Orchestra, Orchestre des Pays de Savoie, Orchestre de Chambre de Geneve, Orchestre National de Lorraine, Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Mikkeli City Orchestra, Erasmus Chamber Orchestra, Orquestra Cuidad de Almeria, Orquestra National do Porto, Orquestra Sinfonica de Porto Alegre, Orquestra Sinfonica Brasileira Rio de Janeiro,  River Oaks Chamber Orchestra Houston, Texas Music Festival Orchestra, and many others.

From  2004 to 2017 he was acclaimed chiefconductor of the “Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss am Rhein”. 

In 2011 Lavard Skou Larsen was elected chiefconductor of the Georgian Chamberorchestra / Ingolstadt. www.georgisches-kammerorchester.de

In 2019 he was nominated for the ECHO KLASSIK for his recording of the Michael Haydn Sinfonies with the Deutsche Kammerakkademie.

In 2021 he is nominated for the OPUS CLASSIC AWARD with his orchestra Salzburg Chamber Soloists as best chamber orchestra and best chambermusic recording: J.S.Bach: The art of fugue.

Lavard Skou Larsen has recorded for NAXOS as soloist and leader of the Salzburg Chamber Orchestra with works of W.A.Mozart.

For DENON as soloist and leader of the Salzburg Chamber Soloists, together with Boris Belkin with works of W.A.Mozart.

For COVIELLO CLASSICS as soloist and leader of the Salzburg Chamber Soloists with works of F.Schubert, D.Shostakovitch, A.Vivaldi and A.Piazzolla.

For CPO as member of the Salzburg Piano Trio with works of E.Granados.

Recently, for CPO as conductor of the Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss am Rhein with works of H.Kaminski and D.Shostakovitch. Both CDs have received highest acclaim in the international critic and were chosen as CDs of the month of June 2012 at www.klassik.com