Verona • Italia
Orchestra:
L'Appassionata Orchestra (Italy)
Soloists:
Chaushian
cello (UK)
Tifu
violin (Italy)
Programme
W. A.Mozart
Divertimento per archi
in Fa maggiore KV 138
Sinfonia
in Re maggiore KV 121/136
Sinfonia concertante per violino,
violoncello e orchestra n.29 KV 364
Alexander Chaushian
Cello
Armenian-born cellist Alexander Chaushian is acclaimed worldwide for his refined artistry and powerful performances. He has appeared as a soloist with leading orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic, Philharmonia, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Armenian Philharmonic, and Boston Pops, and has performed at major venues such as London’s Southbank Centre, Carnegie Hall, and Suntory Hall.
A former student of the Menuhin School, Guildhall, and Hochschule Berlin, Alexander is a laureate of top international competitions, including the Tchaikovsky in Moscow and ARD in Munich. As a former NY Young Concert Artists alumnus, he toured extensively across the US.
Alexander collaborates with established artists like Emmanuel Pahud, François-Frédéric Guy, and Julia Fischer. His acclaimed recordings for BIS include collaborations with Yevgeny Sudbin, and his 2023 concerto with the Armenian Philharmonic was named ‘Album of the Week’ by The Independent.
Alexander is the Artistic Director of the Yerevan Music Festival and the International Pharos Chamber Music Festival in Cyprus.
Anna Tifu
Violin
Winner of the 2007 George Enescu Competition in Bucharest Anna Tifu is considered one of the leading violinist of her generation.
Born in Cagliari, she started to play the violin at the age of six under the guidance of her father and to perform in public at eight years old when she won 1st prize with special honors at the Vittorio Veneto concert series. At the age of 11 she made her debut as soloist with the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire and at 12 years old she performed the Bruch Violin Concerto at La Scala in Milan.
At 14 she won first prize at the Viotti Valsesia International Competition as well as in Stresa, where she won the Marcello Abbado International Competition in the same year. She received her Music Diploma in Cagliari at the age of 15 with special honors. She studied with Salvatore Accardo at the Walter Stauffer Academy in Cremona and at the Chigiana Academy in Siena where, in 2004, she obtained the Certificate of Honor.
She was supported by the Mozart Gesellschaft Dortmund and, at the age of 17, Anna was accepted to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where she studied with Aaron Rosand, Shmuel Ashkenzay and Pamela Frank. Later she was awarded a scholarship from the International Music Academy in Cagliari to study in Paris where she received the Diplome Superieur de Concertiste at the Ecole Normale.
Anna has appeared with many of the world’s finest orchestras and chamber ensembles, including Orchestra Nazionale dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI in Torino, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France in Paris (where in 2018 she opened the season, conducted by Mikko Franck), Orchestra della Fondazione Arena in Verona, Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice in Genova, Orchestra del Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana in Palermo, Simòn Bòlivar Orchestra in Venezuela (under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel), Stuttgarter Philharmoniker, Dortmunder Philharmoniker, George Enescu Philarmonic Orchestra and Radio Orchestra in Bucharest, Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra, Munich Chamber Orchestra, KZN Philarmonica in Durban, Israel Philharmonic Soloists, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra of Qatar.
She has worked with conductors such as Yuri Temirkanov, Gustavo Dudamel, Diego Matheuz, David Afkham, Juraj Valcuha, Mikko Franck, John Axelrod, Christoph Poppen, Justus Frantz, Cristian Mandeal, Horia Andreescu, Sergiu Comissiona, Lü Jia, Marco Angius, Giampaolo Bisanti, Julian Kovatchev, Hubert Soudant, Gèrard Korsten, Gabor Ötvös.
Among the recent highlights, chamber music concerts at Teatro La Fenice in Venice and Teatro Verdi in Trieste, and with Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence, Orchestra Nazionale della Rai in Turin, Stuttgarter Philharmoniker for Società dei Concerti di Milano, where she is regularly invited, Orchestra Haydn di Bolzano e Trento, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana in Palermo, Filarmonica Toscanini in Parma.
She has collaborated with musicians such as Maxim Vengerov, Yuri Bashmet, Ezio Bosso, Enrico Dindo, Julien Quentin, Giuseppe Andaloro, Pekka Kuusisto, Mario Brunello, Michael Nyman, Boris Andrianov, the Etoile Carla Fracci, the actor John Malkovich and Andrea Bocelli, who invited Anna as special guest for concerts in Italy, Egypt and United States.
With the pianist Giuseppe Andaloro she has recorded the CD “Tzigane”, released in 2017 by Warner Classics (Franck, Enescu, Ravel).
She has performed for many festivals such as Festival de Musique Menton, Ravello Festival, Al Bustan in Beirut and the George Enescu Festival, where she is regularly invited, as well as in best known concert halls including la Scala in Milan, Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, Sala Verdi in Milan, Great Hall in Saint Petersburg, Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, Konzerthaus in Dortmund, Konzerthaus in Berlin, Beethoven-Saal in Stuttgart, Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Rudolphinum Dvorak Hall in Prague, Ateneo and sala Palatului in Bucharest, Madison Square Garden in New York, Staples Center in Los Angeles, Simòn Bòlivar Hall in Caracas.
Anna Tifu has been testimonial for the Italian airline company Alitalia, along with Riccardo Muti, the director Giuseppe Tornatore and the dancer Eleonora Abbagnato.
On the occasion of the Summer 2020 solstice, the Orchestra Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and Anna Tifu - who for the occasion wore three Fendi Couture dresses - performed the Summer, from the Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi for the Anima Mundi project for Maison Fendi online in streaming. She was awarded the Woman Award 2020 Paul Harris Fellow from Rotary Club Milano Sempione.
Anna plays the Giovanni Battista Guadagnini 1783 "Kleynenberg" violin, on loan from the Canale Foundation of Milan.
L'Appassionata Orchestra
Italy
L’Appassionata was founded in 2019 around the activities of the Gaspari Foundation as a group of outstanding young talents dedicated to the in-depth study of the chamber orchestra repertoire. Its members include some of the finest young professional musicians in Italy, trained at the most important musical institutions throughout Europe, who have already gained significant concert experience with some of Italy’s leading orchestras, including the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, the Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala, the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano, the Mantua Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Teatro Regio of Turin, the Orchestra of the Arena di Verona Foundation, the Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, and the Orchestra Filarmonica del Teatro Comunale di Bologna.
L’Appassionata has already given concerts and toured in Germany, Switzerland, France, and South Korea, as well as performing in some of Italy’s most prestigious venues, including the Sala Verdi in Milan, the Scuola Grande di San Rocco and Teatro La Fenice in Venice, the Accademia Filarmonica in Verona, the Teatro Bibiena in Mantua, and the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, within the framework of major festivals such as Serate Musicali di Milano, Emilia-Romagna Festival, Società dei Concerti di Parma, the Portogruaro Festival, the Galuppi Festival in Venice, and MantovaMusica. The ensemble has collaborated with internationally renowned artists and soloists, including Gil Shaham, Emmanuel Pahud, Leonora Armellini, Laura Marzadori, Anna Tifu, Enrico Dindo, Giuseppe Gibboni, Elio, and Andrea Battistoni.
In addition, L’Appassionata is the protagonist of two recording projects released in 2021: a monograph dedicated to Antonio Vivaldi, released for the first time by SONY Classical together with flutist Tommaso Benciolini, and a monograph on Johann Sebastian Bach with violinist Jaroslaw Nadrzycki, released by Hänssler Classics. Both recordings were met with great success from audiences and critics alike and were broadcast by outlets such as Rai Radio 3, BBC Radio, Radio Classica, Radio24, Venice Classic Radio, and Sky Classica HD.
In 2023, L’Appassionata made its debut in the United States, performing to a sold-out audience at Carnegie Hall in New York. In 2024, the ensemble was invited to perform in the main hall of the Tonhalle Zurich, receiving unanimous acclaim from both audience and critics, and in the same year it was selected to perform on the occasion of the visit of His Holiness Pope Francis to Verona.