From June 13 to 15 the Zakhar Bron School of Music held the first edition of the Monaco String Academy, the new project under the patronage of the legendary violinist and educator of our times Maestro Maxim Vengerov. Lessons at the Academy were taught by professors Priya Mitchell (London), Claire Oppert (Paris) and Liana Tretiakova (Zurich).

The Monaco String Academy was created for musically gifted children from all over the world with the goal of giving the young musicians an opportunity to develop their performance skills with the most distinguished and experienced professors and offering the students an inspiring chance to meet the superstar of today’s classical music, Maestro Maxim Vengerov. Young violinists and cellists from Monaco, China, UK, Switzerland and other countries took part in the Academy.

The Faculty of the Monaco String Academy 2019 included:

• Maxim Vengerov, universally hailed as one of the world’s finest musicians, and often referred to as the greatest living string player in the world today (Monaco)
• Priya Mitchell, violin professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz (Austria) and artistic director of the Oxford Chamber Music Festival (England)
• Liana Tretiakova, co-founder and leading teacher at the Zakhar Bron School of Music (Switzerland)
• Claire Oppert, prize winner of international competitions and one of the most renowned cello pedagogues in Europe today (France)

The last day of the Monaco String Academy was hosted by the St. Paul’s Anglican Church of Monaco. Maestro Maxim Vengerov gave an open masterclass, during which he paid careful attention to the physical freedom and organic movements of the young violinists.

The closing concert of the Academy, called Music Generations, was opened by the welcoming speeches of Father Lawrence and Maestro Vengerov. All the participants of the Academy had a chance to perform at the concert. They presented a program of famous pieces by composers of various epochs, from Baroque to Romantic. For Polina Vengerova, the young cellist from Monaco, this was a debut performance. The five year old musician impressed the audience by the impeccable performance of Schubert and Beethoven miniatures.

All the participants of the Academy received the certificates of completion, signed by Maxim Vengerov, Priya Mitchell, Claire Oppert and Liana Tretiakova. The young cellists received their certificates from Claire Oppert and the young violinists from Maxim Vengerov.

P.S. Zakhar Bron School of Music expresses deep gratitude to the Solodovsky family for the financial support of the project; to the St. Paul’s Anglican Church of Monaco and personally to Father Lawrence for hosting the masterclass of Maxim Vengerov and the closing concert; to the Pianogrischa Company and personally to Mr. Pius Schumacher for providing the grand piano and transporting it to Monaco.