The St Petersburg Chamber Soloists

Tradition unites the members of the St. Petersburg Chamber Players. All are graduates of, or can trace their musical education to the world renowned St. Petersburg Conservatoire and their fundamental repertoire is directly linked to a time and place, to a Conservatoire whose founders and directors were the very soul of Romantic Russian musical literature: Rubinstein, Glasunov, Wieniawski and Auer. Their virtuosic technique allied with a profound sense of lyricism sets this ensemble apart.

Founded in 1991, the current ensemble has been together since 1995, but its origins go back more than ten years, when Musical Director Alexei Ludevig first began organising and performing chamber music concerts in his native city of Leningrad. Since then, The St. Petersburg Chamber Players have performed to popular and critical acclaim throughout the former Soviet Union, Western Europe, and the United States. The St. Petersburg Chamber Players are made up of five regular members and perform in combinations from duos to piano quintets. With the addition of guest artists, they also expand to perform sextets and octets. Their repertoire includes, in addition to Russian chamber music, works spanning three centuries

NICE-MATIN

They played with style and a certain aristocratic pedigree: a concise, exact conception that rendered the music clear and comprehensible. Their music-making could be best described as "old-fashioned." This is how the great Russian musicians played a couple of generations ago, mixing bold colours with delicate washes of refined and sophisticated timbres, creating the depth of a fine painting. The ensemble was marvellous. the concert had the effect not of making time stand still, but actually of transporting the audience through time.

MARIINSKY THEATRE NEWSPAPER Seid-Zade

Violin

ILYA IOFF  is a prize winner of the Viotti Competition ARD Munich Competition and has been concertmaster of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. A featured soloist with major orchestras including the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Zurich Opera Orchestra with conductors such as: Yuri Temirkanov and Maris Yansons. Performed chamber music with Martha Argerich, Julian Milkis, Alexander Rudin, Sergei Stadler. He is professor of violin at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. Studied with Sergei Stadler, Vladimir Ovcharek (leader of the Taneev Quartet), Elena Komarova.

MICHAEL APPLEMAN made his solo debut at the age of sixteen with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He has been concertmaster of the Pasdeloup, Colonne and European Symphony Orchestras in Paris. Recitals in the United Nations, Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall in New York, The Purcell Room in London. Performed recitals and chamber music with Yves Henry, Alexander Paley, Roland Pidoux etc. Born in the United States, he studied with Russian violinists Misha Mishakoff and Emanuel Borok and graduated from Harvard University where he studied with composer Ivan Tcherepnin.

ALEXEI LUDEVIG has been a featured soloist with several major orchestras, including the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, E. Berlin Radio Orchestra, Novosibirsk Philharmonic Orchestra etc. Performed chamber music with Michaela Martin, Arto Noras, Martti Rousi, Alexander Rudin, Sergei Stadler etc. Recitals and chamber music performances throughout former Soviet Union, United States, Europe and South America. Studied with Yuri Bashmet, Dmitry Shebalin(of Borodin Quartet), Alexei Ludevig Sr. and Maris Yansons(cond.). Was principal violist of the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra.

www.classicalmusic.spb.ru/ludevig

ALEXEI MASSARSKY has won Prizes at the Tchaikovsky, Markineukirchen and Belgrade competitions. Student of Anatoly Nikitin. Soloist with St.Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Zurich Opera Orchestra and E.Berlin Radio Orchestra. Concerts throughout Europe, South Korea and Japan. Performed chamber music with Martha Argerich, Zahar Brohn, Alexander Rudin, Sergei Stadler. He is professor of cello at the St. Petersburg Conservatory.

IGOR URYASH has won prizes at several international competitions, including the Viotti Competition ARD Munich and the Prokofiev Competitions. A sought after performer and recording artist (Mazur Media, Victor), he is a regular recital partner of Mstislav Rostropovich and Maxim Vengerov. Studied with Anatoly Ugorsky and Tatiana Kravchenko

St. Petersburg Players on Guild

• GMCD 7179 Dvorak & Borodin

Page revised 08.04.04