Margarita Balanas

Margarita Balanas

Key Facts

Biography

Latvian cellist Margarita Balanas is considered to be one of the most promising and versatile artists of her generation. Mentored by cellist Lynn Harrell, Balanas was selected as one of the 6 cellists to take part in the third edition of Gautier Capuçon’s Classe d’Excellence de Violoncelle at the Louis Vuitton Foundation, Paris.

Margarita’s 2017-2018 season includes a concert tour in Tel Aviv, performing Saint-Saens Cello Concerto No.1 with the Israel Camerata as well as piano trio performances with her sister violinist Kristine Balanas and pianist/composer Ilan Rechtman. Other engagements include performances at Wigmore Hall, St Martin in The Fields, The Barbican Centre in London, participation in the Internationall Shanghai Cello Festival, International Cello Cesis Festival in Latvia, Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival in Germany, and the 6th Minoa Palace Chamber Music Festival in Crete.

Recent performances include a debut recital at the Royal Festival Hall, performances at Wigmore Hall, the Piatigorsky International Cello Festival in Los Angeles and the Adelaide International Cello Festival in Australia.

Balanas is a prize-winner in numerous international competitions and has recently won awards from the Musicians’ Company, The Craxton Memorial Trust, Hattori Foundation, The Tillett Trust and the Nicholas Boas Charitable Trust.

Margarita Balanas began her musical studies with Arvids Tareila and Maris Villeruss at Emils Darzins Specialist School of Music in Latvia, before studying at the Purcell School of Music with Alexander Boyarsky. Margarita was awarded The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music Scholarship and Zara Nelsova Award to undertake her undergraduate studies at the Royal Academy of Music where between 2013-2017 she studied under Mats Lidström.

Currently Balanas is doing a Master of Arts degree at the Royal Academy of Music under Christoph Richter and Mats Lidström. Her studies there are funded by the Drake Calleja Trust, the Boise Scholarship and the Countess of Munster Musical Trust.

 

Musicians’ Company Award: Concordia 2017 and RAM Silver Medal 2017

Page Updated: 2017

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