contest 2018

Born in Moscow, the eldest son of two exceptionally talented musicians, Vovka Ashkenazy began studying piano at the age of six under Rögnvaldur Sigurjónsson in Reykjavík. At the age of sixteen he was accepted at the Royal Northern College of Music, where he attended Madame Sulamita Aronovsky's classes. He made his debut in Tchaikovsky's 1st Piano Concerto with the London Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Richard Hickox at the Barbican Centre. He has participated in numerous international festivals such as the Marlboro Festival in Vermont and the Festival di Due Mondi in Spoleto. He is very active in chamber music; he recorded a CD of Italian music with his brother, the clarinetist Dimitri Ashkenazy, with whom he performs regularly, and together they toured Japan in 1997, 2000 and 2002. Since 2001 he has started a close collaboration with Vassilis Tsabropoulos, currently the most virtuoso of Greek pianists. He also currently performs with his father, Vladimir Ashkenazy. They have recorded in the past CDs with DECCA on music by Bartók, Chopin, Rachmaninoff and Schumann. Vovka Ashkenazy is also involved with the "Reykjavík Wind Quintet", with whom he has recorded two CDs distributed by Chandos. Future trips will see them performing in Switzerland, Italy, France, Denmark, Japan etc... In parallel with her concert activity, Vovka Ashkenazy is successfully engaged in teaching. She has given Master Classes in Australia, Denmark, Great Britain, Greece, Guatemala, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the United States of America. She is also a teaching member of the prestigious Accademia pianistica di Imola "Incontri col maestro" and is present for "post-graduate" training at the Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana. In 2012 he became Artistic Director of the Piano Competition Rina Sala Gallo in Monza. Through his concert activity, Vovka Ashkenazy has been able to contribute to various charitable initiatives, such as "Action for Children" and "Cystic Fibrosis Trust" in England, Telethon in Switzerland and "Bridges Peace Foundation" in Cambodia and the Philippines. Furthermore, in 2010 he was appointed "Honorary Artistic Advisor" at the Guangzhou Opera House. He currently resides with his family in Ticino.