Soloists:
Dogadin
Várdai
Conductor:
Salazar
Programme
Alexey Shor
Travel Notebook for piano and orchestra
Camille Saint-Saëns
Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Romeo and Juliet Symphonic poem
Sergei Dogadin
Violin
After bright successes at the most precious violin competitions Sergei Dogadin acquired international fame as one of the best violinist of his generation.
In 2019 Sergei was awarded First Prize and Golden Medal at the XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. Among his other significant victories such major contents as IX Joseph Joachim International Violin Competition Hannover and Singapore International Violin Competition.
Sergei is the grant-holder of the Russian Ministry of Culture, Prize-winner of the Mozart Society in Dortmund (Germany), winner of the award established by Maestro Yuri Temirkanov and winner of the Prize of the President of Russia.
Since making his major debut in 2002 at the Grand Hall of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonie under the button of Vasily Petrenko and the St. Petersburg Philharmonic orchestra, Dogadin has performed on world’s most renowned venues such as Golden Hall of the "Musikverein" in Vienna, Berlin Philharmonic Hall, Cologne Philharmonic Hall, Warsaw Philharmonic Hall, "Herkules-saal" and "Gasteig" in Munich, "Liederhalle" in Stuttgart, "Concertgebouw" and "Muziekgebouw" in Amsterdam, "Suntory Hall" in Tokyo, Symphony Hall in Osaka, Concert Hall "Kitara" in Sapporo, "Esplanade" Concert Hall in Singapore, "Festspielhaus" in Baden-Baden, Grand Theatre and Symphony Hall in Shanghai, "Auditorio Nacional" and "Palacio de Congresos" in Madrid, "Alte Oper" in Frankfurt, "Tonhalle" in Zurich and Dusseldorf, "Tivoli concert hall" in Copenhagen, Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire, Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theatre, "Berwaldhallen" in Stockholm, collaborated together with London Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, NDR Radiophilharmonie, Budapest Symphony Orchestra, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Frankfurter Museum Orchestra, Nordic Symphony Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, "Kremerata Baltica" Chamber Orchestra, Munich Kammerorchester, Bayerische Kammerphilharmonie, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, "Bruno Walter" Symphony Orchestra, Taipei Philharmonic Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Polish Chamber Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia, Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, National Orchestras of Estonia and Latvia, State Symphony Orchestra of Russia as well as other foreign and Russian orchestras.
Many of Dogadin’s performances have been broadcasted worldwide - on Mezzo classic (France), «Medici.tv», European Broadcasting Union (EBU), BR Klassic, WDR and NDR Kultur (Germany), YLE Radio (Finland), NHK (Japan), BBC (UK), Australian Radio, Polish Radio, Estonian and Latvian Radio.
Sergei has taken part in festivals «Stars of the White Nights», «Musical collection», «Musical Olympus», «Arts Square», «Crescendo», Trans-Siberian Art Festival, Mstislav Rostropovich festival, George Enescu festival, Tivoli festival, Herbstfestspiele Baden- Baden, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Festival, «Festival International de Colmar», Oleg Kagan Festival, Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, «Vladimir Spivakov Invites», «Chopin and his Europe», Baltic Sea Festival, «Vivarte», Singapore Violin Festival etc.
He has collaborated with such prominent conductors as Yury Temirkanov, Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Ashkenazi, Vassily Sinaisky, Vladimir Spivakov, Yuri Bashmet, Yuri Simonov, Manfred Honeck, Andrew Manze, Shlomo Mintz, Aldo Ceccato, Thomas Sanderling, Vasily Petrenko, Anu Tali, Muhai Tang, Ken Takaseki, Dmitry Liss, Alexander Sladkovsky, Alexander Dmitriev, Nikolay Alekseev, Saulus Sondeckis, Michail Tatarnikov, Alexander Rudin, Nicholas Carter, Ken-David Mazur, Kevin Griffiths, Fabio Mastrangelo, Michał Nesterowicz, Jack Martin Haendler and many others.
Sharing the stage with an outstanding musicians is an important part of Sergei's concert life. Among his partners: Elisabeth Leonskaja, Viktor Tretiakov, David Geringas, Boris Kuschnir, Denis Matsuev, Daniil Trifonov, Pierre Amoyal, Alexander Kniazev, Narek Hakhnazaryan, Maxim Rysanov, Plamena Mangova, Nikolai Tokarev, Tatiana Vasileva, Dimitri Illarionov, Vadim Holodenko, Julian Milkis, Alexei Ogrintchouk, Boris Andrianov, Lars Anders Tomter, Gil Shohat, Anna Vinnitskaya and others.
Dogadin had studied in the most famous and significant musical institutions: at the St.Petersburg Conservatory (with Prof. Vladimir Ovcharek), at the International Menuhin Music Academy in Gstaad (with Prof. Maxim Vengerov), at the High School of Music in Cologne (with Prof. Mihaela Martin) and at the University of Music in Graz (with Prof. Boris Kuschnir).
Currently, Sergei improves his skills with Prof. Boris Kuschnir at the Music and Arts University in Vienna.
In 2008 he has released his first CD album on the «Solo Musica» label (Munich, Germany), including the compositions by Peter Tchaikovsky, Sergey Rachmaninov, Sergey Prokofiev and Alexander Rosenblatt.
The 2017/2018 season brought the release of two CD albums:
- Shostakovich - Violin concerto № 1 with the State Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Tatarstan under the direction of Maestro A. Sladkovsky, («Melody» label); - Shostakovich - Sonata for violin and piano and his 24 preludes (arrangement for violin and piano by D.Tsyganov/L.Auerbach), («Naxos» label).
Since 2017 Sergei Dogadin is a guest professor at the Liangzhu International Arts Academy (China) and the Gracias Music Academy at the School of Mahanaim (USA). At the same time he constantly gives masterclasses in South Korea, Singapore, Latvia and Azerbaijan.
Sergei was invited as a jury member at the 4th Yankelevitch International Violin Competition and Vladimir Spivakov International Violin Competition.
Sergei Dogadin had enjoyed the honor of performing during several festivals on Niccolo Paganini’s and Johann Strauss’s violins.
At the moment he plays the Domenico Montagnana violin (Venice, 1721) provided by "The Rin Collection" (Singapore).
István Várdai
Cello
István Várdai, who was born in Pécs (Hungary) in 1985, was admitted at the age of 12 to the Franz Liszt University of Music in Budapest and studied in Professor László Mezö’s class for “extraordinarily gifted” students. In 2005 he transferred to Reinhard Latzko at the University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna. He also took masterclasses with Natalia Gutman, János Starker and Natalia Shakhovskaya. In 2010 he was awarded the Boris Pergamenschikow Scholarship during the Kronberg Academy’s Cello Masterclasses.
István Várdai has won awards in numerous international competitions. He won the David Popper International Music Competition in Budapest three times (in 2000, 2003 and 2004). In 2006 he was awarded a special prize at the Grand Prix Emanuel Feuermann in Berlin and won first prize in the International Johannes Brahms Competition in Pörtschach (Austria). He was also an award-winner at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2007 and won the Geneva International Music Competition in 2008. In 2014 he won first prize in the ARD Competition in Munich.
István Várdai’s debut CD, a recording of Elgar’s Cello Concerto, Prokofiev’s Sonata and Janáček’s Pohádka with the Orchestre de Chambre de Genève conducted by Simon Gaudenz, was released in October 2009 (Nascor). In 2010 he recorded the Cello Concerto in C major by Johann Baptist Vanhal with the Camerata Schweiz conducted by Howard Griffith and in 2013 played a selection of Variations in a recording with Walter Delahunt.
Since making his orchestral debut in 1998 in The Hague, István Várdai has performed with internationally renowned orchestras. He has worked, for example, with conductors such as Ádám Fischer, Howard Griffith, Zoltán Kocsis, Josep Pons, Nicolás Pasquet, Gábor Takács-Nagy, Marcus Bosch, Roman Kofman and Simon Gaudenz. In 2010 István Várdai took part in Chamber Music Connects the World, partnering Gidon Kremer, Tatjana Grindenko, Yuri Bashmet and András Schiff. From 2010 to 2013 he studied at Kronberg Academy with Frans Helmerson. His studies were sponsored by the Gerlinde Haber-Schaefer Stipendium.
He has been teaching at Kronberg Academy since October 2013.
István Várdai plays a Montagnana cello built in 1720 and the legendary "Ex du Pré-Harrell" Stradivari built in 1673.
José Salazar
Conductor
Featured as a Classic FM 2025 Rising Star and currently a Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic (2025/26), José Salazar is a dynamic young conductor with extensive experience and a flair for programming. From 2023 to 2025 he was a Jette Parker Artist at Covent Garden’s Royal Opera House, working closely with the Royal Ballet, assisting on productions across two seasons, and conducting the renowned orchestra in several concert performances. Previously, as Artistic and Music Director of El Sistema Greece (2018–2023), he curated and conducted concerts in the country’s leading venues and festivals while also appearing as a guest conductor internationally.
In the 2025/26 season José returns to the Royal Ballet for performances of La Fille mal gardée at Covent Garden and on tour in Singapore and Tokyo, to Birmingham Royal Ballet for The Nutcracker, and makes his debut with the Greek National Opera Ballet (Giselle). As a Dudamel Fellow he will conduct and cover concerts at Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl, making his podium debut with the LA Philharmonic in March 2026 with a programme including Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, and Gabriela Ortiz’s Kauyumari, commissioned by the orchestra.
Recent highlights include his US debut with the Symphony Orchestra of the YOLA National Festival at Walt Disney Concert Hall (July 2024), his debut with Birmingham Royal Ballet (La Fille mal gardée, October 2024), his debut with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in Caracas (April 2025), and conducting Sing, Dance, Leap in June 2025 – a flagship project for Bradford City of Culture featuring the Orchestra and Chorus of Opera North, dancers from the Royal Ballet and Northern Ballet, and a choir of hundreds of local children.
Educated within El Sistema, José began his conducting studies with Felipe Izcaray before continuing under Gregory Carreño at the Special Program for Academic Development in Caracas. He has since taken part in international masterclasses with distinguished conductors including Riccardo Muti, Dick van Gasteren, Manfred Huss, Rüdiger Bohn, Alejandro Posada, Philippe Auguin, Eduardo Marturet, Christoph Eschenbach and Michalis Economou. Recognised as an exceptional student, he was selected for an international exchange with the University of Göteborg, Sweden, to join its master’s program in Orchestral Performance. In 2020, aged just 23, he was a finalist in the inaugural Arthur Nikisch Conducting Competition, and he has also served as assistant to Gustavo Dudamel and Christian Vasquez for major performances, recordings, and international tours.
Born in 1997 on Margarita Island, Venezuela, José first came to prominence as a teenager and has since conducted widely in Venezuela and abroad. His work has been profiled by Reuters, The Guardian, and China National TV. Born to a family of educators, he is also a passionate linguist, fluent in Spanish, English, Italian, and Greek, and currently learning French and German.