Vera Vaidman, violinist, violist

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Vera Vaidman studied in Moscow — first at the Central High School of Music and later at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory. Her major teachers were Boris Belenky and David Oistrakh.

Immediately upon arriving in Israel, she took part in Isaac Stern’s master courses at the Jerusalem Music Centre and went on to appear frequently as a soloist with orchestra, recitalist, and chamber music performer. She was heard with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Zubin Mehta and Andre Kostelanetz, the Israel Chamber Orchestra under Rudolf Barshai, the Jerusalem Symphony, led by Gerard Schwarz, Lukas Foss and other conductors, and with all the other orchestras in the country.

She has toured Europe on numerous occasions as recitalist and soloist with various orchestras, performing, inter alia, the entire Bach violin solo repertoire and the 10 violin sonatas by Beethoven. Performed recitals at the Oxford and Cambridge Universities. On Paul Hindemith’s 100-th birthday, she performed his violin concerto at the Hindemith festival in Stuttgart, Germany; she also appeared as soloist in the Dvorak violin concerto in Concepcion, Chile. Vera Vaidman has given recitals in New York (at the Merkin Hall), Chicago, New Haven, Rochester, N.Y., at the Oberlin, Smith and Dartmouth Colleges, Radford University and Virginia-Tech Institute in Virginia, Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Music Academy of the Zagreb University, Seoul National University (Korea), as well as the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, and was heard as a soloist with Jerusalem Symphony in the USA. Her Israel-recorded CD has won international critical acclaim. In December 2005 she gave the world premiere of the violin concerto by Alexander-Uriyah Boskovich (written 60 years ago, but its final version never performed before). In 2014, she premiered in Israel (February) and New York (March 26) the transcription for violin solo, by Noam Sivan, of the Liszt B-minor Piano Sonata. Her recording of the Sonata was issued on the Romeo Records label (New York).

Twice she was invited to participate in the Marlboro Chamber Music Festival, performing and recording there with Rudolf Serkin, Andras Schiff, Philipp Naegele, and other artists. She also took part in Israel’s Upper Galilee Chamber Music Festival and went on European tour with a group of the Festival participants.

In addition, she participated in St. Cyprien festival in France, Gotland and Sommarmusik pa Naset festivals in Sweden,  the Esbjerg Chamber Music Festival in Denmark, Encuentros Internacionales de Musica in Alcobendas (Madrid), Spain, CIM Festival at Weikersheim Castle, Germany, Dino Ciani Festival in Italy, and Academie Internationale d’Ete de Nice, France.

Vera Vaidman was a founding member and artistic co-director of the semi-annual chamber music festival in Zichron Ya’acov, Israel. For eight years she was the first violinist of the former H.Gertler string quartet, appearing with that group in the framework of Israel Festival and on tour in France, Spain, England, Belgium and Germany. Vera Vaidman has also served the music director and leader of Ramat Hasharon Camerata women string orchestra.

Since 2007 performs also on viola. During the 2012 – 13 season, presented at the Felicja Blumental Music Center in Tel Aviv the complete works by J. S. Bach for unaccompanied bowed instruments: three sonatas and three partitas for violin as well as six cello suites (on viola). Has performed Bach recitals on both instruments also in Spain, Germany, Finland and Poland.

In March 2018 presented, during two consecutive weekends, the Bach’s complete works for solo bowed instruments on the Bargemusic concert series in New York.

Also in New York, in July 2018, appeared as guest violist with Semplice Players ensemble.

Member of the faculty at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, Tel Aviv University, Vera Vaidman has conducted master-classes in USA (the Colburn School in Los Angeles, Oberlin, Smith, Dartmouth Colleges), England (Royal College, London), France (CNR Conservatoires of Paris and Boulogne), Germany, Denmark (Royal Academy of Music, Copenhagen), Sweden (Royal Music College, Stockholm), Italy (Bologna Conservatory), the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Georgia (Tbilisi State Conservatoire), Croatia (the Music Academy of the Zagreb University), Finland (Turku Conservatory), Poland (Bydgoszcz Academy of Music), Serbia (Novi Sad Academy of Music), Hungary, Turkey and taught for 15 consecutive years at International Summer Academy in Suolahti, Finland. She also performed and taught at Mantta Summer Festival and Academy as well as the Youth Piano Academy in Finland, and the International Summer Academy in Nice, France.

Emanuel Krasovsky, pianist

Professor (emeritus) of piano and chamber music, the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, Tel Aviv University. Served as chairman of piano department and as deputy director of the School.

Member of the teaching faculty, the Barenboim-Said Academy, Berlin (2018-2020).

Co-founder (1991), artisitic director and faculty member, the annual Tel-Hai Intenational Piano Master Classes in Israel.

Faculty, International Keyboard Institute and Festival, New York (since 2007).

Born in Vilnius, Lithuania. Studied at the conservatory there (with Jurgis Karnavichius), the Rubin Academy of Music, Tel Aviv University (with Mindru Katz), and the Juilliard School in New York (with Ilona Kabos, Guido Agosti, and Ania Dorfmann), where earned B. Mus., M. Mus., and DMA degrees. Also worked with Aube Tzerko at Aspen Festival.

Among his prizes, the Gina Bachauer memorial award, first prize at New York Piano Teachers’ Congress international competition, International Bach Society, and others.

Appeared as soloist with Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Leonard Bernstein, Carlo Rizzi, Sidney Harth, and other conductors as well as with all the other orchestras in the country. Was heard in recital in the framework of Israel Festival, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Weill Recital Hall in New York, and in many European cities. In celebration of Schubert’s birth bicentennial, performed the composer’s last three sonatas in Tel Aviv as well as in Denmark, Germany, Finland, and Hungary to enthusiastic reviews. (E.K. performing the Schubert Sonata in A, D.959)

Has appeared in chamber-music recitals in Israel, Europe, USA, and the Far East with violinist Isaac Stern, cellists Natalia Gutman and Yehuda Hanani, soprano Ileana Cotrubas, flutist Istvan Matuz, among others; performs regularly with violinist Vera Vaidman. Among the international chamber-music festivals he took part in: Kfar Blum Festival in Israel, Esbjerg Festival in Denmark, Gotland and “Sommarmusik pa Naset” chamber music festivals in Sweden, St. Cyprien Festival in France, Dino Ciani festival in Italy,and others.

Was co-founder and director of the semi-annual chamber-music festival in Zichron Yaacov, Israel.

Has taught and conducted master classes at Conservatoire Superieur National in Paris, The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, and International Keyboard Institute and Festival in New York, the Colburn School in Los Angeles, the Piano Texas International Academy and Festival in Fort Worth, the Queen Sofia Superior School of Music in Madrid, London’s Guildhall School, Royal College of Music and Royal Academy of Music, the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory and Gnessin Music Academy, the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg (“International Conservatory Week” 2011), the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Berlin’s Hochschule der Kunste (HdK) in the framework of European Piano Forum 2001, the Freiburg Hochschule fuer Musik, the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, the 2015 Seoul National University International Piano Academy, the Wuyishan International Piano Festival, China, the Royal Music Academy in Copenhagen, the Royal Music College in Stockholm, the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and Turku Conservatory (Finland), Australian National University in Canberra, Oberlin and Smith Colleges, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Hamline International Piano Institute (USA), Krakow (Poland) Summer Academy of Music, the Lithuanian State Academy of Music in Vilnius, the Edward Aldwell Center, Jerusalem, the Vienna, Rotterdam, Novi Sad (Serbia), Tbilisi and Bologna conservatories, Music Academy of the Zagreb University (Croatia), Accademia Dino Ciani in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Academie Internationale d’Ete de Nice, France, Primavera Pianistica in Belgium, the Coimbra (Portugal) International Piano Academy “Aquiles Delle Vigne”, Encontro Internacional de Piano de Sardoal (also in Portugal), the summer music seminar in Debrecen, Hungary, and the CCM Prague International Piano Institute. For 16 consecutive summers taught at International Summer Academy in Suolahti, Finland. Also taught and performed in Finland at the Mantta Festival and the Youth Piano Academy. His master class at the Yamaha Center in New York – in the framework of the International Keyboard Institute and Festival (20 July, 2011) – was broadcast in live stream on the Internet.

Served on the juries of numerous international competitions: Arthur Rubinstein in Tel Aviv; Leeds; Esther Honens in Calgary, Canada; AXA Dublin; Maj Lind in Helsinki, Finland; Cesar Franck Competition in Brussels (as jury president); Tbilisi, Georgia; Paderewski in Bydgoszcz, Poland; Bremen; in USA: Oberlin; Boesendorfer/Schimmel; the AMSA World Piano Competition in Cincinnati (in 2000, as jury chairman); the Rosalyn Tureck International Bach Competition for Young Pianists, New York; the New York Piano Teachers’ Congress competition; Jose Iturbi in Valencia, Spain; Vladimir Horowitz competition and Mykola Lysenko competition in Kiev; Isidor Bajić Memorial in Novi Sad (Serbia); Takamatsu (Japan); the Konzerteum in Greece (2000, 2001, and 2002 jury president); the Senigallia, Pinerolo (Italy), Canberra (Australia), and others. A number of his students have won prizes in international contests and are pursuing illustrious performing and teaching careers the world over. (Among them: two recipients of the Avery Fisher Career Award; two others — winners of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions in New York; several prizewinners in such international competitions as the Queen Elisabeth in Brussels, Beethoven in Bonn, Sydney, Honens in Calgary, and Dublin, among others.)

In June 2015, served on an International Committee for Evaluation of the Music and Musicology Study Programs in Israel, convened by the country’s Council for Higher Education.

His articles on musical subjects have been featured in The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, The Jerusalem Post, Musical Times of London, The Piano Quarterly, the Carnegie Hall Playbill, and other publications. His article appeared in Remembering Horowitz, 125 Pianists Recall a Legend, published by Schirmer Books in New York.