TARTINI COMPETITION

Miodrag V. Bogić is a violinist, violin professor, and restorer of string instruments. He completed his violin studies at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade (FMU). Alongside his studies, he also devoted himself to the making and restoration of string instruments and spent several years receiving professional training in renowned workshops in the United Kingdom – in London, Birmingham, and Cambridge (J. Kudanowski, A. Whone, J. Beaker).
In 1991 he founded the artistic workshop Tarisio for the making and repair of string instruments. For more than 35 years, he has been successfully collaborating as a restorer and violin maker with numerous musicians and soloists, and as an official master craftsman with major institutions, orchestras, festivals, music schools, and academies in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and in recent years also in Slovenia.
He has presented his work at numerous fairs, and in 2004 he received the First Prize for the most successful presentation of artistic craftsmanship at the International Entrepreneurship Fair in Belgrade. In addition to his practical work, he regularly lectures and leads seminars in music schools and academies throughout the region, covering topics related to the making, restoration, and history of string instruments.
As a violinist, he received numerous republican and federal awards during his studies at violin competitions and festivals in the countries of the former Yugoslavia. He has performed as a soloist, chamber ensemble member, and concertmaster in all major cities of the region as well as abroad.
Since 2010, within his artistic studio Tarisio Music Education Center, he has been providing individual violin lessons and courses, collaborating annually with violin teachers and more than one hundred pupils, high school students, and university students from the wider region. Within Tarisio Studio, he also regularly organizes exhibitions, concerts, and seminars led by renowned music lecturers and artists.
At the First International Tartini Competition in Piran, he served as president and one of the main supporters of the event. Since 2016, together with pianist Biserka Marović, he has been performing the concert project Giants of Classical Music for Violin and Piano, appearing regularly throughout the region.
In 2025, on the 150th anniversary of the birth of Fritz Kreisler, he completed a concert tour in various cities in Serbia, Slovenia, and Croatia with a program dedicated to the life and work of this exceptional 19th-century violin virtuoso. The lecture-concerts were met with great enthusiasm by audiences.

Sonja Horvat, born in Koper, is a violinist and pedagogue. She studied violin at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana with Prof. V. Meljnikov, where she also completed her degree.
Her passion for teaching young children led her in 2005 to the Suzuki Talent Center in Turin. Under the guidance of the renowned Prof. L. Mosca, she completed her studies in 2007 and became the first teacher in Slovenia licensed to teach preschool children using the Suzuki method.
She began teaching in 1994 at the Koper Music School – Izola branch, and since 2008 she has also taught at the arts high school in Koper. She has continued her professional development through masterclasses with distinguished professors such as C. Hutcap, I. Ozim, S. Milenkovich, A. Sešek, G. Košuta and L. Sorokow.
Her students regularly participate in national and international competitions, achieving exceptional results, numerous first prizes and overall awards. Under her mentorship, many students have continued their studies at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana and at renowned international institutions such as Kunstuniversität Graz and the Royal College of Music in London.
Under her mentorship, students have also been admitted to prestigious orchestras including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Verbier Jugendorchester and Jugendorchester Alpen Adria, performing on major stages in Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Belgium and the United Kingdom. Many of her students have received the Golden Violin Key, the highest award of the Koper Music School.
For many years, Sonja Horvat has been organizing and leading professional training and workshops for young violinists. Since 2005 she has been the artistic director of the international summer school Godalko, collaborating with outstanding violinists and guiding numerous young musicians into the world of music. She is also active as a jury member at various competitions, including TEMSIG, where in 2024 she prepared the regulations for the 1st category and served as chair of the jury.

Tommaso Luison, a violinist and musicologist, dedicates himself to diverse violin repertoires, ranging from early music to contemporary languages, and from folk music to the great classical and operatic-symphonic tradition. He began studying the violin at the age of 7 with Antonella Nicolini and graduated with honours from the Conservatory of Vicenza, under the guidance of Giovanni Guglielmo. He further specialized with Domenico Nordio, Ilya Grubert and, for 20th-century and contemporary repertoire, with Enzo Porta. For chamber music, he attended courses held by the Trio di Trieste, Kostantin Bogino, and the Trio Altenberg, winning numerous national and international competitions as the violinist of the Trio Malipiero. He regularly performs as a soloist and in chamber music ensembles. He plays with ensembles such as Ensemble Musagète, Ensemble Concordanze, Interpreti Veneziani, and Barocco Europeo, holding concerts in Europe, the United States, and Asia. He collaborates as Concertmaster with orchestras including the Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, Teatro Lirico Petruzzelli of Bari, Orchestra Regionale Filarmonia Veneta, and The Musicians of the King’s Road (Finland). Within his artistic activity with the Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, he often holds the dual role of Concertmaster and Conductor (Concertatore). He has collaborated as Principal Player with the orchestra of the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (, and the Arena di Verona. In 2008, having won a competition, he became a permanent member of the Orchestra della Fondazione Teatro Comunale di Bologna, where he played in the First Violins until 2021 with important conductors and soloists on the national and international scene. He is dedicated to in-depth study of the repertoire for solo violin of all eras and genres, with particular attention to contemporary music, the 17th and 18th-century period on original instruments, and folk music. He delves into the study of baroque performance practice, particularly the School of Tartini and 18th-century Italian violin playing. In 2009, he graduated with a first-class degree and honors (massimo dei voti e la lode) in Literature and Philosophy from the University of Padua, with a thesis on the musical philology of Giuseppe Tartini. He participates in international musicology conferences and serves as an editor for the National Edition of Tartini's Works for the Bärenreiter publishing house. He performs in early music festivals and seasons in Italy and abroad (including the TartiniFestival in Piran, Amici della Musica di Padova, and Musica Amoeni Loci in Pesaro). A passionate enthusiast of folk music, in 2012 he published the book Ballabili antichi per violino o mandolino. Un repertorio dalle Dolomiti del primo Novecento (Ancient Dances for Violin or Mandolin. A Repertoire from the Dolomites of the early Twentieth Century), published by Nota Edizioni. He has collaborated with the Venetian folk music group Calicanto and is among the founders of the collective Tajaf, with which he explores original musical composition linked to theatrical performance and multimedia. He has always combined his concert and musicology activities with teaching. He has taught Violin at the Conservatories of Mantua (2011), Padua (2013), Cesena (2014-2015), Sassari (2015-2018), and Rovigo (2020), and Chamber Music at the Conservatory of Benevento (2020). He carries out intense outreach activities regarding violin pedagogy and topics related to the Violin in Italy, also through a well-regarded YouTube channel. Since the academic year 2022/2023, he has been a tenured Professor of Violin at the "E. F. Dall’Abaco" Conservatory in Verona.

Since 2006, Emilio Percan has been performing as soloist and concertmaster with leading European orchestras, collaborating with renowned artists such as Viktoria Mullova, Daniel Hope, Simone Kermes, Dorothee Mields, Ivry Gitlis, Maurice Steger, Julia Lezhneva, Vivica Genaux, Edita Gruberova, Daniel Müller-Schott, and Chen Reiss. His concert activities have taken him throughout Europe, South America, Japan, China, Israel, and the USA, appearing at venues such as the Teatro Colón Buenos Aires, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Cologne Philharmonie, Gewandhaus Leipzig, and Berlin Philharmonie. He has recorded more than 20 CDs for labels including Deutsche Grammophon, DECCA, SONY, Harmonia Mundi, Capriccio, Pan Classics, and Onyx Classics. In 2017, he released an acclaimed recording of Brahms’ Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 1, performing both as conductor and soloist – praised internationally for its period-informed sound and interpretative freshness. Equally at home in historically informed performance, Percan has led projects as concertmaster and soloist with ensembles such as Concerto Köln, l’arte del mondo, Das Neue Orchester, and the FAMES European Institute. His stylistic versatility and cross-disciplinary curiosity are also reflected in his role as artistic director of the G.A.P. Ensemble, which he founded in 2012. The ensemble’s productions, often in collaboration with artists from dance, theatre, and visual arts, have toured internationally and been documented in award-winning CD and radio recordings. Alongside his performing career, Emilio Percan is a dedicated pedagogue. Since 2012 he has held teaching positions at institutions such as the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz, Folkwang University of the Arts Essen, Kalaidos Music Academy Zürich, the State University of Arts and Culture Moscow. His students are prizewinners of major international competitions (Tibor Varga, Rodolfo Lipizer, Eugene Ysaÿe), perform at leading festivals such as Verbier and Kronberg, and hold permanent positions in world-class orchestras including the Vienna Philharmonic, Concertgebouw Orchestra, and Leipzig Gewandhaus. He is regularly invited to give masterclasses worldwide, including at the Schloss Akademie (Hamburg, Vienna), TMMC Brescia, and Gifted in Music Kapfenberg. Since 2013 he has also directed the Jeunesses Musicales International Summer Academy in North Macedonia. Born in Skopje, Macedonia, Emilio Percan received his earliest training with Isabela Golovina in Moscow and continued his studies at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen with Pieter Daniel, Dirk Mommertz, and Stephan Schardt, shaping his artistic identity at the crossroads of modern and historical performance traditions.

Janez Podlesek is a renowned Slovenian violinist and pedagogue. He graduated from the Academy of Music in Ljubljana (Akademija za glasbo v Ljubljani) in the class of the distinguished professor Primož Novšak, where he also completed his postgraduate studies—specialization. For 15 years, he served as the Concertmaster of the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra (Orkester Slovenske filharmonije) and the Slovenian Philharmonic String Chamber Orchestra (Komorni godalni orkester Slovenske filharmonije). Since 2018, he has been permanently employed as an Assistant Professor at the University of Ljubljana Academy of Music (UL Akademija za glasbo). During his studies, he received several awards at national and international competitions. For his academic achievements, in 1999 he received the Škerjanc Award, which the Conservatory of Music and Ballet Ljubljana grants to its most successful students, and the Prešeren Awards of the Academy of Music for the solo performance of Mozart’s Concerto in A major with the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra (2001) and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the Symphonic Orchestra of the Academy of Music in Ljubljana (2003). He has given many recitals and chamber music concerts. He regularly performs with the string quartet Dissonance and the trio Clavimerata, with whom he has recorded several CDs (I. Stravinski: Zgodba o vojaku [The Soldier's Tale], Um a zero, Po slovensko, Dissonance). A very important part of his musical life is also the Slovenian Philharmonic String Chamber Orchestra, with which he has participated for over a decade in festivals and concerts at home and abroad (Sozvočje svetov, Festival Maribor, Festival Slowind, Festival Lent, Ohridsko leto, Dubrovačke ljetne igre...). As a member of this orchestra, he received the award Bettetova listina in 2006. He has performed with a number of acclaimed Slovenian and foreign musicians (Dmitry Sitkovecky, Sreten Krstić, Aleksander Rudin, Richard Galliano, Richard Tognetti, Satu Vanska, Arvid Engegard, Bernarda Bobro, Vlatko Stefanovski, Nika Gorič, Mirjam Kalin, Matej Šarc,...). As a soloist, he primarily focuses on performing works by recognized Slovenian composers. Among the most notable performances was the execution of Uroš Krek’s composition Inventiones Ferales in the Slovenian Philharmonic subscription series in 2009, and the premiere of Nina Šenk's composition Into the shades with the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra at the closing concert of the 2015 World Music Days at Cankarjev dom. With his home orchestra, he recorded a CD in 2014 featuring works by W. A. Mozart, U. Krek, and N. Šenk. Above all, he finds joy and inspiration in his pedagogical work. He successfully teaches at the Conservatory of Music and Ballet Ljubljana and the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, where he conducts the String Chamber Orchestra and teaches violin and chamber music. In 2012, he obtained the title of Assistant Professor in the field of violin, and the following year he received the Solemn Charter of the University of Ljubljana for outstanding pedagogical and research achievements. He collaborates on the ambitious Emars project, within which he regularly holds summer schools and masterclasses for the violin.

Lara Silvestri Valdevit completed her education at the Ivan Matetić Ronjgov Music School in Rijeka (violin and theoretical-pedagogical track) and the General Gymnasium in the Italian language. She graduated in violin from the Music Academy in Zagreb in the class of Prof. Vinko Fabris.
As a scholarship recipient of the City of Rijeka and HKD Napredak, she participated in numerous masterclasses in Italy and Germany and was a longtime member of the Young European Orchestra.
From an early age, she has performed as a soloist and ensemble member throughout Croatia and abroad (Italy, Slovenia, Hungary, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia…).
She is the artistic director of the Zagreb Salon Ensemble, a member of the Zagreb Salon Quartet, and an external collaborator of the orchestra of Komedija City Theatre, the Croatian National Theatre Ivan pl. Zajc in Rijeka, and the Symphony Orchestra of Croatian Radiotelevision.
She moderates musical evenings at HKD Napredak and the Zagreb Public Open University and collaborates with many music events in Zagreb and its surroundings (Advent on Zrinjevac, Zagreb Time Machine, Jelačić Days in Zaprešić…).
She is an accomplished violin pedagogue. She is recognized for numerous awards as a mentor to students at national and international competitions in violin and chamber music in all categories.
She is a recipient of the Oscar of Knowledge and several Balthazar awards for excellence in teaching. She participates in interschool and international cooperation projects with music schools in Austria and Hungary and at the Tartini Festival in Slovenia (Piran).
She is employed at the Blagoje Bersa Music School in Zagreb.
 

The pianist Siavush Gadjiev completed his musical education at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow as a student of famous teachers such as Bella Davidovich and Boris Zemliansky. At the Moscow Conservatory he also obtained the Master of Music degree (“Course of Interpretation”) and was invited to teach in the prestigious Central Special Music School of the Moscow Conservatory, intended to train the most musically gifted pupils from the ex Soviet Union as well as from Japan, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania, Korea, United States. He taught many highly talented pupils, amongst whom there were winners of the Tchaikovsky competition, Axa Dublin, Schumann, Casagrande and other competitions. Gadjiev develops an educational activity running master classes, seminars and thematic lectures-concerts in Russia, Slovenia, Croatia, Germany, Italy, with particular emphasize on the interpretation of Mozart, Beethoven, Rachmaninov and Prokofiev. He also leads special classes for future pedagogues. Siavush Gadjiev has held recitals in many cities of the ex Soviet Union, Germany, Slovenia, Croatia, Yugoslavia, Italy and the USA. He has also performed with major orchestras and in chamber music ensembles with distinguished European musicians. 
He is a member of the “Ljubljana Piano Trio”. He was jury member of many international piano competitions, amongst them: “Ferenc Liszt” in Budapest, “Hummel” in Bratislava, “Città di Cantù” and many others. Siavush Gadjiev has held many master classes and keeps having them all over Italy, Slovenia, Germany and the United States. He lives in Italy and teaches at the Conservatory for Music and Ballet in Ljubljana (Slovenia) and in Gorizia, in a private school for young talents, in which he has many students from different parts of Italy and Slovenia. Currently he is also giving master classes and lectures for Master Degree students at the “Giuseppe Tartini” Conservatory in Triest. Gadjiev is the Artistic Director of the “Giuliano Pecar” International Piano Competition and the “Estate di Gorizia” summer festival. He is the recipient of the Slovenian Fran Gerbič Award for his lifetime work and outstanding achievements in the pedagogical and organizational field, in the promotion of music education.

Pianist JULIA GUBAJDULLINA, an artist of refined musicality, profound interpretative depth and remarkable stylistic versatility, was born in Chișinău (Moldova) into a family of distinguished musicians. She began playing the piano at the age of four, and achieved her first major success at twelve, performing with the Moldovan Philharmonic Orchestra. After completing her master’s degree at the Music Academy in Chișinău (in the class of Ludmila Vaverco), she pursued postgraduate studies at the Tchaikovsky State Conservatory in Moscow with Yuri Airapetyan. She won First Prize at the International Chamber Music Competition in Romania (1993), and distinguished herself as a soloist by winning First Prize at the International Competition in Moldova (1997) and Third Prize at the Città di Sulmona International Competition in Italy (1999). She is also the recipient of a UNESCO Special Prize for outstanding artistic achievement. She has performed with leading symphony orchestras under the baton of renowned conductors such as V. Doni, M. Secikin, M. Ahmet-Zaripov, Ch. Rehli and E. Leduc-Barome, appearing as soloist in numerous piano concertos by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Franck, Schumann, Ravel, Rachmaninov and Scriabin. Since 2000 she has been a member of the faculty of the Music Academy in Sarajevo, where she became a permanent member of the ensemble SONEMUS, specializing in contemporary music. Since 2005 she has lived in Croatia, where she is Associate Professor and head of the chamber music programme at the Music Academy of the University of Zagreb. Her artistic interests are exceptionally broad, alongside her pedagogical work, Julia has made numerous recordings for Moldovan national radio and television, performs actively as a soloist, and  ollaborates with a wide range of chamber ensembles. She frequently performs with cellist Monika Leskovar, violinists Tatjana Samouil and Alina Gubajdullina, singers Renata Pokupić and Martina Gojčeta Silić, clarinettists Marija Pavlović and Davor Reba, as well as with the Sinfonietta String Quartet. For nearly two decades she has performed as a piano duo with her husband, Ruben Dalibaltayan, a partnership she considers an important part of her artistic life. Together they founded the Makarska Summer Piano School in 2005, which has since developed into one of the most important educational centres for young pianists in the region. She regularly gives masterclasses in Croatia and abroad and frequently serves on juries at music competitions. She has performed in numerous concert series and festivals, including Molto Cantabile, Pianofortissimo, Music Artists of Zagreb, Diapason, Vivat Academia, Opera Selecta and others.

  Currently, the Slovenian composer’s pieces are some of the most frequently performed works - especially his compositions for children and youth. He has been a valued community member and resident of Piran for over 30 years. In 2013, he received one of the biggest honors the Municipality of Piran bestows upon its residents - the Tartini Award. His compositions have found their way to stages and hearts of audiences all over the world and they have become a mandatory part of propositions at Slovene national competitions for young musicians (TEMSIG), as well as at other piano competitions. We are proud to introduce him as a compulsory composer at the Tartini Competition for Young Musicians in Piran.
Bojan Glavina graduated from the University of Ljubljana Academy of Music with a degree in organ (under Prof. Hubert Bergant) and composition (under Prof. Marko Mihevc). As a young teacher he also completed a two-year program in piano pedagogy in Gorizia under Prof. Siyavush Gadzhiev.
Teaching piano in his professional life, he started composing on the side as a hobby. He was driven by an inner need to play with imaginative sound variations and many times his compositions were equally inspired by the desire to write something individually tailored to the student, creating a piece that would help students progress to the next level in their piano skills as well as experiencing fun and enjoyment.
His compositions, especially the ones aimed at children and adolescents, are melodious, contain attractive harmonies with playful and humorous titles. They are descriptive and easy to understand for children without having that overtly didactic note and are being very well received by the youngest of audiences.
   His compositional oeuvre is rich and varied, following the spirit of the prolific creations by composers of the Baroque and early Classicist era. It is important to mention that over 20 different publishers have published as many as 62 of Glavina's independent collections - books, and 24 joint collections.
Most of his pieces are dedicated to piano and various chamber ensembles, closely followed by choir, and other soloists (instrumentalists and singers), and orchestras. He received more than 20 awards in Slovenian and foreign competitions for his individual compositions or collections. 
To name just a few: 1st prize at the competition for children's and youth choirs in Zagorje ob Savi in 1997; 1st and 2nd prize in the competition "Primo concorso di Composizione per strumento” in Povoletto, Italy, in 2000; Prešeren Award by the University of Ljubljana Academy of Music for his orchestral composition Four Folklore Miniatures in 2008; His ZEN Preludes for piano -  was chosen on »Tribune of composers« among 300 compositons from composers around the world; 3rd prize for a choral composition at a competition in Croatia,  "Zodiac: across the universe", awarded in 2013, in New York, USA; 1st prize for the composition Four Meditations chosen among 74 composers from around the world at the competition in Albenga, Italy, in 2020 and various others).
So far he has released seven CDs: "Sound Landscapes" (a selection of chamber compositions), a CD with clarinetist Robert Stanič, a CD with Trio Julius, "Breath of Spring" (arrangements for clarinet, violin and piano), "Music of the Seasons" (12 compositions for piano four hands), “Through the fairytale places of black and white keys” (music for piano four hands and two pianos), “Album of fragments” (chamber compositions).  In 2024, the Slovenian Composers’ Society released the album Spominčice (Musical Forget- Me-Nots), on which Glavina, as pianist, brings to life 30 piano miniatures by 24 Slovenian composers – from well-known works to rare gems he discovered in the manuscripts of the National and University Library and returned to the concert stage.  
Bojan Glavina's work in the field of music is extremely broad: he is the founder and editor of the music magazine "Primorska sozvočja" (1999-2005). He was also the long-time leader of the professional piano assets of the Association of Primorska Music Schools. He is a founding member of EPTA Slovenia - the Association of Piano Teachers of Slovenia, in which he regularly participates in various projects at the annual Slovenian Piano Days. He has often been called as a member of professional juries along the Coast as well as at several international competitions in the disciplines of piano solo, piano duo and chamber ensemble. He is a collector and an excellent connoisseur of music literature by Slovenian composers, especially for piano. Under his guidance, during his 30 years of pedagogical work at domestic and foreign competitions, his piano students have received around 120 awards. Many young pianists at national and international competitions received a special award for their performances of Glavina's compositions. 
In 2023, he received the highest professional award in the field of music education from the Association of Slovenian Music Schools - the Frane Gerbič Lifetime Achievement Award.

Tamara Ražem Locatelli began her musical education at the Glasbena matica School in Trieste and graduated with distinction in 1994 from the “Giuseppe Tartini” Conservatory in the class of Prof. Xenja Brass. She continued her piano studies with the renowned Russian professor Sijavush Gadjiev and further refined her skills by attending numerous masterclasses with distinguished teachers, including Igor Lazko, Franco Scala, Riccardo Risaliti, Boris Petrushanski, Arbo Valdma and Konstantin Bogino. In 1997 she completed a two-year pedagogical programme in Gorizia, specialising in music education, harmony, analysis, composition and the psychology of music teaching.
She has distinguished herself in several international competitions, receiving top prizes, and performs regularly as a soloist and chamber musician in Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Austria and the Czech Republic. A highlight of her career is the 2004 concert tour in Pyongyang, North Korea. She has collaborated with numerous vocal soloists and appeared at the Mastervoices Festival in Monte Carlo. She frequently performs with her husband, baritone Damjan Locatelli, and as a soloist with various orchestras.
Since 2006 she has been active in the piano duo Excentury with Aleksandra Češnjevar Glavina. The duo has performed across Europe, studied with Prof. Bogino, and recorded several CDs, including the first comprehensive anthology of Slovenian piano literature for four hands and for two pianos (from 1800 to the present). Since 2020 she has been a member of the Phoenix Piano Quartet. She is also active as a répétiteur at numerous international masterclasses for various instruments and voice.
Teaching has been an important part of her career from the very beginning. She teaches at the Sežana Music School and at the Glasbena matica in Trieste. Her students have won more than 350 prizes at national and international competitions, including over 150 first prizes. She has received awards for best répétiteur and most successful mentor. She frequently serves on juries in Italy, Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia and gives masterclasses for students and teachers. For three years she served as Secretary of EPTA Slovenia.
Since 1996 she has conducted the Lipa Mixed Choir from Bazovica, with which she has performed more than 400 concerts, recorded two CDs and appeared at the Verona Arena in 2015. In 2024 she celebrated the 40th anniversary of her organist work in liturgical services. She collaborates regularly with Radio Trst A and other radio and television stations.
For her outstanding pedagogical, organisational and artistic achievements she received the Gerbič Award in 2018 and, in 2025, the Prešeren Award – Recognition of Slovenians Abroad for artistic excellence and her important contribution to Slovenian culture and identity.

Austrian-born pianist Irina Vaterl is a graduate from the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz where she studied under the guidance of Lioudmilla and Alexandr Satz and with Milana Chernyavska. She finished her Master Degree in June 2017 with the
highest grades and with unanimous distinction. Following to that, she was doing her Artist Diploma at the Royal College of Music with Vanessa Latarche and Dmitri Alexeev, where she was a William Mealings Scholar, supported by the George Thornton Award. Irina Vaterl has also concluded her Masters studies for piano in music education at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. Furthermore Irina Vaterl held a scholarship for studying at the International Musicacademy in Liechtenstein and she is the winner of the Martha Debelli Scholarship Graz as well as the winner of a scholarship of the Hildegard Maschmann Stiftung Austria.
For her outstanding bachelor thesis about the French woman composer Louise Farrenc, she was awarded the Gender-prize of the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz and in December 2017 she was selected for winning the Würdigungspreis of the universityan award of excellence going to the best graduates. Irina Vaterl is the winner of many prizes in national and international piano competitions in Austria, Italy, Czech Republic, Spain, Serbia, Croatia, Norway, Sweden and France. She is performing on stage as a soloist as well as a musician in various chamber music groups in national and international music festivals, among them Nei suoni dei luoghi (Italy), Festival Internacional de Música de Cámara Joaquín Turina a Sevilla (Spain), Piano Festival Saint Savin (France), Next Generation Bad Ragaz (Switzerland), International Piano Festival Treviso (Italy), Steirisches Kammermusikfestival, Deutschlandsberger Klavierfrühling, Eggenberger Schlosskonzerte, Arsonore (Austria). Recent appearances as a soloist with orchestra include collaborations with the orchestras I Virtuosi Italiani, Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto and Sinfonietta dell´ arte. Irina Vaterl is a piano teacher at the University of music Graz and at the Johann – Joseph- Fux Konservatorium Graz, where she is also the head of piano department. She is regularly invited to give international masterclasses in Austria, Italy and Shanghai and to be in jury of national and international music competitions