Christoph Poppen and Milana Chernyavska, new professors at the Reina Sofía School of Music (Madrid, Spain)

Christoph Poppen and Milana Chernyavska, new professors at the Reina Sofía School of Music

Madrid, 26 March 2021.- The Reina Sofía School of Music will have from 2021-2022 academic year two new professors. German violinist and conductor Christoph Poppen will lead one of the three Telefónica Violin Chairs, and German pianist with Ukrainian roots Milana Chernyavska will take over the Fundación Banco Santander Piano Chair after the recent death of Maestro Dmitri Bashkirov.

The Telefónica Violin Chair was created during the School’s first academic year, 1991-1992, under the guidance of Maestro Zakhar Bron. In 2007 it was extended with a new chair with Professor Marco Rizzi, and in 2010 with Professor Ana Chumachenco, who left the School last year. Over these years, 210 violinists from 40 nationalities have been trained at the School. They are outstanding artists such as Latica Honda-Rosenberg, Ana María Valderrama, Sabrina Vivian Höpcker, Kirill Trousov, Leticia Moreno, Giovanni Guzzo, Vera Martínez-Mehner and Miguel Colom, among others.

On the other hand, the Fundación Banco Santander Piano Chair has had maestro Dmitri Bashkirov as Professor since the very beginning of the School. In the 2000-2001 academic year, a second chair was added with Professor Galina Eguiazarova. Throughout these 30 years 118 pianists from 38 nationalities have studied with the most important artists on the international scene such as Arcadi Volodos, Stanislav Ioudenitch, Eldar Nebolsin, Claudio Martínez-Mehner, Juan Pérez Floristán, Plamena Mangova, Denis Kozhukhin and Víctor & Luis del Valle, among others.

Coinciding with these new additions to the Reina Sofía School’s faculty, the application period is now open for the auditions of both chairs for the 2021-2022 academic year. The deadline for applying have is 15 April Tuition is free for all students. Furthermore, the School has a system of scholarships and financial assistance to enable young musicians cover all their needs during the academic year.

For application and information regarding the admission process, click here

CHRISTOPH POPPEN

Christoph Poppen is one of the most versatile artists of his generation. After winning several awards as violinist in his early career and having been part of the Cherubini Quartet as first violinist for twenty years, he began conducting.

As Artistic Director he gave a new profile to the Munich Chamber Orchestra and, as Founding Conductor, he led the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra into a new era. He is currently Principal Guest Conductor of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta and Principal Conductor of the Cologne Chamber Orchestra. Besides, he regularly participates as guest conductor with several orchestras around the world.

He has also developed an intense activity as a violin and chamber music pedagogue. Renowned artists such as Isabelle Faust, Noah Bendix-Balgley, Clara Jumi Kang, and the Novus Quartet have been his students.

He was President of the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin from 1996 to 2000, as well as Artistic Director of the ARD International Music Competition from 2000 to 2005. Since 2003, he has taught violin and chamber music at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich. In 2013 he founded the International Music Festival in Marvão (Portugal) and in 2018 the Marvão International Academy for Music Arts and Science.

From the 2021-2022 academic year onwards, he will be Professor at the Reina Sofía School of Music’s Telefónica Violin Chair.

MILANA CHERNYAVSKA

The German pianist with Ukrainian roots Milana Chernyavska is one of today’s leading pianists and pedagogues. She has performed at Vienna’s Musikverein, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Berlin Philharmonic, London’s Wigmore Hall, and New York’s Carnegie Hall. She has also participated in concert tours and festivals in Asia, United States, and Europe, including those of Lucerne, Salzburg, Rheingau, and the Ruhr Festival.

She regularly works with artists such as Julia Fischer, Lisa Batiashvili, Daniel Müller-Schott, and David Garrett, among others. She has recorded more than twenty CDs, winning awards including the Diapason d’Or, the BBC Music Magazine Prix, the Pizzicato Super Sonic Award, and the Echo Prize. She teaches piano at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz and at the International Academy of Music in Liechtenstein. She also conducts masterclasses all over the world and has been a member of the jury at competitions such as the ARD in Munich, the Busoni in Bolzano, the Mozart in Salzburg, the Santa Cecilia in Porto, and the Blüthner Golden Award in Vienna.

She studied with Irina Lipatova and Valerij Sagajdachnij at the Tchaikovsky State Conservatory in Kiev. She completed her master’s degree in Munich with professors Margarita Höhenrieder and Gerhard Oppitz. Her main musical influences are Alfred Brendel, Ana Chumachenco, and Dmitri Bashkirov.

From the 2021-2022 academic year onwards, she will be Professor at the Reina Sofía School of Music’s Fundación Banco Santander Piano Chair.

Further information:

Press Department of the Reina Sofía School of Music: T: ( 34) 91 523 04 19 |E: prensa@albeniz.com

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