One of the world's leading string quartet, the St. Petersburg was founded in 1985 as the Leningrad Quartet by Alla Aranovskaya, Alla Krolevich and Leonid Shukayev. Boris Vayner joined the Quartet in 2004. All of them graduates of the Leningrad Conservatory. The Quartet blazed a trail through international chamber music competitions, winning First Prize at the All-Soviet Union String Quartet Competition, the Silver Medal and a Special Prize at the Tokyo International Competition of Chamber Ensembles, First Prize and both Special Prizes at the Vittorio Gui International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Florence, Italy, and First Prize and the "Grand Prix Musica Viva" at the International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Melbourne, Australia.
When the city of Leningrad resumed its historic name, the Quartet changed its name to the St. Petersburg String Quartet. The Quartet has continued its ascendancy, building a reputation of worldwide proportions including a Grammy nomination, "Best Record" honors in both Stereo Review and Gramophone Magazines, and the Chamber Music America/WQXR Prize for Best CD of 2001.
From 1997 to 2003, the St. Petersburg Quartet was in residence at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio where, in their inaugural year, they performed the complete cycle of fifteen Shostakovich string quartets.
The Quartet has appeared in prestigious music series and festivals in North America, Europe and Asia. The quartet’s numerous engagements include an opening night performance at the Mostly Mozart festival at Lincoln Center, NY, and Lincoln Center's "Great performances" series; NYC's Frick Collection and 92nd Street Y series; Library of Congress in Washington, DC; Canadian débuts in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver;the Caramoor, Piccolo Spoleto, and Music Mountain Festivals. The Quartet has toured Great Britain (including seven concerts at London's Wigmore Hall and numerous British festivals), Germany, the Netherlands (including the Concertgebouw), Ireland, Iceland, Poland, Japan, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium ,South Korea, Taiwan, Russia, and Mexico.
The Quartet has toured Great Britain (including seven concerts at London's Wigmore Hall and numerous British festivals), Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, Poland, Japan, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium ,South Korea, Taiwan, Russia, and Mexico.
The Quartet has recorded the complete cycle of Shostakovich string quartets on the Hyperion label, as well as the Prokofiev and Glazunov quartets on the Delos label and the Borodin quartets on the Dorian label. Their disk of Shostakovich Quartets Nos. 3, 5 & 7 on the Sony label was a Grammy nominee, and their disk of Shostakovich Quartets Nos. 5, 7 & 9 won the Chamber Music America/WQXR Radio Prize for Best Chamber CD (2001).
In 2008 St. Petersburg Quartet performed at the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Amsterdam Concertgebouw. The Quartet collaborated with such renowned artists as Michel Tree, Peter Donohoe,Ida Kavafian.
This season the Quartet released new CDs of Ravel, Debussy and Borodin quartets . Next season they will release Tchaikovsky complete chamber music works.
Audiences from Toronto to Tokyo, from Lithuania to London and in music halls across the United States give the St. Petersburg Quartet standing ovations. No classical CD collection is complete without recordings by the acclaimed group. This season the Quartet released new CDs of Ravel, Debussy and Borodin quartets . Next season they will release Tchaikovsky complete chamber music works.
B.M.A., M.M.A., D.M.A. St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia.
Alla Aranovskaya was born in August, 1958 in St. Petersburg (then Leningrad), Russia. She started to play piano when she was two and a half years old , and violin at the age of six.
Ms. Aranovskaya graduated the Rimsky-Korsakov Music College in 1977. In 1985 she graduated the St. Petersburg Conservatory, receiving a Master degree in 1987 and a Doctor of Music in 1989.
She was a winner of the All-Russia Solo Violin Competition in 1985. From 1987 until 2001 she was Professor of Violin at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia. Her solo appearances include St. Petersburg State Capella Orchestra, Kazan Philharmonic, Moldova National Orchestra, Ulyanivsk Philharmonic.
As a founding member of the Saint Petersburg String Quartet Ms. Aranovskaya won First Prize at the All-Soviet Union String Quartet Competition, the Silver Medal and a Special Prize at the Tokyo International Competition of Chamber Ensembles, First Prize and both Special Prizes at the Vittorio Gui International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Florence, Italy, and First Prize and the "Grand Prix Musica Viva" at the International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Melbourne, Australia.
Ms. Aranovskaya was a faculty member of the Oberlin Conservatory from (1997 to 2003). She was a jury member of several major competitions including the 2004 Melbourne, Australia International Chamber Music Competition
Ms. Aranovskaya's students have won numerous prizes at competitions, including the Grand Prize at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition in Pasadena, CA (Erato Quartet, Oberlin), First Prize at Germany's "Jugend Musiziert" (Jeunesses Musicales) Competition, the Sarasate competition in Spain, the Beethoven Competition in Austria, Corpus Christi and Tchaikovsky competition for young musicians.
Evgeny Zvonnikov entered the Rimsky-Korsakov Specialized Music School in 1994 in the class of V. A. Dobrinina. In 2005 he entered the St. Petersburg Conservatory in the class of professor Ilya Ioff, and in the same year he also played a concerto in the Great Hall of the Philharmonic with the State Academic Symphony Orchestra. Since his first year of conservatory he has been associate concertmaster of the Zazerkalie State Theater. He has taken part in master classes by the Takacs Quartet, and received high praise from its founder Gabor Takacs.
Evgeny has extensive experience performing as soloist as well as in ensembles, not only in classical repertoire but also in contemporary and tango. He has taken part in many concerts in the main concert halls of St. Petersburg, such as the Music Hall, the Great Hall and Small Hall of the Philharmonic, the Chapel, and Smolny Cathedral. He has toured with ensembles in Japan, Finland, France, Switzerland and Italy.
Evgeny has taken part in many competitions as a solo performer and ensemble member. As a solo performer he took part in the Paganini and Yampolsky Competitions (both in Moscow), and his duo received a certificate of honor for its performance of a Beethoven sonata. He also won second prize in the Maria Udina Chamber Music Competition.
In December 2009 Evgeny won the St. Petersburg International Music Academy Concerto Competition and received a scholarship for participation in the Elan International Music Festival in Dallas, TX, and St. Petersburg International Music Academy at Music Mountain, Falls Village, CT.
In September 2010, Evgeny was named as a finalist of the St. Petersburg String Quartet's international audition for its Second Violinist position. He came to the USA and after a rigorous competition was chosen by the quartet members to fill the position in October.
B.M.A., M.M.A. St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia
M.M.A. New England Conservatory, Boston, MA
Boris Vayner was born in Novosibirsk, Russia. His professional background includes Novosibirsk Music College and St. Petersburg Conservatory, where he studied with Aleksey Lyudevig. While studying, Mr.Vayner played recitals in St. Petersburg(Russia), Drammen (Norway), Berlin(Germany), and took part in the Schleswig Holstein Music Festival.
Mr.Vayner was a founding member of the Krasny String Quartet, which received 1st prize at the Gartow Fund Chamber Music Competition in St. Petersburg in 1999, and recorded all the quartets of Vissarion Shebalin for Olympia label. As a soloist Mr.Vayner appeared with St. Petersburg Chamber Philharmonie. He also received 2nd prize in the Gartow Fund Solo Competition in St. Petersburg in 2002.
Mr.Vayner was an assistant principal viola of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra and a principle viola of the Novosibirsk Youth Orchestra.
Mr.Vayner moved to the US in 2003 to study at the New England Conservatory, in the class of Carol Rodland, and he earned Master of Music in 2005. He has attended master classes by Kim Kashkashian and Karen Tuttle, and played with Boston Symphony.
Since 2005 Boris Vayner has been a viola player of the St. Petersburg String Quartet, intensively touring in US, Europe and Asia.
B.M.A., M.M.A. D.M.A. St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia
Founding Cellist of the St. Petersburg Quartet, Leonid Shukayev was born in the St. Petersburg. He started studying music at age 6. While he was at the college(1975-1979), he became very interested in chamber music and started attending classes of Vissarion Soloviev, the violist of the Taneyev String Quartet .
At the Conservatory, he studied cello with Emanuel Fishmann, the teacher of Misha Maisky and Boris Pergamenshikov. His chamber ensemble teachers included Tamara Fidler and Vladimir Ovcharek, first violinist of the Taneyev String Quartet who represented the older tradition of performance in St. Petersburg.
Mr.Shukayev finished the Conservatory with honors and was invited to work with conductor Eugene Mravinski in the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra.
He also was the professor at the Rimsky-Korsakov music college and St. Petersburg Conservatory.
With the Quartet he won First Prize at the All-Soviet Union String Quartet Competition, the Silver Medal and a Special Prize at the Tokyo International Competition of Chamber Ensembles, First Prize and both Special Prizes at the Vittorio Gui International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Florence, Italy, and First Prize and the "Grand Prix Musica Viva" at the International Competition for Chamber Ensembles in Melbourne, Australia.
Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Victoria Schwartzman (formerly Mazin) has appeared in chamber music recitals as part of the Gessner-Schocken concert series in Cambridge, the New York Philharmonic Ensembles series at Merkin Hall, as well as at Bargemusic and the Nicolas Roerich Museum concert series in New York City, where she was also featured in solo recital. As a member of the Yanvar Trio, she was a prizewinner in the Val-Tidone Chamber Music Competition and a finalist in the Zinotti International Chamber Music Competition, both in Italy. As soloist with orchestra, Victoria has performed with the Jerusalem Chamber Orchestra, the Longy School of Music Chamber Orchestra, and the Riverside Orchestra. She has performed at the Quartet Program in Pennsylvania, and participated in the Tel-Hai International Piano Festival in Israel and the Lyrica Chamber Music Festival in New Jersey. Also active in the field of opera and art song, Victoria was vocal coach and accompanist for three years at the American Institute of Musical Studies Festival in Graz, Austria, at the Brevard Music Center, for Boston Lyric Opera, and for two seasons at Glimmerglass Opera.
After graduating from Jerusalem Conservatory, Victoria continued her education at the Longy School of Music and New England Conservatory. While pursuing various degrees in solo and chamber music performance, she was selected to perform in masterclasses given by Dmitri Bashkirov, Menahem Pressler, and Richard Goode, among others. Her principal teachers include Irina Kivaiko, Issak Kossov, Victor Rosenbaum, Sally Pinkas, and Eda Shlyam.