Latvian violinist Kristīne Balanas is a 3rd prize laureate of the 66th International ARD Music Competition, 2018 Young Artist of the Year in the Grand Music Awards of her home country, and recipient of the Fundacion Excelentia Young Talent Award from Her Majesty Queen Sofia of Spain.
In demand for her “savage, bold, dramatic playing” (The Strad), Kristīne Balanas’ head-turning transformation from a street musician and rock singer in Latvia to a graduate with honors from the Royal Academy of Music and Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler, marks her as an entirely idiosyncratic presence on stage.
The 24/25 season will see Kristīne make her debut with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra playing Bartok Violin Concerto No. 1 under the baton of Jukka-Pekka Saraste and with the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra playing Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto. Further performances include the Barber Violin Concerto at the inaugural concert of Chromatica Orchestra in London, the Beethoven Violin Concerto with Göttinger Symphony Orchestra, and Shostakovich Violin Concerto No. 1 with Cappella Aquileia at Opernfestspiele Heidenheim under the direction of Marcus Bosch.
Kristīne recently made her Japanese debut with a solo recital and concerto engagement with the Kioi Hall Chamber Orchestra and was joined by her sister Margarita Balanas at “Night of the Young Stars”, Dresdner Musikfestspiele. Her many successes in previous seasons include her debut with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Andris Poga at the Cadogan Hall, a nationwide tour with Kremerata Baltica and a remarkable performances of the Brahms Double Concerto alongside her sister Margarita with the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra at the prestigious L’Auditori in Barcelona.
Kristīne performs on the 1694 ‘Rutson’ Stradivarius violin, kindly loaned to her by the Royal Academy of Music.
This is her first appearance with the IPO.