Maurice Ravel 150

Maurice Ravel, the famous French composer, was born on 7 March 1875 (150 years ago), in whose honour we have organised this concert. Ravel was an artist who followed the musical life not just of France, but of the whole world, from America to the Far East, from baroque to timeless folk music to jazz! Of course, he also had a lively relationship with Hungarian artists: he was friends with Béla Bartók and was inspired by the violin playing of Jelli Arányi, for whom he also composed the ‘Tzigane’. With his whole being, he was open and receptive to everything that was valuable, elemental, beautiful and human. And by turning it into music, he passed it on to us: as a legacy...

Programme:
Beethoven: ‘Spring’ Sonata (F major, Op. 24.)
- Allegro
- Adaggio molto espressivo
- Scherzo
- Rondo

Schumann: Sonata in A minor, Op. 105.
- Mit leidenschaftlichem Ausdruck
- Allegretto
- Lebhaft

- Pause -

Ravel : 2nd Sonata
- Allegretto
- Blues
- Perpetuum mobile

Ravel: Tzigane

Tzvetana Gigova, piano
Born in Bulgaria, Tzvetana Gigova graduated from the National School of Music in Plovdiv in the class of the distinguished piano pedagogue Julia Girginova. In 1994 she pursued her studies at the National Academy of Music “Prof. Pantcho Vladiguerov” in Sofia in the class of prof. A. Kurtev, where she obtained her diploma of completed high education studies as pianist – instrumentalist.
Furthermore in 2002 she graduated from the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel in the class of prof. B. Vodenitcharov (Master degree in Music), where later she obtained her diploma of Specialisation in Chamber Music and Piano (2006).
Since 2012 Tzvetana has been working as a pianist-accompanist at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel.
Guigova is a winner of national and international piano and chamber music competitions and performs in Brussels and abroad (Cyprus, Macedonia, Luxembourg, France, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Jordan and Japan).

Bence Abraham, violin
Bence Abraham was born in 1979 in Hungary. He graduated from the University of Szeged as a student of Ferenc Szecsődi, followed by a master's degree at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, where he studied with Kati Sebestyen and Marc Kowalski. As a chamber musician, he has given concerts in Hungary, Serbia, Switzerland, Germany, England, the Netherlands, Denmark and Belgium. During the 2005-2006 season, he was a member of the Kryptos Quartet in Brussels. Since 2010, he has been a member of the Frankfurt Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Michael Sanderling. Since October 2006, he has been a regular member of the Flanders Symphony Orchestra.