April 08, 2021 /Thursday/  

18.30 hours      Hall “M-Ro G.Atanasov

                                                Conductor: Grigor Palikarov                                             

Program:

Igor Stravinsky – Dumbarton Oaks – Concerto for chamber orchestra

Maurice Ravel – Le Tombeau de Couperin – Suite for orchestra

Igor Stravinsky – Pulcinella Suite

Grigor Palikarov (born in 1971 in Plovdiv) graduated the National School of Music and Dance Art “Dobrin Petkov” – Plovdiv with the specialty of piano with excellent grades and golden badge award in 1990 and then he graduated the Music Academy “Prof. Pancho Vladigerov” in Sofia with Master’s degrees in four majors: Opera and Symphony Conducting under Acad. V. Kazandzhiev and Prov. Iv. Vulpe; Composition under Prof. D. Tapkov, Piano – under Prof. Kr. Taskov and Choir Conducting under Prof. St. Kralev. He specialized in Composition within two summer courses in Austria with Prof. Erich Urbaner from Vienna University of Musical and Performing Arts.

His debut at the opera stage was when he was still a student (at the age of 22) and conducted Rigoletto in the opera theatres in Pleven and Stara Zagora.

His professional career as a conductor began in the Symphonic Orchestra of the Bulgarian Army Ensemble (1995 – 1997) and from 1997 to 1999 he was Chief Conductor of the Ensemble. In the meantime, he also took the position of conductor and chief artistic director of the renowned Youth Philharmonic “Pioneer” (1998 – 2003). His debut at the National Opera and Ballet Theatre – Sofia was in 1998 when he conducted a Gala Concerto of Gena Dimitrova by her personal request. Since 2001 he was appointed fulltime conductor of the opera and currently his repertoire includes more than 55 opera and ballet works. Since season 2005-2006 Grigor Palikarov is also the Chief Artistic Director and Conductor of the Symphonic-Opera Society at the National Music Academy “Prof. Pancho Vladigerov” – Sofia.

At present, Grigor Palikarov is a frequent visiting conductor of a number of orchestras and opera theatres among which are: Symphonic Orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio, Classic FM Orchestra – Sofia, of which he is also a permanent conductor since season 2008-2009, Sofia Philharmonic, Festival Orchestra – Sofia, the national Operas in Plovdiv, Burgas, Varna, Ruse and Stara Zagora, the Pleven Philharmonic, etc. A special place among his multiple conducting performances is occupied by the numerous studio records of various works with the Symphonic Orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio, along with his participations in prestigious national and international music festivals such as Sofia Music Weeks, March Music Days, Laureate Days “Katya Popova” – Pleven, Austrian Music Weeks, New Bulgarian Music, Winter Music Evenings – Pazardzhik, Opera and Ballet Festival – Varna, Contemporary Music Festival – Pula, Croatia, May Opera Nights – Skopje, Macedonia, Dyuni Festival – Matera, Italy, etc. In October 2014, Grigor Palikarov had two concertos with the orchestra of Classic FM Radio at the prestigious Alte Oper (Frankfurt am Mein) from the programme of the festival of European Culture Days organized by the European Central Bank.

Grigor Palikarov regularly performs abroad in countries like Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxemburg, Russia, the USA, Slovenia, Greece, Poland, the Ukraine,  Taiwan, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Portugal, Mexico, Korea, Japan, Uruguay, etc. He has conducted the Royal Belgian Philharmonic – Brussels, the national Opera and Ballet – Ljubljana, Vienna Chamber Ensemble “New Tone”, Century Symphonic Orchestra – Taipei,   Cleveland Opera – the USA where his debut was marked as one of the most important music events for 2009 in the state of Ohio, the Krasnoyarsk Opera and Ballet – Russia, Yanacek Philharmonic – Czech Republic, Czestohowa Philharmonic and Varmino-Masuric Philharmonic – Poland, Symphonic Orchestra – Bari, national Orchestra (SODRE) and the National Choir of Uruguay, Magna Grecia Orchestra – Italy, Dnepropetrovsk Philharmonic, Yucatan Symphonic Orchestra and Monterey Symphonic Orchestra – Mexico, Thessaloniki Symphonic Orchestra, and many others.

Along with his activity as a conductor, Grigor Palikarov composes, performs in concerto playing the piano and teaches at the National Music Academy “Prof. Pancho Vladigerov” where he successfully pursued his Ph.D. degree in Music Studies and Music Art in 2017. Some of his works are being performed at a number of festivals and have been recorded many times. He has won many national and international awards for his successful performance as a composer and pianist at the competitions “Svetosalv Obretenov”, “Albert Roussel”, The Music of the Earth, etc. Three-time laureate of the prestigious award Crystal Lyre of the Union of Bulgarian Musicians and Dancers – 2002, 2012, and 2017, as well as of the ward the Golden Feather.

Within two mandates, Grigor Palikarov has been the Chair of Mensa-Bulgaria –  the branch of the worldwide organization of people with high IQ.

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April 22, 2021 /Thursday/  

18.30 hours      Hall “M-Ro G.Atanasov

                                                                                                                 Conductor: Adam Klocek (Poland)

Soloist: Momchil Pandev – cello

Program:

                Robert Schumann – Cello Concerto in A minor, op. 129

  Ludwig van Beethoven– Symphony No 3, “Eroica”  in E flat major , op. 55

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Adam Klocek

Adam Klocek studied in Cologne and in Berlin in B. Pergamenschikov’s class. He is the winner of international competitions, among others in Cologne, Munich and New York. He plays the cello constructed by Antonio Stradivari in 1717. The artist released three records and recorded for TV and radio stations throughout Europe. He gives many concerts in European countries as well as in Asia and America. He was invited as a guest to a cello symposium in Essen with participation of Mścisław Rostropowicz. The artist’s position on international music market was confirmed by putting his name on the prestigious list “Ten Top Cellists 2000” published by the magazine “Bow&String”.

Adam Klocek is also a prominent conductor. Nowadays he is General Manager and Chief – conductor of the Kalisz Philharmonic Orchestra (Poland). The orchestra under his baton won a Grammy Award in 2014. He is also Artistic Manager and conductor of Czestochowa Philharmonic orchestra – Poland and guest-conductor of many orchestras all over the world.

Momchil Pandev

Momchil Pandev was born in 1999 in Sofia. He started playing the cello at the age of six with Mrs. Ani Atanasova. The nine-year-old won his first prize in an international competition. Eleven awards and an honorary diploma from various international competitions for solo performance and chamber music in Bulgaria, Great Britain, the Czech Republic and Latvia follow. He has played as a soloist with the orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio, with the orchestra / ASO / of the National Music Academy “Prof. Pancho Vladigerov ”and the Vidin Symphony. He has attended cello master classes by Prof. Wen Sin Young, Prof. David Geringas, Prof. Stefan Popov, Prof. Romain Gariu, Prof. Anton Nicolescu, Prof. Gabriel Lipkind, Prof. Vladimir Perlin, Prof. Radvam Suma and Dilyana Momchilova. He has twice participated as a fellow in the Mundi Music Festival (chamber music, Belgium) with professors Prof. Vladimir Perlin, Itamar Golan, Matthew Hunter and Rick Stoytin and has given concerts with several chamber ensembles.

In 2018 he graduated from the National Music School “Lyubomir Pipkov” in the cello class of Mrs. Daniela Cherpokova. He is currently a cello student in the class of Ch. Assistant Professor Dr. Atanas Krastev at the National Academy of Music “Prof. Pancho Vladigerov