String Soloists

Alicja Smietana Violin

Receiving accolades and praise from many renowned musicians, violinist Alicja Smietana has performed as a soloist and chamber musician together with Nigel Kennedy, Gidon Kremer, Ivan Monighetti, Yuri Bashmet, Martha Argerich, Simon Rattle, Boris Pergamenshikov, Thomas Zehetmair and others all around the world.

As an orchestral soloist she has appeared with leading orchestras and ensembles and made her debut in London performing as orchestral soloist under the direction of Sir Neville Marriner with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.

Since 2003 she joined on a number of occasions Kremerata Baltica - an internationally renowned group led by Gidon Kremer. In 2010 she has been chosen by Nigel Kennedy to become a co-founder of his new ‘Orchestra of Life’ with which she already performed at most prestigious halls such as the Berlin Philharmonic, Koeln Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic and at London’s Royal Festival Hall. Her most recent performances as an orchestral soloist this 2010/2011 season included appearances in Royal Albert Hall, London, Bridgewater Hall, Birmingham Town and Symphony Halls as well as in Queen Elizabeth Hall and Barbican Hall. Earlier this season, she also performed to great success at the Stadtkasino Basel and the Palais de Congres in Paris.

Alicja has also been the featured artist at many prestigious festivals playing as a soloist and chamber musician in such festivals as Buxton, Henley, Les Musiques and Schleswig-Holstein among others.

Born in 1983 in Krakow, Poland Alicja Smietana performs works to great success from Bach to contemporary music with - what was described by San Francisco music critics as - “extraordinary brilliance and sensibility…” Winner of numerous competitions and awards (including most recent a First Prize at the Israeli International Violin Competition, Brahms Society Award and support from Sir Georg Solti Foundation) Alicja studied at the Krakow Academy of Music with Mieczyslaw Szlezer and later on moved to England to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London with David Takeno, Stephany Gonley and Ofer Falk. In October 2009 she joined Young Soloists at the Kronberg Academy where she studies with Christian Tetzlaff.

Attending many international violin masterclasses such as Bach Academy Stuttgart, Sommer Academy Prague-Vienna-Budapest, ABAM and Kronberg Academy, Alicja has been privileged to be taught and get artistic guidance from wonderful musicians including Hagai Shaham, Pavel Vernikov, Dorothy DeLay, Tabea Zimermann, Michael Frischenshlager, Helmuth Rilling, Erich Gruenberg, Albrecht Breuninger, Walter Forchert, Peter Buck, Zvi Zeitlin and Itzhak Perlman.

Alicja resides in London and plays a magnificent Camillus Camilli violin dated 1740 and a Jean Persoit bow thanks to Mr Nigel Brown and the Stradivari Trust.

PRESS REVIEWS

"The determined Polish-born violinist Alicja Smietana following studies in the Krakow Academy and at the Guildhall in London now enjoys a busy international career while studying further with Christian Tetzlaff. Thanks to the Stradivari Trust, she has just taken possession of a violin by Camillus Camilli, and has also received Nigel Brown’s support in acquiring a magnificent Jean Persoit bow to match."
[THE STRAD 2010]

"I know Alicja for a number of years. She is a devoted musician and has brilliant skills as an instrumentalist"
[Gidon Kremer]

"Alicja is an extremely talented violinist. While working with her I found not only a brilliant musician, but a friend interested primarily in the greater good of music."
[Nigel Kennedy]

"First, Kennedy played some Bartok duets with the young violinist Alicja Smietana (miniatures with a folk character, full of mysterious sounds) The intensity was stronger than expected and the performance was sizzling."
(Tygodnik Powszechny 2010)

"Mozart was represented by a couple of his youthful Salzburg works, beginning with the A major Violin Concerto, K.219. This was a late replacement to the program, the flutist in the announced Flute and Harp Concerto having succumbed to the germs going around, so Alicja Smietana, already due to play K219 with OOTS in Stratford tonight, was hijacked on her way from Manchester to London, and brought in to save the day. On one rehearsal this was an impressive performance, Curtis and Smietana between them found eloquent depths in the mellifluous slow movement."
(BIRMINGHAM POST 2009)

"Alicja has presented works by Karol Szymanowski and Paul Ben-Haim. She turned out to be undoubtedly the best. Out of 16 young musicians from various countries, She was the one (by the decision of 8 jury members) to win the first prize."
(POLISH EXPRESS, 2009)