Arta Arnicane

Wednesday, 22nd October, 2014

8:00 p.m.

Municipal Hall

ARTA ARNICANE

piano

FLORIAN ROHN

cello

Communication with the audience as well as the talent for creating a special concert atmosphere have taken the young Latvian pianist Arta Arnicane to a large variety of performance venues across the world. Her quality of winning listeners’ full attention combined with the warmth and intelligence of her programmes and interpretations, allows her to fascinate both small numbers of listeners and large audiences in concert halls.

Born into a family with a strong and longstanding musical tradition, she started playing the piano and composing at the age of four. Supported by numerous scholarship awards and eminent artists such as John Lill and Homero Francesch, Arta has studied in several countries and graduated with distinction from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (2004), the Latvian Academy of Music (2008), and Zurich University of the Arts (2010 and 2012).

Her professors Sergejs Osokins, Norma Fisher and Homero Francesch have influenced the artistic development of Arta’s personality and guided her into the international music scene. Arta has won many prizes at international music competitions, including the “Premio Iturbi” (2010), and "Prague Spring" (2011) to name but a few.

Arta has a wide ranging repertoire, and her interpretations of the Mozart piano concertos as well as the piano music of Ravel have always won special appreciation. Since 2010 Arta has been performing regularly under John Gibbons, the conductor and chairman of the British Music Society, with whom she will give the world premiere of the forgotten Piano Concerto No.2 (1960) by William Alwyn in 2014. During the 2013/2014 season Arta has solo performance engagements in Switzerland, England and Scotland, and will perform chamber music with her colleagues Verena-Maria Fitz (violin), Florian Rohn (cello), and the Latvian Piano Trio. Notable events of this season are a two-piano recital with the renowned Swiss pianist Oliver Schnyder in November 2013, and her Uruguay Debut in April 2014 with the Orquesta Filarmonica de Montevideo under Maestro Martin Lebel.

Florian Rohn, a German cellist currently living in Switzerland, is a dedicated musician with wide solo, chamber music and orchestral experience. Born in Filderstadt in 1979, he received his first cello lessons at the age of five. His intensive musical education started in Weimar, first at the Belvedere College and soon after at the Franz Liszt Hochschule for highly-gifted students. This was followed by studies at the Robert Schumann Hochschule, Düsseldorf, from which in 2003 Florian graduated with a Masters Degree under the tutelage of Prof. Johannes Goritzki. The following three years he worked at the Conservatoire de Lausanne, and in 2006 he obtained his Masters Diploma in Solo Performance with distinction, as well as the Max Jost Award, presented for the most successful student of the year. Coached by the Guarneri Trio Prague, Florian was awarded the Masters Diploma in Chamber Music with distinction at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in 2009.

Besides performing chamber music, Florian has worked several years as a principal cellist at the Kristiansand Symfoniorkester, Norway, as well as the Camerata de Lausanne, Switzerland, and appeared as a soloist at important music festivals. His performances of the Rococo-Variations by Tchaikovsky, the Double Concerto by Brahms and the Triple Concerto by Beethoven have met with tremendous success. Florian is now in great demand as principal cellist and soloist with various renowned orchestras and festivals throughout Europe and South Africa.

PROGRAMME

DOHNÁNYI

3 Stücke Op. 23 for Solo Piano

Sonata for Piano and Cello in B-Dur Op.8

CHOPIN

Sonata for Piano and Cello Op.65

Polonaise Brillante for Piano and Cello

Arta Arnicane's website

Florian Rohn's website

This concert is presented in the Biggar Little Festival

Tickets may be bought from the Festival Information Centre and Box Office in Biggar from Saturday 4th October. It is located within the Gillespie Centre which sits next to the zebra crossing in the middle of the High Street. The Box Office is open from 11am to 3pm, Monday to Friday and Saturdays 10am to 4pm. It will also be open on Sunday 19th October from 12noon to 4pm.

Information on festival events can be obtained by telephoning 07837 026007 from 4th October onwards. This is an information service only and tickets can no longer by purchased over the phone.

Most events will have tickets for sale online from Saturday 23rd August and will also be available at the door.