Vanya Milanova (born January 12, 1954; also Vania) is a Bulgarian-born solo violinist, recording artist and professor of music.

Early life and education

Milanova was born in Razgrad, Bulgaria.[1] She was a child prodigy, having performed her first paid concert under the tutelage of Yordan Yordanov at the age of six.[2] She studied at the Music School in Sofia and the State Music Academy in Sofia in the class of Peter Arnaudov, and later at the Guildhall School of Music in London,[1] where she studied with pedagogue Yfrah Neaman.

Career

At an early stage in her career, Milanova won prizes at several of the major international violin competitions: Kocian Violin Competition (Grand Prix for the overall winner),[1][3][4] Queen Elisabeth (10th prize; 1971), Paganini (3rd prize; 1973) and Tchaikovsky (joint 3rd prize; 1974).[5][6]

She has played with orchestras in England, France, Italy, Turkey, Israel, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, South America and South Africa.[1] She has made frequent recordings with the BBC – London and Manchester, Norwegian Label Simax, Bulgarian National Radio [7] and the Italian Label Real Sound,[8] and has played at the Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall, the Royal Albert Hall, the Barbican Centre and the Royal Opera House for the Edward Boyle Memorial Concert 1983, attended by Her Majesty the Queen in aid of the Edward Boyle Memorial Trust.[9] She often was the soloist for fundraising events and recitals at the Square Chapel in the 1990s.[10] She performed the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto to positive reviews at the Queen Elizabeth Hall with Hungarian concert pianist and conductor Tamas Vasary in 1982.[11] She often performed with the pianist Jonathan Dunsby.[12]

The Times, reviewing a concert in 1981, praises her 'jewel bright intonation'.[13] Her beauty of tone is also mentioned in The Amadeus: Forty Years in Pictures and Words by Suzanne Rozsa-Lovett,[14] and Beyond the Notes by Stephannie Williams,[15] and her musicality is referenced in Dame Fanny Waterman's autobiography, My Life in Music.[16] Milanova is featured on the front cover of The Strad magazine in January 1982.[17]

She is the first woman to record the entire 24 Paganini caprices,[1][18][19] which she did for the Simax Label, Oslo, 1985.[20]

She was violin professor at Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey (from 2003).[1] She led masterclasses (from 1991) at the Music Academy 'Prof Sasha Popov' during the International 'March Music Days' Festival in Ruse, Bulgaria.[21] She was a jury member for the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1994.[1]

Awards and honours

Milanova has been awarded 'Freedom of the City Award' in her native Bulgaria for her contribution to music, a Golden Feather Award from the Bulgarian Classic FM in 2001 and has been attributed with popularising classical music to a younger generation.[2] She is an honorary member of the Horowitz festival.[22] Milanova has a permanent museum exhibition dedicated to her in Bulgaria as announced by the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency.[4][23][24]

Personal life

Vanya Milanova was married to Paul de Keyser,[25] the son of pianist and teacher, Dame Fanny Waterman.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Vania Milanova". Queen Elisabeth Competition. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  2. 1 2 e-razgrad (23 December 2020). "Ваня МИЛАНОВА: Музикантът е благословен човек, който живее с красотата на музиката и се стреми към идеалите на съвършенството". E-razgrad (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  3. ↑ "Kocian Violin Competition". l.facebook.com. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Музейна експозиция на Ваня Миланова в къщата-музей "Анание Явашов" в Разград | Форум 24". forum24.bg (in Bulgarian). 21 September 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  5. ↑ Petrov, Stoyan; Manolova, Magdalena; Bozhikova, Milena; Buchanan, Donna A. (28 May 2015) [20 January 2001], "Bulgaria (Bulg. Republika Bălgariya)", Grove Music Online, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.04289, Many teachers of this generation of violinists are winners of the most prestigious national and international competitions ... Vanya Milanova ('Tchaikovsky' – Moscow, 'Queen Elizabeth' – Brussels, 'Paganini' – Genoa)
  6. ↑ Queen Elisabeth Competition: Laureates, Queen Elisabeth Competition, retrieved 1 January 2021
  7. ↑ "Мъдростта на цигуларя". bnr.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  8. ↑ "Home". discogs.com.
  9. ↑ "The Edward Boyle Memorial Concert (1983)". BFI. Archived from the original on 16 September 2012. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  10. ↑ "Unknown".
  11. ↑ "Northern Sinfonia - Vasary, Queen Elizabeth Hall". The Times Archive / The Times and The Sunday Times. 25 January 1982. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  12. ↑ Williamson, Rosemary (2001), "Dunsby, Jonathan (Mark)", Grove Music Online, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.06879
  13. ↑ "Milanova/Dunsby Wigmore Hall". The Times Archive / The Times and The Sunday Times. 10 September 1981. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  14. ↑ Rozsa-Lovett, Suzanne (1988). The Amadeus: Forty Years in Pictures and Words. pp. 86–87. ISBN 0951397400.
  15. ↑ Williams, Stephannie (2020). Beyond the Notes -A Lifelong Passion for Classical Music. United Kingdom: Brewin Books. pp. 35, 38, 75–76, 114. ISBN 9781858587165.
  16. ↑ Waterman, Dame Fanny (2015). My Life in Music. United Kingdom: Faber Music. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-571-53918-5.
  17. ↑ "Profiles of the Medici Quartet, Vanya Milanova". The Strad. 92: 1 8. January 1982.
  18. ↑ Vanya, Milanova. "Fanfare Archive".
  19. ↑ The Virtuoso Channel. "Virtuoso Channel".
  20. ↑ Music Web International
  21. ↑ Bozhikova, Milena (2015), "March Music Days International Festival", Grove Music Online, doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.2280556
  22. ↑ "НИЕ бр. 11". m.tripod.com. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  23. ↑ bta.bg
  24. ↑ "Лични вещи и документи на световноизвестната цигуларка Ваня Миланова са представени в изложба в Разград (Personal belongings and documents of the world-famous violinist Vanya Milanova are presented in an exhibition in Razgrad)" (in Bulgarian). Archived from the original on 23 September 2018.
  25. ↑ Waterman, Fanny (2015). My Life In Music. England: Faber Music Ltd. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-571-53918-5.
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