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Tamara Stefanovich

Tamara Stefanovich

Tamara Stefanovich. Photo: Sihoo Kim

Tamara Stefanovich, born in Belgrade, is captivating audiences worldwide with her unique tailored recital programmes or as soloist with the world’s leading orchestras. A passionate ambassador of broad repertoire from Bach to contemporary, she has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony and Philharmonic orchestras, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Mahler Chamber Orchestra, amongst others. Stefanovich performs at the world’s major concert venues including Suntory Hall Tokyo, London’s Royal Albert and Wigmore halls, Philharmonie Berlin, Kölner Philharmonie, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and Muziekgebouw Amsterdam. She is a regular guest at international festivals such as Salzburger Festspiele, Schwetzinger SWR Festspiele, Musikfest Berlin, Klavier-Festival Ruhr, Internationales Musikfest Hamburg, Flagey Piano Days, London Piano Festival and BBC Proms.  

Following her celebrated debut with Israel Philharmonic under Kirill Petrenko performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No.24 and the German première of Magnus Lindberg’s Piano Concerto No.3 with NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester under Esa-Pekka Salonen, Stefanovich continues to present a large range of piano concertos from Liza Lim’s World as Lover, World as Self to Ravel, Abrahamsen, Bartók and Szymanowski and to captivate audiences with her enthralling recital marathons of 50 Études or 20 Sonatas. Tamara Stefanovich starts the 2023/24 season with an appearance at Beethovenfest Bonn 2023 performing Messiaen’s Turangalila Symphony with Beethoven Orchester Bonn followed by concerts with Bremer Philharmoniker, Oregon Symphony and Das Neue Ensemble. Recitals take her to Boulez Saal Berlin, Tonhalle Zürich and Auditorio Nacional Madrid.

Breaking new grounds Tamara Stefanovich collaborates with Christopher Dell, Christian Lillinger and Jonas Westergard for the innovative improvisation band ​"SDLW”. After its overwhelming premiere at Kölner Philharmonie, the quartet performed in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and at Klangspuren Festival Schwaz. Their first album entitled ​“SDLW”, released on bastille musique in June 2022, has been praised for its inventive and exciting sound and has been nominated for the German Record Critics’ Award.

Tamara Stefanovich has been working with composers such as Pierre Boulez, Sir George Benjamin, György Kurtág and Hans Abrahamsen. She works with chamber music partners such as Matthias Goerne, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, and conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Vladimir Jurowski, Susanna Mälkki and Osmo Vänskä.

Her award-winning discography includes a recording of Kurtág’s Quasi una Fantasia and his double concerto with Asko|Schönberg Ensemble and Reinbert de Leeuw and Jean-Guihen Queyras for ECM which received the Edison Award. Her recording of Bartók’s Concerto for two pianos, percussion and orchestra with Pierre-Laurent Aimard and the London Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Pierre Boulez (Deutsche Grammophon) was nominated for a Grammy Award. Tamara’s first solo album Influences was dedicated to the works of Ives, Bartók, Messiaen and Bach on Pentatone. Last season Stefanovich released two more recordings for Pentatone, Messiaen’s Visions de l’Amen with Pierre-Laurent Aimard and a solo album Nicolaou Etudes & Frames featuring etudes by Vassos Nicolaou, and one recording for Winter & Winter, featuring Abrahamsen’s Left, alone with WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln.

Tamara regularly leads educational projects at London’s Barbican Centre, Kölner Philharmonie and Klavier-Festival Ruhr. She was co-founder and curator of the Portland International Piano Festival ​‘The Clearing’ and Visiting Professor of Chamber Music at the Royal Academy of Music and Accademia di Musica Pinerolo. A convinced European, she studied in Belgrade, at Curtis Institute and at Kölner Musikhochschule.

Tamara Stefanovich performs at the festival on Tuesday 30 July 2024 at 6.30 PM. Read more about the concert programme.