(VIOLIN & MARİMBA)
PROGRAM
A. Piazzolla – Adios Nonino, Op. 9
A. Piazzolla – Histoire du Tango Café 1930, Op. 19
A. Piazzolla – Oblivion, Op. 2
Debussy – Rêverie
G. Kancheli – 18 Miniatures, Sections: 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, 14 & 18
J.S. Bach – English Suite No. 2 in A minor, Prelude, BWV 807
E. Ysaÿe – Sonata in E minor, Op. 27, No. 4, Allemande (Keman/Violin Solo)
J. Schwantner – Velocities (Marimba Solo)
A. Piazzolla – Histoire du Tango Night Club 1960, Op. 19
Ezgi Su Apaydın
Born in Adana in 1997, Ezgi Su Apaydın started to play the violin at the age of 6 at Çukurova University State Conservatory with Dania Kainova. After continuing her studies with Marina Kvlividze between 2010-2012, she was accepted to Bilkent University Faculty of Music and Performing Arts High School and completed her violin education with Muhammedjan Turdiev. She then got accepted to Folkwang University of the Arts (Essen/Germany) to Prof. Mintcho Mintchev’s violin class for her Bachelor’s Degree. After graduating with the highest score from Bachelor, she is currently continuing her Master’s Degree in Aleksey Semenenko’s violin class at Folkwang University of the Arts with the sponsorship of Çev Sanat.
At the age of 12, she had her first solo concert with the Çukurova State Symphony Orchestra, later contiuned her solo career and performed with many orchestras such as the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, Antalya D.S.O, Eskişehir BBSO, Ankara FO, IKSEV Festival Orchestra, Hacettepe University SO, Bursa BDSO, İzmir DSO, Presidencial Symphony Orchestra (Ankara) and Folkwang Chamber Orchestra Essen (Germany). She also had the opportunity to perform in prestigious halls such as Cologne Philharmonic Concert Hall, Essen Philharmonie Concert Hall, Beethoven Hall Bonn and Villa Hügel.
Ezgi was only 12 when she first attended to an international violin competition which was “Emil Kamilarov” Young Virtuoso Violin Competition held in Sofia, Bulgaria in 2010, and won the second prize. Shortly after her success at such young age, again in 2010 at M.U “Gülden Turalı” IV. National Violin Competition, she won the first prize and the “Best Interpretation of the Turkish Piece” Award..Other awards she won include 2011 Varna Summer Violin Competition (Bulgaria) third prize, 55th “Kocian” Violin Competition (Czech Republic) third prize, 2014 International “Arthur Gruimaux” Violin Competition (Belgium) first prize, 2017 I. “Suna Kan” International Violin Competition (Ankara) third prize and the “Best Interpretation of the Turkish Piece” award.
In 2018, she was selected for the İş Sanat Shining Stars Concert Series and was awarded the “Meriç Soylu” third prize as a result of the recital she gave at Milli Reasürans. In the same year, she was chosen for the IKSV “Female Stars of Tomorrow” Young Women Musicians Support Fund and has been supported by the ÇEV Sanat Young Talents Project since July 2018 to this day.
Some of the prestigious violinists with whom she had the opportunity to work within the scope of the festivals and masterclasses she attended was;
Schmuel Ashkenasi, Guy Braunstein, Dora Schwarzberg, Boris Garlitzky, Tanja Becker- Bender, Mintcho Mintchev, Itzhak Rashkovsky, Lutsia Ibragimova, Svetlin Roussev, Ellen Jewett, Özcan Ulucan and Cihat Aşkın.
Some of the renowed musicians she had the pleasure to share the stage and play solo with are:
Nils Mönkemeyer, Sergio Azzolini, Gottfried von der Goltz, Maurice Steger, Chouchanne Siranossian.
Alongside her expressive and unique solo playing, Ezgi is also very active in the chamber music world and has been the first violinist of the “Velvet Quartet” since 2020 who has had the chance to work with world-renowned musicians such as Bruno Giuranna, Adrian Brendel, Jan Bjøranger, Paul Cortese, Alfred Brendel, Quatuor Ébène, Quatuor Modigliani, Gregor Sigl (Artemis Quartet), Andreas Reiner (Rosamunde Quartett). Price winning quartet also got invited to renowed festivals such as “Bel Canto Virtuoso” festival in Lucca/Italy, Palermo Classica, String Quartet Bienale of Philharmonie de Paris, Vibre! String Quartet Festival in Bordeaux/France.
Since 2022 Ezgi Su Apaydin is the first concertmaster of the Folkwang Chamber Orchestra Essen and since 2020 the first violinist of the Velvet Quartet.
Elman Mecid
Elman performed as soloist with the Bilkent Symphony, Presidential Symphony, Eskişehir Anadolu Symphony, Azerbaijan State Symphony and Plovdiv Symphony orchestras. He gave two concerts at the İstanbul International Music Festival in 2014. He joined the Turkish National Youth Philharmonic Orchestra and performed in concerts in many countries. In 2016, he played Emmanuel Sejourne’s Concerto for Marimba and Strings with the Presidential Symphony Orchestra. He performed with the Hamburg Percussion Ensemble in numerous concerts across Germany. Elman gave a recital at the Bilkent Theatre Hall in 2018. He was featured as a soloist in five concert tour of Germany with the Landes Youth Symphony Orchestra Hessen. He gave concerts in Sydney and Orange cities of Australia in 2023.
Elman Mecid has won numerous awards, including the first prize at the Pendim International Percussion Instruments Competition (Bulgaria, 2009); the fourth prize at the Nutcracker International Young Talents Competition (Russia, 2009); the first and third prizes in two different branches at the Giornate della Percussione international competition (Italy, 2010); the second prize at the Perkulliria International Percussion Competition (Valencia, Spain, 2011); the first prize and the jury’s special prize at the Marimba Festiva International Competition (Nürnberg, Germany, 2012); the first prize in the AG3 category of Bamberg Marimba Festiva International Competititon; concert prize, the Sonderpreis des Bayerischen Rundfunks; the special Marimba One Exellency Award by Katarzyna Mycka; IKMMA 2019 International Katarzyna Mycka Marimba Academy active participation prize; and Best Interpretation of the Obligatory Piece Jeremy Brunk prize (Germany, 2018).
He worked with acclaimed artists such as Leigh Howard Stevens, Emmanuel Sejourne, Massimo Drecshler, Stephan Curlis, Marta Klimasara, Keiko Abe, Robert van Sice, Katarzyna Mycka.
Mecid also received the Aydın Gün Incentive Award of the Istanbul Culture and Art Foundation. He won a scholarship from the Azerbaijani Presidency in 2016 and was included in the Golden Book of Azerbaijan.
Elman Mecid is continuing his postgraduate studies with Prof. Cornelia Monske at the Hochschule für Musik und Theatre in Hamburg.