Curriculum Vitae
Silvia Simionescu, internationally well-known violist, enjoys a diverse career that takes her all over the world as a performing musician. Her appearances in major venues such as Paris Châtelet, Auditorium Barcelona, Wigmore Hall, KKL-Luzern, Tonhalle Zürich, Geneva Victoria Hall, Casals Hall Tokyo, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Teatro La Fenice in Venice and Concertgebouw Amsterdam, have been praised for her exceptionally passionate, intensive and intelligent musicianship.
Born in Romania, Silvia took up playing the violin at the age of six. After having completed her studies in Bucharest with Stefan Gheorghiu and Modest Iftinchi she joins the International Menuhin Music Academy in Switzerland where she studies both violin and viola under the precious guidance of legendary Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Alberto Lysy and Johannes Eskaer.
Her rencontre with Ferenc Rados, pianist and pedagogue, has deeply influenced her musical approach.
An avid and devoted chamber musician, Silvia had the great opportunity to enrich her artistic experience playing with internationally acclaimed musicians such as Joshua Bell, Carolin Widman, Ilya Gringolts, Ana Chumachenco, Alberto Lysy, Leon Fleischer, Jörg Widmann, Malin Hartelius, Bruno Giurana, David Geringas and others.
Silvia is a prizewinner of several international competitions among others: 1st Prize in the Brescia International Competition and 1st Prize as a member of the Ligeti String Trio at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition.
She performed as soloist in Romania, Italy, Switzerland, Lituania, India and Japan. Over the years she was invited to perform in important international festivals such as Mont Fuji Festival, Les Folles Journées de Nantes, Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Menuhin Festival Gstaad, Hindemith Tage, Sangat Festival Bombay, Edinburgh Festival, Georges Enescu Festival, and West Cork Festival.
For two decades, Silvia was member of “Ensemble Musique Oblique” (ensemble “à geometrie variable “), and Menuhin Festival Piano Quartet, both critically acclaimed chamber music groups. Her extensive collaboration with these two ensembles enhanced the versatility of her playing, introducing Silvia to a very large and diverse panel of chamber music works. As a member of the Gringolts Quartet since 2009 she has fulfilled the dream of her life: to explore the immense treasure of the string quartet repertoire, from the early classics to contemporary composers.
Silvia is passionately engaged in teaching and since 2004 she holds a viola and chamber music position in the Basel Academy of Music. She is regularly invited to give masterclasses in Switzerland, Germany, Spain and India.
Her extensive discography includes the complete recordings of the Schumann, Brahms and Schönberg string quartets, Taneyev, Glasunov and Braunfels string quintets, Mendelssohn and Enescu string octets, several piano quartets and string trios. A viola-piano duo recording with Schumann original works and transcriptions will be released in 2023. Her CD recordings were acclaimed by the critics and received awards such as the Diapason d’Or, the Supersonic Award and the Echo Klassik.
Silvia Simionescu enjoys playing a wonderful Jacobus Januarius viola, Cremona 1660.