Concert Premiered Thursday, June 24 @ 7:30pm. Join us!
Still available for a limited time.
Scroll down for the Program and Biographies of these amazing Pianists.
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BIOGRAPHIES
Please join us in thanking Cecilia and Petya for their performances. We appreciate their gift of beautiful music to support the Good Neighbour Campaign.
CECILIA NGUYEN-TRAN
Cecilia NguyenTran is a recent piano graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University. Throughout her undergraduate years, she explored both solo and collaborative music and fell in love with vocalists and the world of opera.
Although the pandemic has put her music development on a temporary hiatus (like much of the world), Cecilia is hoping to continue her journey of studying collaborative piano and working with vocalists in the near future.
PETYA STAVREVA
Praised for expressing "ultra-sensitive and highly refined pianism" (Quinte Society for Chamber Music), pianist Petya Stavreva is a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at Western University. Prior to arriving at Western, she finished her master’s degree at the University of Texas at Austin, receiving full scholarship and grant support from Canada Arts Council and the Webb Trust Fund at the Glenn Gould School. Before that, she was an artist-in-residence at the Banff Centre for ten weeks. Currently at Western, she is a four-time recipient of the Ontario Graduate Scholarship, as well as the Don Wright Graduate Entrance scholarship, and the Sherwood Fox Music scholarship. Her doctoral thesis is focused on referential meaning in Rachmaninov’s first piano sonata.
Petya is currently based in Toronto. Throughout her career she has performed in Europe and North America both collaboratively and as a soloist. She is active as a collaborative/chamber pianist and is described to have “extraordinary ability to place the sound of the piano exactly where the soloist needs it to be” (Quinte Arts Council Umbrella). Petya is quickly becoming in demand as an educator and has been an adjudicator for the Kiwanis Festival in Toronto, the Pickering GTA Music Festival, the Brant Music Festival, the Kiwanis Festival in Ottawa as well as the Ontario Music Festival Association in Hamilton. Additionally, while undergoing training for the Royal Conservatory College of Examiners, she maintains a busy teaching studio.
Petya has been a prize winner of numerous competitions in Canada and Europe such as the international competition “Franz Schubert” in Rousse, international competition “Music and Earth” in Sofia, among many others, and has performed concertos with the Toronto Sinfonietta Orchestra. Recently she performed at the Aeolian Hall in London, as part of the Emerging Classical Artist Series. Earlier last year, she collaborated with Canadian baritone Peter McGillivray for a recital as part of the Quinte Society for Chamber Music. Her newly formed Duo Avante with pianist Todd Yaniw is looking forward to several engagements next season including a recording project and performances in Toronto, Kitchener, Mississauga and Caledon.
She obtained an Artist Diploma at the Glenn Gould School on full scholarship, and a bachelor’s degree at the University of Toronto. Shortly after moving to Canada, Petya also attended the Taylor Performance Academy in Toronto with full scholarship. She has been very fortunate to study with a variety of teachers including Leslie Kinton, Anton Nel, James Anagnoson, Jamie Parker, Marietta Orlov and Arshalouis Nersessian. While in Austin, Petya also studied collaborative piano in addition to her solo degree, with Anne Epperson. Petya has spent many summers as a pianist in festivals such as the Bowdoin Music Festival as a collaborative Fellow, Young Artist Program in Ottawa, the Banff Chamber and Solo Residencies, Nice Academy in France, and Toronto Summer Music Festival.
THE GOOD NEIGHBOUR CAMPAIGN
To learn more about The Neighbourhood Table, the reason for the fundraising campaign, or to volunteer, find more information here.
DOWNLOAD a pdf copy of the Program and Biographies