Stefania Passamonte - Artistic Director
Stefania Passamonte is an international concert pianist, recording artist, radio broadcaster and entrepreneur. Founder and director of the award winning Music Academy “London Piano Masters”, of the London Performing Academy of Music (LPMAM) as well as the classical record label Master Chords Records, Stefania is voting member of the Recording Academy for the Grammy's Awards in the USA and member of the Classical Committee of the BPI for the Classic BRITS Awards in the UK. Since 2018, Stefania is also producer and radio presenter of her original programme "Future Classic Women Awards" on the award winner Women's Radio Station in London. Stefania served as Artistic Director of the Concert Seasons at the Italian Cultural Institute in London for several years and was featured by the British Council global University Campaign as successful UK University Graduate and Entrepreneur (Stefania Passamonte for StudyInTheUK Campaign).
Twice Gold Medal winner at The Akademia Awards in Los Angeles and Silver Medal at the Global Music Awards, her solo albums with major works by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann and the complete “Transcendental Studies” by Liszt have been selected at the prestigious Grammy’s Awards in Los Angeles as best soloist and best album of the Classic fields, while she appeared to the red carpet of the Classic BRITs Awards and BRITd Awards in London in several editions. Her recordings are broadcasted by the major Classical radios worldwide, including on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM in UK, while many solo recitals and concertos with the orchestra have been televised broadcasts, including RAI 3 and Sky TV in Italy, TVG in Spain, 1plus1 TV in Ukraine among the others.
Stefania has given recitals in the major concert halls worldwide, some of which were televised broadcasts, including “St Martin in The Fields” in London, National Philharmonic of Ukraine in Kiev, “Sala Puccini” in Milan, Palau da Musica in Valencia, Sibelius Hall in Finland, “Salle Munch” in Paris, Varna Opera Theatre in Bulgaria, Casa da Musica in Porto. Solo Concertos include the Lathi Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Ville Matjaeff, and the Varna Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Stefano Seghedoni. Selected to perform on the stage of the most famous International Piano Competitions as the Chopin Competition of Warsaw, the “Vladimir Horowitz” of Kiev, the “Maria Canals” of Barcelona and the “Jose' Iturbi” of Valencia in Spain, the Porto Competition in Portugal and Beethoven Klavierwettewerbe of Wien, Stefania won several awards and acknowledgements, among which the prestigious “Premio Ghirlandina” her hometown Modena to an artist “distinguished in the international panorama for special merits and success” (fellow citizens award winners include Luciano Pavarotti and Mirella Freni)
Stefania teaches fluently in the languages of English, French, Spanish and Italian and is devoted to research in the different styles and traditions of the Russian, French, Spanish, English, German and Italian piano techniques and interpretations. She has given masterclasses at some of the most prestigious music institution in England, Spain, Italy and Bulgaria, including Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, and the Conservatorio Moreno Torreba in Madrid.
Born in Modena (Italy), Stefania moved to London after completing her Concert Recital Diploma with famous music critic and pedagogue Piero Rattalino at “St. Cecilia” International Academy in Portogruaro. Stefania gained a Postgraduate Diploma in Piano Performance at the Royal Academy of Music of London with Ian Fountain and Christopher Elton. She then completed her studies with Jacques Lagarde at the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris “Alfred Cortot”. Further guidance includes solo masterclasses and perfectionnement with Joaquin Soriano, Solomon Mikowsky, Isacco Rinaldi, Anton Naumov, Emmanuel Krasovskij and Emanuel Carra.
Stefania is recipient of the 2020 Artist Vision Award, a once-in-a-lifetime award bestowed by the Akademia in Los Angeles in recognition of her exceptional talent, originality and vision in the field of music: “A visionary artist destined to shape the course of Classical music and broaden the musical landscape in the years to come”.
Roustem Saitkoulov - Piano Professor, Russia
Born in Kazan (Russia), Roustem studied piano at the Kazan Conservatory, then at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow with Elisso Virsaladze, where he received his Soloist’s Diploma. He then completed his studies with a Masters Degree at the Munich Music High School. He is prizewinner of numerous international competition, such as the Montecarlo World Piano-Masters (prize presented to him by the late Prince Rainier III of Monaco), the Busoni Competition in Bolzano (Italy), the UNISA Competition in Pretoria( South Africa), the “Géza Andà” Competition in Zurich (Switzerland), the “Marguerite Long” in Paris; First Prize in the Rome Piano competition.
Roustem performs frequently with orchestras such as Royal Philharmonic Orchestra London, Monte Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, RAI Symphony Orchestra Torino, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and St-Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra.
His recitals took him in some of the most prestigious concert halls around the world (London’s Wigmore Halla and Cadogan Hall; Paris’ Théâtre du Châtelet, Salle Pleyel and Salle Gaveau; Tonhalle in Zurich, Konzerthaus in Berlin, Italy, Russia, Japan, United States, Canada, South Africa) and participated in renowned music festivals including Montreux Festival, Bologna Festival, Festival Brescia-Bergamo, Piano aux Jacobins in Toulouse, Festival de Radio France-Montpellier, Printemps des Arts de Montecarlo and Menton Festival.
Roustem also performs extensively in chamber music with Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Alexander Brussilovsky, Pierre Amoyal, Dmitri Sitkovetsky, Olivier Charlier, Laurent Korcia, Xavier Phillips and Mayuko Kamio.
Radio and television broadcasts include France Musique, Radio Classique, DRS 2 (Switzerland), France 2, France 5 and Mezzo in France, and the international European channel 3Sat. The French TV producer Alain Duault has twice devoted his one-hour show on France 3 ‘Toute la Musique qu’ils aiment’ to Roustem Saitkoulov.
His CD recordings include albums released by EMI Classics and Dinemec Classics.
"Intelligence, nobility, elegance and transparency distinguish pianist Roustem Saitkoulov’s technical and musico-structural approach, enabling him to deliver a powerful musical statement by way of well-balanced interpretations" Géza Andà Competition presided by Sir Neville Marriner
Roberto Cani - Violin Professor, Italy
Acclaimed throughout the music world as not just a performer, but an “artiste,” Italian violinist Roberto Cani has been hailed by critics as “…a violinist of high caliber following the great Italian tradition of the virtuoso violinist, Paganini.”
Roberto Cani launched his concert career when he won the prestigious Paganini International Competition in Genoa at the age of 21. In the same year, he won the Courcillon International Competition in France, and the Jeunesses Musicales International Competition in Belgrade, where he also captured a special prize for the best performance of a contemporary work. He also won the national Minetti Prize in Italy, and top honors at the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow.
In addition to his native Italy, Roberto Cani concertizes throughout the United States as well as Germany, Belgium, Austria, Spain, Russia, Croatia, Poland, Serbia, France, Taiwan, Japan, and South Africa. He is a frequent soloist with orchestras and has performed, most notably, with the Moscow Philharmonic, La Scala Orchestra, RAI Symphony (Italy), Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano, Orchestra Cantelli, Belgrade Orchestra, Zagreb Orchestra, and Missouri Chamber Orchestra. Roberto Cani has performed in major music halls worldwide including Los Angeles’ Royce Hall, Belgrade’s Lisinski Hall, Milan’s La Scala, Paris’ Gaveau Hall, Tokyo’s Suntori Hall, and Moscow’s Bolshoi Zal and Tchaikovsky Zal.
Jan Loeffler - Piano Professor, Germany
German born concert pianist and piano teacher, Jan Loeffler graduated from the ‘Hochschule für Musik Würzburg’ in Piano Pedagogy and in Piano Performance. He then completed a Master Degree in Piano and and LRAM teaching licentiate at Royal Academy of Music of London under the guidance of Ian Fountain.
He is the author of two dissertations: The Teaching of Excellence - Investigating the Role of the Teacher (Royal Academy of Music London, 2009), and Expert Learning - The Neuro-Scientific Approach to Expertise (Hochschule für Musik Würzburg, Germany, 2005).
Jan has participated in masterclasses with Christopher Elton, Andrzej Jasiński, John O’Conor, Iván Klánsky, Pascal Devoyon, Josef Anton Scherrer, Nikita Jushanin, Renate Kretschmar-Fischer, Thomas Stumpf, and the piano duos Hans- Peter & Volker Stenzl and Andreas Grau & Götz Schumacher.
Performances of piano concertos, solo piano and chamber music haven taken him to countries such as Germany, England, France, Hungary, the USA and Italy and he collaborated with conductors such as Radoslaw Szulc (Beethoven 3rd piano concerto) and Owen Leech (Beethoven 4th piano concerto) and orchestras including the Camerata Europeana, the Helios Chamber Orchestra and the Kurpfalzphilharmonie Heidelberg (Brahms 1st piano concerto).
An active teacher and performer in the UK and overseas, Jan currently holds permanent teaching posts at the Birmingham Conservatoire, where he teaches first study pianists, predominantly on the Master of Music course, as well as at Radley College and Stowe School. Jan has given masterclasses at Vanderbilt University (USA), Lipscomb University (USA), Pepperdine University (USA) and at the National Young Pianists’ Week at Uppingham School and held teaching posts at Junior Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Junior Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
Cecilia Radic - Cello Professor (Italy)
Of Croatian descent, Cecilia Radic is one of the most appreciated Italian cellists of her generation.
Cecilia studied under the guidance of Rocco Filippini, David Geringas, Mihai Dancila, Mario Brunello and William Pleeth. After her debut at Milan’s Sala Verdi, with the performance of Dvorak’s Cello Concerto with the RAI Symphony Orchestra of Milan, Cecilia won the Premio Stradivari-Concorso Caruana International Award in 1996 and has since appeared in countless performances including La Scala in Milan, the Accademia Chigiana in Sienna, the Roman Philarmonic, the Ravello Festival, the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa, Stresa Festival, Turin Settembre Musica and Unione Musicale, Milan Società dei Concerti and Serate Musicali, Bologna Musica Insieme, Amci della Musica of Florence, Palermo and Padua and Asolo Festival. She toured as soloist with the Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, she then played as soloist with Filarmonici di Verona, Ensemble of La Scala Theatre, Balkan Symphony Orchestra, Camerata Ducale, many times with Salvatore Accardo and the Italian Chamber Orchestra and I Solisti Filarmonici Italiani. Cecilia’s extensive international career has reached far beyond Europe, with solo and chamber music recitals in Japan (Suntory Hall and Triphony Hall in Tokyo, Okayama Symphony Hall), Korea, La Coruna Festival (Spain), Cartagena Music Festival (Colombia), La Musica International Chamber Music Festival in Florida (U.S.A)
She performed with musicians such as Salvatore Accardo, Isabelle Faust , David Finckel, Marco Rizzi, Rainer Kussmaul, Bruno Canino, Jennifer Frautschi, Bruno Giuranna, Laura De Fusco, Massimo Quarta, Wu Han. She currently plays in the Accardo Quartett and is co-founder of Estrio (piano trio).
Cecilia Radic has been featured in various television and radio broadcasts, and has recorded CDs for various labels, including RAI (Italy’s national broadcasting corporation), DECCA, Chandos, Stradivarius, Sipario and Foné (a CD with Estrio and as soloist with Salvatore Accardo and The Italian Chamber Orchestra). As principal cello she has been working with the Italian Chamber Orchestra (Orchestra da Camera Italiana) since 1999. She has performed in the same role with I Solisti Filarmonici Italiani (both baroque and modern style, 2002-2012), Teatro La Fenice of Venice, Turin Teatro Regio, San Carlo Theatre in Naples and Teatro Regio in Parma.
She plays an 1837 Bernardel cello.
She is cello professor at the Pavia Conservatory of music and at the Royal Northern College of Music..
David Malusa' - Piano Professor, Italy
South African Pianist David Malusà was born in Italy in 1985 and began playing the piano at the age of six. He graduated cum laude in 2005 from the Conservatorio Arrigo Pedrollo in Vicenza. After three years of private studies with Leonid Margarius and Vincenzo Balzani he moved to London in 2008 where he completed the Masters of Music programme and the Artist Diploma course at the Royal College of Music under the guidance of Neil Immelman and Vanessa Latarche.
Malusà has been a prize winner of several national and international competitions, including first prizes at the Città di Carrara, Città di Cortemilia, Città di Cantalupa, and second prize at the Paul Hindemith International Piano Competition in Berlin. David won the sixteenth Jaques Samuel Intercollegiate Piano Competition, as a result of which he made his debut recital at the Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile as well as at the Wigmore Hall in London. A CD was issued of his live Wigmore Hall debut recital, including Rachmaninoff’s Variations on a Theme of Chopin Op 22 and the solo piano version of Liszt’s Totentanz, released under S.W. Mitchell Capital records. An acclaimed soloist and keen chamber musician, David Malusà has played in many national and international piano festivals and prestigious concert halls across the European continent. He has also participated in masterclasses and received guidance from many distinguished musicians, including Joaquín Achúcarro, Sergei Babayan, Barry Douglas, John Lill, Benedetto Lupo, Mario Papadopoulos, Kathryn Stott, William Grant Naboreú, Ruth Nye, Menahem Pressler, Arie Vardi and Tamas Vasary.
Marco Fatichenti - Piano Professor, Spain-UK
Marco Fatichenti was born in Italy to parents of Italian and Spanish heritage. After receiving his Diploma at the Rossini Conservatoire in Pesaro, Italy, he moved to the United States to continue his studies in the class of eminent pianist Joaquin Achucarro at the Southern Methodist University, Dallas. At this institution, by the age of twenty-one, he completed an Artist Certificate program and consequently a Master of Music in Piano Performance.
In 2002 Marco was granted a full scholarship to attend the Royal Academy of Music to study with Professor Christopher Elton. Having been a recipient for two consecutive years of the Myra Hess Scholarship, presented by the Musicians Benevolent Fund, and of a prestigious grant by the George Solti Foundation, Marco finished his formal studies receiving the highly coveted DipRAM award. A keen performer both as recitalist and chamber musician, Marco has performed in some of the most prestigious venues across Europe and the United States, including the Auditorio Nacional de Musica in Madrid, the Teatro Arriaga in Bilbao, the Auditori in Barcelona, the National Concert Hall in Dublin and Birmingham’s Symphony Hall. Recent highlights include an invitation by the Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs to perform at the EXPO in Saragozza, performing on the revolutionary instrument Fazioli ‘Onda’, his debut at Wigmore Hall collaborating with the Pavao String Quartet and a chamber recital in the Palau de la Musica in Valencia. His performances have been recorded and broadcasted by the Spanish RTVE, Irish RTE, Polskie Radio and several times by the BBC, including a live appearance in the program ‘In tune’ presented by Sean Rafferty. Marco has also released two albums under the Jaques Samuel label, which have received roaring press reviews as well as a great success among the public. In the past few years Marco has become a very sought after teacher and lecturer, being invited to hold annual masterclasses at the prestigious National Young Pianists’ Week of the Uppingham School and at the worldwide renown Royal College of Music and Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London for the London Piano Masters European Summer Masterclasses.
Hiro Takenouchi - Piano Professor, Japan
Born in Japan, Hiroaki Takenouchi came to London to study piano with Yonty Solomon and Andrew Ball, composition with Edwin Roxburgh and fortepiano with David Ward at the Royal College of Music. On completion of his studies, he received the RCM’s The Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Rosebowl presented by HRH The Prince of Wales. From 2007 to 2009, he was a Constant & Kit Lambert Junior Fellow (RCM) supported by the Worshipful Company of Musicians.
As a soloist, he has appeared on many concert platforms including the Wigmore Hall, Tokyo Opera City, the South Bank Centre, the Fairfield Halls, Hamburg Laeiszhalle and Steinway Halls in London, Hamburg and Tokyo. He has also performed at festivals in Bath, Cheltenham and Salzburg and has given recitals in the UK, Japan, Austria, Germany, Portugal and Italy. He is an active chamber musician in an extensive range of work, working with such eminent artists as Raphael Wallfisch and Tara Helen O’Connor. In the summer of 2010, he returned to join the summer masterclass at the Banff Centre (Canada) as a collaborative pianist, and gave piano masterclasses at the Poros International Piano Academy, Greece. In 2010, he appeared for the second time in the Husum “Rarities of Piano Repertoire” Festival in Germany to great critical acclaim. He was featured as a pianist on a BBC4 documentary on Sir Hubert Parry, The Prince and the Composer in May 2011.
Takenouchi’s discography includes the world première recordings of works by James Dillon (with Noriko Kawai, NMC), Edwin Roxburgh (NMC) and Jeremy Dale Roberts (LORELT), as well as a debut solo CD Cosmos Haptic: Contemporary Piano Music from Japan (LORELT), and most recently Husum Festival Highlights 2011 (Danacord). In 2011 he will record two further CDs, firstly Delius’s orchestral works arranged for two pianos by various contemporaries (Somm Records), and piano concertos by Sherwood, Catoire and Collingwood with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (Dutton Epoch).
Takenouchi has worked with many leading musicians such as Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Emanuel Ax, Imogen Cooper, Elisabeth Leonskaja, Robert Levin, Sir Roger Norrington and Howard Shelley.
Margherita Pucillo - Singing and Opera Professor, Italy
Maestro Pucillo, soprano, studied at Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella in Naples and Scuola di Musica di Fiesole in Florence with Professor Ettore Campogalliani (teacher of Pavarotti and Freni). She won several singing competitions, such as: “Voltolini” prize in Mantova, “Tito Schipa” in Lecce, “Maria Caniglia” in Sulmona, “G. Verdi” in Parma, “V. Bellini” in Caltanissetta, “Carlo Coccia” in Novara. She also resulted finalist at the prestigious competition “L. Pavarotti”.
She made her debut in Napoli, at Teatro San Carlo, with “Il Rosario” by Jacopo Napoli. Later, she was Cio-cio San in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in Teatro San Carlo, in Naples. In the same theatre she was leader artist for “La Rondine” by G. Puccini and “Carmina Burana” by Carl Orff for two seasons.
She has been Adina in Donizetti’s “L’elisir d’Amore” in Lecce, Suzel in “L’Amico Fritz” by Mascagni both in Teatro Comunale of Novara and Alessandria. At the moment she is promoter of the “Concerto Giacomo Maggiore”, an event born inside Teatro San Carlo in Naples with concerts, exhibitions and prizes to put in touch old and new generations of musicians.
She teaches Music to the young prisoners of Nisida and Airola State Jails, besides teaching Voice and Opera repertoire to the young members of the Sancarlini Academy in Teatro San Carlo. Her efforts to help young singers and transmit them her love and passion for opera and theatre led her to be considered as a reference point for the young generations of students in Naples. She put her knowledge and experience at the service of students to improve their musical skills and be a valid support for any troubles, even thorough scholarships and special prizes.
Elizabeth Sillo - Singing Professor, Hungary
Elizabeth Sillo is a classical singer, a music pedagogue, a member of the BBC National Chorus of Wales and a former concert soloist of the City of Manchester Opera. After obtaining her Kodaly music pedagogue degree from the University of Szeged, she studied opera performance in the Franz Liszt Conservatoire (Hungary) and joined the Szeged National Opera and later on the Budapest Opera House. Elizabeth also graduated with degrees in Mathematics and Economics. After moving to the UK, she continued her music studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, in Cardiff. She refined her opera performance and chamber music knowledge in the partner institute of the Wales International Academy of Voice under the leadership of Patricia O’Neill, a former principal soprano of the English National Opera. Elizabeth has participated in several Master Classes held by Vincent Monteil (a French conductor and Music Director of the Opera Studio of the Opera National du Rhin Strasbourg), Gail Pearson (English National Opera, Welsh National Opera), Eva Marton (Hamburg State Opera, Deutsche Oper am Rhein), Julia Hamari (Stuttgart Opera) and Prof. Maria Temesi (Pavarotti Competition winner, Wagner and Verdi specialist in Komische Opera Berlin and Zurich Opera, Head of the Voice Department of the Szeged University) with whom she has been working for the International Simandy Singing Competition over the last 3 years. Thanks to the flourishing operatic tradition of Central Europe, she has performed in several operas, including Aida, Nabucco and Tosca in Austria, Italy, France, Germany and the UK with well-known opera stars, such as Jose Cura, Gail Gilmore, Mario Malagnini, etc. under the baton of some world-famous conductors such as Carlo Rizzi, Karl Jenkins, Grant Llewellyn, Vincent Monteil, Pier Giorgio Morandi, Thomas Sondergard and Ryan Wigglesworth to mention a few. As a devotee of the Austro-Hungarian operetta, she has also sung in the productions of Lehar’s Merry Widow, in Emerich Kalman’s Csardas Queen and Countess Marica. In the UK she has participated in various oratorios with the Royal Academy of Music in London and with the Keele Bach Choir conducted by Matthew Hamilton, choral director of the Hallé Chorus of Manchester. As a member of the City of Manchester Opera, she performed twice with great success in the Buxton Festival where she received excellent reviews. Over the last couple of years, she has sung in several oratorios and operatic productions with the Welsh National Opera and the BBC National Chorus of Wales, including the BBC tour in Brittany and the BBC PROMS in the Royal Albert Hall London. She has been the solo singer of the Bards of Wales (Karl Jenkins) project supported by the University of South Wales. She is also the co-founder of the successful Welsh – Hungarian concert series in the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff. She has organised so far six Welsh-Hungarian concerts which received great reviews in seven British newspapers and online media, including the BBC News and the Daily Post.
made her stage debut at the Festival dei Due Mondi of Spoleto in Boris Goudunov, soon afterwards she was in Bologna in a big production of La Favorita starring with Luciano Pavarotti. This Opera introduced her to the most important Opera Houses Worldwide, including La Scala of Milan, the Opera Theatre in Rome, the Fenice Theatre in Venice, the San Carlo Theatre in Naples, the Regio Theatre in Turin, the Arena of Verona,;the Opera Bastille in Paris, the Metropolitan Opera of New York, the Covent Garden of London, Wiener StaatsOper, Bayerische StaatsOper in Munich, Deutsche Oper Berlin among the others.
Petra Hajduchova - Harpsichord Professor, Czech Republic
Petra studied at the Academy of Early Music in Brno where she received a scholarship to study at the University of Salzburg. She then moved to England to study harpsichord with James Johnstone at Trinity College of Music where in 2010 and 2011 obtained a Scholarship for BMus study from Trinity College of Music. She was also awarded by Raymond Russel Prize for 2010 and 2011. In the same year she completed her undergraduate degree. Petra also studied with Maggie Cole (harpsichord) and Steven Devine (fortepiano).
As an active harpsichordist, she was involved in various projects at London Handel Festival 2011, Handel House concert series 2009/2010 and Greenwich Early Music Festival 2009 - 2011. She is engaged with musical accompaniment at Trinity College of Music and Trinity Baroque Orchestra, where she worked on Handel operas Rinaldo and Giustino. Recently she was appointed at the Shalford Choral Society for Winter/Spring 2013 period. Petra also appears as a soloist and a chamber musician with Battaglia Baroque Ensemble and The Amadé Players. Recent performance included the third Brandenburg concerto by Bach at St. Martin in the Fields.
Not only historical performance but also performing of contemporary music for period instruments belong to her interests and has premiered works by composers such as Stephen Montague, Sivan Shenhav, Effy Efthymiou, Caroline Heslop and Karel Janovický.
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With kind support from the
Italian Cultural Institute of London
