Born to parents who were
both musicians, Ekaterina Frolova made her orchestral
debut at the age of seven. After completing her high
school studies in music, she entered St-Petersburg’s
Rimski-Korsakov Conservatory in 2004 in the class of
Antonina Kazarina, with whom she continues to study
today. She is a two-time winner of the Louis Spohr
International Competition and in 2002 was awarded the
Best Hope Prize at the Tchaikovsky Competition. She has
taken part in numerous international music festivals,
including the Gergiev Festival in Rotterdam, the
Usedomer Musikfestival and Kissingen Festival in
Germany, and the Salzburg Festival. She has been a guest
soloist with orchestras in Russia, Germany, Finland and
Slovakia and has toured Europe and the United States.
Russia
Born November 4, 1985
SEMI-FINALS
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Sonata No. 2 for solo violin, in A
minor
BWV 1003
JOHANNES BRAHMS Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 108
SCOTT GOOD And dreams rush forth to greet the distance
EUGÈNE YSAŸE / CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS Caprice after
Saint-Saëns’
Etude en forme de valse, Op. 52. No. 6
NICCOLÒ PAGANINI Caprice Op. 1 No. 11 in C major
FINALS
DMITRI CHOSTAKOVITCH Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77
ADDITIONAL INFO
1- What do you like most about music? (Why did you
decide to become a violinist?)
I was born in a family of musicians. Classical music
always resonated in our house. I decided to become a
violinist because I like the violin.
2- Which composers or what works are you particularly
drawn to? (What music would you bring with you to a
desert island?)
I like very much Tchaikovsky and Saint-Saëns, just as
Brahms and Shostakovich. I think that Bach’s works are
masterpieces for every musician. Music of Mozart, Haydn
and Beethoven is very close to me too.
3- Who are your favourite violinists (dead or alive)
and why?
Most of all I like David Oistrakh. He has a unique sound,
brilliant technique and he successfully transmits the
main idea and his conception of works he performs. I
also like such performers as Isaac Stern, Yehudi
Menuhin, Arthur Grumiaux, Henryk Szeryng, Nathan
Milstein, Leonid Kogan, Itzhak Perlman and Maxim
Vengerov.
4- What was your most intense musical moment
(positive or negative)?
I have played on three unique violins made by famous
Italian violinmaker Stradivarius: the “Yusupov”, the
“Empress of Russia” and the “Francesko”. It is a wonder
how he could create such different instruments! I
derived great pleasure from playing them.
5- Do you have any hobbies or is there anything else
you would like to reveal about yourself?
My hobby is gardening, but my passion (after the violin
of course!) is photo. I like to take photos of marvelous
landscapes in different countries.
