53rd BEMUS AT MADLENIANUM

8 November 2021 at 20:00 h, Large Stage of MADLENIANUM

Concert of Ksenija Jankovic, violoncello and Candida Thompson, violin

Continuing presenting you outstanding artists at our Large Stage, on 8 November at 20:00 h, as part of 53rd BEMUS, in co-organization of CEBEF, we have the opportunity to host the world famous cellist Ksenija Jankovic and the violinist Candida Thompson from Great Britain. At the concert under the conducting baton of maestro Dejan Savic and accompanied by the Opera & Theatre Madlenianum Orchestra, audience will listen to the most beautiful overtures and suites from the opus of Gioachino Rossini, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, as well as a double concerto for violin and cello by Johannes Brahms. Tickets can be purchased at the price of RSD 1.000 and RSD 1.200.  

Ksenija Jankovic was born in 1958 in a Serbian-Russian family of musicians. Fascinated by the cello, she started playing at the age of six and at the age of nine she already made her debut with the Belgrade Philharmonic. Two years later, as a state scholarship holder, she continued her education at the Central Music School of the Moscow Conservatory and her professors were Stefan Kalyanov and Mstislav Rostropovich. She went on to study with Pierre Fournier in Switzerland and Andrea Navarra in Germany. Having won several national and international competitions, she rose to international fame after winning the first prize at the famous "Gaspar Cassado" Competition in Florence, in 1981.

She has been deeply and permanently inspired by her work with Sándor Végh and György Sebök. Ksenija Jankovic's solo concerts in Paris, London, Berlin and Moscow, but also in Belgrade and Novi Sad, as well as her performances with large orchestras such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Budapest Philharmonic, The Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (Swiss Symphony Orchestra), Radio Berlin, Copenhagen and Madrid orchestras, have been described by critics affecting and unforgettable. Ksenija Jankovic is one of the most interesting cellists of nowadays. She is a devoted chamber musician. She plays with artists such as Gidon Kremer, András Schiff and Tabea Zimmerman and is a regular guest at international festivals in Austria, Switzerland, England, Germany and Korea. She was a cello professor at the Würzburg University of Music (1994-2004) and since 2004 she has been teaching at the Detmold University of Music.

Candida Thompson, a violinist, studied with the renowned pedagogue David Takeno at the “Guildhall School of Music and Drama” in London, where she obtained her soloist diploma with distinction. She continued her studies at the Banff Centre for the Arts in Canada. Subsequently Candida Thompson won various prizes at competitions, including the international competition of “Youth Music” in Belgrade (Internationale Jeunesses Musicales). Candida Thompson has appeared as a soloist with various orchestras in Europe, the United States and East Asia, as well as the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, the English String Orchestra, Amsterdam Sinfonietta and the Netherlands Radio Chamber Philharmonic. Candida Thompson is a passionate chamber musician. She has performed with musicians among whom are Isaac Stern, Janine Jansen, Julian Rachlin, Isabelle Faust and Bruno Giuranna. She founded the Hamlet Piano Trio together with the cellist Ksenija Jankovic and the pianist Paolo Giacometti. She has regularly been invited to perform at the Kuhmo Festival in Finland, La Musica in the United States and the Utrecht International Chamber music festival and has been a guest at the Canossa Master Classes in Reggio Emilia, the Gubbio Festival in Italy and the Ernen Chamber Music Festival in Switzerland.

From an early age Candida Thompson was already leading chamber orchestras in Scandinavia, Spain, the Netherlands and Great Britain. She has been concertmaster of Amsterdam Sinfonietta since 1995, as well as its artistic director since 2003. In leading an orchestra project she places high value on the individual input of all the orchestra members. Her musical approach elicits complete involvement and maximum dedication from the musicians. Under her leadership the Amsterdam Sinfonietta has recorded nine CDs so far.

As a member of the Hamlet Piano Trio, in 2015, Candida, together with Paolo Giacometti and Ksenija Jankovic, released the two Mendelssohn piano trios for Channel Classics and they debuted in the USA as well. In 2017 they released the CD of two Beethoven piano trios on original instruments and in May 2018 gave a successful debut concert at the Concert Hall (Concertgebouw) in Amsterdam.

Dejan Savic (1957), a prominent Serbian artist, graduated in conducting from the Faculty of Music Arts in Belgrade and completed his master's studies in conducting at the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, being the first in the history of this high education institution. He has been the chief conductor of the Belgrade Opera and Ballet since 1993 and was the General Manager of the Opera and Ballet from 2001 to 2004. He is the Artistic Director of the PRO CLASSICA Chamber Orchestra, as well as of the renowned Mixed Choir "The Baruh Brothers", founded in 1879. From 1989 to 1992 he was the Artistic Director of the Nis Symphony Orchestra and from 1993 to 1995 the Artistic Director of the Chamber Ensemble PRO MUSICA, the oldest in Yugoslavia. From 2005 to 2007, Dejan Savic, as the first and up to now the sole music artist in the 150-year history of this institution, was the director of the National Theatre and returning to the position of the Opera General Manager in 2007, becoming also the Chief Conductor of the theatre in 2010. In 2012, he returned to the position of General Manager of the National Theatre and he remained in that position until 2018, recording exceptional artistic and business results.

With his choir, as well as with other choirs he conducted, he participated in numerous prestigious international choir festivals, winning numerous awards and recognitions (Gorica and Pescara, Italy, Karditsa, Greece, JHS Nis, The Days of Mokranjac in Negotin, etc.).

As a conductor, and also with his ensembles, D. Savic has performed in Greece, Israel, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Germany, Romania, Ireland, Russia, USA, China, Korea, France, Georgia, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Spain and elsewhere, performing with many prestigious orchestras and opera houses in Europe, America and Asia.

Dejan Savic acted as a regular guest conductor of the Symphony Orchestra and the Greek Radio Choir (ERT). His pedagogical career includes professorial engagement at several music academies in the country and abroad, as well as a series of master classes in several European countries, still held by him. He has participated in the work of several famous international competitions and contests, both in the country and abroad. He has collaborated with some of the greatest names in the world of music around the planet.

D. Savic has recorded for radio and TV in a number of countries and he made several permanent recordings, LP releases, audio cassettes, CDs and DVDs published by PGP RTS and other companies. He is the holder of numerous domestic and foreign awards and recognitions, including the Golden Beocug Award, Vuk Award, the Silver Star of the Republic of Italy, the Star of the Maltese Cross Orders and others.