Laura Adriana

violin

Originally from Italy, studied violin with Elena Guizzardi and Massimo Marin at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory of Music in Torino, where she graduated at the age of 17.
She also studied with Corrado Romano, Franco Gulli, Adelina Oprean (obtaining the Solisten-Diplom at the Musik-Akademie in Basel, Switzerland) and Salvatore Accardo.
She mastered Chamber Music in England (Britten-Pears School in Aldeburgh and Royal Academy of Music in London) and Italy (Scuola di Musica di Fiesole) with members of the Amadeus Quartet, the Smetana Quartet and the Quartetto Italiano.
Alongside her musical life, in 2005 she graduated in Humanities (Letters and Philosophy) with great distinction from the Università Degli Studi in Turin.
Aged 20, she started being regularly invited to perform in Milano at La Scala with the Orchestra del Teatro, la Filarmonica Della Scala and the Orchestra da Camera Della Scala. She later obtained a position at the Teatro Regio di Torino where she played as a regular member. She has been also a regular member of the Orchestra da Camera Italiana and Sentieri Selvaggi.
After performing as First Violin of the Andriani Quartet, Laura became the first violin of the Alcan Quartet and moved to Quebec in 2003. The Alcan Quartet’s activity and discography (including works by Mendelssohn, Glenn Gould, MacMillan, and the Complete Beethoven’s Quartets) were highly successful in Canada and internationally.
As a chamber musician, Laura has performed in Europe (Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Belgium, Holland, England and the Czech Republic), Canada, the United States, China and Korea.
She won several first prizes in major Italian competitions (i.e. Mantova, Vittorio Veneto).
In 1997, at the 44th International Violin Competition Premio Paganini in Genoa, she won the Special Jury Prize for her performance of the Sequenza VIII by Luciano Berio.
In January 2010, the CD Chant de terre et de ciel, (Messiaen’s music; ATMA classique) won the Opus of the Year award of the Conseil québécois de la musique.
Laura is one of the few current violinists to play with as much ease the repertoire from baroque to contemporary eras according to historical criteria of interpretation, with appropriate instruments and bows.
In 2016, the meeting with Sigiswald Kuijken was noteworthy and she perfected with him the original technique chin-off. Since then, she regularly presents herself to the public also as a baroque violinist and she has been presenting the Complete Bach Solos.
She has played with Les Idées Heureuses, Caprice, Arion, Les Boreades, Tafelmusik, Il Gardellino and Il Pomo d’Oro.
She has been Instructor in Baroque Violin and Ensembles at the Early Music Department at McGill University and Guest Professor at the Université de Montréal.
One of her latest research highlights concerns the historical performance of Paganini. The recording of the 24 Caprices has been released last November by the label Passacaille.