With playing described as “graceful”, “charismatic,” “expressive” and “sensitive to the richness and subtle colors of textures,” Bulgarian violinist Svetlana Tsoneva has charmed audiences throughout Europe and the US. A top-prizewinner in the Svetoslav Obretenov (1994,) Eugen Coca (1997,) Young String Players (1998-99,) and Five Towns (2005) competitions, she made her Carnegie Hall solo recital debut in February 2005. In 1999, she was chosen to participate in radio show “From the Top”, which broadcast her performance on radio stations across the nation and brought her the 1999 “Best Choice of the Audience Award”.
A vivid chamber musician, Ms. Tsoneva has appeared on Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall stage numerous times, performing works by Faure;, Mendelssohn, Ravel, Franck, and Schumann. Recent appearances include performances of Brahms Piano Trio No.1, Mendelssohn Piano Quartet in b minor, op.3 and Faure; Piano Quartet in A, op.26. Her performance of Mendelssohn’s Piano Quartet in b minor, (also featuring Laura Metcalf, Matei Varga and Chiu-Chen Liu,) was broadcast on WQXR’s Young Artists Showcase in February 2005. Additional highlights include “Classical Savion” with renowned tap-dancer Savion Glover (2005,) Wayne Shorter: Life on Stage (2003,) and Caetano Veloso: A Foreign Sound (2004.)
In the 2007-08 season, Tsoneva releases her debut album of recital repertoire, Svetlana Tsoneva Live. She was featured in numerous other recordings, including The Space Between (Chiara Civello, Decca 2007), Mannes College’s A Performance Sampler (2005,) and Eddie Higgins’ Moonlight Becomes You (2003,) to name a few.
Svetlana Tsoneva started playing the violin at age five and made her solo recital debut at age nine, in her native Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Throughout her studies, she has been mentored by Michele Auclair, Eric Rosenblith, Darina Dankova, Prof. Nedialcho Todorov, Hiroko Yajima, and Violeta Stoianova. Ms. Tsoneva has performed master classes for Stoika Milanova, Kevork Mardirossian, Sergiu Schwartz, Roberto Cani, Ani Kavafian, the Borromeo String Quartet, and the Orion String Quartet, among others.
