First Violins

Olga Artyugina

In the orchestra since 2022

Olga Artyugina studied at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory (the class of People’s Artist of the Russian Federation, Prof. M. Gantvarg, 2010–2017), Reina Sofia High School of Music in Madrid (the class of Prof. Z. Bron, 2016–2018), the Conservatory of Lugano, Switzerland (the class of Prof. S. Krylov, 2018–2020). She has been working in the musicAeterna orchestra since 2022.

She is the laureate of the St. Petersburg Government Youth Award. Also, she has won a range of all-Russian and international competitions, including the VIII Mravinsky International Competition for Youth (I Prize, St. Petersburg), International Competition “New Names” (I Prize, Moscow), X International Independent Music Competition “Individualis” (I prize, Kiev), II International Music Competition “Rising Stars Grand Prix” (II Prize, Berlin), XXVI International Violin Competition “Andrea Postacchini” (III Prize, Fermo, Italy), II All-Russian Music Competition (II Prize, Moscow), 56th International Competition for Violinists “Premio Paganini” (Laureate, Genoa, Italy).

Olga Artyugina has collaborated with the St.Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra “Classica”, the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra “New Russia”, the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra “Moskovia”, the Karelian State Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, the International Symphony Orchestra “Tavrichesky”, the Dagestan State Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra, the Macedonian Philharmonic and the Macedonian Opera and Ballet Theatre Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Serbia “Camerata Serbica” conducted by Z. Abdullayeva, M. Agrest, E. Bushkov, M. Golikov, Z. Gugkaev, L. Jovanović, A. Kantorov, M. Leontiev, I. Ponomarenko, A. Rybalko, B. Chadlovska, A. Steinlucht, and others.

In 2017 she went on a solo tour around the countries of South-Eastern Europe. In 2018 as a member of the Mendelssohn de BP string quartet in Madrid she received an honorary diploma from the hands of Queen Sofia of Spain. The violinist’s recordings were broadcast on All-Russia State Television Channel “Kultura”, on German radio SWR2 and BR Klassik Bayerischer Rundfunk.

WHO HAS HAD THE BIGGEST INFLUENCE ON YOU AS A MUSICIAN AND A PERSON?

As to my professional development, I have always tried to choose people, not places. So, I enjoyed taking part in master classes and officially studying in the class of Zakhar Bron — that is how I got to stay in Spain for several years. Then there was Switzerland, where I also went for the sake of a teacher — Sergej Krylov, who became a real guru in music for me. Evgeny Sinaisky can be called my very first guru. Under his instruction I studied at the St. Petersburg Conservatory for ten years — even at that stage it was he who showed me non-standard fundamentals of musical thinking associated, rather, with the European school.

WHAT DO YOU VALUE MOST IN WORKING WITH MUSICAETERNA?

When I became a part of musicAeterna, I felt as natural as a fish in water and found everything that is close to me in musical life, in a deep understanding of music. This is truly an orchestra of soloists, as many like to emphasize. And it is also a team of bright personalities. The orchestra contains a whole kaleidoscope of infinitely interesting and very different personalities, and, most importantly, it seems to me that they are united by the desire to give this world inner light. And the personality of the maestro helps us to gather this light into a single stream and transmit it to the audience in the hall. Every rehearsal and every concert with musicAeterna does not pass without a trace: you are always learning something new. Life is an everyday search. Music is always about feelings, and, what is valuable, at every concert Theodore helps you to perceive something that you have never experienced before.

WHAT DO YOU TAKE YOUR ENERGY AND INSPIRATION FROM?

By all means, music is hard work. Especially when you combine teaching and your own projects with work in the musicAeterna orchestra, in which you need to invest no less effort than in solo programmes. A certain musical force helps to carry all this load: you tell yourself that you have to live the music through every time — and there is no other way. Especially when you see that the audience in the hall is experiencing the same feelings and thoughts that the composer put in his work and that you transmit, this is the reward for your effort.

HOW WOULD YOU SPEND YOUR PERFECT WEEKEND?

I would probably spend my ideal weekend in the park. I like to admire the water, the trees, and the clear sky, to notice the interesting things in the people around me — to catch these pure feelings. At such moments I feel like an artist, because I immediately want to capture the smallest shades and nuances. At the same time, I have repeatedly caught myself thinking that even then music continues to sound in my head — in this sense, I probably never rest completely.