Valeriy Sokolov

For other people of the same name, see Sokolov (surname).

Valeriy Sokolov (born September 22, 1986 in Kharkiv) is a Ukrainian violinist.

Sokolov was awarded the Study Grant Prize at the International Pablo Sarasate Competition in Pamplona, Spain in 1999 which provided him with a scholarship to study with Natalia Boyarskaya at the Yehudi Menuhin School, England.

In September 2005, Sokolov took part in the George Enescu Festival and won the Grand Prix with a performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto; he also won Best Performance for Enescu’s Sonata No. 3 as well as the Enescu Foundation Prize.

In 2006 and 2007, he performed with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Douglas Boyd, the Bournemouth Symphony and Yan Pascal Tortelier as well as with Orchester Musikkollegium Winterthur under Howard Griffiths. Elsewhere, he performed with the Bremen Philharmonic and Stefan Blunier, and the Basel Symphony Orchestra with Rumon Gamba. Sokolov made his US orchestral debut in summer 2007, performing at Aspen Music Festival and Grand Teton Music Festival, and, upon special invitation of David Zinman, at the Blossom Festival with the Cleveland Orchestra.

In February 2008, he gave the US premiere of Boris Tichenko’s Concerto for Piano and Violin at Carnegie Hall, New York and at the Library of Congress, Washington. Sokolov returned to the Aspen festival in August 2008 to perform Bartok’s Violin Concerto No. 2 with Peter Oundjian.

Upon Lawrence Foster’s personal invitation, Sokolov recorded Enescu’s Sonata No. 3, complementing Mr. Foster’s recording of Enescu’s Octet in a transcription for symphonic orchestra, released on CD at the beginning of 2009 on the EMI/Virgin label.

In recent seasons he has appeared regularly with the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the Orchestre National de Bordeaux-Aquitaine, and at the Aspen Festival, and made debuts with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and the Cleveland Orchestra. Conductors with whom he has worked include David Zinman, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Ivor Bolton and Ludovic Morlot.

Valeriy Sokolov’s 2009/10 season sees debuts with the Orchestre National de France, the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, the Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg, and at the Concertgebouw. He also returns to the Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège, The Hallé and the Manchester Camerata, as well as appearing in recital at the Wigmore Hall, the Théâtre du Châtelet and Festspielhaus Baden-Baden.

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