About Alfie Weinberg (violin) & Qden Blaauw (piano):
Alfie Weinberg (20) is from Birmingham and has been playing the violin since the age of three, using the Suzuki method. From ages six to nine, he was a member of the Young Strings Project at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, before continuing his studies at Chetham’s School of Music until the age of sixteen. There, he studied violin with Kristoffer Dolatko and Sebastian Muller, and piano with Marta Karbownicka. During his time at Chetham’s, his quartet was awarded the Catherine Perkins Prize.
Alfie was a member of the National Children’s Orchestra for six consecutive years and has also played with the CBSO Youth Orchestra. Alfie has played at a number of prestigious music venues, including Symphony Hall, Bridgewater Hall, and The Royal Festival Hall. As a soloist, Alfie has performed at Manchester Cathedral, Stoller Hall and has twice been invited to perform at Newcastle City Hall. He was also invited to play at Ronnie Scott’s with Nigel Kennedy.
In 2023, Alfie was offered places at the Royal College of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and the Royal Academy of Music; choosing to study at the Royal Academy of Music. He currently studies classical violin with Joshua Fisher and jazz violin with Christian Garrick. At the Academy, he plays regularly in chamber music settings, including duos with Qden Blauuw and as a member of the Colletus Trio, and has taken part in a number of ensemble projects with the J&A Beare Chamber Music Project over the last couple of years.
Alfie has participated in orchestral projects at RAM under conductors including Roderick Cox and Ryan Wigglesworth, with recent performances including Bizet’s Carmen conducted by Chris White. Outside the Academy, he performs regularly with the Albion Orchestra and Orchestra Innova, London-based ensembles comprising students from leading UK conservatoires.
He has attended masterclasses with distinguished violinists such as Rodney Friend, Alina Ibragimova, Jennifer Pike, Kirill Troussov, Callum Smart, and Nigel Kennedy. Alongside classical violin, Alfie has a strong interest in jazz and baroque violin, as well as piano and composition. His compositional work includes pieces for duos and quartets, and a collaborative project with a shortlisted Birmingham Poet Laureate for eleven instruments.
Alfie’s jazz experience predates his studies at RAM; he has performed with the Tim Kliphuis Trio and has been a regular participant in the Birmingham Jazz and Blues Festival for the past three years, collaborating with musicians including Bruce Adams and Dave Green. In addition to performing, Alfie has teaching experience in a London school, at DeRosa Music Academy, and through Midlands Suzuki International workshops. He currently teaches at SWS Music School in London. Alfie plays on a Paul Bailly 1900, kindly loaned from The Benslow Music Instrument Loan Scheme.
Qden Blaauw (20) showed an interest in classical music from an early age and began playing piano at the age of eight and composing soon thereafter. He has performed some of his compositions in concerts and on television interviews. He has experience teaching and has given lessons at various schools in Cape Town. He has also done volunteer work at the Hugo Lambrechts Music Centre, assisting with teaching theory. Moreover, he has engaged in fundraising and given masterclasses at the Conservatoire National de Musique in Mauritius.
Recognition through competitions began early, and in 2016, after playing piano for less than four years, he won the SAMRO Hubert van der Spuy National Music Competition. Thereafter, he won, received top places and special awards in many national music competitions such as the Atterbury National Piano Competition, Hennie Joubert Piano Competition, National Youth Music Competition and Johan Vos Competition. Qden won the Yamaha 2020 Scholarship Program and was a recipient of a high school culture scholarship from Reddam House Durbanville ( 2018-2022). He also received first prize in the International Youth Music Competition (2021). More recently, Qden received a full tuition scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music (London, UK), commencing September 2023. At the end of 2023, he performed in the “Pictures Reframed” project at the Johannesburg Contemporary Art Foundation. This project had previously been performed around the globe by the acclaimed pianist Leif Ove Andsnes. Qden has performed 13 concertos with major South African orchestras and one in Germany. In 2020, amid all the COVID-19 restrictions, some engagements and events had to be cancelled, among which was a concert in Paris with the Miagi Orchestra, organized by Les Amateurs Virtuoses, where Qden was to play two double piano concertos with German pianist, Nina del Se.
He performed as a soloist at numerous concerts and festivals in South Africa. Internationally, he performed in Germany as well as at the Durtal Music Festival in France. In London, Qden has won the Royal Overseas award in the Royal Overseas Leagues Annual Music Competition and is a part of the Philip and Dorothy Green Young Artists scheme.
Probably one of Qden’s personal highlights was in November 2016, when he was one of ten children, and the first from Africa, selected from more than 500 applicants worldwide to attend the prestigious Allianz Music Camp in Warsaw, Poland, where he received a master class from acclaimed pianist Lang Lang. He has also received master classes from other international pianists, including Valentina Lisitsa, Gloria Campaner, Wolfram Schmitt-Leonardy, Martina Bauer, Motoki Hirai, Spencer Myer, Luis Magalhães, Liezl-Maret Jacobs and Jan Hugo. Since 2014 until present, Qden has been taught by Cape Town pianist and teacher, Shane Goodall. He has been featured on national television, including Espresso, eCNA, SABC2SABC3, radio as well as newspapers and magazines.
Programme:
TBC
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