Mikhail KARPOV, Russia

Special Guest

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Mikhail Karpov is a famous russian pianist and teacher. He graduated from the Moscow State Conservatory P. I. Tchaikovsky under professor Yakov Milshtein.

He teaches since 45 years at the College of this same conservatory, preparing the young pianists aiming a professional career to enter to the Conservatory. He also teaches piano chamber ensembles.

Several of his students are winners of prestigious international piano competitions, developping their career in Russia and abroad.

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Marina SCALAFIOTTI, Italy

Conservatorio di musica "G. Verdi", Torino

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Marina Scalafiotti is an accomplished Italian concert pianist whose career spans nearly four decades.
Her expertise in both piano and harpsichord ranges from baroque to contemporary music. Having spent the earlier part of her career studying and performing with talented musicians from all over the world, she has since shifted her focus to the field of music education.
Scalafiotti’s virtuosity and talent for musical interpretation make her exceptionally suited to passing on her knowledge of music to others.

Marina Scalafiotti started studying the piano under Amelia Careggio at the Conservatorio Statale di Musica “Giuseppe Verdi” in Turin. After having obtained her diploma summa cum laude, she continued her piano education under Orazio Frugoni. She also studied Chamber Music with the Trio di Trieste, and the harpsichord under Giorgio Tabacco. During these years, Scalafiotti won several important prizes in piano competitions, such first prizes at the International Piano Competition of Stresa in 1981 and the Piano Competition of Treviso in 1992. She was also the recipient of the Spedidam Prize at the Concours International de Musique Contemporaine of Orléans in 2002.

As a result of her numerous accolades, Scalafiotti was offered a scholarship from the Fondazione Romanini of Brescia, allowing her to further advance her studies under Alexis Weissenberg, Maria Golia, Lazar Berman, Boris Petrushansky and Boris Bloch. In 1995, with support from the De Sono Association, she went to Paris to study under Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri – a former pupil of Claudio Arrau – at the École Normale de Musique de Paris “Alfred Cortot”.

Scalafiotti’s career progressed quickly and she has played in many prestigious concert halls as well as in various other venues across Europe and Latin America and performed under several renowned conductors. She also played chamber music alongside Philippe Entremont, Ervin Schiffer, Katie Sebestyen, Ran Varon, ...
Many of her performances have been recorded by national radio and television stations, such as Radio Rai, Radio France, Bayerischer Rundfunk, RTBF, RAI, Classica, and Arte.

Nowadays, Marina Scalafiotti is often invited to teach master classes around the world, and regularly asked to be part of the jury in various piano competitions. Since 2006, Scalafiotti has been a faculty member of the ICPA (International Certificate for Piano Artist), a project by the Fondation Bell'Arte.
She is actively committed to promote the love for classical piano playing amongst all generations and does this through organizing cultural events and concerts, as well as the international piano competition “Maria Golia” and the online publishing of numerous piano masterclass videos for “telemasterclass” which she founded in 2020 to address the teaching challenges during the pandemic.

Scalafiotti currently teaches at her alma mater, the Music Conservatory of Turin. For the past twenty years, Scalafiotti has also headed the Cartesia foundation, which organizes musical and cultural events in the province of Turin.

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Kyung-Ah KIM, South Korea

Sejong University-Seoul National University

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Kyung-Ah, praised for her " a part of the wave of new pianists ,with an ability to act the part of a star" (Suburban Chicago News), has won numerous competition awards, including the USA Beethoven competition, the Leos Janacek International Competition, the Sorantin International Competition and the St. Charles International Competition, among others.

Since having been selected as the 2013 Artist in the Seoul Arts Center, she has concertized extensively throughout the United States, Europe and Asia.
She has collaboration with leading conductors including John Williams, James Orent, Petr Atrichter, and has performed with the Boston Pops Orchestra, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, Nec Philharmonic Orchestrea, Bu Symphony Orchestra, Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, Seoul Symphony Orchestra, Busan Philharmonic Orchestra and Kyunggi Philharmonic Orchestra.

She recevied the Bachelor of Music, Master of Music and Graduate Diploma from the New England Conservatory, DMA from the Boston University, where she studied with Russell Sherman, Wha Kyung Byun and Boaz Sharon. She currently teaches at Sejong University and Seoul National University in South Korea.
Kyung-Ah Kim has been an ICPA artist since 2016, representing the ICPA program in South-Korea.

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Anaït KARPOVA, Russia

Académie intercommunale de  Court-St. Etienne - Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve

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Born in a family of eminent musicians (i.a.Ilya Satz), Anaït Karpova spent most of her childhood in the State Musical Theater of Natalia Sats (her great-grandmother), and studying piano with her parents, both pianists. Anaït studied music in the Gnessin School of Moscow with professor Anna Arzamanova, then joined the class of professor Victor Merzhanov at the P. Tchaïkovsky Conservatory of Moscow where she graduated with honours. She then pursued her studies in Brussels Conservatory of Music from which she graduated with Great Distinction in 2002, specializing in chamber music and as a soloist, under the tutorship of V. Spanoghe and Daniel Blumenthal. Throughout and after her studies, Anaït’s success was unanimous in National and International competitions.

Since 2002, Anaït Karpova has been a soloist in the Philharmonic Society of Moscow, and performed in most concert halls of Moscow, Saint Petersburg and other russian cities. She performs in recital, with chamber ensembles or orchestra on a regular basis in Belgium, but also in the Netherland, Greece, Italy, France and USA.

Anaït works in close collaboration with numerous distinguished vocal artists such as Elena Okolysheva (Mezzo-soprano, soloist at Bolshoy Theatre), with whom she has been recorded on Radio Classique Orphée, has accompanied for recitals Laura Claycomb (France 2006), Irina Samilova (Soloist at Bolshoy and La Monnaie) and Jodie Devos in 2015. Anaït is also a member of contrasted chamber ensembles such as Het Rode Pomp, specialized in contemporary music; the Krocus Trio, formed in 2011 with Marie-Noëlle de Callataÿ and Sophie de Tillesse, and has formed a piano trio with Viviane Spanoghe (cello) and Alexei Moshkov (violin) performing numerous concerts from 2012 to this day. For the past few years, Anaït has followed the program The International Certificate for Piano Artists lead by Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri et Philippe Entremont, in collaboration with the Ecole Normale de Musique Alfred Cortot in Paris and the University of Florida - College of Fine Arts-School of Music, all of which alongside her position as piano teacher (Since 2006) in Intercommunal Academy of Court-Saint-Etienne and Ottignies. She has been invited as guest teacher for the annual piano masterclasses MusicA Braine l’Alleud, for the Summer Academy of Mérignac, France and for The Paris International Summer Session.

She's also a member of the jury for Médoc Aquitaine International Competition in Mérignac.

Having coached, and worked with, numerous singers throughout competitions and concerts, Anaït has revealed to be truly passionate and dedicated to the vocal arts, bringing together her musicianship and her experience, to ultimately reveal the true colours of a voice. She has lately been the initiator of opera projects such as the production of “The Little Sweep” in the Braine-l’Alleud Academy of music (April 2016) and the creation of «Cieguecita de Bélen », an original opera by E. Granados.

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Julien LIBEER, Belgium

LUCA School of Arts Leuven

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Around the age of four, Julien discovered Leonard Bernstein conducting West Side Story.Another significant influence was the pianist Dinu Lipatti, yet another person who radiated a musical truth. 

For five unforgettable years, the Franco-Polish pedagogue Jean Fassina laid the foundations of his musical and pianistic skills. He then spent another five-year cycle under the wing of Maria João Pires, regularly sharing the stage with her. An artist in residence at Flagey in Brussels, Julien has performed at venues such as the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Barbican Hall in London, Palau de la Musica in Barcelona, and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg.

Other tours have taken him to Japan, Hong Kong, Lebanon, Turkey, and the United States. He has performed as a soloist with orchestras like the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Brussels Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia, and New Japan Philharmonic, collaborating with conductors such as Trevor Pinnock, Augustin Dumay, Jun Märkl, Michel Tabachnik, Hervé Niquet, Enrique Mazzola, among others.

Highly sought-after as a chamber musician, he shares the stage with Augustin Dumay, Bruno Philippe, Paul Lewis, Samuel Hasselhorn, Maria João Pires, and Lorenzo Gatto. Recent season highlights include invitations from the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Wigmore Hall, Flagey in Brussels, and the Steinway International Concert Series in Cardiff. He was a guest at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest, the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, the Miami International Piano Festival, and performed chamber music at De Doelen in Rotterdam and the Théâtre des Abbesses in Paris.

His recordings have been highly praised by the press for their originality and quality. Alongside recordings with Lorenzo Gatto (Complete Beethoven Sonatas - Diapason d'Or of the Year 2016) and Camille Thomas (Réminiscences - Echo Klassik Award 2017), he released "Bach · Bartok" for Harmonia Mundi in 2020, followed by "A Well-tempered Conversation" in 2022, a conceptual approach to Bach's legendary Well-Tempered Clavier.

For the 24-25 season, he is preparing a Mozart album with Pierre Colombet (Ebène Quartet) and Eckart Runge (Artemis Quartet), as well as a Ravel album.

Julien is the originator of multiple projects aimed at expanding the presence of music beyond the concert hall. This includes his role as a host in Belgium’s main classical music TV show (2016) and "Salon Libeer" at the Concertgebouw in Bruges, which combines music and discussion in the hope of deepening the musical experience of the audience. He hosts "Dead or Alive," a lecture at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, and is also the artistic director of Singing Molenbeek, a Brussels suburb children’s choir.

Julien Libeer studied with Jean Fassina (Paris), Maria Joao Pires (Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel), and Daniel Blumenthal (Royal Conservatory of Brussels), and honed his chamber music skills with the Artemis String Quartet. He received regular advice from Dmitry Bashkirov, Alfred Brendel, Nelson Delle Vigne-Fabbri, Jura Margulis, and Gerhard Schulz (Alban Berg Quartet).

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Geneviève VANDERMEULEN, Belgium

Conservatoire Arthur Grumiaux, Charleroi

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After studying piano at the Royal Conservatories of Mons and Brussels in the class of Jacques Genty and Dominique Cornil, Geneviève Vandermeulen continued her musical education at the Alfred Cortot School in Paris with Aquiles and Nelson Delle-Vigne.

She was also piano teacher at the Arthur Grumiaux Conservatory in Charleroi and performed as pianist with the RTB (Belgian radio and television) orchestra.

For many years now, Geneviève has been teaching in various international master-classes, and she is a jury member for many competitions.

She also prepares students for international competitions

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Allan DUARTE MANHAS, Brazil

Music Academy "Fanny-Hensel", Music Academy "Leo-Kestenberg", Berlin

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Allan Duarte Manhas was born in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, where he first got in touch with the piano at the age of 7.

Years later he would earn his Bachelor’s degree in piano with honors from the University of São Paulo, under Prof. Fernando Corvisier. After an intense semester as a visiting scholar in Ukraine (National Academy of Music "Peter Tchaikovsky", Kiev) he finally transferred to Germany to pursue graduate studies. There he earned his Master’s Degree and Konzert Examen from the Martin-Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, under Prof. Marco Antonio de Almeida. Further studies took place at the Fondation Bell'arte-ICPA (Belgium), under the guidance of Maestro Nelson Delle-Vigne  Fabbri (École Normale).

Allan Manhas has attended masterclasses with acclaimed artists such as Luis Carlos de Moura Castro, François-Frédéric Guy, Lilya Zilberstein, Boris Berman, Paul Badura-Skoda, John Perry, Jerome Lowenthal and Josep Colom. 

He has won prizes in competitions in South America and Europe, such as the "Convocatoria Internacional Claudio Arrau" in Quilpue, Chile (2006), and the Prize "Musik braucht Freunde" Halle-Saale (2009).

Allan Duarte Manhas has been performing with orchestras, such as the Halle State Orchestra (Germ.), the West Palm Beach Atlantic University Orchestra (USA), the Academic Orchestra Halle (Germ.), and the Symphony Orchestra of the University of Londrina (OSUEL-BR).

After several year as an Assistant Professor at the Martin-Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, he moved to Berlin, where he currently holds a teaching position for piano in the State Music Schools Leo Kestenberg (Tempelhof-Schöneberg) and Fanny Hensel (Central).

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Elena SESELGYTE, Lithuania

Eleny Piano Studio, Vilnius

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Elena Seselgyte was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. She started her piano studies in the Music and Theatre Academy of Lithuania where she obtained her Bachelor degree. She moved then to Brussels to study at the Royal Conservatory of Music with prof. D. Blumenthal and obtained her Master’s degree of Piano Performance.

In 2013 Elena studied in Vienna University of Arts with Erasmus exchange program (prof. O. Probst class). After her Master degree in Brussels, in 2017 she returned to Vienna to study in Chamber Music Certificate programs under prof. L.Monti. She played many concerts in Austria with duo, trio and quintet.

In 2009 she participated in Youth Pianists Competition „Settimo Torinese“ in Italy where she met prof. Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri. Since then, she perfects her art under prof. Nelson Delle-Vigne and became a member of ICPA program.

Elena had masterclasses with many famous pianists and professors: Ph. Entremont, M. Beroff, R. Roux, Ph. Collard, N. Delle-Vigne Fabbri, M. Rubackyte, J. Lowenthal.

In 2021 she obtained the second prize from MAP-IMC Piano Competition in California, and in 2022- the second prize in King’s Peak Music Competition in USA. In 2022 Excellence Piano Awards in London she got the Honor Mention. In 2023 Elena got an Absolute Prize in International London Music Awards.

She plays concerts worldwide, in Italy, Spain, France, Lithuania, Belgium, Poland, Austria, USA, Japan.

Currently Elena lives in Vilnius, where she has her own piano studio and is the president of the non-profit cultural organization „Menija“.

 

Nelson DELLE-VIGNE FABBRI, Italy

Artistic Director

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The Italian virtuoso Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri was born in Argentina. He was instructed by Magda Tagliaferro, Gyorgy Cziffra and Claudio Arrau.
In addition to his performing and recording career that took him to several continents, Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri is also a famed international piano pedagogue.
Teaching at the Ecole Normale "Alfred Cortot" in Paris during 40 years, Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri was also appointed professor extraordinaire at the Chapelle Musicale "Reine Elisabeth" in Belgium and Honorary Professor at the Palm Beach Atlantic University, Florida, USA.
He gives regularly master classes in France, China, Lithuania, Russia, Poland, Germany, Taiwan, Canada, USA, Portugal, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Greece, South Korea, etc.
Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri collaborated to the festivities of the European Union Day in Seoul, South Korea, by special invitation of the European amabassador.
Cultural and pedagogical broadening is an important goal of his duties as general director of the Bell'Arte Foundation.
Mr. Delle-Vigne Fabbri, as founder and president of the Fondation Bell'Arte, is the artistic director of MusicA Braine l'Alleud, the Paris International Summer Sessions, LyricA Braine l'Alleud and of the EMS Music Group, a record company and record studio.

He's the founder and artistic director of The International Certificate for Piano Artists, a pedagogical programme in collaboration with many international institutions with sessions in the U.S., Russia, Italy, Lithuania, Taiwan, Spain, Poland, the Philippines, etc. 
After Philippe Entremont's 10-years' presidency, this programme is currently placed under the presidency of Belgian composer Jean Kluger. Jerome Lowenthal and Michel Béroff are its vice-president, preceeded by France Clidat and Lazar Berman.

Nelson Delle-Vigne is the artistic director of the present course.