The following teachers and instructors have agreed to take part in the conference and to invite their students to enter the competition.
Resume
Performance of Piazzolla
Interview to Cyprus Symphony Orchestra
Resume
Brazilian cellist Amanda Melo Massa is currently pursuing a Doctoral degree in cello performance at the Federal University of Paraíba (Brazil), supported by the CAPES Foundation, under the supervision of Dr. Felipe Avellar de Aquino. Amanda holds a Master’s degree in cello performance from the same institution, also supported by the CAPES Foundation. In 2018, she was awarded a full scholarship for a two-year performance specialization at Nicholls State University (USA) in the studio of Prof. Dennis Parker. As an active orchestra and chamber musician, Amanda performed as a member of the Paraiba Symphony Orchestra (2015, 2018) and Nicholls Camerata (2018-2020). She is currently a member of the cello section at Municipal Symphony Orchestra of João Pessoa, Brazil, and serves as a cello professor for PRIMA – the Paraíba State Government’s Program for Inclusion through Music and the Arts. In 2022, Amanda was awarded second prize in the International Classic Web Competition from the Associazione Musicale Dioniso – Italy.
www.felipecello.homestad.com
Felipe Avellar de Aquino is currently a faculty member at the Federal University of Paraiba – UFPB, in his native Brazil, where he holds a full professorship position, combining his cello teaching activities with research and performance. He has played concerts throughout Brazil, as well as in Argentina, Canada, Italy, Germany, England, Belgium, Sweden, and the US; and directs the annual UFPB International Chamber Music Festival. He had his education in both Brazil and the United States, having obtained a Doctoral degree in cello performance and literature from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. For two terms he was a Visiting Professor at Örebro University, in Sweden (February 2020, and May 2023), through the Linnaeus-Palme Program. His articles are published in journals and magazines such as The Strad Magazine (London, three articles), Piano Magazine (USA), Music & Musical Performance (USA), Revista O Estado da Arte (Folha de São Paulo), Revista Opus, PerMusi, and Musica Hodie (Brazil). His research is funded by Fapesq, the Paraíba State Research Foundation.
I am a graduate of the Higher Institute of Art with a degree in guitar. I am currently a teacher at the Vocational School of Art and at the Professional School of Art (intermediate level). In both schools, I work as a guitar teacher, popular harmony applied to the guitar, and ensemble practice.
Violin teacher at the Vocational School of Art (EVA) in Matanzas, Cuba.
Petar was born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, and has made Canada his home for the majority of his life. He has a Master’s degree in Performance from the University of Toronto, where he studied flute with Susan Hoeppner. Petar has served as the Assistant Conductor-in-Residence of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and presently conducts the University of Alberta Symphony Orchestra.
As a flutist, Petar performs regularly with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra as well as in various chamber music ensembles. Petar is a founding member of the Top Notes, Edmonton’s professional flute quartet.
Also:
- German Merekin (Russia)
- Olena Vasylivna Neklesa (Ukraine)
- Alberto Coello (Cuba)
- Dr. Akram Tabrizi (Egypt)
- Esraa Mohamed Atia Elatrepy (Egypt)
- Lubov Valentinovna Baranova (Ukraine)
- Medhat Abd Elsallam (Egypt)
- Nathalia Vacarciuc (US)
- Nora Bumanis (Canada)
- Valentina Benvenuti (Canada)
- Vera Boyadzhieva (Singapore)
- Viktoria Reiswich-Dapp (Canada)
- Vladimir Shim (Germany)
International String Connections 