Music in the Studio: Bruno Vlahek & Dubravka Vukalovic

The Sixth and final programme in the 2018 season of Music in the Studio features Bruno Vlahek and Dubravka Vukalovic, winners of the International Piano Four-Hands Competition on Wednesday 20 June 2018.

The duo is set to perform a selection of music by Chabrier, Saint-Saëns, Ravel, Granados and de Falla in a dazzling showcase of two players on one piano.

Bruno Vlahek
Pianist and composer Bruno Vlahek has distinguished himself as one of the most prominent and versatile musicians of his generation.

He has been praised by the critics for his "fantastic virtuosity" and "depth of musical thought that bewitches the audience".

Born 1986 in Zagreb (Croatia), it was there that he received first piano lessons at the age of 9.

Only two years later, he already won the 1st prize at the Pinerolo International Piano Competition in Italy and became subsequently a two-time absolute winner at his native country's national competitions in Dubrovnik.

He graduated as one of the youngest students in history of the Zagreb Music Academy with Vladimir Krpan, obtained a soloist diploma at the Haute École de Musique in Lausanne with Jean-François Antonioli.

He received his master's degree with Vassily Lobanov at the Hochschule für Musik Köln, where he also studied composition and improvisation.

From 2010-13 Bruno studied with legendary Russian pianist and pedagogue Dmitri Bashkirov at the Queen Sofía College of Music in Madrid, as a scholarship holder of the Spanish Foundation Albéniz.

He is also active as a concert organist and composer. He has written more than 40 orchestral, chamber, solo and choral works of various genres, mostly characterized by neoclassical form and expression, often combined with idioms of jazz and popular music.

In December 2012 he won the first prize at the XXXIII International Composition Competition for Organ Works 'Cristóbal Halffter' in Spain.

His works have been awarded by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia and have been published in United Kingdom and USA.

Bruno Vlahek is currently appointed professor at the Katarina Gurska Superior Conservatory in Madrid.

Dubravka Vukalovic
Dubravka Vukalovic was born 1984 in Varaždin (Croatia) where she received her first music education from professor Olimpija Vojvoda at the Varaždin Music School.

She continued her education at the famous Central Music School of Moscow's State Conservatory P. I. Tchaikovsky in the class of Alexander Mndoyants.

Afterwards, recognized as a special talent, she got admitted directly to the third year of studies at the Lausanne Conservatory of Music in the classes of Dag Achatz and Jean-François Antonioli.

In 2010, she obtained her master degree in the class of famous Brazilian pianist and conductor Ricardo Castro as a scholarship holder of Swiss Foundation Max D. Jost.

She gave her debut at the age of 14 as a soloist with Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra and subsequently won the first prize at the Zlatko Grgošević international piano competition in Zagreb in 2000.

In 2013 they became prizewinners of the 1st International Competition for piano four-hands in Monte-Carlo. In the same year, she performed her first China tour, which included concerts in some of the country's finest venues.

Music in the Studio
After a sold out first season in 2017, Music in the Studio returns for a much anticipated second season with six world class performances.

Curated by internationally renowned pianist, Amira Fouad, Music in the Studio is set in our acoustically flawless Dubai Opera Studio located on the second floor within Dubai Opera, allowing for a more atmospheric and unmissable experience between the musicians and their audiences.

Tickets are on sale now either by the single performance or Regular Season Pass where you buy tickets for 4 performances and you only pay for 3; or Ultimate Season Pass where you purchase a ticket for all 6 performances and you only pay for 4.

Timings:
Wednesday 20 June 2018 from 8pm until 10pm.
- Auditorium doors close at 7:55pm.

Price:
• AED 150 Free Seating
• AED 450 Regular Season Pass
• AED 600 Ultimate Season Pass