Zodiac Music Academy & Festival Announces Inaugural Season in France, 7/2-15

The acclaimed French/American Zodiac Trio will launch a new summer music academy and festival, the Zodiac Music Academy & Festival, taking place from July 2 to 15, 2013, in Valdeblore, France (near Nice).

The Zodiac Music Academy & Festival is now inviting students and young professionals to spend two weeks of intense musical training and performance in one of the most stunningly beautiful corners of the world, the South of France. Boasting an international faculty, the Academy will offer master classes with renowned French artists, chamber music coaching with the Zodiac Trio, French cultural immersion, and ample performance opportunities.

Students will receive four one-hour private lessons and four chamber music coaching sessions, as well as the opportunity to participate in a master class and to perform in concerts throughout the region. The Zodiac Music Academy & Festival will also organize excursions to points of interest on the French Riviera and offer various educational seminars and clinics on a variety of topics from music business entrepreneurship to auditioning for orchestras.

The Zodiac Music Academy & Festival will make its home in the small medieval town of Valdeblore. Nestled in the midst of the French Alps, Valdeblore provides an ideal setting for artistic reflection and in-depth training, while still being part of the culturally bustling region of Côte d'Azur.

The Festival was created by the Zodiac Trio, which will serve as the chamber music ensemble-in-residence, to provide non-French students and young professionals with an opportunity to experience the French music-making experience, all while being surrounded by the wondrous beauty of the South of France, renowned for having inspired the likes of Picasso and Cézanne.
Founder and Artistic Director clarinetist Kliment Krylovskiy discussed the Festival's origin and goals: "When I first came to Paris with the Trio to study with the Ysaÿe Quartet at the Paris Conservatory, I found the level of musicianship extraordinarily high. I was riveted by the long-standing tradition of the French conservatoire and its competitiveness. We wanted to bring these traditions to the Academy while also addressing entrepreneurship, leadership and performance, against the backdrop of the legendary Côte d'Azur."

Mr. Krylovskiy states that the Zodiac Music Academy & Festival is the only summer academy based in France that provides master classes for every instrument as well as private instruction; extensive performance opportunities for students and faculty; excursions throughout the Riviera; and daily French lessons for its participants.

Application Deadline is April 15, 2013. More information is available at www.zodiacfestival.com.

ZODIAC TRIO
Kliment Krylovskiy, clarinet
Vanessa Mollard, violin
Riko Higuma, piano

The Zodiac Trio enjoys an international concert schedule that spans three continents and presents an eclectic repertoire that mixes contemporary with the traditional. Protégé of the renowned Ysaÿe Quartet at the Paris Superiour Conservatory, the Zodiac Trio has performed at such leading venues as the famed Festival Radio France Montpellier, International Colmar Festival, the Oriental Performing Arts Center in Shanghai, Izumi Hall in Japan, and the Bruno Walter Auditorium (Lincoln Center) and the Tishman Auditorium in New York. Performances by the ensemble have been broadcast by France 3 Television, Beijing's CCTV News, Canada's CBC Radio and Television, NBC, New York's WXQR (including an hour-long in-studio feature on the Young Artist Showcase), featured on WGBH's "Live from Frasier" in Boston, and has recorded multiple times for Radio France in Paris.

The Zodiac Trio was originally formed in 2006 at the Manhattan School of Music under the guidance of renowned clarinetist David Krakauer and violinist Isidore Cohen of the Beaux Arts Trio. Shortly after its formation at the Manhattan School of Music, the Trio was introduced to New York audiences by WQXR's Robert Sherman, who aired multiple performances by the young ensemble on his "Young Artist Showcase." Subsequently, the Zodiac Trio gave its official debut at the Kaufman Center, prompting Edith Eisler of the New York Concert Review to describe the young ensemble as "excellent..." praising its "remarkable ability" and "infectious enjoyment of the music." The debut was followed by concerts in the South of France where the Trio was praised by the local media: "...unforgettable concerts by the Zodiac Trio! ...Truly exceptional and sublime talent... The prestigious level of the performances radiated the undeniable talent of the trio and foreshadowed their great success in the future." (Nice-Matin)

In 2007, the Zodiac Trio gained the attention of the international chamber music community with a feature in the London-based international MUSO magazine, praising the Trio for "bringing a rare combination of instruments into the spotlight by unearthing old repertoire and commissioning new music." The young ensemble was then making its mark on the competition circuit, having garnered prizes at the Yellow Springs Chamber Music Competition (U.S.), FNAPEC International Chamber Ensemble Competition (Paris), International Chamber Music Competition of Duchi D'Acquaviva (Italy), Val Tidone International Music Competition (Italy), the Cziffra Foundation (France), Joyce Dutka Foundation for the Arts (New York), and the ProMusica Ensemble Competition (France), among others. The ensemble also received a Recording Grant and a Commission Grant from Co-op Press, resulting in the Trio's first commercial CD. The Zodiac Trio is a laureate of the 6th International Osaka Chamber Music Competition in Japan, and was awarded the Encore Grant from the American Composers Forum in 2010 to support its collaboration with composer Andrew List.

With its reputation growing, the ensemble has since performed throughout Canada, the United States, Japan, many parts of Europe and most of China's cultural metropolises. The Trio has been critically praised for its "impeccable technique" (Ouest-France), "remarkable musicality of rare intensity" (La Tribune, France), "seemingly effortless ease" (San Angelo Standard Times), and "truly exceptional and sublime talent" (Nice-Matin, France). The group was deemed by the French newspaper La Marseillaise as "one the best chamber ensembles of its generation..."
Dedicated to education both on a conservatory level and in public schools, the Zodiac Trio often presents master classes, clinics and music presentations for young audiences at such institutions as Boston University, Berklee College of Music, Boston Conservatory, Tufts University, Western State College of Colorado, Southeastern State University of Oklahoma, Western Michigan University, Lonestar College Montgomery in Texas, Colorado College, Ningboa University in China and the China Conservatory of Beijing. In addition, the Zodiac Trio has developed an innovative program for children titled "Sound of the Imagination" which debuted at the Beijing Children's Theatre and was broadcast by CCTV News in Beijing to millions of viewers.

A strong advocate of new music, the Zodiac Trio has commissioned new works in order to expand the clarinet-violin-piano trio repertoire, and strives to serve as a platform of exposure for up-and-coming composers. Commissioned composers include Richard Danielpour, Ofer Ben-Amots, David Colson, Andrew List, Larry Bell, Andy Vores, Xavier Bouchaud, Marcus Paus and Sy Brandon. The Trio's debut commercial recording included two works written for the ensemble. In 2010, the Zodiac Trio launched an annual residency, the Boston New Music Project, in collaboration with Berklee College and Boston Conservatory, which serves as an outlet for contemporary music featuring American composers. The Project presents performances and student-composer readings/clinics to encourage exposure and growth of new music in the United States.

The Zodiac Trio is on the artist roster of the Cziffra Foundation in Paris, an organization dedicated to promoting Europe's top young artists. In addition, the ensemble was chosen by Culture France to receive support from the « Declic » Program, partner with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Mecenat Musical Societe General. The Zodiac Trio also enjoys the generous support of the Swiss Global Artistic Foundation.

The Zodiac Trio is managed exclusively by Columbia Artists Management Inc. For further information: www.ZodiacTrio.com.

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