Young Artist Platform 2023-24
Awardees
New players. New music. New experiences
IGF is pleased to announce this year’s YAP awardees.
Congratulations to all of them and we look forward to working with them in the 2023-24 season.
Davide Magni
Davide Magni is a classical guitarist currently attending the Royal Academy of Music as a Master student.
Undeniably passionate about a wide variety of repetoire, Davide enjoys playing pieces that are consolidated in the repertoire as well as lesser known and newer works, such as ‘Fantasia per Laura’ by Giancarlo Facchinetti or ‘Caminos del Sur’ by Luis Bacalov. Davide plays a guitar by Julián Gómez Ramírez made in 1926.
Once he gained admission into the Conservatoire of his hometown, Parma, he started a fruitful study path with Massimo Felici, and had the chance to further deepen his knowledge of the instrument with musicians of the caliber of Oscar Ghiglia, Stefano Grondona, Lorenzo Micheli. Having obtaneid his Master of Arts with Honors in Parma with a dissertation on the ‘Collectici Intim’ by Vicente Asencio, he is currently doing his second Master’s Degree at the Royal Academy of Music under the guidance of Michael Lewin and Steve Goss.
During the years Davide performed many times both as a soloist and as a chamber musician in prestigious venues such as Teatro Regio and Paganini Auditorium of Parma, as well as in Reggio Emilia, Livorno, Portogruaro. In July 2021, Davide had his debut performance as a soloist with the orchestra La Toscanini in Parma.
Luke Bartlett
Luke Bartlett is a classical and electric guitarist from Bristol. He started playing at age 10 and remained largely self-taught until being inspired to pursue further classical study at the World Youth Guitar Festival. He has been a long-standing member of the National Youth Guitar Ensemble and is now part of their fellowship ensemble. In 2023 he became a recipient of the prestigious Julian Bream Trust scholarship and this year made his London debut at King’s Place as an International Guitar Foundation Young Artist. Upon completion of his studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama under maestros Helen Sanderson, Zoran Dukic and John Mills in July 2024, he graduated with First Class Honours, receiving the Simon Clarkson Memorial Award for best all-round musicianship, Orpheus Prize for voice & guitar and was twice winner of the John Mills Prize for solo guitar. This year he also reached the final of the college’s concerto competition and was the first guitarist to compete in the final of the prestigious Sir Ian Stoutzker Prize. Luke seeks to reinvigorate the guitar’s tradition for dramatic and expressive performance while also exploiting more of the instrument’s technical possibilities. He is a member of RES NOVUS, an award-winning flute & guitar duo with Josephine Connor and is honoured to receive support from the Bristol Classical Guitar Society, Classical Guitar Centre Birmingham and Loan Fund for Musical Instruments
Arie Dakesian
Born in Beirut, Lebanon to an Armenian family, Arie Dakesian picked up his first guitar at the age of six and hasn’t left it since. He’s now in his final year of undergraduate studies at the Royal College of Music as a Houston Family Award Holder, under the tutelage of Gary Ryan and Christopher Stell. Arie is a recipient of many grants and awards and has worked alongside some of the biggest names of the guitar world. With a busy concert schedule ahead for the 2023/24 season, Arie prepares for his debut at the prestigious Royal Albert Hall this Autumn.
Regency Duo
Formed in 2021, Regency Duo comprises violinist Eliza Nagle and guitarist Declan Hickey. While owing its name to the cultural heritage of Niccolò Paganini, musical salons, and the riches of the early-nineteenth-century repertoire, the duo is as much devoted to contemporary music as to the established canon. Current programmes include works by Poul Ruders and Stephen Goss, with whom the duo has worked closely, alongside their own transcriptions of Schubert sonatas and Hot Club of France Quintet standards.
Eliza and Declan have between them studied at the University of Cambridge, the Royal Academy of Music, and the Royal College of Music, where they have won a number of prizes and scholarships as soloists. Forthcoming performance destinations include the Hospital of St Cross, Winchester, St Mark’s Church, Purley, and Downing College, Cambridge.
Double Cup Duo
The Double Cup Duo, formed by Ernest Syrota and Sofiia Matviienko, is an enchanting guitar and flute duo that came into existence in 2023 at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music.
Hailing from central Ukraine, they both share a profound appreciation for the intimate and expressive nature of sounds and colours in music. This shared passion has inspired them to explore the fusion of various instrumental variations, including alto, piccolo, and baroque flute, across different epochs of music. Their performances are marked by a captivating sense of mystery and artistry. With grace and skill, the Double Cup Duo aims to transport audiences into the realm of classical music.
Their repertoire, ranging from original compositions to thoughtfully crafted arrangements, encompasses the diverse styles and periods that shape the rich history of music.
Juno Duo
The Juno Duo is a British-Ukrainian Voice and Guitar chamber ensemble formed by Isabella Hulbert and Maryna Vosmirova. They pride themselves on their versatility as musicians, with their repertoire spanning from Baroque to Contemporary music, blending styles including Folk, Jazz, Musical Theatre and Pop with the Classical canon. Their programming explores concepts that inspire them musically, ranging from Folk, Cabaret, and Ballad programmes to name a few. They feature their diverse musicality through experimental arrangements using Violin and two Voices alongside their primary instruments. They have recently recorded their Cabaret arrangements at Abbey Road Studios.
