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About Us

The EDGE ensemble was created during the difficult times of the corona pandemic for all artists - with the meaning: "All musicians live now on the Edge". All three members of this ensemble are associated with Zurich. When Eugenia Grauer studied with Prof. Zakhar Bron at the HfMT in Cologne ten years ago, she regularly came to Zurich for additional lessons, as Bron also taught at the ZHdK, she reconnected with pianist Dmitri Demiaschkin. Currently Eugenia serves as concertmaster at the Bern Symphony Orchestra, Gilad Karni is principal violist of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and a prominent soloist. Eugenia was very inspired by his passion for music when they gave a duo concert together for the first time in Konstanz in summer 2020. Since then, the idea of ​​founding a Trio ensemble and guests arose. The members play in alternating formations with repertoire for duo, trio, quartet and more. "EDGE" are the initials of all three members: Eugenia, Dmitri, and  Gilad.

Über Uns

Das EDGE Ensemble formierte sich während der Pandemie und besteht aus drei Ausnahmekönnern in ihrem jeweiligen Fach. Die belgische Geigerin Eugenia Karni ist das «E» von EDGE. Seit 2022 ist sie Zweite Konzertmeisterin beim Berner Symphonieorchester und Erste Konzertmeisterin des Orchestre de Chambre in Freiburg. Das «D» von EDGE muss dem regelmässigen Publikum der Theri-Konzerte eigentlich nicht mehr vorgestellt werden: Dmitry Demyashkin ist seit über einem Jahrzehnt beliebter Hauspianist und Künstlerischer Leiter von Crescendo Konzertmanagement. Er verfügt über viel Bühnenerfahrung und spielte mit renommierten Orchestern in über 15 Ländern auf der ganzen Welt. Das «G» des Ensembles stellt Gilad Karni, Ehemann von Eugenia Karni und treibende Kraft des Ensembles. Der israelische Bratschist wurde 1992 jüngstes Mitglied der New Yorker Philharmoniker. Der vielfach ausgezeichnete Ausnahmekönner ist auf allen grossen Bühnen der Welt zu Hause. Unter anderem spielte er mit Isaac Stern zu dessen 70. Geburtstag in Tel Aviv und mit dem Guarneri Quartett in der New Yorker Carnegie Hall. Seit 18 Jahren ist Gilad Karni Solobratschist beim Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, seit 2008 unterrichtet er als Professor für Bratsche am Musikkonservatorium Kalaidos.

Eugenia Karni - Violin
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Belgian violinist Eugenia Karni´s professional career began following her debut with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra performing the Mendelssohn e-minor violin concerto at the age of 10. Her first teacher was her father, a pupil of Yuri Bashmet. Two years later she enters the Conservatory of Rotterdam in the class of N. Morozova as a junior student based on her exceptional talent, and continues being under the watchful eye of her parents, both musicians. After studying at Brussels Conservatory in the class of V.Oistrakh , a crucial moment in her development was the meeting with the legendary violin teacher Zakhar Bron. A year later she becomes his pupil at the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln and obtains her diploma with the “highest distinction”. Ms. Karni was a resident of the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel under the French violinist and conductor Augustin Dumay . Seeking for further inspiration, Eugenia continued studying in Cologne with Prof. Barnabás Kelemen. She attended multiple master-classes with Ida Kavafian, Lewis Kaplan, Viktor Tretjakov, Pierre Amoyal and Krzysztof Wegrzyn. Eugenia obtained multiple awards and prizes such as the Gold Medal at the International Hindemith Violin Competition, she is laureate of the Rodolfo Lipizer International Competition, winner of the N.Philippart Belgian Foundation Award and Jeunes Musiciens competition. Besides her activities as a soloist, since the very early age Eugenia has developed an extraordinary passion for the symphonic repertoire. From 2014-2019 she holds the position of the first concertmaster at the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie and since then includes regular collaborations as guest concertmaster with many outstanding orchestras such as Deutsche Radio Philharmonie, WDR Funkhausorchester, La Monnaie Opera, Belgian National Orchestra, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, Duisburger Philharmoniker and many others. From 2020-21 Eugenia was first concertmaster at the Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie in Konstanz. From 2022-23 she worked as concertmaster of the Bern Symphony orchestra and as of 2021 serves as 1. concertmaster of the Fribourg Chamber Orchestra. Her artistic activities include a wide range of various musical interests. She performed at numerous festivals including the Kronberg Festival, Verbier Festival and Interlaken Classics. Her broad repertoire ranges from Baroque to the latest contemporary creations. An avid interpreter of the Belgian and French post-romantic composers and a dedicated chamber musician, Eugenia frequently collaborates with her mother Nina Ardashir, a multi-faced pianist with incredible depth, maturity and creativity. Both create an expressive and versatile duo. Eugenia is constantly expanding her boundaries and experimenting with new styles. She is invited to perform as soloist and chamber musician all over Europe, Canada, Mexico and Asia on important international stages among others the Konzerthaus Berlin, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, De Doelen and Cadogan Hall. Her appearances as a soloist include the National orchestra of Belgium, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre de Chamber de Wallonie, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Oshawa Symphony Orchestra and many others.  Eugenia plays a “Gennaro Gagliano", Naples 1770”.

DE Biography

Gilad Karni - Viola
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Violist Gilad Karni has been praised throughout the world for his tone and interpretation. He’s received countless honors, from prizes at competitions to leadership roles in some of the world's finest orchestras. Equally at home in orchestral and solo or chamber music settings, Karni can be heard on concert stages around the globe in a range of repertoire, as well as on recordings.  First Prize winner of the Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition 1994, Third Prize at the ARD Munich among others, he has appeared in such festivals as, Aspen, Newport, and Bellingham in the USA at the invitations of conductors such as David Zinman, Claudio Abaddo and Charles Dutoit,  Kaposvar, Dubrovnik Festival, Bastad and Lapland Festivals, Davos Music Festival, Kuhmo (Finland) Kfar Bloom among many others. In May 2009 he made both the world premiere of Prokofiev's "Romeo & Juliet" arranged for viola and orchestra with the Berlin Symphony at the famed Berlin Philharmonie, and the South American Premier with the Bogota Philharmonic as well as in February 2012, the North American premier with the Hartford Symphony. In 2007, he gave the Hungarian premiere of Miklos Rozsa's viola concerto with the Budapest Concert Orchestra at the renowned Spring Festival to mark the composer's 100 year centennial. This performance led to a 2008 Naxos recording that received great critical acclaim and was nominated for a Grammy. His recording of Shostakovich’s sonata and Lewensohn’s “ViolAlive” with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra released on the Sony Classical label received great reviews. Gilad Karni is Professor for Viola at the Conservatoire de Lausanne & the Kalaidos University for Applied Sciences in Switzerland for viola and chamber music and has given masterclasses at the Curtis Institute, New World Symphony in Miami, and at Lynn University in Florida, Israel and the far east to name a few. He has collaborated Isaac Stern, the Guarneri String Quartet, Yefim Bronfman, Leonidas Kavakos, Andreas Schiff, numerous conductors, performed in Carnegie Hall, soloed with both cellists Yo-Yo Ma and Heinrich Schiff, alongside Maxim Vengerov conducting, Menachem Pressler among many of today’s leading artists. Since 1990 Mr. Karni has held many principal positions and from 2004 serves as principal violist of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich. He plays a Hiroshi Iizuka viola made for the late violist and pedagogue Emmanuel Vardi.

 

DE Biography

Dmitry Demyashkin - Piano
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Dmitry Demyashkin was born in 1982 in the Russian regional centre of Saransk. He commenced his musical studies at age seven in the ancient city of Kazan. The call of the capital first came two years later when Demyashkin’s piano teacher moved to Moscow to take up a post at the Moscow State Conservatory and Dmitry followed her. After an initial award at a prestigious Russian competition in 1992, Demyashkin’s string of wins became pan-European the following year with accolades in the Czech Republic after scarcely having turned 11. This was the start of a veritable tour de force continuing up to the present which would see Demyashkin receiving prizes, for example in 1994 the 1st prize at the International TV competition „Bravo Bravissimo“ in Cremona Italy, in 2002 the 1st prize at the 3rd International Russian Music Piano Competition in San José CA, or in 2007 the 3rd prize at the International Beethoven Competition in Bonn. In 1999 Dmitri Demyashkin moved to Switzerland with the aid of a full scholarship from the Lyra foundation of the Vontobel Bank, to study at the Winterthur Conservatory and the Zurich University of the Arts under Prof. Konstantin Scherbakov and Prof. Homero Francesch. Demiashkin’s studies in Zurich not only brought him a concert diploma with distinction (2005) and the soloist diploma (2007), but also the honor of a teaching position at the University of the Arts, which Demyashkin commenced in 2008. Dmitry Demyashkin performed in innumerable concerts in more than fifteen countries throughout the Northern Hemisphere and is a regular soloist with the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra Moscow with Vladimir Fedoseyev. In 2007 Demyashkin was conferred the Russian title Honored Artist of the Republic of Mordovia. Since 2012 he is a member of the official "Steinway Artist" family.

 

DE Biography

Media

Bruch & Schumann Trios

Mozart & Brahms Trios

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