The Balanas Sisters

THE BALANAS SISTERS    

violin & cello

“eye-popping virtuosity” THE TIMES

“powerful, delicate, intense and brilliant” GLAM Adelaide

The dynamo Latvian violin / cello sister duo are bringing a thrilling program of Baroque masters (Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’), French impressionists and contemporary minimalists to Canberra as they make their much anticipated Australian debut.

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PROGRAMME

HANDEL   Passacaglia in G minor

BACH       Partita No. 3 in E major for violin solo, BMV 1006

BACH       Suite No.1 in G major for solo cello, BMV 1007

VIVALDI    The Four Seasons

.               ii. Summer

.               iv. Winter

           - INTERVAL -

VASKS      Castillo Interior

RAVEL      Sonata for violin and cello 

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OVERVIEW

Hailing from Latvia, violinist Kristīne and cellist Margarita Balanas have carved out a reputation as two of the most exciting artists of their generation. Combined and individually they have taken Europe by storm, with their biographies already boasting performances with countless first rate orchestras, and appearances in many of Europe’s greatest halls. 

Bringing a thrilling program of Baroque masters, French Impressionists and contemporary minimalists, they make their much anticipated Australian debut performing Vivaldi Four Seasons (arr.), Vasks and Ravel, as well Norwegian composer Halvorsen’s mesmerisingly virtuosic take on Handel’s Passacaglia.

Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks’s Castillo Interior was composed in remembrance of the mystic St Teresa of Avila, a mythologised 16th-century nun who documented her own ecstatic mystical experiences in her autobiography, The Life of Teresa of Jesus, as well as her books, The Interior Castle and The Way of Perfection. A meditative piece commemorating a rare 16th-century woman, published, and therefore remembered by history.

Vasks’ deeply reflective and spiritual work is paired with Ravel’s rich, impressionistic violin and cello sonata, written by the French composer between 1920 and 1922 in memory of another French great, Claude Debussy.

Summer and Winter from the Balanas Sisters’ ingenious arrangements of Vivaldi’s beloved The Four Seasons, as well as the Balanas' thrilling take on the Halvorsen-arranged Handel Passacaglia rounds this program out into what promises to be a real highlight of Snow Concert Hall’s 2025 season.

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Kristīne Balanas

Latvian violinist Kristīne Balanas is a 3rd prize laureate of the 66th International ARD Music Competition, 2018 Young Artist of the Year in the Grand Music Awards of her home country, and recipient of the Fundacion Excelentia Young Talent Award from Her Majesty Queen Sofia of Spain.

Soloist with some of the world’s leading orchestras (London Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, countless others), Kristīne has made frequent guest appearances at the Berliner Philharmonie, Southbank Centre, and Carnegie Hall. In demand for her “savage, bold, dramatic” playing (The Strad), Kristīne’s head-turning transformation from a street musician and rock singer in Latvia to a graduate with honours from the Royal Academy of Music where she studied under György Pauk, and Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler, under Kolja Blacher, marks her as an entirely idiosyncratic presence on stage.

Kristīne’s successes in previous seasons include her debut with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Andris Poga at the Cadogan Hall, debut with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra and orchestra’s Principal Guest Conductor James Gaffigan, performances with Latvian National Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Jānis Liepiņš, a nationwide tour with Kremerata Baltica, remarkable performances of the Brahms Double Concerto alongside her sister Margarita with Barcelona Symphony Orchestra at the prestigious L’Auditori in Barcelona, appearances with the Saarbrücken Symphony Orchestra under Sebastian Rouland and Orquesta Clasica Santa Cecilia with conductor Lavard Skou Larsen.

In previous seasons, Kristīne has appeared as a soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris (directing from the violin), RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Camerata Jerusalem Israel, DSO Berlin, European Union Youth Orchestra, Tatarstan National Symphony Orchestra under Alexander Sladkovsky, and the Sendai Philharmonic, among others.

Kristīne has performed at festivals including Festival Radio France Occitaine Montpellier . A regular guest soloist on Latvian National Radio Recitals, Kristīne has also performed on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune and BBC One’s The One Show, and given recitals at the Purcell Room, St. John’s Smith Square and Kings Place.

Kristīne performs on a 1787 Antonio Gragnani violin, kindly loaned to her by The Little Butterfly Foundation.

Margarita Balanas

Known for her distinguished artistry and mesmerising stage presence, Margarita Balanas has performed for audiences world-wide, being hailed as “powerful, delicate, intense and brilliant” (GLAM Adelaide).

“The latest voice in the dialogue about what the future of classical music might look like” – The Arts Desk

Latvian cellist and conductor Margarita Balanas has performed for dignitaries and royalty, including HRH King Charles, and at venues including Carnegie Hall, Berliner Philharmonie, Laeiszhalle Hamburg, Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall, Southbank Centre, Foundation Louis Vuitton, Walt Disney Hall and L’Auditori Barcelona.

A winner of Latvian Grand Music Award winner, Margarita has performed as a soloist with orchestras including The Munich Philharmonic, Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonietta Riga, Saarbrucken Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Philharmonie Merck, and at Piatigorsky International Cello Festival, International Cello Festival Shanghai, Adelaide International Cello Festival, and Festival Radio France Occitanie Montpellier.

Margarita Balanas is Paavo Järvi’s Assistant Conductor at the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich in season 23/24 and 24/25. Margarita is the founder and music director of the ANONIMI orchestra and charity, and has conducted the Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich, Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra, Baltic Sea Philharmonic and Järvi Academy Orchestra and Sinfonietta. Margarita has received mentorship and guidance from Paavo Järvi, Ben Palmer, Sigmund Thorp, Neeme Järvi,

Recent highlights include performances together with her violinist sister Kristīne at Dresdner Musikfestspiele, Moritzburg Festival, European and North American concert tours with violinist Anne- Sophie Mutter and the Mutter Virtuosi ensemble., and conducting performances in London with ANONIMI and Orquestra do Algarve with her violinist sister Kristīne Balanas as soloist. 

Margarita is a guest artist for Classic FM, Scala Radio, BBC Radio 3 In Tune. Her debut album of Saint-Saëns Cello Concerto No.1 and other works with Linn Records has since been featured on some of the most exciting Apple Music playlists such as ‘Classical You Must Hear This Month’, ‘Women in Classical Music’ and ‘The A-List Classical’.

Margarita currently plays the Charles-Adolphe Gand ‘Auguste Tolbecque’ 1849 cello, kindly on loan from The Little Butterfly Foundation. Camille Saint-Saëns wrote his cello Concerto No. 1 for Tolbecque who premiered the concerto on this cello in 1873.

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