COMPOSITION

Natalia Hiesberger was born in Irkutsk, Russia. She received the initial professional musical education in Irkutsk Music College, in the professions “Piano” and “Theory of music”. In 2005 she graduated from St. Petersburg Conservatory as a composer trained by Professors Boris Tischenko and Gennady Banschikov. Also, she studied as a pianist and pipe organ player there.

In 2011 she graduated from the Piano Faculty at Prayner Conservatory in Vienna.

Presently, she is finishing her Master Degree studies in music composition at Vienna University of Music and Peforming Arts with Prof. Müller-Siemens.

She is a prize winner at the international competition “Hopes. Talents. Masters.” in 2004 in Bulgaria in the nominations “Organ” and “Composition”.

In 2005 the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra by Natalia Hisberger was performed for the first time, by the Orchestra of St. Petersburg Chapel directed by Aleksandr Chernushenko.

Natalia Hisberger’s main concert activity takes place in Russian and Austrian towns: solo concerts, performance of chamber music, performances with singers, and performance of her own compositions. She has been giving solo concerts in Irkutsk Philharmonic Hall for many years.

Since 2013 she has been participating in concerts arranged by the cultural organization „Passion Artists“(Austria) as a pianist, a music arranger, and an ensemble leader in opera performances: „Hänsel und Gretel“ - Wien 2014, „Halka“ - Budapest 2014, „Cosi fan tutte“ - Wien 2015.

2003-2007 taught music composition and organ at a music school in St. Petersburg.
Since 2008 she has worked as an accompanist in Eurythmie Education Center in Vienna.
Since 2015, a teacher of piano in Polyhymnia Music School.

ORCHESTRA CONDUCTOR

Boris Perrenoud, was born in Switzerland in 1966. Director of the WORLD MUSIC COMPETITION. Son of composer Jean-Frédéric Perrenoud, he began at the age of 6 to study the violin and gave his first concerts as soloist in Switzerland and abroad at the age of 10. He conducted his first concert at the age of 14 and he was chosen at age 17, to conduct the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Salzburg. At 19, he received his diploma of professional capacity in violin and music theory at the Neuchâtelois Conservatory. He continued his studies in the conducting class at the "Konservatorium der Stadt Wien, Privat Universität" (Austria) and obtains his diploma with distinction. He specializes at the Salzburg Academy, at the Institute of music of Tanglewood at the United States, by working under the direction of Leonard Bernstein, Ferdinand Leitner and Seiji Ozawa. He also collaborated with Herbert von Karajan, for audiovisual productions in Vienna. He is prizewinner of the "Verein der Freunde der Musikanstalten der Stadt Wien" and of the Kiefer-Habizel Foundation. He was chosen to conduct the Vienna Chamber Orchestra in the cycle "Young Talents" in the Vienna Konzerthaus, and won the 1st prize at the International Conducting Competition in Assisi. Since 1984, he is pursuing his international career, by being invited on the worldwide scale and by conducting hundreds of concerts, operas, radio and television broadcast with orchestras, such as: the Argentine Sympony Orchestra, the Cairo Symphony Orchestra, the Lausanne Chamber Radio Orchestra, the London Concert Sinfonia, the Mannheim Chamber Orchestra, the Palermo Massimo Theatre Orchestra, the Paris Sinfonietta Orchestra, the Polish Chamber Philarmonic Orchestra, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra in the most prestigious concert hall such as, Golden Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna. 1992, he directed the choir of Jussieu in Paris with the soloists from the Opéra Bastille. 1993-1996, first guest conductor of the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra. 1996-1999, Music Director of the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra. 1999-2007, he was appointed Professor at the University in Seoul, where he teaches the conducting doctorate class. 2005-2008, Music Director of the Curi Philharmonique Orchestre in Seoul. In 2008, he directed a series of concerts with the famous professional City Choir of Seoul. He is also regularly invited to give conducting masterclasses and to be a member of the jury of international music competitions. He has made many recordings for the major label such as SONY MUSIC and UNIVERSAL. The quality of the recordings has been identified by the international critics. He is regularly conducting the prestigious New Year Eve Concert of the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. His latest DVD was given to Pope Benedict 16 in November 2011, during a concert of the soloist Manrico Padovani at the Vatican. He is also the director of the Perrenoud Foundation, created in 1989 and his International Music Competition, which recruits the best young artists from around the world in Vienna, New York and Seoul. He has produced classical music videos in the Berlin Konzerthaus, Rudolfinum in Prague and the Opera Royal de Oman (Dubai).

MUSIC THEORY

Aleksandra Savenkova was born in Moscow. She started her musical education in the Gnessin Musical School, where she studied Piano and Musical theater. In 2001 she graduated from the Ippolitov-Ivanov Musical College in Moscow with a degree that qualified her to teach musicology, music theory, music analysis and ear training. The following year she obtained a second degree from the same colledge, now as the piano performer, with a specialization in piano pedagogy and accompaniment. In the years 2002-2008 Aleksandra was studying music theory and musicology at a University level in Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory. She graduated with two theses: one in Russian music history, entitled „Aleksej L’vov (A monograph)“ under Dr. Varvara P. Pavlinova and another in music theory, with the title „Composition technique in the secular songs by Leonhard Lechner“ under the supervision of Dr. Grigorij I. Lishov. Both theses received an excellent grade and resulted in a number of publications and conference talks. During her studies Aleksandra was teaching ear training and worked as répétiteur in the Gnessin Musical School, and in the Moscow College for Church Choir Conductors (ear training and basic musical theory, group vocal training). After that, she taught music theory, music analysis and ear training in the Central Musical School for talented children and youth, affiliated with the Tchaikovsky Conservatory.
In Austria, Aleksandra’s Conservatory diploma has been officially recognized as a Master’s degree in Composition and Music Theory. The validation took place under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Gesine Schröder in the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. In 2016 she expects to graduate from the same University with a degree in singing pedagogy and attested pedagogical qualifications in piano, coaching, children and youth voice training, and elementary music-making.
With over twenty years of experience in church choirs, fifteen of which she was also acting as a conductor, Aleksandra is an avid choir singer. She is part of various operatic choirs and projects, such as the Supplementary Choir of Volksoper Wien, Summer open air productions in Klosterneuburg and St. Margarethen. She is also active as an accompanist: since 2013 she is a répétiteur at the High School (Oberstufenrealgymnasium) of the Vienna’s renowned boys choir Sängerknaben.
She gives private classes of piano, ear training and music theory. Her students won prizes at the Vienna music competition Prima la musica (2014, 2015) and successfully passed entrance examinations in solfege and music theory in Tchaikovsky Conservatory, University of the Arts Bremen, and in the University of Music and Peforming Arts Vienna. Since 2014 Akeksandra teaches music theoretic courses (ear training, composition, musical form, score reading, chamber music and choir) in the Vienna Music Academy (Wiener Musikakademie).