Baroque Metamorphoses

Concert Program:
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti - Three Sonatas for Piano
Johann Sebastian Bach - Italian Concerto in F major, BWV 971
Ferruccio Busoni/Johann Sebastian Bach - Chaconne from the Violin Partita in D minor

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George Frideric Handel - Suite in B-flat major, HWV 434
I Prelude
II Sonata
III Aria. Johannes Brahms - Variations on a Theme by Handel, Op. 24
IV Minuet. George Frideric Handel/Wilhelm Kempff - Minuet from the First Suite in B-flat major, HWV 434

Pianist Aurēlija Šimkus gained international recognition in 2013 when the German record company “Ars Produktion” released her solo album “Scherzo” and the magazine “Piano News” named it Album of the Month. For her second solo album “Bach. Ich ruf’ zu dir” featuring works by Bach, Liszt, and Busoni, Aurēlija received the prestigious Echo Klassik award from the German Phono Academy in the category “New Artist” in 2016.

Aurēlija Šimkus has participated in festivals such as “Interlaken Classics,” “Next Generation Festival,” “Kissingen Summer,” Kurt Weill Festival, Bonn Schumann Festival, “Masters of Tomorrow” festival, and others. She has performed with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Kaunas Philharmonic Orchestra, State Choir “Latvia,” English Chamber Orchestra, Warsaw Symphony Orchestra, Dortmund Philharmonic Orchestra, Georgian Chamber Orchestra, Orpheum Chamber Orchestra, Rhineland-Palatinate Philharmonic Orchestra, and others.

Aurēlija Šimkus gave her first solo concert at the age of eleven at the Kaunas International Chamber Music Festival. At the age of 15, she was invited to participate in the “KlavierOlymp” competition in Bad Kissingen, where she won 3rd place. In 2014, she received a scholarship from the Dortmund Mozart Society, which provided opportunities to perform in various locations in Germany. That same year, she was invited to participate in the Epiano Piano Academy in Italy, continuing the masterclass traditions initiated by pianist Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli.

At Emīls Dārziņš Music Secondary School, Aurēlija Šimkus studied under Prof. Sergejs Osokins. Since 2017, she has studied at the Cologne University of Music and Dance with Prof. Claudio Martínez Mehner, as well as in Sweden with Prof. Julia Mustonen-Dahlkvist. 

Since 2023, Aurēlija has been enhancing her skills in Italy with maestro Ingrid Fliter and in Hanover with Professor Arie Vardi.