Biography
WINNER OF THE DUTCH MUSIC PRIZE 2009
As if the multicolored strings were her canvas, Lavinia Meijer of the Netherlands ”finger painted” her musical montage, rocking back and forth against her harp in rhythms of lively expression.
-Herald Times
Lavinia Meijer (1983) is recognized worldwide as one of the most promising rising stars of the moment. Born in Korea and adopted into a Dutch family, she is now based in the Netherlands. She studied under the guidance of Erika Waardenburg at the conservatories of Utrecht and Amsterdam, where she received her Bachelor and Masters degrees of Music with the highest distinction. Since then she has toured as a solo-harpist across Europe, America and Asia, showing the many possibilities of the harp as a solo-instrument.
From a young age on, she has won several important music prizes, such as first prize at the Dutch Harp Competition in the Netherlands, first prize at the International Harp Competition in Brussels, a second prize at the International Harp Competition in Vienna and a third prize at both the International USA Harp Competition and the International Harp Competition in Israel. Special awards have been given to her, such as the MeesPierson award and the Vriendenkrans of the Royal Concertgebouw from Amsterdam and the Borletti-Buitoni Trust from London. In 2009 she received the Dutch Music Prize, which is the highest distinction for a Dutch classical musician.
She has inspired several composers to write new music for her, composers such as Carlos Michans, Jacob ter Veldhuis, Roderik de Man, Garrett Byrnes and Paul Patterson. Besides performing the standard harp repertoire, she also experiments with electronic music, theatrical music and jazz. She has followed masterclasses not only with renowned harpists like Jana Bouskova, Isabelle Moretti, Daphne Boden, Natalia Shameyva, Maria Graf, Skaila Kanga and Susann McDonald, but also with other musicians, such as Ton Koopman (harpsichord), Anner Bijlsma (cello), Willem Brons (piano) and Theo Olof (violin). Her broad interest and diversity of performance has made her a frequent guest at world harp congresses. She also appeared on several tv shows and radio programs.
As a featured soloist she performed harp concertos with renowned orchestras, such as the Dutch Radio Chamber Orchestra, the Residence Orchestra of the Hague, the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonics and the Korean Symphony Orchestra. She made her debut in Carnegie Hall, New York in December 2007, where she was invited to perform a harp solo-evening. A few years ago she signed a contract with record company Channel Classics, on which she released her CD “Divertissements”. Classics Today wrote about it: “If you have room in your collection for only a single solo harp recital, then let it be this disc”, giving two tens for both artistic and sound quality. She recorded her second solo CD with Channel Classics, called “Visions”, with works by Britten, Patterson, Byrnes, Yun and Takemitsu. This year her third solo CD will be released, named “Fantasies & Impromptus” with works by Spohr, Fauré, Saint-Saëns, Pierné and others.
“My goal is to make the harp better known as a solo-instrument, with all its possibilities, which are often still unknown with the wider audience” – Lavinia Meijer
www.laviniameijer.com
LIST OF IMPORTANT CONCERT VENUES
Lavinia Meijer performed solo recitals at the following concert halls:
- Carnegie Hall, New York
- Musikverein, Vienna
- Philharmonie, Cologne
- Concertgebouw, Amsterdam (also with the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra, conductor Marco Boni)
- Cité-de-la-Musique, Paris
- Megaron Concert Hall, Athens
- Symphony Hall, Birmingham UK
- Konzerthus, Stockholm
- Symphony Hall, Luxembourg
- Paleis van de Schone Kunsten, Brussels
- Teatro Bellini Massimo, Sicily
- Vredenburg, Utrecht (with the Dutch Radio Philharmonics, conductor Thierry Fischer and Frans Bruggen)
- Dr.A. Philips Hall, the Hague (with the Dutch Royal Residence Orchestra, conductor Jean-Claude Cassadesus)
- Seoul Arts Center, South Korea (with the Korean Symphony Orchestra, conductor Park Eun-seong)
- Jerusalem Theater, Jerusalem (with the Israel Philharmonics, conductor Yoel Levi)
FESTIVALS:
Grachten Festival, the Netherlands 2006
Schleswig Holstein Festival, Germany 2006
World Harp Congress, Dublin (2002), Geneva (2005) and Amsterdam (2008)
Gergiev Festival, Rotterdam 2009
SoundsNew Festival, UK 2010
Delft Chamber Music Festival 2010
Storioni Festival Eindhoven 2011
