Philippe Graffin & Lisa jacobs

Philippe Graffin

16.8-18.8.2025

Violinist Philippe Graffin has established an indisputable reputation for his interpretations of the French repertoire. Philippe made his first recording with Yehudi Menuhin conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and his many highly acclaimed recordings since then bear witness to a questing mind and include many world premieres. He has rediscovered original settings of Chausson’s Poème and Ravel’s Tzigane and has championed the forgotten violin concertos of Fauré and the English composer Coleridge-Taylor which he has recorded and performed at the BBC Proms.

As concerto soloist, he has performed with orchestras such as The Philharmonia, BBC Symphony, and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales among many others. Graffin performs works of many living composers and has had works written for him by Rodion Shchedrin, Vytautas Barkaukas, David Matthews, Philippe Hersant and Yves Prin.

Philippe is a highly sought after chamber musician and is founder and artistic director of the “Consonances”, a chamber music festival held in St Nazaire, France, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2015. New releases include the world premiere of the violin concerto of Finnish composer Tauno Marttinen, with the Turku Philharmonic, and a new recording of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, the first to include the cadenza by Ysaÿe, on a CD which also includes Prokofiev’s Five Melodies. He plays a Domenico Busano violin, made in Venice, 1730. In demand as a teacher, Philippe Graffin, is a professor at the Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique (CNSM) and at the Royal Brussels Conservatoire.

Lisa Jacobs

19.8-13.8.2025

Musically Jacobs is virtually in a class of her own BBC Music Magazine Jacobs's exultant phrasing and captivating sonority reaching new heights The Strad Soft-hued beauty: Lisa Jacobs finds expressive subtlety in Paganini's fearsome Caprices Gramophone Magazine Dutch violin virtuoso Lisa Jacobs is known for her passionate performances, interesting programs and communicative qualities on stage. At the age of 17, Lisa has made her successful debut with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under the baton of Riccardo Chailly. She has played all around the world ever since, both as a soloist with renowned orchestras and conductors, and a recitalist and vivid chamber musician. Lisa Jacobs collaborated with amongst others the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Brussels Philharmonic, Bremer Philharmoniker, Wuppertal Sinfonieorchester, Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra and respected conductors such as Neeme Järvi, Riccardo Chailly, Mariss Jansons, Jurjen Hempel, Otto Tausk, Julia Jones, Dirk Brossé and Carlos Miguel Prieto. Miss Jacobs has made numerous international acclaimed recordings: Ysaye & Franck (2013, Challenge Records), Locatelli violin concertos (2016, Cobra Records), Haydn violin Concertos (2017, Cobra Records) , Paganini Caprices (2018, Cobra Records), Nielsen violin concerto (2019, Challenge Records). In the next couple of years Lisa is thoroughly researching the origin of the Belgian/Dutch violin tradition, which will conclude in several solo, chamber music and symphonic recordings. Besides her concert career Lisa Jacobs greatly enjoys teaching and is a professor of violin at the Royal Conservatory of Ghent, Belgium and The Royal Conservatory in The Hague, The Netherlands. In 2015, she founded The String Soloists, an dynamic successful international string ensemble that distinguishes itself with flexibility and musical approach from mainstream chamber orchestras by playing without a conductor. Miss Jacobs is a proud Pirastro Promotional Artist since 2017. She plays a Ruggieri violin from 1683 and a Henry bow. Next season includes soloistic performances in the UK, Germany, Belgium, Austria, The Netherlands and South America. As artistic leader, Lisa Jacobs is responsible for the programming of Festival Zeeland Klassiek.

www.lisajacobs.nl