Tedi Papavrami

Albanian-born, Geneva-based violinist Tedi Papavrami has not only fashioned a major international career on the concert stage, but has had success as an actor, notably in France. That said, his focus remains on music, both as a performer and teacher. Papavrami has concertized across Europe, Israel, Turkey, and Japan, and appeared as soloist with such orchestras as the <a href="spotify:artist:0iERWmMl3nIvcDxnJsKZBd">Orchestre de Paris</a>, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the <a href="spotify:artist:7qs9lBPZgZzLAYAWfHLAll">Bamberger Symphony</a>. Papavrami's repertory is fairly broad, taking in works by <a href="spotify:artist:5aIqB5nVVvmFsvSdExz408">J.S. Bach</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:39FC9x5PaTNYHp5hwlaY4q">Paganini</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5wTAi7QkpP6kp8a54lmTOq">Brahms</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:436sYg6CZhNefQJogaXeK0">Saint-Saëns</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4kHtgiRnpmFIV5Tm4BIs8l">Prokofiev</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:6bwXuNL4AuC7w3AxspKXn6">Milhaud</a>. One rather offbeat corner of his repertory is the keyboard sonatas of <a href="spotify:artist:0mFblCBw0GcoY7zY1P8tzE">Domenico Scarlatti</a>, a number of which he has transcribed for violin and performed. Papavrami regularly appears in chamber music concerts, not least because he is a member of the <a href="spotify:artist:3iGt7XwiXP3pUo7Z73vOGI">Schumann Quartet</a>. Papavrami has made numerous recordings, most of them available from <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Naxos%22">Naxos</a> and <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Aeon%22">Aeon</a>.

Tedi Papavrami was born in Tirana, Albania, on May 13, 1971. From age five, he studied with his father, a talented violinist and teacher. At seven he began studies at the Tirana-based Jordan Misja School of Art. He debuted the following year with the Tirana Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance of <a href="spotify:artist:3L1iFJfRzE7yzilr2yGl6t">Sarasate</a>'s Airs Bohémiens.

From 1982, Papavrami studied with <a href="spotify:artist:4PiDziGZpJVTWLCkUOuxda">Pierre Amoyal</a>, among others, at the Paris Conservatory, graduating at age 15 as first-prize winner in violin performance. In 1986 Papavrami officially relocated to France. He had later studies with <a href="spotify:artist:2mPWTnscb2ieCZdEHn3mbG">Zino Francescatti</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:1Ru2MsKaiEbw3TPXeEelQq">Viktoria Mullova</a>.

In 1993 Papavrami won the prestigious Pamplona, Spain-based <a href="spotify:artist:3L1iFJfRzE7yzilr2yGl6t">Sarasate</a> Competition. He quickly drew notice internationally and his first major recording was released in 1997 on the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Naxos%22">Naxos</a> label, the <a href="spotify:artist:4kHtgiRnpmFIV5Tm4BIs8l">Prokofiev</a> violin concertos, with <a href="spotify:artist:2OJaTm0rPZVyMA5k5s8vbh">Antoni Wit</a> leading the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra.

From 2002, Papavrami served as a French translator of the works of Albanian writer Ismael Kadaré. As a guest on a television show with French actress <a href="spotify:artist:3rbOOc4VJ3BFxQXKppOuQP">Jeanne Moreau</a> in 2003, Papavrami was engaged through her efforts to play the role of Danceny in the French TV mini-series Les Liaisons Dangereuses, in which he also played the violin.

Papavrami relocated to Geneva, Switzerland, where he accepted the post of professor of violin at the Geneva Conservatory in 2008. Around this time Papavrami began making recordings for the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Aeon%22">Aeon</a> label, the first issue of which, a CD of <a href="spotify:artist:0mFblCBw0GcoY7zY1P8tzE">Scarlatti</a> sonata transcriptions, appeared in 2009. A 2011 11-disc set on the same label featured works by <a href="spotify:artist:5aIqB5nVVvmFsvSdExz408">J.S. Bach</a> and the Solo Sonata of <a href="spotify:artist:5zyNXVd952fWOjkdGHCvPd">Bela Bartók</a>.