ADDA SIMFÒNICA ALICANTE
KRISTINE BALANAS, violin
JOSEP VICENT, principal director
Fazil Say, World Premiere*
Korngold, Violin Concerto
Strauss, Así habló Zaratustra
SALE OF SINGLE TICKETS: From July 30, 2026.
KRISTĪNE BALANAS. Violin
“To describe Kristīne Balanas one must search deep in the chest of adjectives. Street musician, rock singer and violinist of impressive technical mastery: her playing is dramatic, passionate, at times unbridled, but always controlled. An artist before whom one must bow.” (Tiroler Tageszeitung, 25 January 2026, Wolfgang Otter)
Much in demand for her “wild, bold and dramatic playing” (The Strad), Kristīne’s astonishing transformation—from being a street musician and rock singer in Latvia to becoming an internationally acclaimed classical music soloist—is without precedent.
Although she came from a family with no musical background, Kristīne, like her siblings Margarita and Roberts, devoted her entire life to music and made her way as a professional soloist of international renown. The contrast between the freedom to create and perform in unconventional settings and the disciplined atmosphere of Europe’s leading music academies profoundly shaped her artistic identity. Kristīne graduated with honours from the Royal Academy of Music, where she studied with György Pauk, and continued her training at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler with Kolja Blacher.
Kristīne Balanas collaborates with international orchestras, including the BBC Concert Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the WDR Symphony Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Paris (directing from the violin), the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, the Latvian National Orchestra, the George Enescu Philharmonic and the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, among others. She performs with conductors such as Jukka-Pekka Saraste, James Gaffigan, Tarmo Peltokoski, Trevor Pinnock, Gergely Madaras, Andris Poga, Margarita Balanas, Ainars Rubikis and Josep Vicent.
Kristīne has appeared at festivals and concert halls such as L’Auditori in Barcelona, the Royal Albert Hall, the Dresdner Musikfestspiele, the Moritzburg Festival, the Festival Radio France Occitaine de Montpellier, Fjord Classics, the Philharmonie Merck, the Risør Chamber Music Festival and the Montserrat International Chamber Music Week.
Kristīne Balanas has won numerous awards, including Young Artist of the Year 2018 at the Grand Music Awards in her home country, the Fundación Excelentia Young Talent Award presented by Her Majesty Queen Sofía of Spain and third prize at the 66th ARD International Music Competition.
Kristīne plays a 1787 Antonio Gragnani violin, kindly loaned to her by “The Little Butterfly Foundation”.
