From early baroque to contemporary music, German violinist Thomas Reif is equally sought after for his work as soloist, concertmaster and chamber musician. He was a prize winner at national and international competitions, including the Queen Elisabeth Competiton in Brussels, the International Mozart Competition Salzburg and the Leopold Mozart Competition in Germany. In 2018 he got the position of first coordinated concertmaster of the Bavarian Radio Symphonie Orchestra.
As a soloist, Mr. Reif performed with the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie, the National Orchestra of Belgium, the Münchener Rundfunkorchester, the Symphony Orchestra of Carinthia and the Salzburg Chamber Soloists under the batons of Marin Alsop, Paul Meyer, Garret Keast, Bruno Weil, Ulrich Windfuhr and Douglas Boyd. In 2018 he gave his debuts in the great concert halls all around Germany, such as Konzerthaus Berlin, Liederhalle Stuttgart, Meistersingerhalle Nürnberg and Rudolf-Oetker-Halle in Bielefeld.
He loves the early baroque music, which he performs as the first violinist and co-founder of Breath of Zephyr, an ensemble from student-times he put together with harpsichord player Alexander Gergelyfi. In varying line-ups they interpret baroque chamber and orchestral music in new and daring ways, combining music and poetry as well as multimedia to make interesting and unexpected programs. But also the 20th century captivates him. In 2017 he joined Cuarteto SolTango, a formation that brings the music of the Golden Age of Tango from Argentina to the classical stages of Europe.
Mr. Reif has served as guest-concertmaster of the Munich Chamber Orchestra, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Kurpfälzische Kammerorchester Mannheim and the Camerata Hamburg, playing in the Berliner Philharmonie, the Prinzregententheater of Munich, the Suntory Hall, Tokyio Opera City Concert Hall and Sapporo Concert Hall in Japan with conductors such as Alexander Liebreich, Stefan Vladar and Johannes Schlaefli.
Being passionate about chamber music, he regularly appears on festivals such as Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Verbier Festival Academy, Classique Puplinge, Festivo Chiemgau, Eggenfelden Klassisch und „Harriet and friends“ and played together with Clemens Hagen, Lukas Hagen, Herbert Schuch, Johannes Erkes, Martin Klett und Laszlo Kuti.
Mr. Reif studied in Salzburg and Hamburg with Prof. Harald Herzl and Prof. Tanja Becker-Bender. He is currently earning his Konzertexamen at the Hochschule Hanns Eisler in Berlin with Prof. Stephan Picard. He has participated in masterclasses with Midori, Prof. Igor Ozim, Ferenc Rados, Prof. Gerhard Schulz, Pamela Franck, Prof. Zakhar Bron and Prof. Christian Altenburger and recieved scholarships of the Alfred-Toepfer-Stiftung Hamburg, the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes and was awarded the „Ian Stoutzker Prize in Memory of Yehudi Menuhin“ in Salzburg in 2012.
In 2019 he will give his debut in Las Vegas with Mendelssohn‘s violin concerto under the baton of Donato Cabrera and the Las Vegas Philharmonic Orchestra. With Breath of Zephyr he will perform in Brucknerhaus Linz, introducing music of the unknown Antonio Soler from Barcelona, his Cuarteto SolTango just released their third studio album Sin Palabras with Avi-Music.
He plays a violin by Lorenzo Storioni from around 1780.
I cannot think of a better place to learn, grow, create, and excel as young artists. The generosity and kindness form the teaching artists and staff is unmatched. I cannot recommend it enough.2023 Fellow
The teaching artists not only provided an unparalleled level of experience and knowledge, but provided immense support for all fellows throughout the Festival.2023 Fellow
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