Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra to open new season with dazzling soloist Emanuil Ivanov and a sold-out hall

The season's first concert on September 11 in Bulgaria Hall will present a repertoire of two works of Tchaikovsky

published on 9/9/25 12:00 PM

Photo: sofiaphilharmonic.com

The National Philharmonic Orchestra and its chief conductor Nayden Todorov will open the 2025/2026 season on September 11 with two absolute classic hits: Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1 and Symphony No. 4 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – one of the most beloved classic composers of all time.

The soloist of the evening is the exceptional young Bulgarian Emanuil Ivanov, who attracted the attention of the music world at the age of just 21. In 2019, at one of the most prestigious international piano competitions – "Ferruccio Busoni" in Italy, Emanuilabsolutely defeated the competition and won the first prize. From early childhood, he showed a great interest and love for music, but graduated not from a music school, but from the Bertolt Brecht language school in his hometown of Pazardzhik.

20-year old Bulgarian pianist Emanuil Ivanov wins first prize at celebrated Busoni Piano Competition

Emanuil Ivanov began piano lessons at the age of 7, and from 2013 to 2018 he studied privately with Prof. Atanas Kurtev. He was accepted on a full scholarship to the Royal Conservatory of Birmingham, where he graduated in 2024 under the guidance of Pascal Nemirovsky and Anthony Hewitt. With the prestigious "Bicentenary Scholarship", he specialized at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

In 2025, Ivanov became the first student of the Royal Academy to be awarded a scholarship named after the famous British pianist Sulamita Aronovsky. Emanuil is known primarily for his insightful and refined interpretations of works from the Romantic era, but his impressive repertoire also includes works by Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Ravel, Gershwin and Vladigerov.

In February 2021, at the height of the pandemic, Emanuil Ivanov gave a unique recital in the hall of Milan's La Scala. The one-hour concert without an audience, broadcast live online, included works by Busoni, Ravel and Scriabin, and the comments of hundreds of music lovers on the Internet were more than enthusiastic.

The pianist often performs in Bulgaria. He also performs in the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Poland, Cyprus, South Africa, and Japan. In 2022, he debuted in one of the most prestigious European halls - Hercules Hall in Munich, and in 2024 he played for the first time on the stage of the legendary Wigmore Hall in London and in the Konzerthaus Dortmund. In 2025, his solo debut was in the Chamber Hall of Carnegie Hall in New York.

In the summer of 2023, Emanuel Ivanov released an album of Scarlatti's sonatas for the renowned record company Naxos. His performances have been heard on BBC Radio 3, Rai Radio 3 and NHK Radio.

The talented pianist also has an interest in composition and has been writing music since early childhood.

Photos: sofiaphilharmonic.com, emanuilivanov.com

English publication: R. Petkova

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Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra to open new season with dazzling soloist Emanuil Ivanov and a sold-out hall

The season's first concert on September 11 in Bulgaria Hall will present a repertoire of two works of Tchaikovsky

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