Born in 1982, St. Petersburg-born virtuoso violinist Ilya Gringolts established himself on the international music scene at a very young age, winning the prestigious Paganini Competition in 1998 (remaining the youngest winner to date).
Highly sought after as a soloist and always in search of new musical challenges, Gringolts performs Baroque, Classical, and Contemporary repertoire. He also cultivates a passion for historically informed performance practice, which involves performing early music using period instruments (or faithful replicas).
In 2008, he founded the Gringolts Quartet, serving as its first violinist. His extensive discography—featured in the catalogues of Deutsche Grammophon, BIS, and Hyperion—includes the critically acclaimed recording of Paganini’s 24 Caprices for solo violin.
His collaborations range from the Oslo Philharmonic to the Rotterdam Philharmonic, and from the BBC Symphony Orchestra to the Teatro alla Scala Philharmonic.
A professor in Zurich and a member of the Accademia Chigiana and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (formerly RSAMD) in Glasgow, he plays a 1718 Stradivarius violin (the “Ex-Prové”).
