Nicola Joy Nadia Benedetti (born 20 July 1987) is an Italian-British classical solo violinist and festival director. Her ability was recognised when she was a child, including the award of BBC Young Musician of the Year when she was 16. She works with orchestras in Europe and America as well as with Alexei Grynyuk, her regular pianist. Since 2012 she has played the Gariel Stradivarius violin. She became the first woman and first Scottish person to lead the

Edinburgh International Festival The Edinburgh International Festival is an annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, spread over the final three weeks in August. Notable figures from the international world of music (especially european classical music, classical music) and ...

when she was made Festival Director on 1 October 2022.

Early life and education

Benedetti was born in

West Kilbride West Kilbride ( gd, Cille Bhrìghde an Iar) is a village and historic parish in North Ayrshire, Scotland, on the west coast by the Firth of Clyde, looking across the Firth of Clyde to Goat Fell and the Isle of Arran. West Kilbride and adjoinin ...

, North Ayrshire, Scotland, to an Italian father and an Italian-Scottish mother. She started to play the violin at the age of four with lessons from Brenda Smith. At eight, she became the

leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

of the

National Children's Orchestra of Great Britain The National Children's Orchestras of Great Britain, more commonly known as NCO, is a registered charity which provides orchestral training for children aged 7 to 14. The organisation comprises five age-banded orchestras and six regional orchestr ...

. By the age of nine, she had already passed the eight grades of musical examinations while attending the independent Wellington School, Ayr, and, in September 1997, began to study at the

Yehudi Menuhin School The Yehudi Menuhin School is a specialist music school in Stoke d'Abernon, Surrey, England, founded in 1963 by violinist and conductor Yehudi Menuhin. The current director of music is the British classical pianist Ashley Wass. The school is on ...

for young musicians under Lord Menuhin and

Natasha Boyarskaya Natalya Konstantinovna Boyarskaya (russian: Ната́лья Константи́новна Боя́рская; born 1946) is a Russian violinist and music teacher. She is the wife of the cellist Alexander Boyarsky and mother of the violinist Ko ...

in rural Surrey, England. At the end of her first year (1998), she played solo in the school's annual concert at

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadi ...

, and performed in London and Paris as a soloist in Bach's ''Double Violin Concerto'' with

Alina Ibragimova Alina Rinatovna Ibragimova (russian: link=no, Али́на Рина́товна Ибраги́мова; ba, Алина Ринат ҡыҙы Ибраһимова born 28 September 1985) is a Russian-British violinist. Early life and education ...

. She played in a memorial concert at

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

celebrating the life and work of

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi or Jehudi (Hebrew: יהודי, endonym for Jew) is a common Hebrew name: * Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999), violinist and conductor ** Yehudi Menuhin School, a music school in Surrey, England ** Who's Yehoodi?, a catchphrase referring to t ...

. In 2000, she competed in the Menuhin Competition as a junior competitor. Nicola has an older sister,

Stephanie Stephanie is a female name that comes from the Greek name Στέφανος (Stephanos) meaning "crown". The male form is Stephen. Forms of Stephanie in other languages include the German "Stefanie", the Italian, Czech, Polish, and Russian "St ...

, who is also a violinist and a member of the pop group

Clean Bandit Clean Bandit are an English electronic music group, formed in Cambridge in 2008. They have had four number 1 hits and ten top 10 hits on the UK Singles Chart. They direct and produce their own music videos, many of which have been nominated for ...

Early public performances

In 1999, Benedetti performed for the anniversary celebrations at Holyrood Palace with the

National Youth Orchestra of Scotland The National Youth Orchestras of Scotland (NYOS) caters for students aged between 8 and 25, through orchestras, jazz bands, training ensembles and outreach programmes. In addition to organising residential training courses, rehearsals and nati ...

. In 2000, Benedetti performed with the

Royal Scottish National Orchestra The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the O ...

and the

Scottish Opera Scottish Opera is the national opera company of Scotland, and one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Founded in 1962 and based in Glasgow, it is the largest performing arts organisation in Scotland. History Scottish ...

. Subsequent performances followed with the City of London Sinfonia, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Scottish Opera,

Scottish Chamber Orchestra The Scottish Chamber Orchestra (SCO) is an Edinburgh-based UK chamber orchestra. One of Scotland's five National Performing Arts Companies, the SCO performs throughout Scotland, including annual tours of the Scottish Highlands and Islands and S ...

, etc. In August 2002, she won the UK's Brilliant Prodigy Competition, broadcast by Carlton Television. She left the Menuhin School shortly after and, at the age of 15, began studying privately with Maciej Rakowski, the former leader of the

English Chamber Orchestra The English Chamber Orchestra (ECO) is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and their ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall. The orchestra regularly tours in the UK and internationall ...

. In spring 2003, Benedetti, invited as a soloist by the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orc ...

, participated in the recording of the DVD titled '' Barbie of Swan Lake'' at Abbey Road Studios. In October 2003, as the extra feature on this DVD, "Playing With Passion" was filmed and released by

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...

. BBC Scotland, using this DVD, created a documentary on Benedetti, which was broadcast on television in the UK in March 2004.

BBC Young Musician of the Year

In May 2004, at the age of 16, Benedetti won the

BBC Young Musician of the Year BBC Young Musician is a televised national music competition broadcast biennially on BBC Television and BBC Radio 3. Originally BBC Young Musician of the Year, its name was changed in 2010. The competition, a former member of the European Uni ...

competition, performing Karol Szymanowski's ''First Violin Concerto'' in the final at the

Usher Hall The Usher Hall is a concert hall in Edinburgh, Scotland. It has hosted concerts and events since its construction in 1914 and can hold approximately 2,200 people in its recently restored auditorium, which is well loved by performers due to its ...

in Edinburgh, with the

BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (BBC SSO) is a Scottish broadcasting symphony orchestra based in Glasgow. One of five full-time orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC), it is the oldest full-time professional r ...

. As a result of gaining the award, she came first in the music section of the Top Scot award in December 2005. Despite winning the competition, ''The Times'' reported that Benedetti was snubbed by

Jack McConnell Jack Wilson McConnell, Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale, (born 30 June 1960) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2001 to 2007. McConnell served as the Minister ...

, the then First Minister of Scotland, who thought that there was insufficient public interest to merit a personal message of congratulations. Following a public and political outcry, McConnell bowed to the pressure and telephoned Benedetti to acknowledge her success.

Since 2012

In September 2012, she performed at the Last Night of the Proms, playing '' Violin Concerto No. 1'' by

Max Bruch Max Bruch (6 January 1838 – 2 October 1920) was a German Romantic composer, violinist, teacher, and conductor who wrote more than 200 works, including three violin concertos, the first of which has become a prominent staple of the standard ...

. That same year, Benedetti was lent the 1717 "Gariel"

Stradivarius A Stradivarius is one of the violins, violas, cellos and other string instruments built by members of the Italian family Stradivari, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), during the 17th and 18th centuries. They are c ...

by London banker and London Symphony Orchestra Board member Jonathan Moulds. Apart from solo performances, Benedetti performs in a trio with the German cellist

Leonard Elschenbroich Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English masculine given name and a surname. The given name and surname originate from the Old High German ''Leonhard'' containing the prefix ''levon'' ("lion") from the Greek Λέων ("lion") through the Latin '' L ...

and the British-Ukrainian pianist Alexei Grynyuk.

Artistic recognition

Nicola was chosen as the subject for the winner of the Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2021, Calum Stevenson, and this portrait now hangs in the

Scottish National Portrait Gallery The Scottish National Portrait Gallery is an art museum on Queen Street, Edinburgh. The gallery holds the national collections of portraits, all of which are of, but not necessarily by, Scots. It also holds the Scottish National Photography Co ...

Honours and awards

Benedetti in August 2022 while being received by the First Minister of Scotland Benedetti was awarded honorary doctorates from

Glasgow Caledonian University Glasgow Caledonian University ( gd, Oilthigh Chailleannach Ghlaschu, ), informally GCU, Caledonian or Caley, is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of The Queen's College, Glasgow (founded in 1875) and G ...

in November 2007 and from Heriot-Watt University in 2010, and honorary degrees from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

in November 2011. She was awarded an honorary degree from the University of York in August 2020. She was made a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(MBE) in the 2013 New Year's Honours "For services to Music and to charity", and was elected an honorary fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in March 2017. In 2015, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women. In May 2017, she was presented with the Queen's Medal for Music, the youngest of the twelve people to receive the award since it was established in 2005. She was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the 2019 New Year Honours, "For services to Music". In 2019 she was also given the annual Royal Medal award by the Royal Society of Edinburgh for improving the lives of deprived Scottish children through Sistema Scotland and the Big Noise Orchestras. In 2020, she won the Grammy for best classical instrumental solo for ''Marsalis: Violin Concerto; Fiddle Dance Suite''. She was awarded the 2021 ISM Distinguished Musician Award. In 2022, she was appointed honorary president of the

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ( gd, Conservatoire Rìoghail na h-Alba), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ( gd, Acadamaidh Rìoghail Ciùil is Dràma na h-Alba) is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and ...

(RCS).

Personal life

Nicola was in a relationship with German cellist

, whom she met at the Yehudi Menuhin School of Music. Although that relationship has ended, they continue to perform together and are good friends.

Discography

Albums

References

External links

* *Julie Amacher
"New Classical Tracks: Nicola Benedetti"
''Minnesota Public Radio'', 9 May 2006
On-line video interview
for Czech TV, 5 December 2010

at ''cosmopolis.ch'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Benedetti, Nicola 1987 births Living people 20th-century classical violinists 20th-century Scottish women musicians 21st-century classical violinists 21st-century Scottish women musicians BBC 100 Women Child classical musicians Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Grammy Award winners Italian British musicians People associated with Glasgow Caledonian University People associated with Heriot-Watt University People associated with the University of Edinburgh People associated with the University of York People educated at Wellington School, Ayr People educated at Yehudi Menuhin School People from North Ayrshire Scottish classical violinists Scottish people of Italian descent