The David Jacobi Memorial Scholarship Concert
To raise money for The Razumovsky Trust
Maxime Grizard cello, Stella Konshina cello, Polina Kogan piano, Oleg Kogan cello
Sunday 4th December 2022, 6pm
At the Razumovsky Academy, 56 College Road, London NW10 5ET
6pm doors open, welcome drink
6.45pm concert
8.15pm reception
£40 (concessions £25) Concert and Reception
Priority booking for friends of the Jacobi family and Friends of The Razumovsky Trust
For further details and booking request please contact [email protected]
Bach Suite for solo cello in G major
Brahms Sonata for cello and piano in E-minor, op 38
Chopin Nocturnes in C minor and in D flat major
Schubert Sonata for cello and piano “Arpeggione”
Young musicians who benefited from the David Jacobi Memorial Scholarship:
Stella Konshina cello
Born in 2006 in Moscow, Stella moved to London in 2013 and started playing the cello at the age of 7 under Helen Neilson. She also studied chamber music at the Bayswater Suzuki Group, performing in various venues around London and also touring Italy. An accomplished music scholar and gifted academic at the competitive Latymer Upper School, where, as a soloist, chamber musician and principal orchestral cellist, Stella has participated in numerous concerts, recitals and events throughout the years; alongside maintaining high A*s in all of her exams.
At the age of 12, Stella was admitted to the prestigious Juilliard School’s Summer Performing Arts Program in Geneva, Switzerland, where she engaged in solo, chamber and orchestral recitals under Diego Garcia. Having achieved a top distinction at Grade 8, Stella auditioned for the Razumovsky Academy in 2018, where she was accepted as a student of Oleg Kogan and Liubov Ulybysheva. There, she was also taught contemporary improvisation on the piano by Gintaras Pamakstys and studied chamber music with Jennifer Carter. She was the youngest member of the Duet Philharmonic Orchestra in 2018; performing, amongst others, at the Royal Festival Hall in London. In 2021, Stella acquired the LTCL diploma – the conservatoire equivalent of an undergraduate degree – and featured in various newspapers and school publications as a result.
Stella currently performs on a Razumovksy Academy’s Apostol Kaloferov cello (Paris, 2001) ; she is also loaned a W. E. Hill & Sons fine cello bow c.1960 – purchased by the Razumovsky Trust thanks to The David Jacobi Memorial Scholarship.
Maxime Grizard cello
“a warm and rich sound, rare at his age, a beautiful musicality and a brilliant technique.”
Born in 2006 in Jena/Germany, Maxime started playing the piano at the age of 7 and the cello a year later. He brilliantly obtained his DEM in Claire Oppert’s class at the Conservatory of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, after only four years of study. He is currently continuing his cello training with Claire, and studies piano with Roustem Saïtkoulov.
Maxime benefits from tuition and regular advice from cellists Jérôme Pernoo, Oleg Kogan, Vladimir Perline and Ivan Monighetti.
Maxime won several first prizes of international competitions: in 2016 and 2017 at the Vatelot-Rampal Competition in Paris, in 2017 at the international FLAME Competition in Paris, in 2019 at the “Jugend musiziert” Competition in Germany, where he also won the Special Prizes from the “Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben” Foundation and the “Harald Genzmer” Foundation and in 2020, he won the third prize as the best cellist at the “Young Ludwig” Competition in Berlin.
Maxime is supported by the Razumovsky Academy in London, the Musical Academies of Villecroze and Liechtenstein and the Pierre Grosz Endowment Fund, and participates in masterclasses at the music academies of Liechtenstein and Kronberg.
In 2017, Maxime became known to the general public during the “Prodiges” broadcast on France 2, of which he is the winner in the “Instrument” category. He impressed the jury with his interpretations of Schubert, Rachmaninov and Williams accompanied by the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra.
In 2018, he recorded a CD at Warner Classics with works by Rachmaninov, Kreisler, Bechet, Prokofiev, Popper, Williams and Mozart with the Avignon-Provence Orchestra. A fine Italian cello for these recordings was provided by the Razumovsky Academy.
Maxime performs regularly in France and abroad, in duo with Roustem Saïtkoulov, but also with orchestras and chamber music ensembles.
During his recitals, the young musician expresses himself gracefully on the cello but also on the piano. Concerts at the Minsk Philharmonic in Belarus, the Viotti Festival in Vercelli, Italy, and the Razumovsky Academy in London are among the highlights of his musical life.
David Jacobi was a research scientist with a keen general interest in the environment and a particular expertise in the disposal of radioactive waste.
Born in London to Harry, a rabbi, and his wife, Rose (nee Solomon), a secretary and voluntary worker originally from India, David went to Claremont high school in Wembley before studying chemical engineering at Bath University.
Outside work David was a man of wide interests. As well as environmental issues, he was passionate about music and played the cello in the Nottingham Philharmonic, a semi-professional orchestra. He served as a lay service leader for small Liberal Jewish communities in Britain and was active in European Progressive Judaism, supporting emerging communities in eastern Europe following the collapse of communism. He loved Hebrew poetry and song and his critiques of both forms were alert to the political and biblical references they were so often infused with. He was also a popular lecturer at Jewish events, including the annual Limmud conference, which celebrates Jewish culture.
At the age of 47, David was diagnosed with semantic dementia, which attacks the word systems of the brain first. This was especially cruel for someone who loved words, whether written, sung or argued. He was aware of his dementia. When he gave his last session at Limmud in 2009, on environmental issues in Israel, he knew it would be difficult, as by then he had trouble reading. With the help of others, however, he completed the session, and if you had not known he was ill you might not have guessed.
Playing the cello was one of the last of David’s abilities to remain. After his speech disappeared he continued to play music by Bach, and when that ability disappeared it felt as if David himself was truly lost.
For further details and booking request please contact [email protected]