A Life in Music
Valentina Seferinova was born with music in her hands. She gave her first public performance at the age of eight and was performing concertos with her hometown orchestra – the Vidin Philharmonic – by the time she was twelve.
She went on to study at the National Academy of Music in Sofia under the celebrated Professor Dr Lubomir Dinolov and by the age of twenty-seven had become Assistant Professor of Performance at the same institution. A remarkable achievement by any measure.
A regular presence on Bulgarian National Radio and Television, Valentina's reputation for the interpretation of Romantic-era composers quickly spread beyond Bulgaria's borders. The highest honour came when she was invited by the Trustees of the Claude Debussy House and Museum in St Germain-en-Laye, Paris, to give an Anniversary Recital – performed in the very auditorium that had once been Debussy's own bedroom.
A further invitation followed, to give a private solo recital for the 1999 AGM of the International Rachmaninoff Society, whose President at the time was the Russian maestro Vladimir Ashkenazy. Two more Rachmaninoff Society recitals followed, in 2005 and 2009. The 2009 recital, given in London in the presence of two of the composer's great-grandchildren, earned Valentina a standing ovation.
Her concert career has taken her across Europe and Asia (most recently a highly successful 7 city concerts & masterclasses tour around China) – and earned her a particular reputation for championing composers whose work had been unjustly overlooked. This passion led to a series of recording contracts with European labels, most notably the Polish label Acte Préalable, with whom she recorded seven CDs of music by Zygmunt Noskowski, Joseph Wieniawski, Henry Pachulski, Raoul Koczalski, and the complete extant solo piano music of Ludomir Róźycki.
Valentina’s most recent recording project saw her as soloist with the Ukrainian Festival Orchestra under Grammy-winning conductor John McLaughlin Williams, performing two concertos for piano by award-winning young French composer Corentin Boissier. Released on the Toccata Classics label in 2021, it brought her work to a new international audience. A further recording project is already in progress.
Based in Hampshire for over 25 years, Valentina is Lecturer & Departmental Accompanist in the Music Department at the University of Southampton – one of the UK's leading Russell Group universities, and a Visiting Academic at Churcher’s College, Petersfield. She continues to perform, record and teach at the highest levels; and when time allows, she can be found walking her dog Heidi in the Hampshire countryside.
She went on to study at the National Academy of Music in Sofia under the celebrated Professor Dr Lubomir Dinolov and by the age of twenty-seven had become Assistant Professor of Performance at the same institution. A remarkable achievement by any measure.
A regular presence on Bulgarian National Radio and Television, Valentina's reputation for the interpretation of Romantic-era composers quickly spread beyond Bulgaria's borders. The highest honour came when she was invited by the Trustees of the Claude Debussy House and Museum in St Germain-en-Laye, Paris, to give an Anniversary Recital – performed in the very auditorium that had once been Debussy's own bedroom.
A further invitation followed, to give a private solo recital for the 1999 AGM of the International Rachmaninoff Society, whose President at the time was the Russian maestro Vladimir Ashkenazy. Two more Rachmaninoff Society recitals followed, in 2005 and 2009. The 2009 recital, given in London in the presence of two of the composer's great-grandchildren, earned Valentina a standing ovation.
Her concert career has taken her across Europe and Asia (most recently a highly successful 7 city concerts & masterclasses tour around China) – and earned her a particular reputation for championing composers whose work had been unjustly overlooked. This passion led to a series of recording contracts with European labels, most notably the Polish label Acte Préalable, with whom she recorded seven CDs of music by Zygmunt Noskowski, Joseph Wieniawski, Henry Pachulski, Raoul Koczalski, and the complete extant solo piano music of Ludomir Róźycki.
Valentina’s most recent recording project saw her as soloist with the Ukrainian Festival Orchestra under Grammy-winning conductor John McLaughlin Williams, performing two concertos for piano by award-winning young French composer Corentin Boissier. Released on the Toccata Classics label in 2021, it brought her work to a new international audience. A further recording project is already in progress.
Based in Hampshire for over 25 years, Valentina is Lecturer & Departmental Accompanist in the Music Department at the University of Southampton – one of the UK's leading Russell Group universities, and a Visiting Academic at Churcher’s College, Petersfield. She continues to perform, record and teach at the highest levels; and when time allows, she can be found walking her dog Heidi in the Hampshire countryside.
There are probably three pianists on the face of the earth who can do this – you’re one of them. You’re a tremendous musician. And a great spirit – huge. You have everything.”
Benjamin Zander
Conductor, Boston Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor, Boston Philharmonic Orchestra