Age: 18
“From an early age, I showed sensitivity to pitch and sound; I was able to sing songs in pitch as early as two years old. Music to me felt like a natural language and the violin was the instrument that immediately made sense.”
Violinist Bade Dastan began performing at an early age. She started her formal musical education in 2012 at Bilkent Music School in Ankara, studying with Vseslava Kudinova and Muhammedjan Turdiev. In 2018, she continued her studies at the Musica Mundi School in Brussels under Leonid Kerbel, and, since 2024, she has been pursuing her education at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she studies with Shmuel Ashkenasi.
Finding the violin to be “very soothing and expressive”, Bade enjoys exploring the sound of her instrument in depth. “It feels natural and very close to the human voice. There is just so much variety of tones possible in each string. I love the sound of the e-string since it has an elegance and adds a fragility that I very much appreciate.”
Bade has performed in over 20 countries, appearing at prestigious venues such as Bozar in Brussels and collaborating with renowned orchestras including the Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Symphony Orchestra, Eurasian Philharmonic Orchestra, Musica Mundi Orchestra, İzmir State Symphony Orchestra, and Flanders Festival Orchestra. She has had the privilege of sharing the stage with leading musicians such as Fazil Say and Maxim Vengerov; and the opportunity to work with professors including Boris Kuschnir, Mincho Minchev, Midori, Michaela Martin, Miriam Fried, Benjamin Beilman, and Vadim Gluzman.
A laureate of numerous international competitions, Bade won First Prize at the Concours international Arthur Grumiaux (Belgium), Pancho Vladigerov Competition (Bulgaria), and Young Virtuosos International Competition (Bulgaria), as well as Second Prize at the 24th Andrea Postacchini International Violin Competition (Italy).
Bade performs on a 1732 Nicolò Gagliano violin, generously on loan from Florian Leonhard Fine Violins.
Contact us to sponsor a competitor:
fondation@concoursmontreal.ca
