— Biography
Polina Bogdanova was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. In 2009, she graduated with distinction from the Saint-Petersburg Conservatoire, and two years later from the Royal Northern College of Music (Manchester, United Kingdom) with a Master of Music degree (with distinction) with Norma Fisher. In 2011, she obtained a place at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium, working in the piano section under the direction of Abdel Rahman El Bacha. Polina's international competition successes as a solo pianist include prestigious prizes in European competitions held in Italy, Andorra, and the United Kingdom. As an Artist in Residence of the QEMC, she also studied with Dmitry Bashkirov; in 2012-2013, she worked with Kirill Gerstein in Stuttgart, Germany.
After moving to Belgium, Polina started work as an accompanist in the classes of José van Dam, Gary Hoffman, and Augustin Dumay, and regularly accompanied the master-classes of June Anderson, Helmut Deutsch, and Natalie Dessay; in 2013-2014, she prepared several singers studying at the Music Chapel for the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition.
In 2014-2015, Polina staged an International Opera Academy in Ghent and undertook an internship in La Monnaie Brussels Theatre, where she started to work from the next season onwards along with the International Opera Academy and the Arts Koninklijk Conservatorium in Antwerp. Her artistic projects include concerts such as the "Russian Classics" and "Vienna Classics" festivals in Flagey, Brussels, and accompanying the master-classes of Pascal Dusapin, Roberta Alexander, Georg Nigl, Sophie Koch, Dietrich Henschel, Alberto Zedda, and Joan La Barbara. Polina also gave solo and chamber music concerts. She participated as a symphonic conductor in London Masterclasses, and in December 2016 she was a musical director in La (Petite) Flûte Enchantée ENOA Lab in Waterloo.
In 2017-2022 she worked as a house pianist in Bremen Theatre, Germany, where – among other productions – she was involved in Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, The Rake's Progress, Lulu, Rosenkavalier, The Cunning Little Vixen etc. Polina regularly performed in the Bremer Philharmonic Orchestra and plays Liederabends with the soloists of the Bremen Theatre.
In 2022 she got a house pianist position in Palau de Les Arts, Valencia, Spain.
— Repertoire
Händel Alcina
Mozart Don Giovanni, Die Zauberflöte, Die Entführung aus dem Serail
Beethoven Fidelio
Donizetti Lucia di Lammermoor, L'elisir d'amore, Roberto Devereux
Strauss Die Fledermaus
Bizet Carmen
Chabrier L'étoile
Rossini L'italiana in Algeri
Verdi Ernani, Falstaff
Leoncavallo Pagliacci
Tchaikovsky Eugene Onegin, The Queen of Spades
Wagner Tristan und Isolde
Rachmaninoff Aleko, The Miserly Knight, Francesca da Rimini
Humperdinck Hänsel und Gretel
Dvořák Rusalka
Massenet Manon
Strauss Ariadne auf Naxos
Berg Wozzeck, Lulu
Bartok Bluebeard's Castle
Janáček The Cunning Little Vixen, Jenůfa
Hartmann Simplicius Simplicissimus
Shostakovich Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk
Korngold Die tote Stadt
Stravinsky The Rake's Progress
Benoît Mernier Frühlings Erwachen
Poulenc La voix humaine, Dialogues des carmélites
Dusapin To be sung
Rihm Jacob Lenz
— Vocal accompanist
Lieds repertoire:
Schubert (including Die schöne Müllerin, Winterreise and Schwanengesang)
Schumann (including Dichterliebe and Frauen-Liebe und Leben)
Brahms (including Vier ernste Gesänge and Zigeunerlieder)
Wolf
Richard Strauss
Mahler (including Kindertotenlieder, Des Knaben Wunderhorn, Das Lied von der Erde and Rückert-Lieder)
Fauré Debussy (including Les Chansons de Bilitis and Fêtes galantes)
Poulenc (including Banalités and Fiançailles pour rire)
Mussorgsky (including The Nursery and Songs and Dances of Death)
Rachmaninov (including completes opuses no4, 14, 21, 26, 34 and 38)
— Chamber version performer / language coach/choir accompanist:
Mozart Le nozze di FigaroRossini II barbiere di Siviglia
Verdi Macbeth, La traviata
Rubinstein The Demon
Tchaikovsky lolanta
Puccini La bohème
Rimsky-Korsakov The Golden Cockerel
Faure Pénélope
Prokofiev The Love for Three Oranges
Stravinsky The Rake's Progress
Dallapiccola II prigioniero
— Orchestral pianist
Tastendienst:
Mozart Die Zauberflöte, Janáček The Cunning Little Vixen, Strauss Rosenkavalier, Stravinsky The Rake's Progress, Berg Wozzeck and Lulu, Rihm Jacob Lenz.
Piano part in the orchestra (piano/celesta):
Tchaikovsky Nutcracker suite, Mahler Rückert-Lieder, Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition, Stravinsky The Firebird suite, Ravel Bolero and Rhapsodie Espagnole, Menotti Introduction, March and Shepherds Dance, Simpson Cello concerto, Messiaen Turangalila-Symphonie
— Instrumental/opera auditions accompanist
From 2013 regularly played entrance auditions to: Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel (violin, cello and vocal departments), La Monnaie Theatre Academy (both opera and orchestra, including Academy), International Opera Academy, Theatre Bremen, Bremer Philharmonic Orchestra and Symphoniker Hamburg (violin, cello, double-bass, clarinet, oboe, trumpet, trombone, timpani)
— Repertoire coach
Had been repertoire coach in International Opera Academy in 2015-2017 as well as guest professor in Koninklijk Conservatorium Antwerpen and regular guest coach in La Monnaie Academy
— Chamber music pianist
- Violin: sonatas by Mozart, Beethoven, Debussy, Brahms, Schumann, Grieg, Ravel, Faure, Franck, Poulenc, Prokofiev, - Cello: sonatas by Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, Chopin, Debussy, Kodály, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Martinu, Shostakovich, Schnittke
- Trio: Beethoven, Brahms, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Dvořák, Ravel, Suk, Schumann
- Quintets: Beethoven, Schubert, Dvořák, Brahms, Shostakovich, Franck, Fauré
— Language coach
Had been Russian language coach in Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel and International Opera Academy, as well as Russian coach for several production in La Monnaie theatre. Other languages: English, German, French, Spanish
— Instrumental accompanist
Since 2009 regularly accompanied violin and cello classes in Royal Northem College of Music and in Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel (classes of Augustin Dumay and Gary Hoffman). Apart of concertos has in repertoire sonatas by Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Brahms, Schumann, Grieg, Debussy, Ravel, Faure, Franck, Poulenc, Kodály, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff and Schnittke