
Maria Sotriffer is an Austrian violinist of Ukrainian descent. She recently won the prestigious Ysaÿe International Music Competition in Liège (2024).
Born in Vienna into a family of musicians, she began playing the violin at the age of two under the guidance of her mother. Her exceptional talent became apparent from an early age, allowing her to perform alongside renowned artists such as Gidon Kremer, Mischa Maisky, Janine Jansen, and Aleksey Igudesman.
Maria Sotriffer has appeared at esteemed festivals, including the Oleg Kagan Music Festival in Kreuth (Germany) under Natalia Gutman’s direction, the Julian Rachlin & Friends Festival in Dubrovnik and Pernegg, and the Eilat Music Festival in Israel. A notable highlight of her career was performing with Rudolf Buchbinder in the Golden Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna.
As a soloist, Maria has collaborated with the North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra Ostrava, Camerata Musica Vienna, the Traismauer Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Neue Streicher, the Beethoven Philharmonic Orchestra Baden, the Nouvelle Etoiles String Ensemble Paris, and Camerata Medica Vienna.
She has received numerous accolades, including first prizes at the 20th Concorso Internazionale di Esecuzione Musicale in Padova, the Mimas Music Festival Competition, the XII International Competition for Young Musicians Città di Massa, the Nouvelles Etoiles International Music Competition and the London International Concerto Competition. Maria was awarded the Special Prize by the European String Teachers Association at the International Johannes Brahms Competition in Pörtschach, Austria.
Recent solo performances have taken her to prestigious venues such as the Vienna Konzerthaus, Victoria Hall in Geneva, Smetana Hall in Prague, the Musikverein in Vienna, and the Radiokulturhaus in Vienna.
At the age of four, Maria was the youngest ever student to be accepted at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna into the class of Eugenia Polatschek. She later continued her studies with Thomas Christian, Gerhard Schulz, and Albena Danailova at the Music and Arts Private University as well as the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in solo performance at the Haute École de Musique in Lausanne under Svetlana Makarova. Her artistic development has been further enriched by masterclasses with Donald Weilerstein at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and with esteemed musicians such as Boris Kuschnir, Midori Goto, Pierre Amoyal, and Ingolf Turban. Additionally, she studied Baroque violin with Hiro Kurosaki.
Maria has been awarded scholarships from the prestigious Swiss Lyra Foundation and the Liechtenstein Music Academy. She plays on a 1749 Giovanni Battista Guadagnini violin, provided by Florian Leonhard, as well as an 1804 Franz Geissenhof violin, known as the Viennese Stradivarius.
pura musica is pleased to represent Maria Sotriffer worldwide. Please get in touch with us for booking inquiries and further information.
