12 years old violinist Leia Zhu was on route by KLM to St Petersburg(LED) from Amsterdam (ARM). Onboard the KLM Royal Dutch Airline (KLM1399), the impromptu performance happened when the cabin crew saw her carry-on instrument and invited her to keep the passengers entertained when a delay occurred after boarding. Leia is not one to likely pass an opportunity to share her music and duly took to the "stage" at the front.
Passengers witnessed Wieniawski Concerto No. 1, which Leia was scheduled to perform in one of the most prestigious concerts halls – Mariinsky Theatre with Mariinsky Orchestra on 3rd June.
Leia’s debut with the Mariinsky Orchestra, made her become the youngest British violinist to perform a concerto with the prestigious ensemble, in the Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg.
Henryk Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 1, widely considered one of the most difficult concertos in the repertoire, conducted by Anton Shaburov.
Zhu began playing the violin when she was three and a half years old, having been given a toy instrument. At the age of 4, she made her solo debut at the Last Night of the Proms in Newcastle and toured the region as a soloist with the English Philharmonic Ensemble when she was 5.
As a soloist, Leia works with many of the world’s finest orchestras including the National Orchestra of Belgium, Russian National Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, the Symphony Orchestra at St Petersburg State Capella, Festival Strings Lucerne, Zurich Chamber Orchestra, Novosibirsk Symphony Orchestra and the Russian State Symphony Orchestra. She has also been invited to perform at key festivals in the classical music calendar including Lucerne Festival; Salzburg Festival; MozartFest Würzburg; and Musical Olympus in Russia. Some of the prestigious halls she has performed in include the Royal Festival Hall; Barbican Centre; BOZAR in Brussels and the Berlin Philharmonie.
