The Luxembourg Philharmonic Academy was founded in 2021 and since then it has continued to successfully nurture the next generation of musical talents. Coming from all over the world, exceptional young musicians meet in Luxembourg for two years of intensive training.
Expertly curated by the Philharmonie Team, this incubator has seen its first alumni join some of the most prestigious ensembles in Europe, such as the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, the Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège, and of course the Luxembourg Philharmonic.
The Academy is also a school of life. From concerts to recordings and tours with the orchestra, including individual projects, self-development workshops, personalised mentoring and co-living, the program goes beyond mere technical competence and strives to develop mature and sensitive personalities, capable of invigorating the classical scene with fresh, interpretive insights.
I had the possibility to learn more about the Academy, thanks to my interview with Phoebe Rousochatzaki, violin player, who joined it in January 2023.
Q.: Tell me more about yourself and how did you start playing the violin
P.R.: I am 24 years old, and I come from Athens (Greece). How did I start playing violin? People usually say: “I come from a family of musicians and music was in my blood” or “I went to this concert when I was two years old and then my life changed.” Well, in my case, it was my mum who just wanted me to have a contact with music. I started playing when I was five or six years old and then music became something bigger for me. My parents are both engineers. I also hold a degree in theoretical physics from the National Technical University in Athens. Then, I studied violin in the Netherlands. I will finish my Master this year. I became a member of the Luxembourg Philharmonic Academy in January 2023.
Q.: Did you start playing the violin since the very beginning?
P.R.: Yes, it has always been violin.
Q.: Did you choose the violin or did your parents choose it for you?
P.R.: It was a bit of dilemma, but I chose it and I have always been happy with my choice.
Q.: Do you remember when/how you realized you wanted to become a professional musician?
P.R.: This is a very good question. I must admit that in Greece we do not have such a big scene in classical music. At a certain point, I knew all the orchestras, all their programs, all their scheduling and I realized that it wasn’t enough. I really wanted to continue studying at a high level. Traveling the world and seeing many concerts made me realize that I wanted to be part of the music world.
Q.: When did you play as a professional musician for the first time?
P.R.: What I am doing here in Luxembourg right now is the same thing I did in Athens. In 2017/2018 I played with a big orchestra. I also had a very nice solo debut with an orchestra in the Netherlands two years ago.
Q.: When did you arrive in Luxembourg? And what do you miss the most about your country?
P.R.: I arrived in Luxembourg in January 2023. My audition was in December 2022, but then I started working in January 2023. It might sound like a cliché, but the weather is what I missed the most about my country. I miss the sun, the sky, and the food. I’m also very surprised because Luxembourg is an extremely multi-cultural country and people are generally super nice and close because of this diversity. It is something that I didn’t find in the Netherlands or in Central Europe.
Q.: Can you describe one of your typical days as part of the Luxembourg Philharmonic Academy?
P.R.: Academy programs are common in most orchestras in Europe. However, if I had to compare it to others, at the Luxembourg Philharmonic Academy they have a very diverse training program, so we get to play with the orchestra, and this is the main aspect. We also have chamber music concerts which means that we play among ourselves. In addition, we have super nice workshops and trainings about mental health, physical health, and awareness on how to optimize our performance. Next week we will go on tour. The first stop will be Stockholm. At the Academy, every week is different.
Q.: How long do you practice each day?
P.R.: I practice every day, Saturdays and Sundays included, between four and six hours per day. Every day you must question everything again and again. This is the reason why after my daily practice here at the Philharmonie I must practice a lot also when I’m home.
Q.: What is the piece of music you like playing the most?
P.R.: For solo I like a lot playing Bach for violin, while with the orchestra I like to play Shostakovich. My first project was with the Shostakovic 5 and I liked it a lot.
Q.: Is there a musician/singer/performer belonging to another music genre you would like to play/collaborate with?
P.R.: I must admit that I am not very acquainted with other music genres, but I think I would go for jazz music. I really like Brad Mehldau for example. I also like John Coltrane.
Q.: What do you like to do during your free time here in Luxembourg?
P.R.: I have no free time! In general, I like museums, nature. I also like reading. I like the nature of Luxembourg. I like that we have these big forests and trees here. I think this city has a unique vibe, also considering the way it’s structured with the old city and the new part, plus the multicultural aspect.
Q.: What’s on your playlist and what is the last song you have added to it?
P.R.: I have a playlist with the pieces that I’m working on, either for the orchestra or for my studies. It is research of recordings. I also have a playlist of music I discovered and I feel like listening to. For example, in this period I’m in a “Schubert phase”, therefore I mostly listen to Schubert. Then, I have a jazz playlist.
Biography:
Phoebe Rousochatzaki was born in Greece in 1999. She began taking violin lessons at the age of six and officially began studying with the Greek violin teacher Apollon Grammatikopoulos at the Athens Conservatory. She then enrolled at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague, where she studied with Joseph Puglia and Walter Reiter (baroque violin) and received her Bachelor of Music degree in 2022. She is currently pursuing her Master of Music degree. Phoebe Rousochatzaki has received numerous prizes and distinctions during her studies. She was the recipient of the Ismini Karter Violin Scholarship in 2019. She was a member of the Academy of Young Musicians of the Athens State Orchestra for the period 2018–2020. She has been invited to perform at international festivals (alone and with her string quartet, Loksias) such as the Orlando Festival in Kerkrade in 2022 (where the premiere of Sam Wamper’s string quartet Portrait of Time was performed), the 2022 Aurora Festival in Groningen (where she won the Labberté-Hoedemakerprijzen), the Sion Festival and Old Ox. In March 2022, she performed Beethoven Triple Concerto with the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century and Jonathan Cohen, playing a 1743 Camillo Camilli violin provided by the Jumpstart Jr. Foundation. She is grateful to the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague for awarding her final bachelor recital with a Sartory bow. Phoebe Rousochatzaki also holds a degree in theoretical physics from the National Technical University in Athens. She became a member of the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra Academy in January 2023.
