Diana Liiv

December 7, 1977, Tallinn
Member of the Association of Estonian Professional Musicians

Diana Liiv is known as an active pianist and chamber musician, she is the artistic director of creative unit Kammermuusikud. Since 2010, the agency has organized ca 120 concerts of classical music per year with Estonian interpreters all over the Estonia. Kammermuusikud has released a CD „Variatio delectat“ with Estonian chamber music (2014).

Diana Liiv began her piano studies at the age of five under the guidance of her mother, who was a pianist as well. She has graduated from the Tallinn Music High School as a student of Tiina Kurik, Ivo Sillamaa and Valdur Roots, taking private lessons with Anna Klas. She obtained higher musical education at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre in the piano class of Peep Lassmann. In 2011, she gained a master’s degree as a soloist and in 2012, she graduated as a chamber music student of Marje Lohuaru with a master‘s degree cum laude.

In 1995–1997, she took studies with Victor Rosenbaum at the Longy School of Music Boston, and in 2007–2008 at the Sibelius Academy Helsinki with Hui-Ying Tawastsjerna. Since 2009, Diana Liiv has been complementing her skills with Konstantin Bogino at the St. Cecilia International Private School of Pianists in Bergamo, Italy. In addition, she has taken part of a number of courses and summer schools in Israel (1996), USA, Finland and Sweden, including master classes of Lazar Berman in Lithuania.

In 2009, Diana Liiv was awarded the Kees Wiebenga Award for the best chamber ensemble at the Kuhmo International Chamber Music Festival in Finland for the performance of R. Schumann‘s Piano Quintet. In 2010, she achieved a diploma in one of the most prominent international piano competitions – Piano Competition Rome. In the same year, she was nominated double laureate – both in soloist and chamber music category at Druskininkai International Piano Competition Music Without Limits in Lithuania, where she participated with violinist Kristina Kriit.

As a soloist and chamber musician, Diana Liiv has given performances in a number of Estonian music festivals and concert series. She has given solo recitals and chamber concerts in Lithuania, USA, Finland, Netherlands, Russia, Italy and France (Eric Satie Festival in Paris, 2011). She has played with Longy Symphony Orchestra, Kaunas Symphony Orchestra, Tartu Chamber Orchestra and Tallinn Chamber Orchestra. Her repertoire comprises a wide range of solo and chamber works from classical to contemporary music. Additionally, she has played piano works by Estonian composers such as Heino Eller, Arvo Pärt, Rudolf Tobias, Helena Tulve, Malle Maltis, Mirjam Tally, Urmas Sisask, Eino Tamberg and Mari Vihmand, and chamber works by Märt-Matis Lill, Raimo Kangro, Hillar Kareva, Helmut Rosenvald, Alo Matiisen and Malera Kasuku. She has made recordings for Estonian Radio, including works by Hillar Kareva, Malera Kasuku, Artur Uritamm, Alo Mattiisen, Raimo Kangro and Malle Maltis. Closer cooperation connects her as an ensemblist with violinists Olga Voronova and Kristina Kriit, and with cellist Leho Karin. In 2012, Diana Liiv, Leho Karin and Olga Voronova made a world preamiere of Artur Uritamm‘s sofar unperformed piano trio Nõukogude inimese kolm palet [Three Faces of a Soviet Man] (1948).

Diana Liiv has worked as a piano teacher at the Lexington Music School in USA (1996–1997) and in 2011, as an accompanist in conducting department of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. In 2012, Diana Liiv worked as a piano teacher and accompanist at the Rapla Music School.

Diana Liiv has written and published two musical books for children with CDs: Neli heldet haldjat [Four Generous Fairies] in 2005 and Võluvitsa vägi [The Power of Magic Wand] in 2007. On the CDs, belonging to the books, Diana Liiv performs arrangements of P. Tschaikovsky’s piano cycles Children’s Album and The Four Seasons. She also has written articles and published concert critics in culture weekly Sirp.

Diana Liiv was awarded the Annual Prize of the Endowment for Music of the Cultural Endowment of Estonia (2018).

Look also: Kammermuusikud

© EMIC 2013
(updated in October 2018)

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