Biography
Elvira Misbakhova received her Ph.D in music performance from the University of Montreal in 2005. She was the recipient of a FRQSC award, as well as the faculty’s prestigious FESP bursary of excellence. Ms. Misbakhova began her violin training at the age of seven in her native Tatarstan, Russia. She then attended the Kazan State Conservatory, where she was assistant principal violist for the La Primavera Chamber Orchestra.
In 1999, she arrived in Montreal to study with Eleonora Turovsky, becoming principal violist for the Orchestre Symphonique de l’Université de Montreal, and was winner of the orchestra’s concerto competition. She continued to acquire orchestral experience performing as principal violist for ensembles such as the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra in Japan, the Bach Academie Symphony Orchestra in Germany, and the Orchestre de la Francophonie in Quebec. As soloist, she has performed with the Orchestre Métropolitain, the Drummondville Symphony Orchestra, “Nouvelle Generation” chamber orchestra, I Musici de Montréal, the Orchestre Interculturel de Montréal with whom she premiered Boris Pigovat’s “Holocaust Requiem”. She has returned numerous times to Russia, performing with La Primavera Orchestra and the Tatarstan State Symphony Orchestra, and continues to travel to give masterclasses and workshops.
Her last recording on Chandos Records got high acclaim by such magazines as “The Strad”, “Gramophone”, “Classical Source”, “The MusicWeb” and others. Ms. Misbakhova is currently principal violist of the Orchestre Métropolitain under Yannick Nezet-Seguin, an ensemble with whom she has recorded for Deutsche- Gramophone. She also holds principal position viola in chamber orchestra Nouvelle Generation and the assistant principal viola position in both the Orchestre Symphonique de Trois-Rivieres, and the Orchestre Symphonique de Longueuil.
In 2000, she discovered her talent for improvisation and a deep passion for klezmer music. As a result of these experiences, she joined the celebrated Canadian band Kleztory, with whom she still works today. As a member of Kleztory, she performed with several Canadian orchestras, including, but not limited to, the Montreal, Laval and Quebec Symphony Orchestras, the Brussels Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre classique de Montréal and Les Violons du Roy. She is presently working on several projects in chamber music and has been a regular member of the Orchestre I Musici de Montréal since June 2022.
Elvira plays on viola by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume and the bow by Louis Bazin – the generous loan by Canimex Fondation , Drummondville.