6 September: Laura Lootens
After an outstanding performance in April of last year, Calstock Arts is delighted to welcome back Laura, winner of the coveted Andrés Segovia Prize, in November, 2022. In addition to 1st prize, she was also awarded the special prize for the best interpretation of the obligatory work all competitors were asked to perform during the week-long competition.
Laura is German/Belgian. She discovered her passion for playing the guitar when she was eight years old and made her orchestral debut, playing Rodrigo’s famous ‘Concierto de Aranjuez’, aged 15. A year later she was one of the youngest students ever to begin studying for the Bachelor of Music at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich.
In 2019, she won the scholarship of the prestigious German Music Competition open for all instruments, one of Germany’s highest accolades for a young musician.
Laura’s concert career took off following her performance at the Gasteig, Munich, in the internationally acclaimed ‘Winners and Masters’ series. That brought her to the attention of German music lovers, and since then, Laura has appeared at important festivals and concert halls in Germany, including Bonn’s famous Beethoven Festival and the Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker.
In the last year, Laura has enhanced her musical career with many new achievements. She has won the coveted Leonhard and Ida Wolf Prize for music of the city of Munich and has played important concerts in Germany with the Luneburg, Heidelberg and Odessa Symphony Orchestras. She released her debut CD “Albeniz” with Deutsche Grammaphon to great acclaim in September, 2023. The American Record Guide wrote: “That she (Laura) loves this music is clear. If this recording doesn’t move you to feel the same about Spanish music on the guitar, nothing will.”
In March of this year, Laura was selected by Classic FM as one of their 30 ‘Rising Stars of 2024’.
If you missed this phenomenal guitarist first time round, you will have the chance to see her on September 6th.
“She emphasizes her extraordinary talent. Playing with such passion and power, which encourages the audience to “Bravo”- call outs and standing ovations.” Volksstimme
“… she played with all of her skills, not just tremendous finger technique from the beginning till the end of the strings, not only rapid arpeggios, but knocking, scratching and slapping with the flat hand emphasizes the wildness of her interpretation.” Marcus Vitolo
