Mission
The finest regional cultural project – an Orchestra that showcases the best creative capacity of the Western Balkans, simultaneously showing the artistic excellence through synergies of different ethnic specificities, all united in a unique art expression and the characteristically warm Balkan temperament.
Vision
The Camerata Balcanica brings together young classical music artists from the Western Balkans 6 (WB6) under the mentorship of prominent music (and other relevant) professionals – based on ArtLink’s 15 years of experience in successfully organising such collaboration.
The Camerata Balcanica provides a comfortable, reassuring and inspiring environment where the young people can interact with each other, learn from prominent mentors and each other, thus advancing personally and professionally, and – most importantly – an environment suitable for the young artists to create together. Together, they will jointly be creating and performing new cultural content, which will serve not only to communicate and uplift the audiences in the Western Balkans, but will also showcase to the audiences across the EU – through a carefully selected performance program with a tailored combination of classical music from Europe and that created in the Western Balkans – what the young musicians from WB can achieve when they work together.
Camerata Balcanica will inspire the young to inspire everyone else.
Having worked with many young talents in the past, the Western Balkans are commonly known as a spowning ground for the arts and thus for musical talent. I was thrilled and flattered to have received this invitation and experience myself how many talented young people are gathered in this orchestra. The rehearsal time was very intense and led to an amazing and impressive result. This is probably the most valuable and rewarding project I have been involved with in recent years.
I am so happy because I was the part of Camerata Balcanica. The time we had together was amazing. The musicians were very friendly and we are in touch with each other all the time. We supported each other and spent all the time together: we played, shared meals, had free time together … Organisation was good, also the restaurants and the food was very good and tasty. The concerts were full of energy, smiles and it was an interesting experience. Mr. Haemhouts is a very good conductor and I learnt a lot from him.
He is a nice and interesting man who wanted to give us knowledge.
I am 18 years old. I am from Macedonia – Skopje. I play cello and I study in Music School, in Skopje
The time I spent with Camerata Balcanica in Belgrade at ArtLink festival and Tirana was amazing, and filled with lots of great memories and lots of fun!
I gained so much experience and wisdom from all the performances that we did. They opened me to a world full of many different opportunities that life can give you. Understanding the message that the composer wanted to express into the music, and conveying it through gesture was made possible by the amazing conductor Benjamin Haemhouts.
The atmosphere at the performances and venues was indeed knowledgeable and filled with young and talented musicians.
My name is Izabela Qevani, I am 16 years old and I come from Elbasan, Albania. I started learning the cello at the age of 6 where me and my sister are the only members dealing with the music studies. I study in Artistic School “Onufri” in Elbasan. Since 2018 I am followed by Prof. Pjeter Guralumi at the Faculty of Music of the University of Arts.
My moto is: Whatever you do enjoy it to the fullest and don’t give up there is no shame in falling down. Be happy:)
I am Laura Llozi, I am a 20 years old violinist currently studying at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. My motto is: I can achieve anything I put my mind to.
The experience with the Camerata Balcanica has been really valuable to me. I like everything new and as ambitious as, this there might be difficulties in the beginning, specially in this COVID situation, the results have been great thanks to the director and staff, the professional musicians and great conductor that helped us play and connect even better with each other. And of course thanks to all the talented people that performed in the Camerata. What I also love about this project, is that beside everything that might be happening in our world, it gives the message that ART connects us all and it sets the differences aside.
My name is Marija Janculeska, I am 23 years old and I come from Macedonia. I am a graduate violinist at the Faculty of Music in Skopje in the class of Professor Ljubisa Kirovski. The experiences I have had with Camerata Balkanika and Western Balkan sextet are valuable to me. Learning and playing with professionals has made me a good chamber violinist.
The concert in Berlin as well as playing at the Wonderfeel Festival in the Netherlands with the Western Balkan sextet was an amazing experience. I am grateful to Jovanka Viкekruna Jankovic for the trust and the opportunity to be a part of them.
