Eton College pupil Hong Kiu Mak was one of a small group of players from around the world selected to take part in a masterclass given by world renowned violinist Leonidas Kavakos.
Mr Kavakos is considered by many to be the greatest violinist playing today. Participants for the masterclass were selected through a rigorous audition process, which included submitting a recording of a performance. At just 16 years-old Hong Kiu (JMO'B) was the youngest person chosen to take part. The other sixteen participants came from as far away as Ukraine, the USA, Japan and China.
The performers travelled to Greece for the event which took place before a selected audience in the Academy in central Athens. Hong Kui chose to play the Variations on an Original Theme Op. 15 by Wieniawski. Following his performance of this virtuoso work, he and Mr Kavakos worked for an hour and a half in great detail on the various aspects of playing such a piece.
“Hong Kiu works incredibly hard and has built up a formidable skill and it was a real achievement for him to have been chosen to take part,” said Jack Rozman, who is Head of Strings at Eton College. “It was a privilege for him to have worked with an artist at the very peak of the profession and I’m sure it’s an experience which will stay with him.”
