Guest Artist Bio
Aziz Shokhakimov
The remarkable young conductor Aziz Shokhakimov burst on the scene at the age of just 21 by astounding audiences in Bamberg, where he was awarded second prize at the Gustav Mahler International Conducting Competition under the auspices of the Bamberger Symphoniker.
During 2011 and 2012 Aziz Shokhakimov made several triumphant debuts: In Germany with the Staatskapelle Dresden; in Italy with the Filarmonica del Teatro Comunale di Bologna and in Poland with the highly acclaimed Sinfonia Varsovia.
Shokhakimov makes his American debut with the Oregon Symphony Orchestra in the 2012-2013 season. Future engagements also include a return to both Bologna and Moscow, as well as performances with LaVerdi Orchestra in Milan, concerts in both Montréal and the U.S. with I Musici de Montréal, and performances with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Düsseldorf Symphoniker and the Pacific Symphony.
Recognition came very early for Shokhakimov. Born in 1988 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Aziz entered Uspensky Music School for Gifted Children at the age of 6, where he studied violin, viola and orchestral conducting (professor V.Neymer). At the age of 13 he made his debut with the National Symphony Orchestra of Uzbekistan, conducting Beethoven's 5th Symphony and the Lizst Piano Concerto #1. And just the following year Aziz was invited to conduct his first opera, Carmen, at the National Opera and Ballet Theatre of Uzbekistan.
In 2005, at the age of 17, he was invited to participate in a training program at the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia under the direction of Maestro Vladimir Spivakov, which resulted in an invitation to conduct the orchestra in a 2010 subscription concert. Soon after, Aziz received sponsorship from the Vladimir Spivakov International Charitable Foundation. In 2006, at 18, Aziz Shokhakimov assumed the position of Principal Conductor at the National Symphony Orchestra of Uzbekistan, a position which he continues to hold.