

Soma Salat-Zakariás
Artistic Director
Soma Salat-Zakariás, born in Romania on 18.07.1986, started his musical education at the age of 6, playing the cello. He discovered the Viola da Gamba at the age of 16, when he started to play the instrument self-educative. In 2004 he started studying with Lorenz Duftschmid at the High School for Music in Trossingen, Germany. He obtained his teacher’s diploma there, in July 2008. The same year he entered the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Switzerland and started studying with Paolo Pandolfo, where he obtained his Master's degree in musical performance in June 2011. Right after he enrolled a specialized Master’s program at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, continuing his studies with Paolo Pandolfo. During his studies and professional activities, he worked with numerous great musicians, such as Rolf Lislevand, Anthony Rooley, Anton Steck, Alfredo Bernardini, Hervé Niquet, Sigiswald Kuijken, Vittorio Ghielmi, Evelyn Tubb, Randall Cook, Dominique Vellard, and many others. He participated in master classes offered by Wieland Kuijken, Paolo Pandolfo, Lorenz Duftschmid, Pere Ros and Hille Perl. In 2007 he obtained the 2nd prize at the competition of the German music high schools, with the ensemble “il disegno interno”. In 2011 he won the 1st prize and the special prize of the artistic jury with the ensemble ”Daimonion” at the Bonporti Competition in Rovereto, Italy. In 2012 he won the 3rd prize at the “IV. Concorso Internazionale Principe Francesco Maria Ruspoli” in Vignanello, Italy. He is the leader of the group “The Little Light Consort” which he founded in 2011. As a performer he has given many concerts as a soloist, as well as with numerous different ensembles in countries around Europe, such as Italy, France, Spain, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Norway, Hungary, Romania and Colombia.