Agustina Herrera is one of the most renowned argentine pianists of her
generation. She has won the First Prize at the Mar del Plata Piano
Competition, the First Prize and the Alberto Williams Prize at the Piano
Competition in Necochea, the Second Prize in the Mozart Biennial Competition
(Festivales Musicales of Buenos Aires). She has also received the First
Honorable Mention in the Argentine Music Competition which allowed her to
perform as soloist with the Mayo Orchestra in the Colón Theatre of Buenos
Aires (1988).
The cello and piano Duo Sergei Kotounov - Agustina Herrera has won the First
Prize of Chamber Music in the Competition 2003 (Musical Festivals of Buenos
Aires)
She was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A descendant of the composer and
pedagogue Constantino Gaito, she has completed her music studies at the
National Music Conservatory of Buenos Aires and perfected her piano skills
with Susana Bonora, Andrzej Jasinski, Pierre Sancan, Rosalyn Tureck, Alfonso
Montecino, Ralph Votapek, and in chamber music with Ljerko Spiller and
Alberto Lysy.
She has obtained scholarships from Rosenberg Stiftung and DAAD that made it
possible for her to settle in Germany to attend graduate studies in
Küstlerische Ausbildung and Solistenstudium under Prof. Michel Béroff at the
Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg. She has participated in the international
piano and chamber music master classes from professors Gyrgy Sebk
(Switzerland), Vitalij Margulis (Germany and Portugal), and Carlos Roqué
Alsina (France) where she obtained the First Prize.
She has performed in recitals, as soloist with orchestras and in chamber
music concerts in Argentine, Uruguay, Germany and France. As a soloist, she
performed with the National Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Estable of the
Colón Theatre, Chamber Orchestra Mayo, Kammerorchester of the
Musikhochschule Freiburg, Symphony Orchestras of Mar del Plata, San Juan,
Entre Ríos, Tucumán.
The quality of her sound, her strong temperament, fineness of touch and
passionate artistic expression are the qualities most often underlined by
the critics.
She has been a member of several chamber music groups such the Piano Quartet
Cum-Corde with which performed at the Festival Semana Musical Llao-Llao 2001
and 2002 in Bariloche.
Among others, she has recorded the Sonata for violoncello and piano op. 26
by the argentine composer Constantino Gaito, on the German radio SWF Südwestfunk,
and Trazas by Fernando Maglia edited by Radio Clásica (Argentine).