Juilliard calls a young Macedonian violinist
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What does it take to make a dream into reality? To be from a poor country, with little resources, and yet to find the passion and work ethic to gain international recognition, competing against those with deep pockets and superior educational support? Aleksandar Ivanov is the first Macedonian violinist to be accepted to the Juilliard School of Music. And he could use some help to get there.
Macedonia is an incredibly poor country. It is at the bottom of the wage scale for former Yugoslavia - the average wage for a full-time employee is 439 dollars per month. Both of his parents work, and their combined wage does not reach 1,000 per month. His city of Skopje, and in fact the country, views Alek as one of their hopes for the future, the hopes for their country. He is loved and supported by his teachers, family, and mentors. But, unfortunately, with such a poor country, the support they can offer is only their time, talent, and hope.
He has overcome tremendous hardships to get this far and has been accepted into one of the most prestigious schools in the world. He has worked himself to the bone and wants nothing more than to gain the knowledge of this education and share it with others, who like him, have dreams which seem unattainable. Let’s help him bridge the gap between dream and reality. He needs 34,000 to make it through his first year, after his 75% tuition scholarship. That’s 134,000 for 4 years.
Slipped Disc - Latest Article
The Financial Nitty-Gritty:
Per year
Tuition and Fees: 47,370
Residence hall/food plan: 17,970
Macedonia is an incredibly poor country. It is at the bottom of the wage scale for former Yugoslavia - the average wage for a full-time employee is 439 dollars per month. Both of his parents work, and their combined wage does not reach 1,000 per month. His city of Skopje, and in fact the country, views Alek as one of their hopes for the future, the hopes for their country. He is loved and supported by his teachers, family, and mentors. But, unfortunately, with such a poor country, the support they can offer is only their time, talent, and hope.
Why does classical music matter to Alek, to the world? It is something which touches the very foundations of human interaction - it connects us to history, to each other. It has the ability to bring hope and direction to people whose options are limited, and it speaks without a language. It teaches sustained and self-critical work ethic and stretches the player and listener to look inside of themselves and to be better people.
Without more support, Alek has no hopes of being able to reach so far outside of his world. He has been scraping together bits of financial support, to chip away at this iceberg.
Fakulteti.mk - Article
Without more support, Alek has no hopes of being able to reach so far outside of his world. He has been scraping together bits of financial support, to chip away at this iceberg. Fakulteti.mk - Article
He has overcome tremendous hardships to get this far and has been accepted into one of the most prestigious schools in the world. He has worked himself to the bone and wants nothing more than to gain the knowledge of this education and share it with others, who like him, have dreams which seem unattainable. Let’s help him bridge the gap between dream and reality. He needs 34,000 to make it through his first year, after his 75% tuition scholarship. That’s 134,000 for 4 years.
Slipped Disc - Latest Article
The Financial Nitty-Gritty:
Per year
Tuition and Fees: 47,370
Residence hall/food plan: 17,970
Health Insurance: 2,760
Books, supplies: 3,628
Total: 71,728
Scholarship: 35,000
Work-Study: 2,000
Total scholarship: 37,000
Remainder:
34,728
Vadim Repin and Aleksandar Ivanov - lesson
Short Biography
Born and raised in Macedonia, Aleksandar Ivanov is the youngest winner of the Macedonian Young Artist ‘Virtuosi Award’ at the age of 15. Currently a student of renowned professor Svetlin Roussev, Alek has won admission to The Juilliard School in New York City to continue his studies with Professor Lewis Kaplan. Not only has he been accepted but also was granted the maximum amount of scholarship that Juilliard provides. Regretfully, that is still not enough and seems unattainable.
He has been selected to attend master classes with international recognized violinists including Noah Geller, Kryzstof Wegrzyn, Svetlin Roussev, Vadim Repin, Nadija Nevolovitsch, Vesko Panteleev Eshkenazi, Leonid Kerbel, and Stefan Milenkovich. During the opening of the 'Days of Macedonian Music' festival in 2018, Alek performed a new concerto by Filip Ivanov, which was also dedicated to Aleksandar.
Alek has performed as a soloist with the Macedonian Philharmonic, Danube Symphony Orchestra, and Classic FM radio orchestra. He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Vienna as well as the European Music Festival in Sofia; Violin Fest, Skopje; Curtis Summerfest, Philadelphia (serving as concertmaster) and recorded for WRTI Radio.
Books, supplies: 3,628
Total: 71,728
Scholarship: 35,000
Work-Study: 2,000
Total scholarship: 37,000
Remainder:
34,728
Vadim Repin and Aleksandar Ivanov - lesson
Short Biography
Born and raised in Macedonia, Aleksandar Ivanov is the youngest winner of the Macedonian Young Artist ‘Virtuosi Award’ at the age of 15. Currently a student of renowned professor Svetlin Roussev, Alek has won admission to The Juilliard School in New York City to continue his studies with Professor Lewis Kaplan. Not only has he been accepted but also was granted the maximum amount of scholarship that Juilliard provides. Regretfully, that is still not enough and seems unattainable.
He has been selected to attend master classes with international recognized violinists including Noah Geller, Kryzstof Wegrzyn, Svetlin Roussev, Vadim Repin, Nadija Nevolovitsch, Vesko Panteleev Eshkenazi, Leonid Kerbel, and Stefan Milenkovich. During the opening of the 'Days of Macedonian Music' festival in 2018, Alek performed a new concerto by Filip Ivanov, which was also dedicated to Aleksandar.
Alek has performed as a soloist with the Macedonian Philharmonic, Danube Symphony Orchestra, and Classic FM radio orchestra. He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Vienna as well as the European Music Festival in Sofia; Violin Fest, Skopje; Curtis Summerfest, Philadelphia (serving as concertmaster) and recorded for WRTI Radio.
Organizer and beneficiary
Iskra Polenak
Organizer
Brooklyn, NY
Jelica Isely
Beneficiary