Biography
Born in Romania, Octavian Ioan Pirlea first began his studies at the Tudor Ciortea music school in Brasov. At the age of 8 he had his first concert as a soloist with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Brasov. He left his hometown to study at the Dinu Lipatti Art College at the age of 12 with Magdalena Ursu. While studying there, he performed in major halls from Romania such as the National Library of Iasi, Bucharest Athenium, Alba Iulia Catholic Church. At the same time, he was an active member of the Remember Enescu foundation led by Mihaela Tomescu. At the age of 14 he participated at the Summer Music Academy Sinaia with Maestro Charles Sewart and Maestro Remus Azoitei. Later, he was accepted at the Purcell School of Music with a full scholarship and studied under the tutelage of Charles Sewart. While studying there he performed at the Drapers Hall and St. Martin in the Fields. On his final year, he was invited to perform the Sibelius Violin Concerto with the Arad Philharmonic orchestra led by Iulian Rusu. Moreover, he won the Purcell chamber music award, which gave him the opportunity to perform at Wigmore Hall in London. He has performed in various masterclasses with Tatiana Anatolgevna Polozova, Alexandru Gavrilovici, Evgenia Chugaeva, George Tudorache, Mihaela Martin, Alina Ibraginova, Alexandru Tomescu and Pierre Amoyal. His participation in these seminars gave him a major impact of creating his own artistic identity. He is currently an undergraduate student at the Royal Academy of Music under the guidance of Maestro Remus Azoitei and he is a member of the Talent Unlimited supporting organisation. He plays on Carlo Antonio Testore violin from Milan (1737) generously loaned by the Royal Academy Museum.
