Acclaimed as “a player of impressive authority and presence” (The Strad), Yossif Ivanov quickly established himself after winning First Prize at the Montreal International Competition aged 16, and Second Prize, as well as the Public Prize, two years later at the Queen Elisabeth Competition, Brussels.
In recent seasons Yossif Ivanov has made acclaimed debuts with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Japan Century Symphony Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de l’Opéra de Toulon, Orchestre de Picardie, Kaohsiung Symphony Orchestra and Academy of Taiwan Strings. 2019-2020 season highlights include the world premiere of a newly discovered concerto of Ysaÿe with the Liège Philharmonic at Flagey, Sibelius with Brussels Philharmonic and Anu Tali , a return visit with the Solistes Européens de Luxemburg at the Luxemburg Philharmonie, as well as performances in China & Taiwan.
Such success follows acclaimed appearances with orchestras such as the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, London Philharmonic Orchestra (tours in the UK and USA), Philharmonia Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Luzerner Sinfonieorchester, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Stuttgarter Philharmoniker, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, all major Belgian Orchestras, Residentie Orchestra The Hague, Kremerata Baltica, English Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Sinfonica della RAI Orchestra, Filarmonica A. Toscanini, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Orchestre National de Lille, Orchestre National d’Ile de France, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Oregon Symphony, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Malaysian Philharmonic and Singapore Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of conductors including Neeme Järvi, Marin Alsop, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Vladimir Jurowski, Kazushi Ono, Jaap Van Zweden, Stéphane Denève, J-J Kantorow, Gerard Schwarz, Hans Graf, Walter Weller, Jean-Claude Casadesus, Philippe Herreweghe, Jesús López-Cobos, Carl Miguel Prieto, Yuri Simonov, Louis Langrée, John Axelrod, Maxim Emelyanychev, Aziz Shokhakimov, Joshua Weilerstein.
As a recitalist and chamber musician, Yossif Ivanov has been invited to perform at the Wigmore Hall, Mozarteum Salzburg, Musikverein Vienna, Paris’ Louvre and Cité de la Musique, St George Bristol, Philharmonie Essen, Beethovenfest Bonn, Schloss Elmau, Eilat, Rencontres Musicales d’Evian , Menton and Montpellier Festivals, Teatro Carlo Fenice Genova, Ravenna Musica, Ferrara Musica, the Istituzione Universitaria dei Concerti Roma, Kioi Hall Tokyo, Yokohama Minato Mirai Hall, Ravinia festival, Washington Phillips Collection, Carnegie Hall and the Ladies’ Morning Musical Club in Montréal. As well as his regular recital partner Philippe Ivanov, Yossif has collaborated with pianists such as Itamar Golan, Javier Perianes, Ingrid Fliter, Frank Braley, F.F. Guy, David Kadouch, Plamena Mangova and Julien Quentin. Other chamber music partners include Mischa Maisky, Edgar Moreau, Pieter Wispelwey, Adrien & Christian-Pierre La Marca, Victor Julien-Laferrière, Michel Portal, Adrien Boisseau, Alina Pogostkina, Valery Sokolov, Camille Thomas, etc
With fellow Belgian violinists Lorenzo Gatto and Hrachya Avanesyan, Yossif formed the ensemble ‘Trilogy’, presenting classical masterworks alongside film music and jazz standards across Europe, Asia and the Middle East, earning over 10 millions of views on their Youtube Channel.
Yossif’s recording catalogue boasts high critical acclaim, including a Diapason d’Or de l’Année for his collection of Belgian sonatas (Franck, D’Haene and Ysaÿe) on the Ambroisie/Naïve label, as well as a Diapason d’Or in 2020 for the recording of a newly discovered Ysaÿe concerto on the Fuga Libera label. Other recordings include concerti by Bartók, Shostakovich, Dutilleux, D’Haene and Vieuxtemps.
Future recording projects include the Tchaikovsky & Stravinsky concerti with Brussels Philharmonic, as well as a Prokofiev album with his brother Philippe.
Yossif studied with Zakhar Bron, Igor & Valery Oistrakh and Augustin Dumay.
Since 2008 he teaches at the Queen Elisabeth College of Music, as well as at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, where he is head of the violin department.