Ava Bahari

“[…] a notable emerging talent”
(The Strad)

Artist in Residence: Gothenburg Symphony
2026/27 ECHO Rising Star

Described by The Strad as “a notable emerging talent”, Ava Bahari is a highly accomplished Swedish violinist with a refreshing appetite for unique repertoire. Currently Artist in Residence with Gothenburg Symphony and selected as an ECHO Rising Star for 2026/27, she has received numerous awards, including top prizes at the Premio Paganini Competition in Genova (2021), Concours International Tibor Varga in Sion (2021) and Aurora Music Competition in Stockholm (2019).

In 2025/26, Bahari continues her two-season residency with the Gothenburg Symphony: she performs Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with Joshua Weilerstein, reunites with Jaime Martín for concerts featuring Hindemith’s Violin Concerto, and joins forces with Andreas Brantelid for Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Cello – also reuniting with conductor Pekka Kuusisto. Elsewhere in 25/26, she makes debut appearances with Orchestre de Paris, Hamburger Symphoniker, Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra and Macedonian Philharmonic Orchestra, among others, and returns to Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra for their season-closing concerts as well as to Swedish Chamber Orchestra to give the world premiere of Annamaria Kowalsky’s Violin Concerto – commissioned specifically for Bahari and which she goes on to perform later in the season with Västerås Sinfonietta.

Highlights of 24/25 included opening Gothenburg Symphony’s season with Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto and returning in Spring 2025 perform Sibelius’ Violin Concerto – both with Santtu-Matias Rouvali – as well as first-time collaborations with Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Iceland Symphony Orchestra and Helsingborgs Symfoniorkester. Bahari also made her Japanese concerto debut with Tokyo Symphony Orchestra under music director Jonathan Nott, performing Schoenberg’s Violin Concerto, while return engagements included Swedish Chamber Orchestra – to give the Swedish premiere of James MacMillan’s Violin Concerto No.2, alongside composer-conductor Brett Dean – and Gävle Symphony Orchestra.

Further past highlights include performances with Philharmonia Orchestra, Malmö Symfoniorkester, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Gävle and Odense symphony orchestras, Teatro Carlo Felice Genova and Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, among others. Conductor collaborations and artistic partnerships extend to names such as Vasily Petrenko, Andrew Manze, Tabita Berglund, Anders Hillborg, Pietari Inkinen, Nil Venditti and Bar Avni.

A keen chamber musician, Bahari has appeared at renowned festivals including Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence and Santander Music Festival, and has played with musicians such as Kirill Gerstein, Daniel Hope, Adrien La Marca, Andreas Ottensamer and Sheku Kanneh-Mason, to name a few. As part of her residency with Gothenburg Symphony, she collaborates with players of the orchestra to give chamber music concerts. Notable solo performances include a Paganini recital at the Seoul Arts Center, a recital on the ‘Stauffer’ Guarneri del Gesù 1734 at Museo del Violino, Cremona, and a recital at Konzerthaus Berlin.

In Spring 2024, Bahari received her Konzertexamen Diploma from Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, further to Bachelor and Master studies under the guidance of Professor Kolja Blacher. In 2021 she completed a degree at the Accademia Stauffer in Cremona, Italy.

Bahari plays on an Antonio Stradivarius violin, made in Cremona in 1694, on loan by the Anders Sveaas’ Almennyttige Fond (ASAF).