Liya Petrova

“Gorgeous sound — ripe and silvery, phrasing with majestic breadth.”
The Sunday Times

Artist in Residence: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (2026/27)

Renowned for her “exceptional tonal variety” (Gramophone) and “gorgeous, silvery sound” (The Sunday Times), Bulgarian violinist Liya Petrova has established herself as one of the most distinctive artists of her generation.

The 2026/27 season sees Liya Petrova as Artist-in-Residence with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, with three performances throughout the season at London’s Cadogan Hall and an appearance at Istanbul Music Festival under the baton of Vasily Petrenko. Other highlights include debuts with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Bruckner Orchester Linz, Norrlandsoperan and Hamburger Symphoniker, alongside return engagements with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Orchestre National de Bordeaux and Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra.

Deeply committed to artistic programming and musical curation, Petrova is Co-Artistic Director of Musikfest Parisienne alongside her longtime musical partner, Alexandre Kantorow. Following the festival’s success at the Philharmonie de Paris in the 2025/26 season, Musikfest Parisienne embarks on its first European tour in April 2027, with concerts at London’s Southbank Centre, Kölner Philharmonie and Philharmonie Luxembourg. Petrova is also co-founder of the Rencontres Musicales de Nîmes, together with Alexandre Kantorow and Aurélien Pascal, an annual chamber music festival held in the south of France.

In August 2025, Petrova made a highly successful BBC Proms debut, performing Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and conductor Nil Venditti. Her previous engagements include collaborations with the Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, Brussels Philharmonic, China National Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre National de Lyon. She has worked with conductors including Elim Chan, Stanislav Kochanovsky, Aziz Shokhakimov, Tan Dun, Pierre Bleuse, Eduardo Strausser, Duncan Ward, Martyn Brabbins, Kristiina Poska, Michael Sanderling, Kirill Karabits, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider and Xian Zhang.

Petrova is a sought-after chamber musician, performing with world-class artists including Alexandre Kantorow, Pavel Kolesnikov, Beatrice Rana, Adam Laloum, Emmanuel Pahud, Pablo Ferrández and Martha Argerich, among others. She is a regular guest at leading chamber music venues and festivals, including Wigmore Hall, Rheingau Festival, Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele, Festival de Pâques d’Aix-en-Provence, La Folle Journée, Festival International de Piano de La Roque d’Anthéron and Rencontres Musicales d’Évian.

Petrova’s discography reflects the breadth of her repertoire and her distinctive musical voice. Her first major recording, released by Orchid Classics in 2018, paired the Nielsen and Prokofiev violin concertos with the Odense Symphony Orchestra and Kristiina Poska, followed by Beethoven and Mozart concertos with Sinfonia Varsovia and Jean-Jacques Kantorow, released by Mirare. Her latest project, Momentum, is a two-volume collaboration with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Duncan Ward, pairing Walton and Respighi in the 2023 release and Korngold and Strauss in the 2025 volume, featuring Alexandre Kantorow as pianist. The recordings have received international acclaim, including Gramophone Editor’s Choice, BBC Music Magazine Orchestral Choice and Télérama’s Best Album of 2025.

Petrova won First Prize at the Carl Nielsen International Violin Competition in 2016. Born in Bulgaria, she studied with Augustin Dumay at the Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Brussels, Antje Weithaas in Berlin and Renaud Capuçon in Lausanne.

Based in Paris, Petrova performs on a Stradivarius violin made in 1727, generously loaned by a private sponsor, as well as the “Consolo” Guarneri del Gesù, made in 1733 and loaned by the Bulgarian State.