Organized by the “Ohrid Summer” festival, a concert dedicated to Tomislav Zografski and Stojche Toshevski will be held tonight. Pianists Anastasija Grgovska and Shkëlzen Baftiari, along with violinist Vasil Bogoevski, will perform at the “Saint Sophia” church at 9 PM.
Anastasija Grgovska was born in Kumanovo, where she began her musical education under Prof. Dragan Grgovski, later continuing under Prof. Slavica Mitsovska. She completed her secondary education at DMUC “Ilija Nikolovski-Luj” in Skopje. In 2013, she graduated with the highest honors, Cum Laude, from the Faculty of Music Arts in Skopje under Prof. Marija Gjosevska. She has received numerous awards and accolades at both national and international competitions. She has given solo concerts in Kumanovo, Skopje, and Prokuplje, performed in chamber ensembles, and participated in renowned festivals such as “Ohrid Summer,” “Skopje Summer,” “Days of Macedonian Music,” and “Autumn Music Festivities.” In 2009, she performed as a soloist with the Chamber Orchestra of the city of Pernik in Bulgaria, and in 2013 and 2017, she performed as a soloist with the Macedonian Philharmonic in Skopje. She was awarded the “Tomislav Zografski” Foundation Laureate in 2014 and received the Grand Prix award for 2021 from the Foundation’s Board. She is part of the chamber duo “Distanca” with Italian pianist Brigida Miore. Grgovska is actively engaged in pedagogy and accompaniment and has furthered her education in seminars with world-renowned classical music figures such as H. Holtmann, J. Kot, N. Trull, A. Diev, Zh. Zakharieva, A. Gindin, F. Turisini, G. Gruzman, and Lj. Gasparovic. She completed her master’s degree with the highest honors at the Russian Gnessin Academy of Music in Moscow under Prof. Yuliya V. Fyodorova, where she regularly performed in class concerts and chamber ensembles.
Shkëlzen Baftiari graduated with the highest honors, Cum Laude, from the Faculty of Music Arts in Skopje under Prof. Boris Romanov, and completed his postgraduate studies under the world-renowned pianist Simon Trpcheski. He began studying piano at the age of 10 under Prof. Simona Zafirovska at DMU “Todor Skalovski – Tetoez” in Tetovo and completed his primary and secondary music education at DMUC “Ilija Nikolovski – Luj” in Skopje under Prof. Ljudmila Romanova. Baftiari has won numerous international awards in Paris, Rome, Turin, Plovdiv, Blagoevgrad, and Belgrade. He has given solo concerts in Tetovo, Skopje, Struga, Pristina, Tirana, Sofia, and Ohrid, and has performed at festivals such as “Ohrid Summer,” “Autumn Music Festivities,” “Skopje Summer,” “Days of Macedonian Music,” DAM, “Chopin Piano Fest,” “Kosova Kamerfest,” “ReMusica,” and “Albanian Serious Music Scene,” among others. He has collaborated with renowned conductors and instrumentalists such as Simon Trpcheski, Shkëlzen Doli, Sihana Badivuku, Marija Gjosevska, Derek Han, Sasha Nikolovski-Gjumar, Borjan Canev, Thomas Herzog, and others. As a soloist with orchestras, he has performed with the London City Philharmonic, the Macedonian Philharmonic, the Symphony Orchestra of FMU, the Kosovo Philharmonic, and the Symphony Orchestra of Albanian RTV. He has made numerous recordings for radio and TV and regularly participates in seminars led by Prof. Boris Romanov in Ohrid.
Vasil Bogoevski was born in 2001 in Veles. He began playing the violin at the age of 7, inspired by his mother. He completed his primary music education at OOMU “Stefan Gajdov” in Veles under Nast. Marija Bogdanoska and continued his studies at DMUC “Ilija Nikolovski – Luj” in Skopje under Prof. Biljana Veskovska. He began his higher education at the “Dr. Hoch” Conservatory in Frankfurt, Germany, under Dr. Fabian Reiser, and graduated from the Faculty of Music in Mainz under Prof. Liviu Casleanu. During his education, he received private lessons from Prof. Lazar Miletic and Prof. Ramadan Eminovic and regularly attended international seminars, including Arlemm (Serbia), Kronberg (Germany), Prof. Petru Munteanu, and Prof. Erik Schuman. He has participated in competitions and won numerous awards in Macedonia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Slovenia, Italy, Austria, Malaysia, and more. In August 2022, he received a scholarship from the “Richard Wagner” Association in Frankfurt, allowing him to attend opera performances in Bayreuth and perform in a concert as the youngest participant at the festival. He received the November 9th Award in 2023 for his achievements and the promotion of Veles on the international stage through classical music. In August 2023, with Trio “Damar” from Veles: Menka Bogoevska on violin and Ilija Nastoski on piano, he performed a concert at Teatro Marcello in Rome, Italy. He is a scholarship recipient from the “Za Edinstvo” Lodge in Frankfurt and has received scholarships from the Dr. Hoch Association of Patrons.
