Danijela Zezelj-Gualdi, baroque violin & viola, joined New Trinity Baroque in 2006. She was born in Croatia where she began to study violin in 1984. By eleven, she had already become the youngest member of the Zadar Chamber Orchestra. Together with this orchestra she performed at important Croatian venues and festivals such as Musical Evenings in St. Donat and the Zagreb Academy of Music.

Her higher-level education began at The Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, Serbia, when she began her studies with Professor Eugenia Tchougaeva in 1993. It was here that Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi became a member of the chamber orchestra Camerata Academica, which afforded her the opportunity to perform throughout Europe. In 1998 she graduated from the Academy and became a member of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra.

A year later, she was awarded a full scholarship to study at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she graduated with a Masters Degree in 2001. In 2006, Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi graduated with the doctoral degree in Violin Performance at the University of Georgia. There she studied violin with Dr. Michael Heald and her second instrument, viola with Dr. Mark Neumann. Additionally, she studied with world-renowned musicians Pamela Frank, Andres Cardenes, Carolyn Huebl, Chris Wu, Katie McLin, Mischa Amory, Marina Jashvilli, Timothy Baker and members of the Quarteto Latinoamericano.

As an active performer she played both the violin and viola extensively in solo recitals throughout the U.S and Eastern Europe. As a concerto soloist her most recent performance was the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi is also a passionate interpreter of contemporary music. In 2004 she was a featured soloist in the Composer in Residence concerts at Hodgson Hall, Athens (with renowned contemporary composers Augusta Reed Thomas and James MacMillan.)

Since her youth, Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi has consistently impressed audiences in numerous chamber ensembles. She frequently performs with the University of Georgia Faculty and collaborates with renowned artists such as Evgeny Rivkin. In the fall of 2004, Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi joined guitarist John Huston and formed Duo Lunaire, a chamber group that performs actively with a diverse repertoire of contemporary and historical music. She also participated at the American Liszt Society Festival held at University of Georgia in February 2006. At the UGA Summer Music Camp and GA ASTA Chamber Music Workshop in 2005 she coached young chamber music groups. In 2004 Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi performed at Carnegie Hall with the ARCO Chamber Orchestra. Additionally in the spring of 2005, she joined Classic City Strings, Athens' Premiere String Quartet.

Ms. Zezelj-Gualdi has also been an avid performer of early music. In Croatia she played with the chamber group "Zadarski Madrigalisti" which specialized in music from the Renaissance. In 2006 she joined New Trinity Baroque Orchestra, performing on period instruments featuring early music from the Baroque era.

Photo credit: Richard Calmes

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