Veronika Eberle and her first violin. Private photography

At ten, she became a junior student at the Richard Strauss Conservatory in Munich. She also studied privately with Christoph Poppen, now Hong Kong Sinfonietta’s Music Director.

“Back then, I played a Mozart concerto as soloist with the orchestra of the university and didn’t have a teacher. He generously offered me to come and have lessons with him privately. From this moment, I had the huge privilege to work and make music with him regularly. I admire him enormously as a conductor and violinist and can’t wait to stand on stage with him again! Every time is so special and I carry them as jewels close to my heart!” confides Veronika.

Christoph Poppen conducting HK Sinfonietta

Her introduction by British-German conductor Simon Rattle to a packed Festspielhaus at the Salzburg Easter Festival in 2006, in a performance of the Beethoven concerto with the Berliner Philharmoniker, galvanised her international career at only sixteen. Since then, she appeared with some of the world’s finest orchestras, including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestra. She has also appeared at some of Europe’s most distinguished festivals.

A dedicated chamber musician, Veronika is widely acclaimed for the exceptional musicality, sensitivity and maturity in her interpretations. When asked what advice she would give to aspiring musicians, Veronika simply says: “As long as you love and burn for what you are doing, you are on the right paths!”

Veronika will perform in two concerts on 19 and 21 October at Hong Kong City Hall: Double Acts – HKS Recital Series: Veronika Eberle Violin Recital, and Great Violin Concertos: Veronika Eberle Plays Hosokawa & Mozart.

The first concert will be a recital alongside Hong Kong pianist Colleen Lee, where she will be performing two iconic violin sonatas: Beethoven’s “Kreutzer” Sonata and Franck’s Sonata in A, as well as Bartók’s exhilarating, folk-inspired Violin Rhapsody No 1 & 2.

In the second concert, Veronika will join hands with Hong Kong Sinfonietta and Music Director Christoph Poppen, and perform Genesis by leading Japanese composer Toshio Hosokawa, as well as Mozart’s sparkling Violin Concerto No 3, in a programme which also features Mozart’s Symphony No 33 and Schubert’s Symphony No 8, “Unfinished”.

Genesis was composed as a gift from Toshio Hosokawa to Veronika and her newborn son and explores the beauty and mystery of the origins of life. When questioned about this precious gift, Veronika explains with enthusiasm: “When Toshio told me about his idea and sent the first sketches of music where he even mentioned the name of my son, I felt so touched and honoured. What an incredible way to welcome Maxim to this world and what an incredible gift for the music world!”