The School

The Prince of Asturias Foundation International Music School is the result of an ambitious project that was launched in 1990. The relocation to Oviedo of the permanent residence of the prestigious Russian Chamber Orchestra 'The Moscow Virtuosi' and six famed music professors (Gaiane Pogossova, Tsiala Kvernadze, Alexei Mijlin, Alexander Fedorchenko, Victor Afanassiev and Yuri Nasushkin), sparked an idea that once developed, significantly changed the region's artistic and musical scene and help lay the foundations for quality training, not only for Asturian youths with a talent for music, but also for youths from other parts of Spain and from abroad.

Since then, the Prince of Asturias Foundation's backing of orchestral and musical training activities has intensified, supporting numerous pedagogical initiatives, some of which have been directly designed by The Virtuosi's team of professors.

In 2005, on the occasion of the XXV Anniversary of the Prince of Asturias Awards and after years of collaboration, sponsoring and funding, the Foundation took on entirely the permanent management and coordination of the International Music School. Maestro Nasushkin is responsible for its artistic management.

Classes are given by a prestigious, international teaching staff, and the School also boasts some of the world's outstanding musicians as visiting lecturers, including Laureates of the Prince of Asturias Awards, which sets the School apart from its Spanish counterparts. Since 2008, the International Music School has a cooperation agreement with the Juilliard School of Music of New York that is based on a teacher exchange.

As part of the School's efforts to contribute towards fostering the highest forms of cultural expression, it has undertaken the task of putting the Principality of Asturias at the forefront in the field of musical training, by offering summer courses, master classes, conferences and seminars, and by bringing young talents and the best music and instrumental specialists to our region.

©Copyright 2010 Prince of Asturias Foundation