Mandolinist and domrist, Ekaterina Skliar is a winner of the 2019 Astral National Auditions. At the age of 11, she debuted with the Russian Folk Instrument Orchestra of the Buryatia Republic. She has gone on to perform with numerous chamber ensembles and such orchestras as the Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra, Munier Mandolin and Guitar Orchestra, and Novosibirsk Orchestra of Folk Instruments, among many others. Her vast repertoire includes transcriptions of classical music, original works for domra and mandolin, and contemporary music.

 

     Ekaterina started her music education with Vera Lashkina, Merited Worker of Culture of the Russian Federation and a highly-acclaimed domra teacher, in her home city Abakan, Republic of Khakassia. At the age of 15, Ekaterina moved to Novosibirsk where she studied at the Novosibirsk Specialized Music School (college), which is one of the two most prestigious schools of music for protégés in Russia (the second one is in Moscow). She received her Bachelor’s degree with Honors in Music Performance from M. Glinka Novosibirsk State Conservatory playing domra and mandolin under Professor Andrey Kugaevsky.

    

     A prizewinner of international competitions, including First Prize at the International Music Competition “The Hope” and Third Prize at the International Music Competition of Folk Instrument Performers, in 2020 and 2019 Ekaterina was also awarded a Silver Medal Global Music Awards for her domra and mandolin recordings. In 2018, she was one of three winners in the Kaleidoscope Instrumental and Vocal Competition, chosen from more than 2,000 international applicants, after which she was invited to perform with the conductorless, collective Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra in Los Angeles.

 

        Ekaterina has concertized throughout the United States, Europe, and Russia, giving solo recitals and performing with chamber ensembles and orchestras. In 2022, she has been invited to perform at the 47th Internation Festival Plectro de La Rioja in Spain as a part of her duo with Alexey Alexandrov, where they presented an eclectic program of their transcription and arrangements for mandolin and domra.