Mayra Budagjan

What motivated me to play a musical instrument was a strong desire to express myself in a manner that suits me, the way a writer does with words or an actor with a role. Playing in an orchestra also gives you the pleasure of sharing and savouring emotions together. I really enjoy being on stage and playing concerts with my colleagues. We’re a team, and we create together. Sitting in the midst of the Bamberg Symphony, being a part of this wonderful sound, is very fulfilling for me.

Mayra Budagjan made her debut at Berlin’s Philharmonie aged 15. In 1997 she graduated with distinction from Prof. Ulf Hoelscher’s class at Karlsruhe’s University of Music. She completed her postgraduate performing studies under Prof. Yfrah Neaman in London and Prof. Ulf Hoelscher in Karlsruhe, obtaining her concert diploma in 2003. Her other teachers included Prof. Rainer Kussmaul, Prof. Thomas Brandis and Prof. Martin Ostertag, the latter mainly for chamber music.

Mayra Budagjan was a prize-winner in numerous national and international competitions. Concerts and tours took her to China, Korea, Russia, Finland, Poland, Macedonia, Austria, Germany, France and the Czech Republic. She has been Second Concertmaster of the Bamberg Symphony from 2003 until 2023. She plays a violin of 1786 by Nicolò Gagliano.