Russian pianist Gala Chistiakova is a prize winner of over 30 international competitions. Born in 1987 to a musical family in Moscow, she began her piano studies at three years old with her mother Liubov Chistiakova.

She then graduated from The Central Music School (2005), and the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory (2012) with such professors as H. Khoven, A. Ryabov and M. Voskresensky.  She also studied at the International Piano Academy “Incontri col Maestro” (Prof. B. Petrushansky) in Italy.

Since 2000, Gala has played both as a soloist and with symphonic orchestras in concerts across the world. She has also performed on various TV and Radio programs, recorded several albums, and served as a member of the jury at youth and international piano competitions.

Since 2012, she has been based in Italy and has been on the Board of Directors of Cultural Association “Recondite Armonie”.

In 2020 Gala has become an Ambassador of the “BeMuse” Performing Arts Foundation of Great Britain.

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Xander Parish OBE

Xander Parish OBE was born in East Yorkshire and began dancing in Kingston upon Hull at the age of eight. In 1998 he joined the Royal Ballet School in London where he trained until summer 2005 when he joined The Royal Ballet Company with his sister Demelza. In 2009, he was invited to join The Mariinsky Ballet by its ballet director Yuri Fateyev and moved to St. Petersburg to join the company in January 2010 as its first and only British dancer. He made his debut with the company performing the role of the poet in the ballet Chopiniana as a Coryphee, a corp member who may dance solo or even principal roles. He was promoted to soloist in March 2014 and principal dancer in July 2017. In early March 2022, Parish decided to temporarily leave Russia due to Russian invasion of Ukraine.

His repertoire includes: Count Albrecht (Giselle), Prince Siegfried (Swan Lake), Romeo (Romeo & Juliet), Nutcracker Prince (The Nutcracker), Prince Désiré (Sleeping Beauty) Count Vronsky (Ratmansky’s Anna Karenina), Poet (Chopiniana), Golden Slave (Scheherazade), Aminta (Sylvia) & Armand (Marguerite and Armand) by Ashton, Balanchine ballets include the title roles in Apollo, Emeralds, Diamonds & Serenade; Hans Van Manen’s Adagio Hammerklavier and Variations for Two Couples; and McGregor’s Infra.

Recent awards include the Positano Premia La Danza Léonide Massine Emerging Dancer on the International Scene Award 2014, Best Young Male Dancer at the 1st Taglioni European Ballet Awards in Berlin 2014 and Best Male Performance (Classical) for Apollo at the UK’s Critics Circle National Dance Awards 2014.

For his contributions to dance and UK-Russia cultural relations, Xander was appointed as an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2019.

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