Alena Lugovkina, UK based Russian flautist, Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, holds a Bachelor of Music from the Royal Academy of Music with Distinction where she was awarded the highest woodwind exam mark of that graduating year. Here, she studied with William Bennett and Patricia Morris (piccolo). She received her Master of Music, with Distinction, at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Here, she studied on the Orchestral Course with Philippa Davies, Sarah Newbold, Ian Clarke and Sharon Williams (piccolo).
At the age of 20, at a British Flute Society Convention, Alena Lugovkina performed a prestigious solo recital followed by playing duets with Principal Flutist of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Emmanuel Pahud in his recital. The following summer, Alena was teaching assistant at the William Bennett International Flute Summer School where she also shared a recital and performed duets with Denis Bouriakov. She performed solo works with some of the world's leading orchestras, including the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Academy of Music Chamber Orchestra.
Alena performed at the most prestigious UK venues including Royal Festival Hall, Buckingham Palace, Wigmore Hall, Barbican Hall, King’s Place and performed last summer at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. She has played concerts in Canada, Japan, UK, USA, Russia, Germany, Austria and Spain. Alena has won several prestigious awards whilst studying including the Hattori Foundation Award, The Leverhulme Trust Award, The Philharmonia MMSF Award, “Wolfson Foundation Award”, “Jo Weinberg Award”, “Elizabeth Spater Award”.
She won 1st Prize at the RAM flute competition, 1st Prize and Sebastian Bell award at the British Flute Society’s Competitions as well as 1st Prize at the 13th International Flute Competition “Friedrich Kuhlau” in Germany duetting with Kayoko Minamino - Principal Flute of Orquestra do Norte (Portugal).
In 2013 she was awarded Exceptional Talent Tier1 visa to live and work in the United Kingdom awarded by the Arts Council of England and Home Office UK, making her one of only 35 professionals in the World to have received this visa that year.
As an orchestral player, Alena has recently played as a Guest Principal with the Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales. She is currently on trial with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Northern Sinfonia and has been on trials with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and has been a member of the Verbier Festival Orchestra (Switzerland), Orpheus Sinfonia, London Mahler Orchestra and Britten-Pears Orchestra as well as taking workshops in Orchestral Academy Ossiach (Austria), where she played chamber music with soloists of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.
Next masterclasseses and concerts Alena will be giving abroad, will be in Porto (Portugal) in ESMAE (Conservatoire of Music and Theatre) and other venues of Porto. Other concerts and masterclasses of Ms Lugovkina in 2014- 2016 include solo concert tours in Taiwan, Japan, Italy, Spain and USA.
Alena is also a keen chamber musician. Being a flute in Atéa wind quintet since it was formed, they are now the Associate Ensemble in Residence at Birmingham Conservatoire (since 2012) and have upcoming concerts in London and other cities of the United Kingdom including recital in Wigmore Hall. They were first wind group for many years to win Kirckman Concert Society’s audition. Their future engagements include several concerts in London, including Wigmore Hall, and other cities of the United Kingdom and performing at the Cheltenham Music Festival in England and Tunnell’s Trust chamber music festival in Scotland this upcoming summer. She was invited to be a coach at the International Music Festival in Switzerland “Verbier Festival” Amateur Chamber Week and was also selected to be one of the only 7 musicians to take part in the new Verbier Festival’s Outreach programme this upcoming summer.
Alena also has regular ensemble partners – pianist Pavel Timofejevsky and is a member of the Verbier Ensemble. With them she performs regularly in UK, Russia and has upcoming concerts in USA. She performed with such ensembles as Azalea –UK ensemble of contemporary music and Classics–Art soloists ensemble, Russian ensemble comprised of musicians from Moscow Virtuosi orchestra and professors of the Gnessins Special Music School.