Born
in Belgrade in 1985, Branko Simic began playing the violin at the age
of 9. From 2000 to 2004, he studied with the famed pedagogue Dora
Schwarzberg at the University of Music and Performing Arts (MDW),
Vienna, where he also completed his Bachelor's degree (2005 to 2009)
under Klaus Mätzel. His studies in Vienna also focussed, in addition to
the violin, on the viola. For his Master's at Zurich University of the
Arts (ZHdK) under Prof. Rudolf Koelman, he chose the diploma in concerto
violin as his specialization, with a subsidiary in baroque violin. He
concluded his postgraduate studies in 2011 with the high honors.
Between
2012 and 2014, Branko Simic studied under Philip Setzer (EMERSON
QUARTET) and Hagai Shaham as a doctoral candidate at the State
University of New York (SUNY) in Stony Brook (NY). He was awarded his
"Doctor of Musical Arts - Performance Based" (D.M.A.) from SUNY in
January 2015.
From
2014 to 2016, Branko Simic taught as a guest lecturer at the Winterthur
Conservatory and currently has a permanent teaching allocation at the
Wittenbach School of Music, Sankt Gallen. He also gained teaching
experience at the New York Conservatory of Music and Arts in Syosset,
NY, where he taught violin and viola from 2012 to 2014.
Branko
Simic's is acquiring further orchestral experience with the South-west
German Philharmonic Orchestra, in Konstanz, Germany, the Liechtenstein
Symphony Orchestra (SOL) and with the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, in
Poughkeepsie, NY. He is a resident concertmaster with the Ars Viva
Orchestra, in Westchester, and also, since 2015, with Concentus
rivensis, in Walenstadt, Sankt Gallen.
Pedagogue
A
dedicated and devoted teacher, Branko Simic has a class of 18 students
in Wittenbach St.Gallen. In addition to his fixed Music School position,
he is a private instructor and is a team member of Instrumentor
Zürich/Winterthur. In his 10 years of teaching experience he has
designed and presented motivating lessons which explain the fundamentals
of violin and viola playing for children ages 3-16. Dr.
Simic has tailored lesson plans and integrated a wide range of
activities to accommodate a wide spectrum of learning methods. He
stresses praise and positive encouragement to keep students motivated
and eager to learn and progress.
