Alexei Galea
Alexei Galea Cavallazzi was born in 1979. He attended the Purcell Music School in London (1993- 1997)
where he studied violin and piano. After completing school he continued his violin studies at the Royal
College of Music in London (1998) for one year whilst deferring his Oxford entry. He then read music at
Pembroke College, Oxford where he was active as a chamber performer, orchestral player as well as
taking up organ and also played a number of piano concertos with orchestra. Alexei graduated from the
University of Oxford in 2002. From 2002 – 2008 he studied at the Moscow state conservatoire under the
tutorship of the legendary pianist Victor Merzhanov and chamber music with Alexander Rudin. After
graduating from the Moscow State Conservatory Alexei studied conducting with Steffen Leissner in
Dresden. Alexei attended the Thuringian Organ Academy in 2019 where he started developing his idea of recording Bach’s organ works.
Alexei’s conducting career has taken him to Russia ,Georgia, Italy, Kazakhstan, Romania , Malta and Turkey. His repertoire is vast and includes works from the baroque period, in which he has experience with both historically informed ensembles and ensembles using modern instruments , as well as works by contemporary composers and the standard Classical repertoire. Alexei has recorded concerts for Turkish TV , Georgian TV ,Maltese TV as well as a series of Recordings aired on Net TV Malta consisting of a selection of organ works of JS Bach on historical organs in Germany and Holland. Galea Cavallazzi has vast experience not only with symphonic repertoire but also in works with soloists where the orchestra has the role of accompaniment often working with international stars. The list of soloists Alexei has worked with as a conductor include Arkadi Zenziper (piano), Karen Shahgaldian (violin), Feder Rudin (violin), Alexandr Rudin (violincello), Andrei Shibko (piano), Rem Urasin (piano), Mikhail Lidsky (piano) and Albert Mamriev (piano) amongst others. World-class orchestras conducted by Alexei include the Georgian sinfonietta, Tbilisi and the Academic Symphonic orchestra of the Capella in St Petersburg. Both these orchestras performed in Malta with Alexei (at Republic Hall MCC) as well as performed with Alexei
in their own halls in their respective countries. Alexei has toured Russia as a conductor a number of times and has conducted orchestras in St Petersburg, Petrozavodsk, Kislovodsk and Cheliabinsk.
Alexei’s repertoire includes the great symphonic works by Bruckner, Nielsen, Beethoven, Brahms and the popular concertos by Bach, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Mendelsohn and others. Galea Cavallazzi has conducted in such theatres and Halls as the Rustaveli Theatre , Tbilisi, Capella Hall St Petersburg, Russia, Georgia and the Republic Hall , Malta . Alexei is the co organist at the ”church of our lady of good counsel” in Paceville Malta where he plays for mass and accompanies choral singing for concerts on important days of the church Calendar.
Alexei has been awarded the Union Federation Medal by the Russian Parliament for his contribution to Culture and became a cultural Ambassador in 2019 in Malta when the ministry of Foreign affairs offered him the diplomatic passport. Galea Cavallazzi has been involved in the running of music institutions including being President of the Meditarranean Culural Foundation for Music 2012 – 2014 and Member of the board of directors at the
Malta Philharmonic Orchestra from2014 – 2019. He has collaborated on international projects with the Ministry of Finance Malta, Eurpean Foundation for the support of culture Malta, Ministry of Culture Georgia, Consulate of Ukraine in Malta, Russian centre for science and Culture Malta, Malta tourism
authority, Malta arts fund, Academic Symphony orchestra of the Capella St petersurg, Chogm and commonwealth orchestra UK, Moscow state conservatory Russia and Embassy of Turkey in Malta.
Galea Cavallazzi has been very active as organizer of Festivals and jury member in competitions such as the Primavera Classica 2005, Moscow , Valletta Piano Festival 2010, Slobozhanskaya Fantasia Competition in Sumy Ukraine in 2011 and 2012, Malta International Music Festival 2013, Clavicologne
in Cologne , Germany in 2014, Koenigs Wusterhausen Germany 3 rd young piano stars international Competition 2017, Malta International Piano Festival 2017 and jury member in Malta Eurovision young musicians competition.
Alexei has been working on his original project “The European Organ” which came about partly as a reaction to covid 19 restrictions but also a result of his longstanding wish to record Bach’s organ works since 2021. This project has been funded by the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Malta and consist of the recording of Bach’s main organ works on historical organs in Germany and Holland.