Thomastik-Infeld Versum Solo cello strings – the winning choice

Thomastik-Infeld are delighted to announce that American cellist and Thomastik Versum Solo artist Zlatomir Fung has claimed first prize in the cello category of the prestigious XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition. Playing his beloved Thomastik-Infeld Versum Solo cello strings, Zlatomir took first prize in a category containing twenty-four other contestants.

First held in 1958, the International Tchaikovsky Competition takes place in Russia every four years and is one of the world’s most renowned and respected events in the international classical music community. Designed to celebrate and raise the profile of new talent, past events have given rise to violinists Gidon Kremer, Victoria Mullova and Vladimir Spivakov and cellists Mario Brunello, David Geringas and Natalia Gutman.

20-year-old Zlatomir Fung began his cello studies aged three. To-date, he has amassed an impressive list of awards that include first prize winner at the 2016 George Enescu International Cello Competition, winner of the 2017 Astral National Auditions and the 2017 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, and top prize winner at the 2018 Paulo International Cello Competition. He is currently studying at The Juilliard School with Richard Aaron and Timothy Eddy and has previously participated in master classes with Lynn Harrell, Frans Helmerson and Steven Isserlis. 

Zlatomir regularly performs with his Thomastik-Infeld Versum Solo strings in the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players and has been a soloist with the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra, the Ann Arbor Symphony and the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, among many others.

Thomastik-Infeld Versum Solo cello strings offer unprecedented possibilities of combining colour, sound and texture and have been designed to deliver optimal power, response and projection.

Principal Cellist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and award-winning soloist Robert deMaine states, “These strings are truly amazing… an unsurpassed game-changer. Not only do they possess the power to ‘cut through’ any acoustical situation, they also allow the listener to hear the glory of the instrument – not just the string. The Versum Solo set also has a terrific bonus: longevity. Never have I had a cello string last as long with such freshness, and also very little initial playing-in time. Bravissimo, Thomastik-Infeld, for achieving the impossible.”

Available as single strings (RRP from £46.65) as well as A & D and G & C combo packs (RRP from  £93.30) - Versum Solo strings are a mix of spiral core tungsten, chrome wound and steel core, multialloy wound strings that have been developed to be used alongside other cello strings to offer cellists a new freedom of expression when performing.