Student Concerto winner in the Senior Division, Christoforos Petridis, born in Thessaloniki, Greece, in 2004, is an internationally emerging violinist recognized for his commanding stage presence, remarkable technical skill, and interpretive depth. At 16, he graduated from the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki with highest honors (Diploma with Distinction and Prize Award) as an Exceptional Talent.
His Carnegie Hall debut in 2022 marked a significant milestone in his young career, followed by return performances in the iconic venue in 2023 and 2024. In 2023 he also appeared at Merkin Hall in New York in a tribute concert to Maria Callas. He has also performed in Harpa concert hall in Reykjavík, Iceland, as well in the New York Athletic Club in Manhattan in a charity event for the Ronald McDonald house in New York. Christoforos has performed as a soloist with several major orchestras, including the European Youth Orchestra, Thessaloniki State Orchestra, Athens Municipality Symphony Orchestra, Thessaloniki Symphonic Orchestra, and Camerata Junior. At age 12, he performed Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with the Thessaloniki Symphony Orchestra. Other major works he has performed as a soloist include, Sibelius violin concerto, Lalo’s symphony Espagnole, Wieniawski’s Scherzo Tarantella and Sarasate’s Zigunerweisen.
He has appeared at prominent festivals such as Harpa International Music Academy (Iceland), Voksenasen music academy (Norway), Aegina International Music Festival, Lesvos Festival, Nafplio Classical Music Festival. At age 17, he gave his first full live streamed solo recital in the Athens Concert Hall. In the United States, he performed in a solo benefit recital at the Lighthouse Women’s Club in Reading, Pennsylvania (2023). A prizewinner of over 25 national and international competitions, Christoforos has received major distinctions including the Mary Papadopoulou Prize, the Gina Bachauer, and the upcoming Soloist Award, and Special Distinction for Beethoven Performance at the Grand Prize Virtuoso (Vienna). He was the winner of the Greek national program “Ακούμε τους Νέους”, organized by the Athens Concert Hall, the Kalogeropouleio Foundation of Corinth, and the Third Program of ERT. In recent seasons, Christoforos proudly represented Greece at theWieniawski Violin Competition in Lublin, Poland, where he had a spectacular run that drew international attention, affirming his position as one of the most promising young violinists of his generation. He also delivered a remarkable performance at the Chicago Violin Competition, once again standing out for his powerful musical voice and masterful artistry. He was also the grand prize winner of the 2023 New York Laureate International Music Competition. In 2026 he was awarded first prize in the New Albany Symphony Orchestra concerto competition.
Christoforos is currently pursuing his undergraduate studies at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music under full scholarship, studying with renowned violinist Sibbi Bernhardsson. Since he started his studies in Oberlin Conservatory he has won the Oberlin Bach string competition, Danenberg competition. He previously studied at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania with Kurt Nikkanen. He was recipient of the President’s International Piano and Strings full scholarship, where he was appointed concertmaster of the university orchestra and chamber music leader. He also won the university’s concerto competition where he performed as a soloist Lalo´s Symphony Espagnole. He has taken part in masterclasses with distinguished artists including Midori Goto, Leonidas Kavakos, Jamie Laredo, Marina Kesselman, Zuill Bailey, Stefan Milenkovich, William Fedkenheuer, Jung-Min Amy Lee, Rune Tonsgaard Sörensen, Frederik Oland, Guðný Guðmundsdóttir, Auður Hafsteinsdóttir, Ari Þór Vilhjálmsson, Peter Herresthal, Jennifer Pike, Kolbjörn Holthe, Sarah Ma, Jennifer Koh, Solomiya Ivakhiv and chamber music masterclasses with Molinari Quartet, Miro Quartet, Danish Quartet, Poiesis Quartet and Sharon Robinson.
Media coverage of his work includes a featured interview on ERT’s Third Program, a guest appearance on Cosmos FM New York, and a podcast episode for Megaron – Athens Concert Hall.
With artistic maturity beyond his years, Christoforos Petridis continues to build a dynamic solo career, dedicated to performing with emotional integrity and technical excellence across international stages.