Liron Kaniel

Israeli violist Liron Kaniel (b. 2002) is an emerging musician whose work is driven by a deep commitment to chamber music, artistic collaboration, and meaningful human connection. Since beginning her musical studies at the age of ten, she has performed throughout Europe, North America, and Israel.

She is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Viola Performance at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), where she studies with Lawrence Power. Alongside her modern viola studies, she is also specializing in Baroque viola with Monika Baer and Deirdre Dowling. She previously completed her Bachelor's studies jointly at the Zurich University of the Arts and the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University. She is a graduate of the Jerusalem Music Center, where she participated in the Huberman Program for outstanding young Israeli soloists and the David Goldman Programme for Chamber Music, and served as principal violist of the Young Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.
An enthusiastic chamber musician, Liron has performed at leading international festivals and academies, including the Perlman Music Program, IMS Prussia Cove, the George Enescu Festival – Lumières d'Europe Academy, the Ravel Festival, the Grafenegg Festival, the Davos Festival, the International Mendelssohn Festival in Hamburg, Musethica Programs, Saline Royale Academy, Allegro Vivo Festival, and the Red Sea Chamber Music Festival, etc. She regularly performs as a guest with the Israel Chamber Orchestra.

Throughout her artistic development, she has collaborated with distinguished musicians including Tabea Zimmermann, Ettore Causa, Nobuko Imai, Tatjana Masurenko, Lars Anders Tomter, Jean Sulem, Veronica Hagen, Thomas Riebl, Patricia Petibon, the Fine Arts Quartet, and the Jerusalem Quartet. She has also performed under the direction of conductors including Zubin Mehta, Lahav Shani, Vasily Petrenko, Alan Gilbert, and more.

Liron's artistic vision is rooted in the belief that music creates a space for dialogue between people and between artistic disciplines. Alongside her work as a modern violist, she is passionate about historically informed performance and contemporary music, and enjoys exploring the diverse expressive possibilities of the viola across different musical styles. 

A recipient of scholarships from the Ronen Foundation, the America-Israel Cultural Foundation, the Jerusalem Music Center, and the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music orchestra scholarships, Liron was recognized as an Outstanding Young Musician by the Israeli Ministry of Education in Israel and was awarded First Prize at the International Youth Music Festival in Bratislava. She performs on a c. 1760 Gagliano viola, generously on loan from the collection of Yehuda Zisapel.