Born in Latvia in 1988 Ksenija Sidorova was encouraged to take up the accordion by her grandmother, who has roots in the folk tradition of accordion playing. Ksenija started to play the instrument aged eight in her home town of Riga, under the guidance of Marija Gasele. Wanting more exposure to both classical and contemporary repertoire and also more concert opportunities, her studies took her to London where she was a prize-winning undergraduate and subsequently received Masters Degree with Distinction at the Royal Academy of Music, where she studied with Professor Owen Murray. Outside the RAM her awards included a Philharmonia Orchestra Martin Musical Scholarship Fund Award and Philharmonia Orchestra Friends Award.
In February 2009 Ksenija was a joint winner of “Friends of the Royal Academy of Music Wigmore Award”, which led to her Wigmore Hall debut on May 18, 2009.
The same year she was also made a Recommended Artist under Making Music's Philip & Dorothy Green Award scheme. She was also selected to appear in Park Lane Group Young Artists New Year Series, 2009, and was described by The Times as “one of the real finds of the series”. She is also a recipient of the Worshipful Company of Musicians` Silver Medal, Maisie Lewis Award and was the first accordionist to win the prestigious WCoM Prince`s Prize. In May 2012 Ksenija became the first International Award winner of the Bryn Terfel Foundation.
Ksenija is also a winner of international competitions including a national talent competition in Latvia, the International Accordion Competition in Novosibirsk (Russia), St. Petersburg (Russia), Citta di Montese (Italy) and Siauliai (Lithuania). She has also worked with such composers as Karl Jenkins, Hans Abrahamsen, Stefano Gervasoni, Nirmali Fenn, Samantha Fernando, Carlos Duque, Elspeth Brooke and Patrick Nunn.
Ksenija has collaborated with the Brooks String quartet, reaching the final of the 2008 Royal Academy of Music Club Prize and the Royal Overseas League in March 2009, where they were awarded the Elias Fawcett Award for outstanding ensemble.
Recent engagements have included a performance with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonietta Riga, performance of Prokofiev`s Cantata for the 20th Anniversay of the October Revolution op74 with Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre and CBSO under Valery Gergiev, recitals at the Royal Festival Hall and Purcell Room (Southbank Centre), Colston Hall (Bristol), debut recital at the Lucerne Festival and other festivals in UK, France, Switzerland, Italy and Latvia. In June 2009 Ksenija was invited by Dame Felicity Lott to appear in her Carte Blanche in the programme Un Mardi idéal on Radio France Musique. She has also appeared on the radio and television in UK and her native Latvia.
More highlights include a collaboration with the Belcea quartet, recording with the Sacconi quartet, Milos Karadaglic (guitar), Avi Avital (mandolin), appearance on Nicola Benedetti’s CD “The Silver Violin”, solo recital at the Purcell Room, appearances with Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Trondheim Soloists, Sinfonietta Riga, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Latvian National Opera Orchestra, debut recitals at the Lucerne and Davos Festivals in Switzerland, Bergen International Festival and Vinterfestspill i Bergstaden (Røros) in Norway, Lingotto Musica in Turin (Italy), SXSW (Austin, Texas), Riga Festival and Cesis Arts Festival (Latvia) and concerts in the UK at North Norfolk Festival, Two Moors Festival and Chester Music Festival.
Future engagements include performances at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Rheinghau Music Festival, appearances with Trondheim Soloists.
Ksenija is a keen promoter of her instrument and she has continuously done outreach work at Primary schools across the UK with the support of the Worshipful Company of Musicians.
Ksenija is generously supported by Mr and Mrs David Bowerman.