Awards

2008 - 1. Award at the AUDI Mozart International Competition, Italy

1999 - 2. Award at the Lions Club International, Switzerland

1991 - 2. Award at National Competition in Croatia

Ivana Zahirović, outstanding Croatian flutist, comes form the small town of Sisak near Zagreb. She started playing flute at the age of 9 and graduated at Music Highschool in Zagreb before starting her studies with Irena Grafenauer at University “Mozarteum” in Salzburg, Austria, where she received “grade of excellence” and degree “master of arts”. Also she made post-graduate studies with Michael M. Kofler at University Mozarteum and with Maria Goldschmidt at “Hochschule für Musik” Zurich.

Having won audition at the age of 20 she became member of Orchestra-Academy of Zurich Opera House for two years. After that she got positions at Symphony orchestra Mozarteum Salzburg, Symphony Orchestra Bienne and Munich Symphony Orchestra and played with conductors like N. Harnoncourt, J.E. Gardiner, F. Welser-Möst and many others. She has won many national and international competitions such as “Lions Club International Competition” and “AUDI Mozart” in Italy and was member of Chamber music organisation “Villa Musica” where she appeared with many well-known musicians.

She has played solo concerts and chamber music concerts at international festivals such as “St. Marco Festival” in Zagreb and “Baroque evenings” in Varazdin.

In Croatia she has performed with the Zagreb Soloists, the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra and the Croatian Chamber Orchestra, as well as having been featured in Croatian Radio and Television and gave many concerts and recitals both as soloist and chamber musician in many European countries, Latin America and USA.

Currently she has engagements with orchestras such as Munich Radio Orchestra and Bavarian State Opera Orchestra in Munich. Also she plays chamber music with harpist Laima Bach (Duo “Bach”), with guitar player Georgy Moravsky (Duo “Flugita”) and in Ensemble for contemporary music ULTIMA RARA.