Latvian violinist Vineta Sareika’s multifaceted career spans a wide range of activities from soloist to orchestra concertmaster, primaria of the Artemis Quartet, professor, and jury member. Laureate of the Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition in 2009 and recipient of several Echo Classic Awards, Sareika was the first woman to hold the first concertmaster position in the history of the Berlin Philharmonic. In addition to her concert activities Sareika teaches chamber music at the Universität der Künste Berlin and serves as a jury member in the most prestigious violin and chamber music competitions worldwide. Vineta Sareika plays an Antonio Stradivari violin (1683), generously on loan to her from the Ruggieri Foundation.

A native of Jurmala, Latvia, Sareika began her violin studies at the age of 5 in her native city with Ojārs Kalniņš, Haviva Dimenšteine, and Anete Zvaigzne. She studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris with Gérard Poulet and at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel with Augustin Dumay. Sareika has attended master classes held by Ida Haendel, Ivry Gitlis, Zakhar Bron, Mauricio Fuks, and Sergey Krylov, among others.

Sareika has performed as a soloist with renowned orchestras such as the London Philharmonia, Belgian National Orchestra, Beijing Symphony Orchestra, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, Lisbon Philharmonic, Latvian National Orchestra, and London Chamber Orchestra. She has worked with conductors such as Andris Nelsons, Paavo Järvi, Paul Goodwin, Gilbert Varga, Jean-Bernard Pommier, and Gérard Korsten appearing in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Berlin Philharmonie, Sidney Recital Hall, Kennedy Center (Washington), Wigmore Hall London, National Centre for the Performing Arts Beijing or Isumi Hall Osaka.

Vineta Sareika has received the Award of the Ministry of Culture as well as the Excellence Award in Latvia, she has been named several times the Instrumentalist of the Year by the Latvian Radio and honored with the Great Music Award, the most prestigious cultural award of the country.

Sareika was the first woman in the history of the Berlin Philharmonic to hold its first concertmaster position, serving from 2023 until 2025. She is regularly invited as a guest concertmaster by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, Munich Philharmonic, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Dresden Philharmonie, Brussels Royal Opera Orchestra, and the Brussels Philharmonic. From 2010 to 2013 she was the principal concertmaster of Antwerp Symphony Orchestra.

Since 2012 Sareika has been the primaria of the Artemis Quartet. She is currently on a break. Laureat of international prizes, member of the Verein Beethoven-Haus in Bonn, the Artemis Quartet has performed in concert venues around the world; produced its own concert series at the Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna Konzerthaus, and Munich Prinzregententheater; and recorded exclusively for Warner Classics.

Since 2006 Sareika has performed regularly with French pianist Amandine Savary, forming a permanent duo based on a strong friendship, a common devotion to chamber music and a vast repertoire for violin and piano. They were both founding members of Trio Dali, a productive seven-year-long collaboration that led to successes in competitions in New York, Osaka, Frankfurt, and Vienna; two recordings for Fuga Libera, highly acclaimed by the critics (Diapason d'Or, Choc of the Year of Classica, Editor's Choice of Gramophone); and acclaimed concerts worldwide.

Sareika also collaborates with artists such as Augustin Dumay, Iveta Apkalna, Florian Boesch, Michel Portal, Alexander Lonquich, Gautier Capuçon, Elisabeth Leonskaya, Peter Donohoe, Quatuor Ebène, Abdel-Rahman El Bacha, Paul Watkins, Laurence Power, and Paul Meyer.

Sareika has taught chamber music at the Universität der Künste Berlin since 2013. In 2024 she became an honorary professor of Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music. From 2013 to 2020, she was Master in Residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium. She has given master classes at the Sydney and Melbourne conservatories, London Royal Academy of Music, Vanderbilt University, Jerusalem Music Center, HMT Leipzig, ProQuartet – European Center of Chamber Music, Krakow Music Academy, and Weikersheim international chamber music course. She is invited to serve as a jury member at competitions such as the Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition, ARD International String Quartet Competition, Geneva International Chamber Music Competition, Schoenfeld International String Competition in Harbin, China or the Maestra International Conducting Competition in Paris.

Learn more about Vineta Sareika.