Francisco Fullana

Violinist Francisco Fullana is exceptionally versatile, having performed extensively in both traditional and early music repertory. Fullana was born in 1990 in Palma de Mallorca in Spain's Balearic Islands, and he has maintained ties to his home region as a performer. His parents were both educators. His first teacher was Bernat Pomar, and he studied next at the Royal Conservatory in Madrid with Manuel Guillén. Gaining recognition as a prodigy in Spain, Fullana moved to the U.S. on his own, unaccompanied by family, at age 16 and enrolled at the Juilliard School in New York. For the next eight years, he studied with Donald Weilerstein, Masao Kawasaki, and finally Midori, with whom he worked at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music, earning an Artist's Diploma. Awards, including a first prize at Japan's Munetsugu Angel Violin Competition (2015) and at the Johannes Brahms and Julio Cardona International Violin Competitions, launched his career. Fullana has performed extensively in both Europe and the U.S. He has appeared with the Bayerische Philharmonie under Sir Colin Davis and with Venezuela's Teresa Carreño Orchestra under Gustavo Dudamel, a major backer of his career. In 2018, Fullana made his recording debut on the Orchid Classics label with Through the Lens of Time, featuring music by Max Richter, Alfred Schnittke, Isang Yun, and Salvador Brotons. As a chamber musician, Fullana has collaborated with pianist Matthias Kirschnereit, among others, appearing at the Mecklenburg-Vorlpolmmern and Geizeitenkonzerte Festivals. In the U.S., he has appeared with the Buffalo Philharmonic and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, among other groups, and he had several more debuts with American orchestras scheduled as of late 2021. That year, he was named artist-in-residence with the Baroque orchestra Apollo's Fire for its 30th-anniversary celebration, with plans to tour extensively with the group. Fullana issued the album Bach's Long Shadow on Orchid Classics in 2021; the album earned an Instrumental Choice of the Month nod from BBC Music Magazine. Later in 2021, Fullana moved to Avie for a recording of Vivaldi's Four Seasons with Apollo's Fire.
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