Described as “technically perfect, with a phenomenal richness of sound and a spirited, vibrant musicality” (Kronen Zeitung), violinist Elena Graf studied at the Freiburg University of Music and continued her graduate studies in Munich, Berlin and Frankfurt under Julia Fischer and the Artemis Quartet.

She has performed with renowned orchestras such as the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, Staatskapelle Dresden, WDR Symphony Orchestra, Frankfurt Museum Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, Württemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn, Baden-Baden Philharmonic, International Mahler Orchestra, Stuttgart State Orchestra, and Bayerische Staatsoper. Graf’s virtuosity has drawn high praise: the Stuttgarter Zeitung highlighted her “charisma and a wonderful sound,” while Online Merker applauded her “fiery” performance.

She is also a leading chamber music performer, appearing at festivals such as the Rheingau Music Festival, Pfingstfestival Schloss Gartow, Cape Classic Festival in South Africa, Musica in Trancoso Festival in Brazil, and the Podium Festival Esslingen—often alongside renowned artists such as Julia Fischer, Marie-Elisabeth Hecker, Sophia Jaffé, Julian Arp, Andreas Brantelid, and Bruno Giuranna.

Graf has won international recognition in competitions and scholarships from institutions such as the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben and the Migros Kulturprozent Zürich. She was an award winner at the Lipizer International Violin Competition in Gorizia, Italy, where she also got many special prizes, and won second place at the Freiburg International Violin Competition in 2012. As part of the string “Trio Lieto” (together with Peijun Xu and Arthur Honig), she was a prize winner at the European Chamber Music Competition in Karlsruhe, and at the Chamber Music Competition of the Polytechnic Society in Frankfurt. In 2015, she co-founded the 3Klang Cultural Centre in southern Freiburg. Graf was appointed professor at the State University of Music in Mannheim in 2023.

Upcoming concerts include Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with the Kammerphilharmonie Mannheim in Heidelberg, Brahms’ Double Concerto at the Mannheimer Rosengarten, Sibelius’ Violin Concerto with Arcademia Sinfonica in Balingen, and a new project by composer Fazil Say with the Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonika in Spain.

The instruments entrusted to her reflect her exceptional distinction. From 2005 to 2019, Graf performed on a violin by Giambattista Rogeri (c. 1700), and since 2021 she has been playing the 1669 Stradivari ‘Tullaye,’ on loan from L-Bank Baden-Württemberg. Graf currently resides in Stuttgart.