Istvan Loga is a GRAMMY® award-winning violist who has followed his passion for classical music across borders. He began studying music at George Enesco School of Arts, Romania, one of the oldest music schools globally, established in 1860. There, Mr. Loga studied under award-winning musician Alexander Gavaller and made a mark for himself, gaining recognition from peers and mentors. From there, he went to Hungary for his undergraduate studies at the University of Debrecen's Department of Music. Mr. Loga studied privately with legendary violist Ervin Schiffer, who advised him toaudition at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. After finishing his undergraduate program, Mr. Loga went on to do his Master of Music in Viola at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels with Prof. Paul De Clerck. Mr. Loga's quest to deepen his knowledge of chamber music took him to the Netherlands, where he continued learning with acclaimed professors such as Marc Danel (Quatuor Danel) and Stefan Metz (Orlando Quartet). During this time, he frequently played viola in different concerts at the most prestigious venues worldwide, including France, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, and many other countries. Mr. Loga came to the U.S. to study viola performance with renowned violist Roger Chase and received a Performance Diploma in May 2013 from the prestigious Chicago College of Performing Arts.
With his exceptional talent and rigorous training with the world's top musicians and violists, Mr. Loga was invited to play viola alongside world-renowned pianist Martha Argerich and Japanese violinist Yuzuko Horigome following the devastating earthquake in Japan to raise funds for the charitable cause. Mr. Loga continued to play in charity concerts for noble causes. He played in several orchestras in Europe and the U.S., including at the Charlemagne Orchestra, Camerata Ardesko, Mainzer Virtuosi, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, Chicago Philharmonic, Oistrakh Symphony of Chicago, Northbrook Symphony, Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, and Camerata Chicago.
Mr. Loga's well-known exceptionalism with the viola, his compassion for people, and his love for art drew big names in the industry. He was soon approached to collaborate with the top people in the industry, such as John Legend and Kirk Franklin. Recently, Mr. Loga worked with Maroon 5 keyboardist and solo R&B artist PJ Morton through the Matt Jones Orchestra (MJO). He has been the principal violist on all the MJO recordings and live performances, including the Grammy-winning track "How Deep Is Your Love," the critically-acclaimed Tiny Desk Concert. Mr. Loga has worked with artists such as Austin Mahone, Dorinda Clark-Cole (Grammy Award winner), Benjamin Wright, Jr., Will Downing, Gerard Singh, Eric Benét (Grammy Award nominee), Ruslan Sirota (Grammy Award winner), BJ the Chicago Kid, Guy Sebastian, Myron Butler (Grammy Award winner), Percy Bady (Grammy Award winner), Spike Lee, Kirk Franklin (Grammy Award winner), Brandon Williams, and Big Sean (Grammy Award nominee and BET Awards winner).
Furthermore, Istvan Loga has worked with nationwide broadcasting channels such as ABC/Disney. He was on the television show Betrayal. He was selected from more than 200 applicants to play the violin for the show's ninth episode. Besides his extraordinary musicianship, he has played in numerous international-level concerts, such as Warner Bros.' Bugs Bunny at the Symphony, the Johnny Mathis Show at the Akoo Theatre, and the Andrea Bocelli concert at the Allstate Arena.
Mr. Loga also consistently participates in different educational and community engagement programs at prestigious learning institutes and imparts music education to diverse local communities. Istvan's success in chamber music was proven by winning the first prize and the Audience Prize with Tito Quartet at the 7th Plowman Chamber Music Competition in Missouri, USA. Istvan Loga's Tito Quartet proved to have extraordinary chamber music talent by winning prestigious competitions. Mr. Loga also won first prize in the lntercounty Competition in 1994, 1996, 1997, and 1998, showing how extraordinary Istvan was during the middle school/high school period.
Mr. Loga’s new album “Homage to Korea,” a collection of Korean folk songs arranged and performed for viola solo, was released in 2021.
Istvan is currently part of the Viola Faculty at the Camerata Chicago Academy and the Chamber Music Faculty at the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras, and a Teaching Artist at the People's Music School.
