Biography
Pianist, vocalist, composer and arranger, Katarina Kochetova has distinguished herself as one of the leading voices in the European jazz scene.
She was born in Ukraine's capital - Kyiv, and she grew up in Belgrade (RS) with her parents who are both musicians: Max Kochetov and Ksenija Kochetova.
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At the age of 6, Kochetova began studying classical piano with Nada Filipovic, Milica Vasiljevic-Bisenic and Ruzica Gojkovic. She studied classical piano for 7 years and at the age of 13, she was admitted to a music high school "Kornelije Stankovic" at the jazz piano department where she studied with Milos "Mike M" Krstic and Aleksandar Grujic. She participated in a few jazz competitions: she won a prize in the "Naturalmente Piano Forte" competition, 2nd prize for an original composition in the competition "The Best Musical Mind", 2nd prize on “Katowice Miasto Ogrodow Composition Competition” and many more. Katarina also took part in Lee Ritenour's "Six String Theory Competition" and was awarded 4th place in the Rhythm Section Competition as a pianist.
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Photography © Silas Isenmann 2023
Katarina’s music career in Serbia flourished during her years in high school, and this success led her to study music at the university level. In 2018, she was accepted to one of the best universities in Europe – “Music and Arts Private University of The City of Vienna” in Vienna (AT) where she studied Jazz Piano with Oliver Kent. In the summer of 2022, she finished her Bachelor Studies in Vienna. She seized an opportunity to do an exchange program in Sweden’s “Royal College of Music in Stockholm” in her last year of studies. She actively played and participated in the local jazz scene of Stockholm and Gothenburg. In the Fall of 2022, Kochetova continued her collegiate studies at the university in Vienna, and is currently pursuing a Masters of Music.
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She has played with many established jazz musicians such as Jure Pukl, Joe Sanders, Alex Hitchcock, Ben Tiberio, Felix Rossy, Håkan Broström, Robert Nordmark, Vladimir Kostadinovic, Karl-Henrik Ousbäck and many others.
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Kochetova has concertized as a leader and side-woman throughout much of Europe, performing with projects such as “Kochetova/Löf/Andersson 3io”, "Asteroidea", “Madeleine Joel Trio – Autobiographie”, “Markus Isberg Expressions”, “August Eriksson Band”, "SIQ - Silas Isenmann Quartet", etc. As a bandleader and composer, Katarina can be found performing frequently with her trio and quintet projects:“Katarina Kochetova Trio” and "Katarina Kochetova 5tet".
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In 2023, Kochetova is preparing to record her debut album of all original music with her trio, featuring several special guest artists from the USA and Europe.