Biography

Cheerful and sunny port city filled with sounds of different languages could not but entice her. The city located between the Amur and the Ussuri bays has always attracted foreign guests and was imbued with spirit of neighboring eastern countries. Eastern philosophy targets development of mind and body, so martial arts were the most popular sports. Elena’s friends opened this world for her. Her first familiarity started with karate, then she learned wushu and Tae Kwon Do. Her training brought its results: she participated in exhibition performances and competitions many times. The culture of the eastern countries was very excited for her as well. Her participation in the beauty contest held by South Korean National Clothes Couture House brought her not only the victory, but unforgettable experience. After graduation from secondary school and the music school, Elena was preparing to apply to Music College, a chorus direction department. However, once walking down a hallway at the music college, she heard sounds of saxophone. It felt mesmerizing, penetrating deep in her heart, so she decided to continue her education at the variety arts department (saxophone) without a second thought. The first teacher who opened this magical world for her was the Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, Professor Viktor Yakovlevich Kolin. During her studies with her friends she organized music and dancing band “Shock”. With this band Elena travelled not only around Primorsky region, but around the entire Far East. Her tours did not keep her from graduating the music college with honors and entered the Far Eastern State Academy of Arts (department of wind instruments). In parallel with her studies Elena started working at Primorsky Academic Regional Drama Theater named after M. Gorky participating in the Show of E. Zvenyatsky and the theater’s plays, the Governor’s receptions and the concerts at the City’s Day. This period of her life was filled with inspiration, joy and fulfilling experience.

At the beginning of the XXI century Elena moved to Moscow to continue her education at the Moscow State Institute of Culture. At the same time a live audition was held at Metropol Hotel, Luxor club. Elena passed it successfully. By chance (though we know that nothing happens by chance) Tatiana Morozova, leading singer of then very popular music band “Gone with the Wind” noticed Elena and invited her to work in her band. It opened the world of Moscow show business for Elena that was new for her. She met many Russian celebrities, participated in recordings of Tatiana Morozova’s new album — “Gone with the Wind”, vol. 3, played in the television serial “Young and happy”.

Elena has worked with the National Charitable Foundation “Assembly Ball” for a long time. At one of its events she met a famous Russian composer Alexander Shulgin. He helped Elena implement a joined instrumental project. Aleksander Valeryevich is a prominent personality in the music industry known for experiments with new sounds. He conceived an idea of an original instrumental project based on the known and new music tracks. In course of the project they have recorded about 60 tracks, some of them were at the top of Canada’s charts; the tracks were released in 4 albums: “LadySax”, “LadySax-remix”, “SaxitEasy” and “SaxitUp”. The debut album “LadySax” was well received by the critics and was included into the main Jazz-page of the largest music server iTunes. The albums were recorded within 2 years. Elena has gained an invaluable experience of a studio work, skills of hearing, understanding and implementing a composer’s ideas.

Alexander Shulgin was surrounded with many famous people. Thanks to him she met a famous Russian piano player Yury Rozumov, People’s Artist of Russia, widely known all over the world. Together they had a series of successful concerts in Moscow and the localities within the frameworks of arts festival “Stellar” performing music compositions of Rokhmaninov, Chaykovsky and others. It was an amazing fusion of the Russian classical music and saxophone.