Coming from a musical family, Alexander Vasilyev began to take up clarinet lessons at the age of ten. In 2003 he entered the Special musical school of St. Petersburg State Conservatoire to study at Andrey Bolshiyanov’s class, with whom he won several International andNational competitions for youth, and obtained his school-leaving certificate in 2010. After that he continued his studies with Professor Andrey Kazakov at St. Petersburg State Conservatoire and since 2013 with Nicolas Baldeyrou and Robert Bianciotto in Conservatoire National Supérieur Musique et Danse de Lyon, France.
In cooperation with the Vladimir Spivakov International Charity Foundationand Gartow Stiftung Foundation he performed as a soloist and chamber-music player in the Kremlin, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Grand Hall, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Laeiszhalle Hamburg and other concert halls of Hamburg, Berlin, Dusseldorf, Koblenz, Rostockand Moscow. From 2008 to 2013 he was granted by “Russian Standart Bank” in a program supporting young Russian rising stars.
Since 2008he has been a soloist of the St. Petersburg Music House. This most influential Russian artistic managment have taken Alexander Vasilyev throughout Russia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus, France and the USA.
As a soloist he won a few prestigious competitions : Long Island Conservatory Competition (2009) ; Gartow Stiftung Competition for woodwinds (2011) ; “First National Musical Competition” founded by the Russian Ministry of Culture (2012, soloist nomination) ; Rimsky-Korsakov International Competition (2013) and “Second National Music Competition” founded by the Russian Ministry of Culture (2016, ensemble nomination).
At an early age he began to combine solo and chamber-music activities with orchestral work. In 2012 Alexander Vasilyev was invited to practice at St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of maestro Yury Temirkanov. His debut concert with maestro was in Suntory Hall, Tokyo playing Tchaikovsky’s 4th Symphony. Two years after he became a member of this orchestra.
Playing in a woodwind quintet was always one of priority ways in Alexander’s career. He had a privilege to be a guest artist in Mariinsky quintet during two years until he organized the St.Petersburg Philharmonic Quintet with his colleagues from the orchestra. Now this ensemble has annual concerts during St.Petersburg Philharmonic’s seasons and has an invitation to perform at “Stars on Baikal Festival” by Denis Matsuev.
Since 2016 Alexander Vasilyev holds position of professor of clarinet at the St. Petersburg State Conservatory.