Daphne Manavopoulos is a violinist and teacher specializing in historical and modern violin. Born in Montreal to a Greek father and Canadian mother, she took her first violin lessons with Theodora Stathopoulos and at the McGill Conservatory of Music with Jean Grimard at age three.
Moving to Greece, she continued her studies first with Yiannis Vatikiotis and later with Vasili Papa at the Orpheion Conservatory of Athens, receiving the highest level Performance Diploma in 2007.
She relocated to London in 2008 to pursue her interest in historically informed performance, studying with Walter Reiter; first at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, and then at the Royal Academy of Music, London, from where she holds a Master of Arts in Historical Performance.
Her teachers have included Margaret Faultless, Rachel Podger, Adrian Butterfield, Julia Wedman and Olivier Brault. She has also had lessons with Jeanne Lamon, Simos Papanas, Christopher Verrette, David Staff and Tricia Ahern. She has played in baroque ensembles at all the London Conservatories (Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance), and has received scholarships to participate in the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute in Toronto and the Dartington International Summer School in Devon, England.
As a modern violinist she participated in the Academy of Music Festival in Nyack, NY, studying with Isaac Malkin. She has also participated in masterclasses by Bernhard Hartog and Grigori Zhislin.
Daphne enjoys a performing career in both North America and Europe. She has performed with ensembles such as Florilegium (UK), Charivari Agréable (UK), The Hanover Band (UK), Little Baroque Company (UK), Camerata Antica (UK), Collegium Musicum, Cambridge (UK), Jeune Orchestre Atlantique (France), Musicians of London (UK), and in the London Handel Festival.
She is also a dedicated teacher, and has been teaching for the past twenty years in Athens, London, Bristol, Boston, and Montreal. She taught at École FACE, and also maintains a private teaching studio in Montreal.
Daphne plays on a 1794 violin by Fritz Wörnle and a 1707 violin by Aegidius Klotz.
Non-musical interests have led her to volunteer at a vet clinic and a cat charity in Athens, and as a live-in mentor for young adults in Boston. She has also taught English as a second language, and worked as a tutor.
In her free time she enjoys reading, rock climbing, ballet, yoga, baking, exploring the Montreal food scene, and spending time with her two cats.