iClassical Foundation is a non-profit organisation organised according to the Swiss law, it is domiciled in Crans-Montana. The foundation is committed to producing educational online video tools for musicians, in particular master classes. All operational activities are delegated to iClassical Academy Ltd. The goal is to encourage and enable a generation of young and talented musicians, as well as professionals, teachers and amateurs to enhance their skills and become artists who share their music with audiences all over the world. Moreover, it strives to connect them with some of the world's most accomplished teachers. For the time being, the focus is on master classes for piano, violin, cello, and trumpet. The website and its content are provided in english.
Mission
The mission of iClassical Academy is to provide young musicians from around the world with the opportunity of improving their skills and being appreciated by wider audiences. Advanced students often find themselves excluded from masterclasses because of lack of funds. Additionally, many music schools in emerging countries are unable to afford the cost of employing the best quality teachers. The credo is: "We believe that anyone at any time should have access to very good music teachers.
Business model
iClassical Academy works as a club. Memberships is free for access to previews and special content. Access to all masterclasses and webinars requires a fee.
Method
So far, tradition has almost always been to show online the filming of a masterclass for students in the classroom or on the stage. iClassical Academy departs from this in order to have the masterclasses divided into tutorials as well as a separate performance of the student. Their focus is on the teaching part instead of showing a masterclass in its integrality. The motivation is that online teaching according to iClassical Academy should have a different scope that is more focused on the viewer at home. The academy has also introduced the slow motion tool for its videos. It plans to introduce the multicamera tool. They will allow the student to see the hands' positions on the instrument from different angles.
Founders
Edgar Cohen, a native of France is a Medical Doctor, an entrepreneur and passionate about classical music and art. In 2011 he came up with the idea of creating a website to make classical music masterclasses available all over the world, by collaborating with well known professors and artists. He currently lives in Tel Aviv, where he has founded two medical centres. Pierre Perrenoud, a native of Western Switzerland, spent most of his life in Zurich and travelling all over the world for professional reasons and to satisfy his cultural interests. Since his retirement, he has been involved with many cultural projects in Crans-Montana, with a bias for classical music. He is the co-founder of iClassical Academy Ltd and chairman of iClassical Foundation.
