Biography

Romana Šimbera was born in Slovenia in 1995. She began playing the cello at the age of six. At the age of 13, she entered the class of Prof. Karmen Pecar at the Ljubljana Music Conservatory. She completed her master's degree in music at the Music Academy in Zagreb in the class of Prof. Monika Leskovar before entering the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg (Germany) in the class of Prof. Elena. 

Romana received further impulses in master classes from Valter Dešpalj, David Gregorian, Ivan Monighetti, Troels Svane and Claudio Bohorquez. She is also a scholarship holder of the International Music Academy in Liechtenstein and takes part in the intensive weeks there.

Romana has won many awards such as the silver medal at the Slovenian National Music Competition "TEMSIG" 2009, the 3^rd prize at the "International Music Competition for Young Musicians Petar Konjovic" in Belgrade, the 2^nd prize and the Special Prize of the City of Udine at the "Concorso Internazionale per Giovani Strumentisti" by Povoletto 2011 or the gold medal and the 1^st prize at the "TEMSIG" music competition in 2012. At the "TEMSIG" in 2018, in addition to the 1^stprize, she also won the special prize for the best interpretation of an obligatory piece. In 2019 she received the Rector's Prize of the University of Zagreb, the university's most prestigious award. With her chamber music duo Accellorandom, she won both the 1^st and special prize at the "International Accordion Competition" in Pula in Croatia in 2018, the 2^ndprize at the "International Accordion Competition" in Kliengenthal (Germany) and the 1^st and two special prizes at the "International Accordion Competition" in Castelfidardo (Italy). 

Romana played for radio and television recordings of the Slovenian broadcaster RTV as a soloist with the radio and television symphony orchestra. She has also worked as a soloist with the Zagreb Chamber Orchestra, the Zagreb Music Academy String Chamber Orchestra and the Amadeo String Orchestra. She has been heard at festivals, including the Salzburg Festival, the Elbphilharmonie Sommer, the Bolzano Festival Bozen, the Ravello Festival, the Kunstfest Weimar, the Cheah Festival in Rutesheim, the Cello Academy in Germany, at Klassik im Grünen in Buckow, at Cervo is magic in Italy, the Ukrainian Bayan and Accordion Day, the Bled Festival in Slovenia and the Amadeo Festival, also in Slovenia. 

In 2021, Romana was a member of the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra and played in renowned halls in Europe such as the Musikverein Wien, the Elbphilharmonie and the Semperoper Dresden. From 2022-2024, she will be the orchestra academist of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.