Spanish violinist Francisco Fullana, the winner of the 2018 Avery Fisher Career Grant, has received international praise as a "rising star" (BBC Music Magazine), an "amazing talent" (maestro Gustavo Dudamel) and "a paragon of delicacy" (San Francisco’s Classical Voice). His playing is described as “explosive” (Gramophone), “electric and virtuosic” (The Strad). A native of Mallorca in the Balearic Islands of Spain, Francisco is making a name for himself as both a performer and a leader of innovative educational institutions. Born into a family of educators, Francisco first studied with Bernat Pomar in his hometown of Palma de Mallorca and later graduated from the Royal Conservatory of Madrid, where he matriculated under the tutelage of Manuel Guillén. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The Juilliard School following studies with Donald Weilerstein and Masao Kawasaki, and he holds an Artist Diploma from the USC Thornton School of Music, where he worked with the renowned violinist Midori. ll, and Jo Francisco is a committed innovator, leading new institutions of musical education for young people. He is a co-founder of San Antonio’s Classical Music Summer Institute, where he currently serves as Chamber Music Director. He also created the Fortissimo Youth Initiative, a series of Baroque and Classical music seminars and performances with youth orchestras, which aims to explore and deepen young musicians’ understanding of 18th-century music Joshua Weilerstein.