- Steven Staryk
Steven (Sam) Staryk (born
1932 ) is a Canadianviolin virtuoso.Born in
Toronto ,Ontario , of Ukrainian descent, he went toHarbord Collegiate Institute when he was young andThe Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto) with further studies in New York.As a renowned teacher, orchestral and chamber musician, and international soloist, he is considered to be the leading Canadian-born violinist of his generation. He is listed in"The Encyclopedia of Music in Canada" and 23 international publications including "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians". Awards include the Shevchenko Medal, the Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal, an honorary doctorate of letters from Toronto's York University, and arts awards from the Canada Council.
In 1951, he was one of the
Symphony six who were denied permission to enter the United States.He was runner-up to
Salvatore Accardo in the International Competition for Musical Performers in Geneva, 1956. No first prize was awarded that year.Again, he was runner-up at the Carl Flesch International Competition in London where only one prize is awarded.
He became concertmaster of the
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 24, the youngest ever, earning the title "king of concertmasters" from "The Strad" magazine. He went on to serve as concertmaster of the Concertgebouw,Amsterdam Chamber Orchestra , theChicago Symphony Orchestra , and theToronto Symphony Orchestra .Staryk is a well known master teacher and many of his pupils hold various positions in major orchestras, chamber groups and professional music schools around the world. He has taught at the Amsterdam Conservatory, Northwestern University and the American Conservatory in Chicago. He became the youngest full professor at Oberlin College Conservatory in Ohio. He served as head of the string department at the Vancouver Academy of Music and taught at the
University of Victoria . Other teaching posts include theUniversity of Ottawa , theUniversity of Western Ontario ,The Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto) , and theUniversity of Toronto . His teaching career culminated with the University of Washington in Seattle which conferred on him its Distinguished Teaching Award, the first ever accorded to a Professor in its School of Music.He was a member of the Oberlin String Quartet, a founding member of Quartet Canada, led the CBC String Quartet and formed the Staryk-Perry Duo (with pianist John Perry).
Staryk served as the first Canadian adjudicator for the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1982.
His discography of over 190 compositions ranks him as one of the most prolific recording violinists on the world stage and the most recorded classical Canadian musician to date. (James Creighton: "Discography of the Violin")
In 1987, Staryk appeared as the adult composer/violinist in the two-hour docu-drama film "Vivaldi".
In 2000 he co-authored a book with Thane Lewis about his life as a professional musician in "Fiddling With Life: The Unusual Journey of Steven Staryk".
He is presently (2008)completing his retrospective anthology of live performances and recordings on a compilation of 30 CDs covering the period 1952-2003.
The prestigious "Gramophone" of London provides a succinct summary: "Staryk is among the great ones."
In 2007 he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada and in 2008 received an Honorary Fellowship from theGlenn Gould School ofThe Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto) .External links
*Steven Staryk in [http://www.collectionscanada.ca/emc/028004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=3333&&interval=10&PHPSESSID=p0pbog3s5ogbc138h58a801fv4 The Encyclopedia of Music in Canada]
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