- Jacques Israelievitch
Jacques Israelievitch (born
May 6 ,1948 inCannes ,France ) is a French violinist, and one of Canada's foremost chamber musicians.At 11 years old he was the youngest graduate in the history of the
Le Mans Conservatory . He went on to study at theConservatoire de Paris withHenryk Szeryng and René Benedetti, receiving three first prizes at age 16. He also studied at Indiana University withJosef Gingold ,János Starker ,William Primrose andMenahem Pressler .Israelievitch also performs as a soloist and chamber musician, collaborating with artists such as
Carlo Maria Giulini ,Jukka-Pekka Saraste ,Emanuel Ax ,Yefim Bronfman , andYo-Yo Ma . In 1972,Sir Georg Solti appointed him as Assistant Concertmaster of the Chicago Symphony , making him the youngest member of the orchestra. He then served as Concertmaster of the St. Louis Symphony. He served as Concertmaster of theToronto Symphony Orchestra from 1988 to 2008.He has recorded works by
Ludwig van Beethoven andR. Murray Schafer with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, violin works byEdvard Grieg , andWolfgang Amadeus Mozart 's Sinfonia Concertante. His CD "Suite Hebraique" was nominated for a Juno award. Other CDs include "Suite Enfantine", "Suite Fantaisie", "Suite Française", and "Solo Suite". Recently, he made a complete recording of the 42 Kreutzer Etudes, the first of its kind. The CD and the accompanying score have been praised internationally.In 1999, Jacques Israelievitch and his son, Michael (a percussionist) formed the Israelievitch Duo. They have commissioned and premiered works by distinguished contemporary composers including Michael Colgrass, Srul Irving Glick, and Murray Adaskin. The CD "Hammer and Bow" is the Israelievitch Duo's first full length CD.
He has taught at Indiana University, and is a Faculty Member of the
University of Toronto , theRoyal Conservatory of Music andYork University . During the summer, he is the Chair-of Strings and teaches Violin Performance and Chamber Music at theChautauqua Institution . He is also a member of the New Arts Trio, which has been in residence at Chautauqua since 1978.In 1995, Israelievitch was honored by France with the title of "Chevalier" (knight) of the "
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres " (Order of Arts and Literature). In 2004, he was made "Officier" (Officer) of the Order.
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