Shlomo Mintz

Shlomo Mintz (Hebrew: שלמה מינץ) (born October 30, 1957) is an Israeli violin virtuoso, violist and conductor. He regularly appears with orchestras and conductors on the international scene and is heard in recitals and chamber music concerts around the world.

Biography

Shlomo Mintz was born in Moscow. In 1959, at the age of two, his family immigrated to Israel, where he studied with Ilona Feher, one of the last representatives of the Central European Violin School. Feher introduced Shlomo Mintz to Isaac Stern, who became his mentor. He was also a student of Dorothy DeLay in New York.

Musical career

Mintz began his career at age 11 as a soloist with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Soon afterwards he was called on a week's notice by Zubin Mehta to play Paganini's first Violin Concerto with the orchestra when Itzhak Perlman fell ill. He made his Carnegie Hall debut at the age of sixteen with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra under the auspices of Isaac Stern and the American-Israel Cultural Foundation, and subsequently began his studies with Dorothy DeLay at the Juilliard School of Music in New York. At the age of 20 he made a big tour through Europe with famous conductors such as Carlo Maria Giulini, Antal Dorati, and Eugene Ormandy. He also signs at his early twenties a contract with Deutsche Grammophon.