MUSIC

The Houston Symphony presents Itzhak Perlman.  Wednesday, November 4 at 7:30pm.

Undeniably the reigning virtuoso of the violin, Itzhak Perlman enjoys superstar status rarely afforded a classical musician. In January 2009, Mr. Perlman was honored to take part in the Inauguration of President Barack Obama, premiering a piece written for the occasion by John Williams and performing with clarinetist Anthony McGill, pianist Gabriela Montero, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. President Reagan granted him a “Medal of Liberty” in 1986, and President Clinton awarded him the “National Medal of Arts” in December 2000. In December 2003, he was a Kennedy Center Honoree. In May 2007, he performed at the State Dinner for Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, hosted by President George W. Bush and Mrs. Bush at the White House.

As soloist, Mr. Perlman continues to visit major centers throughout the world. In September 2009, he will help celebrate the opening of the Barvikha Concert Hall outside Moscow with a reprise of his acclaimed Klezmer program, “In the Fiddler’s House.” He will also be featured in recital at the Moscow Conservatory with pianist and frequent collaborator, Rohan De Silva. Other highlights of his 2009-10 season include a performance with the New York Philharmonic to commemorate World Polio Day; two West Coast tours covering Los Angeles, San Diego and Vancouver, among others; and recitals across North and Central America including Mexico City, Atlanta, Miami, and Boston. Mr. Perlman also appears with students from the Perlman Music Program in a three-concert series at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and in Israel.

In addition to his many orchestral and recital appearances throughout the world, Mr. Perlman performs as conductor with leading orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, the Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony and the New York Philharmonic. This season marks his second as Artistic Director of the Westchester Philharmonic Orchestra. He was Music Advisor of the St. Louis Symphony from 2002 to 2004 where he made regular conducting appearances, and he was Principal Guest Conductor of the Detroit Symphony from 2001 to 2005.

He proudly possesses four Emmy Awards and fifteen Grammy awards. He performed at the 2006 Academy Awards and at the Juilliard School Centennial gala, broadcast nationally on Live from Lincoln Center. He collaborated with composer John Williams in Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-winning film Schindler’s List, in which he performed the violin solos.

Mr. Perlman devotes considerable time to education, both in his participation each summer in the Perlman Music Program and his teaching at the Juilliard School, where he holds the Dorothy Richard Starling Foundation Chair. He was awarded an honorary doctorate and a centennial medal on the occasion of Julliard’s 100th commencement ceremony in May 2005.

Scheduled Program:
Berlioz: Overture to Béatrice et Bénédict
Elgar: Enigma Variations
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto

Conductor: Larry Rachleff
Guests: Itzhak Perlman, violin

Photo by Ikira Kinoshita.