WORLD RENOWNED VIOLINIST

ITZHAK PERLMAN

SUNDAY, APRIL 5, 2009, 7:00 PM
AT BASS CONCERT HALL

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

Undeniably the reigning virtuoso of the violin, Itzhak Perlman enjoys superstar status rarely afforded a classical musician. Perlman’s celebrated career has earned him four Emmy Awards, fifteen Grammy Awards, a Medal of Liberty presented by President Reagan, and the National Medal of Arts awarded by President Clinton. During this 2008-2009 season he is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his American debut. Accompanied by acclaimed pianist Rohan De Silva, Perlman performs one show at the University of Texas at Austin Performing Arts Center’s Bass Concert Hall on Sunday, April 5 at 7:00 p.m.

Born in Israel in 1945, Mr. Perlman completed his initial training at the Academy of Music in Tel Aviv. He went to New York and soon was propelled into the international arena with an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1958. Following his studies at the Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian and Dorothy DeLay, Mr. Perlman won the prestigious Leventritt Competition in 1964, which led to a burgeoning worldwide career. Years later, he collaborated with composer John Williams in Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-winning film Schindler’s List, in which he performed the violin solos. He can also be heard as the violin soloist on the soundtrack of Zhang Yimou’s film Hero (music by Tan Dun) and Rob Marshall’s Memoirs of a Geisha (music by John Williams).

As soloist, Mr. Perlman continues to visit major centers throughout the world. In March 2009, the Festival of the Arts BOCA will devote its festival to a celebration of his anniversary with concerto, chamber music and klezmer performances, as well as a closing concert with Mr. Perlman as conductor of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Other highlights of his 2008-09 season include performances with Pinchas Zukerman at Washington’s National Symphony and Ottawa’s National Arts Centre; recitals across the United States including Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle; and a gala event at Carnegie Hall with Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax in March 2009. 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 recital at Symphony Hall in Chicago.
In addition to his many orchestral and recital appearances worldwide, 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 first as Artistic Director of the Westchester Philharmonic Orchestra.

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. Numerous publications and institutions have paid tribute to Itzhak Perlman for the unique place he occupies in the artistic and humanitarian fabric of our times. Harvard, Yale, Brandeis, Roosevelt, Yeshiva and Hebrew universities are among the institutions which have awarded him honorary degrees. He was awarded an honorary doctorate and a centennial medal on the occasion of Juilliard’s 100th commencement ceremony in May 2005. His presence on stage, on camera and in personal appearances of all kinds speaks eloquently on behalf of the disabled, and his devotion to their cause is an integral part of Mr. Perlman’s life.

The Performing Arts Center will host a Pre-Performance Lecture for this event.
6:00 p.m. – Bass Concert Hall Lobby
Speaker: Eugene Gratovich, Associate Professor of Violin at the Butler School of Music

Calendar Listing:
Sunday, April 5, 2009, 7:00 pm – The University of Texas at Austin Performing Arts Center presents Itzhak Perlman at the Performing Arts Center’s Bass Concert Hall (E. 23rd St. and Robert Dedman Dr). A map of the campus: http://www.utpac.org/visit/maps_directions. Tickets ($40.00 – $75.00) are on sale now at the authorized ticket outlets, which include the Bass Concert Hall Box Office, most H-E-B stores and all Texas Box Office outlets, online at www.utpac.org, or by calling (512) 477-6060 or (800) 982-BEVO.

PRESS CONTACT:
Gene Bartholomew
512.471.0632
gbartholomew@utpac.org

Download a PDF version of the Itzhak Perlman press release.