Immigrant of the Day: Itzhak Perlman

Itzhak Perlman (born August 31, 1945 in Jaffa, Israel) is a virtuoso violinist and teacher. He is one of the most distinguished violinists of the late 20th century.  Perlman first became interested in the violin when he heard a classical music performance on the radio. He studied at the Academy of Music in Tel Aviv before moving to the United States to study at the Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian and Dorothy DeLay. He made his debut at Carnegie Hall in 1963 and won the prestigious Leventritt Competition in 1964. Soon afterward he began to tour extensively. In addition to an extensive recording career, he has made occasional guest appearances on American television, starting in the 1970s on shows such as The Tonight Show and Sesame Street, as well as playing at a number of functions at the White House.

Perlman contracted polio at the age of four. He made a good recovery, learning to walk with the use of crutches. Today, he generally uses crutches for mobility and plays the violin while seated. Perlman has been a soloist for a number of movie scores, notably the score of Schindler’s List (1993) by John Williams, which subsequently won an Academy Award for Best Score. More recently, he was the violin soloist for Memoirs of a Geisha (2005), along with cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Perlman played selections from the musical scores of the movies nominated for “Best Original Score” at the 73rd Academy Awards (with Yo-Yo Ma) and at the 78th Academy Awards.

Perlman plays on the famous Soil Stradivarius violin, considered to be one of the finest violins made during Stradivari’s “golden period”.

In 2003, Mr. Perlman was named the holder of the Dorothy Richard Starling Foundation Chair in Violin Studies at the Juilliard School, succeeding his teacher, Dorothy DeLay. Perlman played during the entertainment portion of the White House State Dinner in honor on Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on May 7, 2007, in the East Room at the White House. Itzhak Perlman resides in New York City with his wife, Toby. In 1995, they founded the Perlman Music Program in Shelter Island, New York, offering gifted young string players a summer residential course in chamber music. For a full biography and discography, click here.

KJ