Guy Braunstein
violin
“I always remain who I am. Only the music decides my meaning.” (Guy Braunstein)
A unique blend of virtuosity, restraint and creativity – this is what violinist, conductor
and composer Guy Braunstein stands for. Like few others, he not only knows how to
convince audiences with his music, but also how to challenge them: Whether with
demanding programmes, sophisticated interpretations or his own works and
arrangements – Guy Braunstein aims to surprise and reinvent. And although he can
easily be categorised in the “tradition of the great Jewish violinists such as Mischa
Elman and Isaac Stern” (Telegraph), for him music lives not only from its own history,
but through perpetual renewal, updating and unexpected twists and turns.
Whether as a celebrated soloist who masters the standard repertoire from Bach to
Shostakovich with ease, or as a congenial chamber music partner in a wide variety of
formations: Guy Braunstein is a guest at the world's most important music centres
and festivals. He has performed with renowned orchestras such as the Tonhalle
Orchestra Zurich, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra
London and the Berlin Philharmonic. His musical partners include András Schiff, Zubin
Mehta, Maurizio Pollini, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Yefim Bronfman, Daniel Barenboim,
Simon Rattle, Martha Argerich, Mitsuko Uchida, Christoph von Dohnányi, Lang Lang,
Emmanuel Ax, Andris Nelsons and Semyon Bychkov. Guy Braunstein is also present
on the international concert stage as a conductor: he was Conductor and Artist in
Residence with the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra and the Trondheim
Symfoniorkester and works with orchestras such as the Helsinki, Rotterdam and
Israel Philharmonic as well as the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.
Guy Braunstein grew up in Tel Aviv and began playing the violin at the age of seven.
He studied with Chaim Taub and later in New York with Glenn Dicterow and Pinchas
Zuckerman and his mentor Isaac Stern. His collaboration with Claudio Abbado in
particular is one of Guy Braunstein's most important influences. In 2000, he became
the youngest violinist in the orchestra's history to take over the position of
concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic and helped shape the orchestra for over a
decade. He was Artistic Director of the Rolandseck Festival and the clasclas Festival
in Galicia.
Guy Braunstein plays a violin made by Francesco Ruggieri in 1679.
