Happy Birthday, Boris Kuschnir!

Today is Austrian violinist and pedagogue Boris Kuschnir's 76th birthday!

Born into a musical family in Kiev in 1948, he studied violin with Boris Belenky at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire and chamber music with Valentin Berlinsky of the Borodin Quartet.

He attributes his artistic development to his time with Dmitri Shostakovich and David Oistrakh. His career blossomed in 1969, when he was one of three winners at the Allunions-Competition in Leningrad, where he performed the Beethoven Violin Concerto with the Leningrad Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Yuri Temirkanov.

Kuschnir makes appearances at renowned academies such as Verbier Festival Academy and Kronberg Academy and has been on the jury of various international music competitions such as the Queen Elisabeth Competition, Tchaikovsky Competition, the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, and Joseph Joachim Competition.

A graduate of the Moscow Conservatory, Professor Kuschnir currently holds teaching positions at the Konservatorium Wien University and the Graz University of Music.

His famed students include Julian Rachlin, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider, Lorenzo Gatto, Alexandra Soumm and VC Artists Fedor Rudin and Maria Dueñas.

Kuschnir plays on a Stradivari violin loaned by Austrian National Bank in recognition of his artistic performance and service to music.

BORIS KUSCHNIR | VIVALDI | VIOLIN CONCERTO IN G MINOR | MACAO YOUTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA