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Isaac Stern (July 21, 1920 – September 22, 2001) was one of the finest violin virtuosi of the twentieth century.

Born in Kremenetz, Ukraine on July 21, 1920, Isaac Stern was ten months old when his family moved to San Francisco. He received his first music lessons from his mother before enrolling at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in 1928. He studied there until 1931, then studied privately with Louis Persinger.^[1] He returned to the San Francisco Conservatory in 1932 to study with Naoum Blinder for five years. He said he owed the most to Blinder.^[2] At his public début on February 18, 1936, aged 16, he played Saint-Saëns' Violin Concerto No. 3 in B minor with the San Francisco Symphony orchestra, conducted by Pierre Monteux.

Stern was by no means technically flawless. His intonation was often inaccurate compared to that of other renowned violinists such as Jascha Heifetz or Nathan Milstein, both known for their impeccable intonation. However, Stern was lauded for his ability to produce a tone of great depth. He also tended to sustain each phrase, as if the violin were singing.

Within musical circles, Stern became renowned both for his recordings and for championing certain younger players. Among his discoveries were cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and violinists Itzhak Perlman and Pinchas Zukerman. He also played a major role in saving New York City's Carnegie Hall from demolition in 1960;[1] its main auditorium has been named after him.

Amongst his many recordings, Stern recorded concertos by Brahms, Bach, Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Vivaldi and modern works by Samuel Barber, Béla Bartók, Igor Stravinsky and Leonard Bernstein. He also dubbed actors' violin-playing in several films, one of which was Fiddler on the Roof.

Stern's favorite violin was the "Ysaye" Guarneri del Gesù, one of the violins produced by the Cremonese Giuseppe Guarneri. In his autobiography written with Chaim Potok, My First 79 Years, he cites Nathan Milstein and Arthur Grumiaux as major influences on his style of playing.

In 1987, Stern received the Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievement.

He married ballerina Nora Kaye in November 1948, but their marriage ended in divorce in 1949. On August 17, 1951, Isaac married Vera Lindenblit. They had three children together. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1994 after 43 years of marriage. On January 23, 1997, Isaac married his third wife, Linda Reynolds, who survived him.

Isaac Stern died on September 22, 2001 of congestive heart failure. He was 81.

Contents 1 Discography 2 Reference 3 Notes 4 External links

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• 1983

Bach, Vivaldi: Concertos for 2 Violins

Isaac Stern: 60th Anniversary Celebration

Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto; Beethoven: Romances in G & F Major

Haydn: London Trios

• 1985

An Isaac Stern Vivaldi Gala

• 1986

Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos

• 1987

Dutilleux: L'Arbre des Songes (Concerto pour Violin et Orchestre) & Maxwell Davies: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra

Celebration

Bach: Double Concerto; Violin Concertos Nos.1 & 2

Beethoven: Violin Concerto

Mozart: The Flute Quartets

Bach: Concertos for Violin, BWV 1041-43 & 1060

• 1988

Shostakovich: Piano Trio No.2; Cello Sonata

Brahms: Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra in A Minor, Op. 102 & Piano Quartet No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 60

Prokofiev: Violin Concertos No. 1 & 2

Brahms: Violin Concerto

• 1989

The Japanese Album

Music, My Love

Prokofiev: Concertos No. 1 & 2 for Violin and Orchestra

Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos.4 & 5

• 1990

Brahms, Mendelssohn, Schubert: Trios

Brahms: The Piano Quartets

Rameau: Pieces de clavecin en concerts

Lalo, Bruch, Wenianski, others: Violin Concertos

Bach, Mozart, Brahms, others: Violin Concertos

Mozart, Telemann, J.C. Bach, Reicha: Trios, Quartets

Schubert: Violin Sonatas

Humoresque: Favorite Violin Encores

• 1991

Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.5 "Emperor"; Triple Concerto

Beethoven: Complete Trios

Concert of the Century: Celebrating the 85th Anniversary of Carnegie Hall

Dvorák: Cello Concerto; Violin Concerto

Webern: Complete Works, Op. 1 - Op. 31

• 1992

Brahms: Sextets; more

• 1993

Tchaikovsky: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra & Serenade for Strings

Fauré: Piano Quartets

• 1994

Greatest Hits: Violin

The House of Magical Sounds

Greatest Hits: Schubert

Greatest Hits: Brahms

Beethoven, Schumann: Piano Quartets

Mozart: Sonatas for Violin and Piano, K. 454, 296 & 526

Beethoven: Piano Trios "Ghost" & "Archduke"

Bach: Violin Concerto, BWV 1041; Piano Concerto, BWV 1056; Brandenburg Concerto No.5; more

Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante; Violin Concerto No.5

Brahms: Sextet in B-flat major, Op. 18 & Piano Trio No. 1 in B major, Op. 8

Schubert: Quintet in C major, D956 & Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major, D485

• 1995

Isaac Stern Presents Encores with Orchestra

Telemann, Bach Family: Trio Sonatas

Mendelssohn: Piano Trios 1 & 2

Brahms: Piano Trios, Piano Quartets

A Life in Music, Vol.3: Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart, more

Beethoven: Piano Trios "Ghost" & "Archduke"; Variations

Schubert, Haydn: Piano Trios; Mozart: Piano Quartet

Bartók: Violin Concertos

Bernstein/Dutilleux: Violin Concertos

Berg: Violin Concerto; Kammerkonzert

Prokofiev/Bartók: Violin Concertos; Rhapsody No.1

Stravinsky/Rochberg: Violin Concertos

Barber/Maxwell Davies: Violin Concertos

Hindemith/Penderecki: Violin Concertos

Berg: Piano Sonata; Krenek: Piano Sonata No.3; Webern: Piano Variations; Debussy, Ravel: works

A Life in Music, Vol.1: Beethoven, Brahms, Mendelssohn, Sibelius, more

Mozart: Haffner Serenade

Mozart: Sonatas for Violin and Piano, Vol. II

Beethoven, Brahms: Violin Concertos

Tchaikovsky/Sibelius: Violin Concertos

Bach: Violin Concertos; Double Concerto; more

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons; Concertos

Mozart: Violin Concertos Nos.1-5; Sinfonia concertante; more

Wieniawski/Bruch/Tchaikovsky: Violin Concertos

Mendelssohn/Dvorák: Violin Concertos

• 1996

More Mozart's Greatest Hits

Mozart: Violin Sonatas, Vol. III

Schubert and Boccherini String Quintets

A Life in Music, Vol.4: Bach, Bartók, Beethoven, Copland, Schubert, more

Prokofiev: Violin Sonatas

Bartók: Violin Sonatas; Webern: Four Pieces for Violin and Piano

Beethoven: Violin Sonatas

J.S. & C.P.E. Bach, Handel, Tartini: Violin Sonatas

Hindemith/Bloch/Copland: Violin Sonatas

Schubert: Sonatinas Nos.1-3; Rondeau Brillant; Grand Duo Sonata

Franck/Debussy/Enesco: Violin Sonatas

Brahms: Violin Sonatas No. 1-3

Isaac Stern Presents Encores with Violin & Piano

• 1997

Barber: Adagio for Strings / Schuman - In Praise of Shahn etc.

Bartók Sonatas for Violin and Piano

Mozart: The Piano Quartets

• 1998

Isaac Stern Plays Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn

Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D

Bernstein: The Age of Anxiety; Foss: Serenade

Bach, Vivaldi: Concertos

Caprice Viennois: Music of Kreisler

• 1999

My First 79 Years

Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos

• 2000

Dvorák: Piano Quartet No.2, Sonatina in G, Romantic Pieces

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons; Concertos for Two Violins

• My First 79 Years, by Isaac Stern, written with Chaim Potok (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999), ISBN 0-679-45130-7

1. ^ K Robert Schwarz. "Isaac Stern", The Guardian. Retrieved on 2006-10-10.
2. ^ Isaac Stern 1920–2001. The Musical Times.

• Bio at Sony Music
• Isaac Stern at the IMDB
• Gravesite
• From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China