Friedman, Erick
Friedman, Erick
Friedman, Erick, remarkable American violinist, conductor, and teacher; b. Newark, N.J., Aug. 16, 1939. He began his studies with his father. After lessons from Samuel Applebaum, he enrolled at age 10 as a pupil of Galamian at the Juilliard School of Music in N.Y He also received lessons from Milstein, and then from Heifetz (1956–58). In 1953 he won the Music Education League Competition and made his formal debut as a soloist with the Little Orch. Soc. of N.Y. After making his recital debut at N.Y’s Carnegie Hall in 1956, he toured widely as a recitalist. He also appeared as a soloist with many of the foremost orchs. in North America and overseas, and performed at various festivals. In 1983 he was soloist in the Bartók Violin Concerto on A & E TV. Turning his attention to conducting, he became music director of the Garrett Lakes (Md.) Summer Festival Orch. in 1988. He also taught at the Yale Univ. School of Music from 1989. In 1993 he likewise resumed his career as a stunning virtuoso violinist. In 1998 he received extraordinary critical acclaim for the mastery he dis-played in London. In addition to his outstanding interpretations of the standard violin repertoire, Friedman has had works written for and/or dedicated to him by such composers as Mario Castelnuovo- Tedesco, Isadore Freed, Ezra Laderman, and Laurent Petitgirard.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire