Rachel Barton Pine Returns!
September 26, 2009

Rachel Barton Pine, violin

The New York Times identified Rachel Barton Pine as “A greatly gifted young violinist…her sound was rich and commanding.” The Chicago based violinist has performed on stages all over the world in front of hundreds of thousands of people, released 13 albums, won countless prestigious awards, and played with musicians ranging from Placido Domingo to Jimmy Page. Yet throughout her career, Ms. Pine has worked to demystify classical music and bring it to audiences for whom it has not been easily accessible. Groups as varied as inner city children, sports fans, music students in developing countries, and even her fellow rock fans have been enriched by Ms. Pine’s devotion to music and the infectious enthusiasm with which she shares it. She’s more than a musician – she’s perhaps the greatest young ambassador that classical music has today.

A Chicago native, Ms. Pine began violin studies at age three and made her professional debut four years later at age seven with the Chicago String Ensemble. Her earliest appearances with the Chicago Symphony (at ages 10 and 15) were broadcast on television. In 1992, at age 17, she became the youngest person and first American to win a gold medal at the prestigious J.S. Bach International Competition in Leipzig, Germany. Other top prizes followed in the Szigeti (Budapest), Paganini (Genoa), Queen Elisabeth (Brussels), Kreisler (Vienna), and Montreal international violin competitions. Her principal teachers were Roland and Almita Vamos and she has also studied with Ruben Gonzalez, Werner Scholz, Elmira Darvarova and several specialists in baroque and classical period performance practice. She performs on the Joseph Guarnerius del Gesu (Cremona 1742), known as the “ex-Soldat,” on generous loan from her patron.