Gil Shaham on why it’s never been a better time to be a musician - ABC News & Headlines – Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Grammy Award-winning violinist Gil Shaham began learning the violin at four, simply because he wanted to do something different from his piano-playing brother. Raised in Israel by Russian-Jewish scientist parents, he jokes that he had to work hard to keep up with the dinner-table conversation.

His breakthrough came as a teenager, when he stepped in at a day's notice for an ailing Itzhak Perlman in a series of London Symphony Orchestra concerts. "Before, I had 4 or 5 concerts lined up — after it was 50-60."

Known for his clear, rich and expressive sound, Shaham was named Musical America's Instrumentalist of the Year in 2012 for the "special kind of humanism" in his performances. He is also a restless innovator: in 2004, he founded his own record label, Canary Classics, with his wife, Adele Anthony — Adelaide-born violinist and the youngest-ever winner of the ABC Young Performers Award. The label gives him complete artistic freedom to record the music and musicians he loves. "I feel it's the best time to be a musician."

Violinist Gil Shaham(Supplied. Photographer: Chris Lee)

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