Israeli violinist Ivry Gitlis has died in Paris yesterday, aged 98. He was born in 1922 in Haifa to Jewish parents who had left what is now Ukraine.
He first started playing the violin when he was six years old and continued to play well into his 90s. Trained with Bronislaw Huberman, Jacques Thibaud, Georges Enesco and Carl Flesch, he was one of the greatest musical personalities of the last decades. During his career, the musician played on the most prestigious stages, for diverse audiences and with the largest orchestras.
Unesco Goodwill Ambassador, this Israeli living in France had a special place in the world of classical music: known for his interpretations, sometimes atypical, he also felt at ease with jazz and gypsy music.
He was the first Israeli artist to perform in the USSR in 1955.
