Kim Kashkashian
Kim Kashkashian, internationally recognized as a unique voice on the viola, was born of Armenian parents in Michigan. Kim Kashkashian’s quest for new directions and forms of music making is an active element of her musical life. Her work with the composers György Kurtág, Giya Kancheli, Krzysztof Penderecki, Ken Ueno, Betty Olivero, Tigran Mansurian and Peter Eötvös has extensively enriched the repertoire for viola. Ms. Kashkashian has collaborated with the Tokyo, Guarneri and Orion quartets and toured with a unique quartet which included Daniel Phillips, Gidon Kremer and Yo Yo Ma. Kim Kashkashian has appeared as soloist with the major orchestras of Chicago, Cleveland Berlin, Milan, London, Tokyo and Vienna, working with conductors including Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Christoph Eschenbach, Ricardo Chailly, Dennis Russell Davies and Franz Welser-Möst. Her recital appearances include the great concert halls of Vienna, Rome, Paris, Berlin, New York, Boston, San Francisco, Cleveland, Philadelphia, and London with her duo partners pianist Robert Levin, and percussionist Robyn Schulkowsky. She is a frequent participant at the Ravinia, Marlboro, Salzburg and Verbier Festivals.
Major influences during her studies were Walter Trampler and Karen Tuttle at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore and at the Marlboro Music Festival where she worked intensively with Felix Galimir. Ms. Kashkashian first gained international recognition as recipient of the Pro Musicis award, and as a prize winner in the Tertis and ARD Munich International Competitions, which led to a creative association with the Lockenhaus Festival led by Gidon Kremer.
After early recordings with DGG and Sony, an ongoing association with ECM Records has resulted in an extensive discography which includes the 2013 Grammy Award-winning recording of György Ligeti’s Solo Sonata and György Kurtág’s Signs, Games and Messages.
Kim Kashkashian resides in Boston and holds a position teaching viola and chamber music at the New England Conservatory of Music. She plays a leading role in the “Music for Food” project, a musician’s initiative to fight hunger in our home communities with the power of classical music.