Hagai Shaham
Official Web Site
Displaying a dazzling combination of technical brilliance and a uniquely profound musical personality, Hagai Shaham is internationally recognized as one of the astonishing young violinists who have emerged from Israel in recent years. Hagai Shaham began studying the violin at age of six and was the last student of the late renowned Professor Ilona Feher. He also studied with Elisha Kagan, Emanuel Borok, Arnold Steinhardt and the Guarneri Quartet.
In September 1990, Hagai Shaham and his duo partner, Arnon Erez, won the first prize at the ARD International Music Competition in Munich in the Violin-Piano duo category, the first competitors to be awarded this coveted first prize since 1971. His other awards include first prizes at the Ilona Kornhouser competition, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority Young Artist competition, The Tel-Aviv Rubin Academy competition, four Clairmont Awards, and annual scholarship from the American-Israel Cultural Foundation.
As a soloist he has performed with many of the world's major orchestras, including the English Chamber Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, RTE National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Belgian National Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique Francais, Taipei, Singapore and Shanghai Symphony Orchestras, SWF Baden-Baden Symphony Orchestra, Slovak and Belgrade Philharmonic, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Zubin Mehta. In 1985 he was invited to join Isaac Stern and Pinchas Zukerman in a gala concert at Carnegie Hall, following which Zubin Mehta invited him to perform Brahms' Double Concerto at Carnegie Hall.
In 2006 he performed once again this work under Mehta, at the Israel Philharmonic 70th anniversary's celebrations with cellist Misha Maisky.
Hagai Shaham is in great demand as recitalist. He regularly tours throughout Europe, North and Central America and performing at international recital series and festivals.
Hagai Shaham recorded for Decca International, Chandos, Biddulph, Naxos, Classic Talent and AVIE. He records regularly for Hyperion, where his CDs received critical acclaim.
Hagai Shaham is a professor at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University; His Master Classes in Europe and Israel attract many students.
Together with his colleague, violinist Ittai Shapira, he is co-founder of The Ilona Feher Foundation.
Hagai Shaham is represented by Mr.
Uri Zur.
"Extraordinary timbre ... an engrossing technique and exciting bravura
... [His playing] electrified the audience ... the listeners urged encore after
encore"
WASHINGTON POST
"A soulful narrative and a tone that was rich and vibrant as Jascha Heifetz's"
THE INDEPENDENT
"An impassioned strong performance ... of great excitement (Bruch Concerto)
... There were many moments of thrilling virtuosity ... and a melting tone in
the quieter passages"
THE STRAD
"His technique is in the virtuoso class, with real wizardry ... musical
qualities ... and lustrous tone. There were times when he reminded me of another
fine violinist, Perlman, in a performance that combined phrasing with brilliant
technique and a well founded understanding of the music" (Sibelius Concerto)
BELFAST TELEGRAPH
"An interpretation which left nothing to be desired . His immense expression
... technical brilliance and spirit of playing ... reaped thunderous applause"
TIROLER TAGESZEITUNG
"A mature musician, full of passion, remarkably confident in his appearance
and artistic expression. His constructive understanding of the music makes one
look forward to hearing him again in the near future"
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE
"The evening's adventure came with Hagai Shaham's performance of the
Sibelius violin concerto ... Here is a soloist so involved with the music you
forget about his technique, which is considerable in its achievements, and the
sound he produces ranges from the sensitive to the passionate with everything
in between"
IRISH TIMES
"A sensational display of violin playing... it was the magic of his playing
that won the day"
(Paganini Concerto no. 1)
BELFAST NEWSLETTER
"Shaham played with brilliant virtuosity ... great precision and delightful
interpretation"
WIENER ZEITUNG
"A concert of ultimate perfection"
BADISCHES TAGBLATT
"Hagai Shaham's playing was a constant delight ... he came close to ignition
in the cadenza ... and achieved mesmeric pianissimos" (Paganini Concerto no.
1)
IRISH TIMES
"An exquisite performance ... original and animated interpretation"
DIE PRESSE, Vienna
"Hagai Shaham was a superb soloist (in the Sibelius Concerto); High spirits,
rhythmic grip, clean virtuosos flights and deep rich sounds ... heroic in majesty"
IRISH TIMES
"YOUNG PIANO AND VIOLIN DUO DISPLAYS ASTONISHING MASTERY - They tossed
of a stunning performance of the Ravel 'Tzigane' ... gifted with exceptional
musical imagination ... incredibly dramatic and exciting"
THE OTTAWA CITIZEN
"Mendelssohn's ever-popular concerto introduced us to Hagai Shaham, a
player of quite exceptional resource ... in which spacious phrasing was linked
to disarming and unaffected eloquence"
BELFAST TELEGRAPH
"An ideal balance between profound musicality and impeccable technique"
(Brahms Concerto)
PACIFIC CULTURAL FOUNDATION NEWSLETTER, Taipei
"Perfect interpretation and outstanding musicality"
KLEINE ZEITUNG, Vienna
"Hagai Shaham shows himself to be a master of color and vocal nuance.
His sonorous G string enriched by sensitive portamenti contrasts beautifully
with floated passages on the middle strings and high tessitura cantabile at
the top of the violin"
CLASSIC CD
"An exceptionally welcome release ... outstanding lyric quality ... Through
the richness of his tone, superior vibrato usage, expressiveness of phrasing
and top-drawer facility, he fulfills his potential in striking fashion ... It
is a treat to hear such tonally satisfying violin playing when commonplace sound,
even among accomplished artists, is so prevalent"
THE STRAD
"Shaham's approach achieves and ideal balance between expressive coloring
(slides, tone production, and a keen spiccato attack that hark back to masters
of the Auer school) and collaborative restraint. He obviously respects past
masters, and yet his playing eschews specific imitation (in his handling of
those pieces recorded by Heifetz, Elman, Kaufman and others) ... Hagai Shaham
inhabits the same stylistic world as his great forebearers."
GRAMOPHONE
